Kermit Poling
Encyclopedia
Kermit Poling is a conductor, violinist and composer.
Kermit Poling is Resident Conductor of the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
and Music Director of both the South Arkansas Symphony and the Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
. He has performed extensively throughout the United States and abroad, including concerts in Mexico
, England
, Ireland
, France
, Austria
, Italy
and Switzerland
. His many guest conducting appearances have included the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México, the Riverside (NJ) Symphonia, the Moscow Chamber Orchestra
and Moscow Ballet
, Filharmonia Veneta, Ballet South, Opera Lewanee!, the Adrian Symphony, the Mayormente Mozart Festival of Puerto Rico, and the Inter-American Festival of Contemporary Music. A virtuoso violinist, he is in his 26th season as concertmaster of the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
, having also performed many solo works with the orchestra. He has previously served as conductor for the Boston Festival Pops Orchestra, the Boston Conservatory Chamber Orchestra, the Brookline Symphony, the Centenary College Chamber Orchestra, the Ruston Symphony and the Ark-La-Tex Youth Symphony Orchestra.
Also a composer and arranger, Poling's ballet Snow White, was commissioned and premiered by the Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
in the spring of 2003 and was repeated in 2004 to rave reviews. He also arranged and conducted a new orchestral show with the Cox Family of Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou fame for a special Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
fundraising event that same season. He has similarly created orchestral arrangements for a wide range of artists, including Grammy winning guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd
and blues singer Irma Thomas
. His work, Candles and Dreidels has been performed by symphonies throughout the country. He was awarded a commission for a ballet based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
, which premiered in the spring of 2006. Poling received the Outstanding Artist in Music Fellowship in 2000 from the State of Louisiana and the Music Fellowship from the Shreveport Regional Arts Council in 1996. He was awarded a conducting scholarship to the Tanglewood Music Center, studying with Leonard Bernstein
, Kurt Masur
, Gustav Meier
and Seiji Ozawa
, and received scholarships from the Boston Conservatory of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Music
.
Having many close ties to theater, he has conducted nearly 100 different theatrical productions for the Majorie Lyons Playhouse of Centenary College, Shreveport Opera
, the Greenbriar Theater of Ohio and other theaters throughout the U.S, with repertoire ranging from 1776 to Sweeney Todd. He has received numerous commissions to create new scores for theatrical works, including Elektra, As Bees in Honey Drown, and The Bat. In 1998 he was chosen by Emmy award winning artist William Joyce
to compose the music for his stage adaptation of The Leafmen and the Brave Good Bugs. This project was sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts
, and the CD of this music was released the following year. He recently composed incidental music for The River City Repertory Theatre's production of Tennessee Williams's "The Glass Menagerie," starring Tony winner Donna McKechnie.
Maestro Poling has been a featured conductor on NPR's
Performance Today
, the Arkansas Educational Television Network, the Red River Radio Network
, WGBH
Boston and has appeared as violinist on Louisiana Public Television and PBS in addition to numerous television and radio stations throughout the country. Poling also has produced a number of recordings, including Reflections by the Shreveport Symphony in 1999, and Alive With the Spirit by the Faithlink singers in 2003, on which he also appears as conductor. In 2005, Maestro Poling made his debut in China
conducting the Shenzhen Symphony and serving as one of three international judges for China's National Young Artists Competition. He has also been featured in Forum magazine as one of the top eight faces to watch.
Currently, Poling is the general manager of Red River Radio
.
Kermit Poling is Resident Conductor of the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Symphony Orchestra ' is based in Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish and the largest city in north Louisiana. Founded in 1948, the symphony remains the longest continually performing professional orchestra in Louisiana, despite a musicians' strike in October, 2008, which nearly...
and Music Director of both the South Arkansas Symphony and the Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
The Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet was founded in 1973 as the Ballet Lyrique in the Shreveport-Bossier City area. The Ballet has been operating continuously since then, making it one of the oldest arts organizations in Shreveport....
. He has performed extensively throughout the United States and abroad, including concerts in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. His many guest conducting appearances have included the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México, the Riverside (NJ) Symphonia, the Moscow Chamber Orchestra
Moscow Chamber Orchestra
The Moscow Chamber Orchestra is a Chamber Orchestra based in Moscow, Russia, and assigned to the Moscow Philharmonia, a State-run enterprise, formerly under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture and now, Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation.-Founding, 1955 :Rudolf Barshai was a virtuoso...
and Moscow Ballet
Moscow Ballet
The name Moscow Ballet has commonly been applied to a number of different ballet companies, these include the:*Moscow Ballet, A Russian ballet company...
, Filharmonia Veneta, Ballet South, Opera Lewanee!, the Adrian Symphony, the Mayormente Mozart Festival of Puerto Rico, and the Inter-American Festival of Contemporary Music. A virtuoso violinist, he is in his 26th season as concertmaster of the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Symphony Orchestra ' is based in Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish and the largest city in north Louisiana. Founded in 1948, the symphony remains the longest continually performing professional orchestra in Louisiana, despite a musicians' strike in October, 2008, which nearly...
, having also performed many solo works with the orchestra. He has previously served as conductor for the Boston Festival Pops Orchestra, the Boston Conservatory Chamber Orchestra, the Brookline Symphony, the Centenary College Chamber Orchestra, the Ruston Symphony and the Ark-La-Tex Youth Symphony Orchestra.
