Dr. Eldred Marshall, Artist-in-Residence, Associate Director of Music Ministries
I will perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K. 491 as piano soloist with the Garland Symphony Orchestra on Friday, May 13 at 7:30pm.
To get ready for this concert, I will be in a series of intense rehearsals beginning this coming Tuesday evening.
It will cumulate in three separate performances in Arlington, Garland and Irving on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, respectively.
I owe this special guest artist residency to one persistent and determined Donna Bentley, who tirelessly advocated for me over many years with the Garland Symphony’s music director, Robert Carter Austin, alongside her husband Gary.
She asked me back in 2014 to send her my resume and some materials.
It wouldn’t be until 2017 that Maestro Austin could come to one of my solo recitals to hear me play.
In 2020, he got in touch with me, made the formal invitation to solo with his orchestra, and we began to discuss repertoire.
The contracts were issued, negotiated and signed in 2021, and now the concert happens in 2022.
This is as much Donna’s concert as it is mine, thanks to her investing in this engagement over eight years, especially as for most of these years it never looked like this was going to happen.
What Donna did for me is in keeping with the spirit and essence of our congregation: generosity, service and being a blessing.
Whether it’s hosting ChamberWorks, spearheading Running for Clean Water, Night in Bethlehem, helping Freeman Elementary, or showing up to a concert series to listen to virtually unknown artists play and sing their hearts out, I cannot think of a group of people that endeavors to walk in the light and to show love more than First United Methodist Church Garland.
Thank you for being a blessing in my life, church family.
May the Lord sustain us all as we continue to serve and work through long-term projects in order to help others and show us that our efforts are not in vain.
First Reflections 