MaestroLuis Haza named <strong>College</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> Volunteer <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> YearAs an 8-year-old child in Santiago, Cuba, Luis Hazaresponded to an act <strong>of</strong> political violence by throwinghis heart and soul into music. All <strong>of</strong> his anger, grief andloss, his sense <strong>of</strong> being powerless to right a great wrong,poured out in passionate music pulled with a bow from<strong>the</strong> strings <strong>of</strong> a violin.<strong>The</strong> act was <strong>the</strong> execution without trial <strong>of</strong> his fa<strong>the</strong>r,<strong>the</strong> Chief <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> National Police <strong>of</strong> Santiago de Cuba whosupported democracy in Cuba, by Fidel Castro.By <strong>the</strong> age <strong>of</strong> 11, Haza was touring <strong>the</strong> provinces <strong>of</strong> Cuba,performing on <strong>the</strong> concert stage. A year later, he obtainedhis first pr<strong>of</strong>essional post as Assistant Concertmaster <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> Lyric <strong>The</strong>ater and debuted as a conductor in a programwhich included one <strong>of</strong> his own orchestral compositions.As a child prodigy, he was <strong>of</strong>fered opportunities to studyabroad in his choice <strong>of</strong> Iron Curtain countries. Instead,he and his mo<strong>the</strong>r sought asylum in <strong>the</strong> United States,immigrating on Election Day in 1964.Chance and circumstance eventually brought Haza to<strong>the</strong> Golden Isles – to <strong>the</strong> benefit <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> community and<strong>the</strong> <strong>College</strong> – and he was recognized this spring as <strong>the</strong>2012 Volunteer <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Year by <strong>Coastal</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong>. What weresupposed to be Haza’s lazy days <strong>of</strong> retirement on <strong>the</strong>beach have instead become days packed with instruction,rehearsals, performances and arts-in-education advocacy.A Brief History <strong>of</strong> a Prodigious TalentIn <strong>the</strong> United States, Haza studied on full scholarship at<strong>the</strong> Curtis Institute, <strong>the</strong> Peabody Conservatory, and <strong>the</strong>Blossom Music Festival with teachers including DanielMajeske, Efrem Zimbalist, Robert Gerle and Eduardo VidalAviles, as well as being coached by Mstislav Rostropovichand Henryk Szeryng.His extensive performing career includes 36 years asfirst violinist with <strong>the</strong> National Symphony Orchestra at<strong>the</strong> Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. He conducted <strong>the</strong>American Youth Philharmonic Orchestras for 25 seasons.As a soloist, he has performed extensively in <strong>the</strong> UnitedStates and internationally in Europe, Central America, and<strong>the</strong> Caribbean.As a conductor, he has led <strong>the</strong> London SymphonyOrchestra, <strong>the</strong> National Symphony Orchestra, <strong>the</strong> nationalorchestras <strong>of</strong> El Salvador, Panama, and Guatemala, andAustralia’s Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra, amongo<strong>the</strong>rs. He served as director <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Virginia Chamber Orchestra,conductor <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Virginia Ballet Company, and member <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>Board <strong>of</strong> Governors for <strong>the</strong> Grammy Awards. Former First LadyLaura Bush appointed him to <strong>the</strong> President’s Commission forArts and <strong>the</strong> Humanities. He was <strong>the</strong> recipient <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> NationalAcademy <strong>of</strong> Recording Arts and Sciences (<strong>the</strong> GRAMMY’s) HeroAward – <strong>the</strong>ir highest honor presented in Washington.6 <strong>College</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> – <strong>the</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong>
A <strong>Georgia</strong> peach from Augusta, Dana Owens, brought himto <strong>the</strong> Golden Isles. <strong>The</strong>y married in 2004 on <strong>the</strong> grounds<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> St. Simons Island Lighthouse. When he retired, <strong>the</strong>yreturned to <strong>the</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> coast.A series <strong>of</strong> conversations piqued his interest in <strong>the</strong> localyouth symphony which, dueto mandatory budget cuts for <strong>the</strong>school system, was challenged tomaintain a strings program through<strong>the</strong> public schools. He committedto working with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> YouthSymphony and December 12, 2010,marked his first performance as <strong>the</strong>music director and conductor.<strong>The</strong> student musicians, ages 10to 19, come from a multi-countyregion to rehearse weekly during<strong>the</strong> school year under his direction.He began a rigorous schedule<strong>of</strong> weekly private violin instructionfor <strong>the</strong> more advanced students.