The Daviess County Middle and High School orchestras are hosting a spring concert and silent auction from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday at DCHS. The evening will also feature a reception that will provide an opportunity for current and former students and families to share words of appreciation with longtime orchestra instructor Karen Higdon, who is retiring at the conclusion of the 2021-22 school year.
The school is located at 4255 New Hartford Road. The concert begins at 6:30 p.m. in the DCHS auditorium and is directed by Higdon and Kyle Payton.
The silent auction — which is open from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. — includes artwork, furniture, and lamps created from instrument parts, as well as framed music prints, mugs, and other music-related items. A highlight of the auction is an autographed Stingray electric violin signed by Mark Wood, an Emmy award-winning composer and recording artist, an original member of Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO), and creator of the revolutionary Viper electric violin.
Higdon has taught orchestra in the Daviess County Public Schools district for 27 years. The May 10 concert marks her final performance as DCPS Orchestra director as she retires after 38 years of teaching. Her DCHS orchestras have performed in Nashville, Cincinnati, and Chicago and at Northern Kentucky University, Murray State University and the University of Illinois. They have performed with guest artists such as Wood and professional fiddler Daryl Anger. Higdon’s students have attended concerts by Itzak Perlman, Yo Yo Ma, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and other iconic performers.
“Every child has something within them that deserves to be heard,” Higdon said. “I am so blessed that I have been able to help my students bring out their joy through music.”
In addition to teaching in the school setting, Higdon performed with the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra for 15 years, directed pit orchestras for musicals, and assisted with the Symphony Youth Orchestra. At the state level, Higdon served as chair of the Kentucky Music Educators Association Orchestra, magazine editor and president of the Kentucky chapter of the American String Teachers Association, and worked with the Kentucky Department of Education in designing and evaluating state testing materials. She also worked with the American String Teachers Association as chairman of the planning committee for their national conference in Atlanta.
“My classroom is a microcosm of society. If my students can drop their baggage at the door and come together to create beauty in the world through music, surely society can do the same,” Higdon said.
