Tickets still available for Saturday night’s President’s Concert
Belmont University’s School of Music will honor legendary gospel singer CeCe Winans with the Applause Award at Saturday night’s annual President’s Concert. The Applause Award is given each year to a person or organization that has greatly benefited the arts community in Nashville. The President’s Concert honors the leadership of Belmont President Bob Fisher and celebrates the talent and diversity of the School of Music at Belmont. Tickets to the concert, which starts at 8 p.m., will be available for purchase for $15 at the doors of the Massey Performing Arts Center. Seating is general admission.
One of the most recognizable voices in gospel music, CeCe Winans has sold millions of albums during her 25-year music career. The charismatic singer has won numerous awards including eight Grammy Awards and 21 Dove Awards in addition to gold and platinum albums and several number one Gospel and Top Ten R&B hits. Moreover, she has a reputation as one of the friendliest people in the music industry. In addition to singing, Winans has demonstrated her acting skills in TV sitcoms such as “Living Single” and hosted her own TV series, “CeCe’s Place,” for the Odyssey cable channel. She penned an autobiography, On a Positive Note, and co-wrote Throne Room, a worship journal and a devotional book for teenage girls. In 2005, she founded the youth and young adult conference Always Sisters Forever Brothers, an annual event which will be held on the campus of Belmont University this July. Both of Winans’ children graduated from Belmont University, and CeCe Winans is a former Belmont trustee.
The President’s Concert features School of Music student ensembles and groups that highlight the musical diversity of the program. The Applause Award is presented during the concert. All funds raised by the dinner and concert provide scholarships for students in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, which includes the School of Music as well as the Department of Art and the Department of Theatre and Dance.
Previous Applause Award honorees include Earl Swensson (ESa), the Grand Ole Opry, ASCAP, Eddy Arnold, Chet Atkins, The Beaman Family Foundation, BMI, Patricia Taylor Bullard, Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art, James Cotham, Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Vince Gill and Amy Grant, Donna Hilley, Ronn Huff, Martha Ingram, Nashville Ballet, Nashville Opera, Nashville Symphony, Barbara Massey Rogers, SESAC, Steinway & Sons, Kenneth Schermerhorn, Tennessee Repertory Theatre, Jerry Warren and Sam Wilson.