<strong>The</strong> youth symphony’s tworegularly-scheduled concerts becamestanding-room-only events.<strong>The</strong> community, responding to Haza’s vision and inspiration<strong>of</strong> young student musicians, provided financial support forgroup lessons, private instruction and coaching.With such support, Haza began a local summer musiccamp on <strong>the</strong> campus <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>College</strong>.In prior years, students had attended camps across<strong>Georgia</strong> and in Jacksonville. <strong>The</strong> camps were based on type<strong>of</strong> instrument and level <strong>of</strong> experience. Those experiences,however, did not result in a cohesive orchestral sound, Hazaobserved. He believed <strong>the</strong> student musicians needed anintensive camp experience that would unite <strong>the</strong>m as a teamas well as increase <strong>the</strong>ir skills and technique.So Haza polled regional talent and called friends withwhom he had collaborated in <strong>the</strong> Washington, DC, andnor<strong>the</strong>rn Virginia area. <strong>The</strong> result was <strong>the</strong> 2011 <strong>Coastal</strong>Youth Symphony Summer Music Camp. <strong>The</strong> inaugural musiccamp students were among <strong>the</strong> first to stay in <strong>the</strong> new oncampusresidence center, Lakeside Village.<strong>The</strong> camp grew from 60 participants in 2011 to 81 in 2012.One <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> major highlights <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> camp is a Thursday nightArtists’ Showcase on campus with camp faculty and selectstudents performing classical and contemporary piecesduring a one-hour program - a joint donor appreciation eventfor <strong>the</strong> <strong>College</strong> Foundation, <strong>the</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> Youth Symphony, and<strong>the</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> Symphony <strong>of</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong>.When <strong>the</strong> <strong>College</strong> Foundationestablished an adhoc Planning Committeefor Cultural Arts and LifelongLearning Programs(CALL) to help define <strong>the</strong>attributes and potentialuses for <strong>the</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> CommunityCenter for <strong>the</strong> Arts,Haza was one <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> firstcommunity members invitedto participate.Haza’s first public performanceas a resident<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Golden Isles wasat <strong>the</strong> request <strong>of</strong> <strong>College</strong>President Valerie Hepburn.On December 2, 2010,Haza took <strong>the</strong> stage withhis chosen accompanist, <strong>the</strong> Cuban-born pianist OrlandoAlonso, founder and music director <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Ossia SymphonyOrchestra in New York. <strong>The</strong> proceeds <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> concertbenefitted cultural and performing arts programming at<strong>Coastal</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong>.Haza will reunite with Alonso on <strong>the</strong> stage <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> campus’Thomas Auditorium on December 7 when <strong>the</strong> ChamberEnsemble <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Ossia Symphony Orchestra inaugurates anew concert series, From <strong>the</strong> City to <strong>the</strong> Golden Isles.Haza gently teases music camp student Kate Lane aboutperformance jitters before <strong>the</strong>y perform during <strong>the</strong> 2012Artists’ Showcase on campus.Recognition as <strong>the</strong> Community Volunteer <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Year<strong>The</strong> <strong>College</strong>’s award for volunteer <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> year recognizesan individual demonstrating team spirit and unwaveringsupport <strong>of</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> through commitment <strong>of</strong> timeand talents.In presenting <strong>the</strong> award to Maestro Haza at <strong>the</strong>Honors Day ceremony in April, Foundation Trustee AnitaTimmons said, “He has made a tremendous difference inour college community, our local community and in <strong>the</strong>world community.” uFrom <strong>the</strong> City to <strong>the</strong> Golden IslesMaestro Luis Haza will reunite with Orlando Alonso on <strong>the</strong> stage <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> campus’ Thomas Auditorium onDecember 7 when <strong>the</strong> Chamber Ensemble <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Ossia Symphony Orchestra inaugurates a new concertseries, From <strong>the</strong> City to <strong>the</strong> Golden Isles, funded by a gift from <strong>the</strong> Eric and Julie Epstein Charitable Trust. For ticketinformation, call 912.279.5925 or visit www.ccga.edu/advancement/ossia .<strong>College</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Coastal</strong> <strong>Georgia</strong> – <strong>the</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> 7