July 1st & 2nd, 2006

Arne Forgel appears frequently as a singer at the top jazz venues in the Twin Cities, and served as the opening act for Rosemary Clooney during her December 2001 appearance at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis. He regularly hits the high-school-college-community meeting lecture circuit with songs and historical presentations of popular music and entertainment figures, was chosen from nationwide auditions to participate as a FELLOW of the 1998 EUGENE O'NEIL THEATER CENTER CABARET SYMPOSIUM in Waterford, Connecticut, and was a lecturer, performer, and conference consultant to the Hofstra University (Hempstead, New York) conference "BING! Crosby And American Culture" (2002). In 2003 Arne Fogel wrote, co-produced, and hosted a special program "Moments To Remember", presented in the 3M Auditorium of the MINNESOTA HISTORY CENTER.

Contact: fogarn@aol.com
952.546.3822


John Carl Ylvisaker is perhaps best known for his hymn, "I Was There To Hear Your Borning Cry." He was born in Moorhead, Minnesota and is a graduate of Concordia College located there. During the last 30 years John's words and music have been a powerful influence on the development of new worship materials for the church, with his compositions appearing in hundreds of worship resources.In addition to being an artist and composer, John's past experience includes teaching high school music, directing church choirs, and serving as the producer of SCAN, an award-winning weekly radio program sponsored by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). John also has composed much of the original music for Lutheran Vespers radio broadcasts and ELCA videos, as well as theme songs for gatherings and events.John continues to inspire audiences with his live performances and worship leadership at the many assemblies, conferences, and gatherings where he appears. Currently he is involved in producing printed and recorded resources of his work. His copyrights cover more than 1,000 songs.

Background Information on the Composition

I Was There to Hear Your Borning Cry

Prior to the merger of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the Media Services Center of the American Lutheran Church (ALC) employed John Ylvisaker to write original compositions for its resources. During 1985, the ALC was doing a series on baptism called "Reflections". John began work on the song before any footage for the video had been shot. When the media team met to put the music with the video for the first time, it became obvious that the dance-like beat and fast rhythm of the music did not match the gentle scenes being depicted on the screen. The lyrics were on target, but not the music. As he left the studio that day, John received the suggestion to "take it home and personalize it". Thus began the most arduous task any composer can face - changing a completed work into something else. However, the original "false labor" later gave way to the "birth" of Borning Cry, which is now included in songbooks around the world. Postscript: The first version of the music for Borning Cry later became I Will Dance With Jesus.

Web Site: www.ylvisaker.com

Ylvisaker Tour Management - Box 321 -Waverly, IA 50677-0321
You may also make contact by calling (319) 352-4396 or 352-3814