Also a composer and arranger, Poling's ballet Snow White, was commissioned and premiered by the Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet
The Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet was founded in 1973 as the Ballet Lyrique in the Shreveport-Bossier City area. The Ballet has been operating continuously since then, making it one of the oldest arts organizations in Shreveport....
in the spring of 2003 and was repeated in 2004 to rave reviews. He also arranged and conducted a new orchestral show with the Cox Family of Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou fame for a special Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Symphony Orchestra
Shreveport Symphony Orchestra ' is based in Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish and the largest city in north Louisiana. Founded in 1948, the symphony remains the longest continually performing professional orchestra in Louisiana, despite a musicians' strike in October, 2008, which nearly...
fundraising event that same season. He has similarly created orchestral arrangements for a wide range of artists, including Grammy winning guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Kenny Wayne Shepherd is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He has released several studio albums and experienced a rare level of commercial success both as a blues artist and a young musician.-Biography:Shepherd graduated Caddo Magnet High School in Shreveport, Louisiana...
and blues singer Irma Thomas
Irma Thomas
Irma Thomas is an American Grammy Award-winning soul and rhythm and blues singer from New Orleans. She is known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans"....
. His work, Candles and Dreidels has been performed by symphonies throughout the country. He was awarded a commission for a ballet based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a children's novel written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. Originally published by the George M. Hill Company in Chicago on May 17, 1900, it has since been reprinted numerous times, most often under the name The Wizard of Oz, which is the name of...
, which premiered in the spring of 2006. Poling received the Outstanding Artist in Music Fellowship in 2000 from the State of Louisiana and the Music Fellowship from the Shreveport Regional Arts Council in 1996. He was awarded a conducting scholarship to the Tanglewood Music Center, studying with Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
, Kurt Masur
Kurt Masur
Kurt Masur is a German conductor, particularly noted for his interpretation of German Romantic music.- Biography :Masur was born in Brieg, Lower Silesia, Germany and studied piano, composition and conducting in Leipzig, Saxony. Masur has been married three times...
, Gustav Meier
Gustav Meier
Gustav Meier is the director of the Orchestra Conducting Program at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University. He is also Music Director of the in Connecticut.-Biography:...
and Seiji Ozawa
Seiji Ozawa
is a Japanese conductor, particularly noted for his interpretations of large-scale late Romantic works. He is most known for his work as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and principal conductor of the Vienna State Opera.-Early years:...
, and received scholarships from the Boston Conservatory of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Music
Cleveland Institute of Music
The Cleveland Institute of Music is an independent music conservatory located in the University Circle district of Cleveland, Ohio, United States and is overseen by president Joel Smirnoff and Adrian Daly, dean....
.
Having many close ties to theater, he has conducted nearly 100 different theatrical productions for the Majorie Lyons Playhouse of Centenary College, Shreveport Opera
Shreveport Opera
-External links:*...
, the Greenbriar Theater of Ohio and other theaters throughout the U.S, with repertoire ranging from 1776 to Sweeney Todd. He has received numerous commissions to create new scores for theatrical works, including Elektra, As Bees in Honey Drown, and The Bat. In 1998 he was chosen by Emmy award winning artist William Joyce
William Joyce
William Joyce , nicknamed Lord Haw-Haw, was an Irish-American fascist politician and Nazi propaganda broadcaster to the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He was hanged for treason by the British as a result of his wartime activities, even though he had renounced his British nationality...
to compose the music for his stage adaptation of The Leafmen and the Brave Good Bugs. This project was sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
, and the CD of this music was released the following year. He recently composed incidental music for The River City Repertory Theatre's production of Tennessee Williams's "The Glass Menagerie," starring Tony winner Donna McKechnie.
Maestro Poling has been a featured conductor on NPR's
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
Performance Today
Performance Today
Performance Today is a Peabody Award-winning classical music radio show, currently hosted by Fred Child. It is the most listened-to daily classical music radio program in the United States, with 1.2 million listeners on 237 stations...
, the Arkansas Educational Television Network, the Red River Radio Network
Red River Radio
Red River Radio is the regional public radio station for northwest Louisiana, southern Arkansas, eastern Texas, and the southeasternmost corner of Oklahoma. The network is headquartered on the campus of Louisiana State University in Shreveport...
, WGBH
WGBH (FM)
WGBH is a public radio station located in Boston, Massachusetts. WGBH is a member station of NPR and PRI. The license-holder is the WGBH Educational Foundation, which also owns WGBH-TV and WGBX-TV....
Boston and has appeared as violinist on Louisiana Public Television and PBS in addition to numerous television and radio stations throughout the country. Poling also has produced a number of recordings, including Reflections by the Shreveport Symphony in 1999, and Alive With the Spirit by the Faithlink singers in 2003, on which he also appears as conductor. In 2005, Maestro Poling made his debut in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
conducting the Shenzhen Symphony and serving as one of three international judges for China's National Young Artists Competition. He has also been featured in Forum magazine as one of the top eight faces to watch.
Currently, Poling is the general manager of Red River Radio
Red River Radio
Red River Radio is the regional public radio station for northwest Louisiana, southern Arkansas, eastern Texas, and the southeasternmost corner of Oklahoma. The network is headquartered on the campus of Louisiana State University in Shreveport...
.