Benefit Concert

Glendale Centre Theatre will be the backdrop for the special benefit concert starring Broadway star John Raitt at 5 p.m. Sunday. The concert will raise funds for Jason Black, a young opera star recovering from a tragic accident. At 25, Black was an accomp- ished opera singer until a tragic accident left his vocal cords paralyzed. He has starred in numerous operas from "Rigoletto" to "Carmen" on stages from Germany to Los Angeles. The concert will help raise funds to cover the necessary medical procedures to help restore his operatic voice.

Joyce Rudolph GLENDALE -- A chamber ensemble composed of musicians from the Glendale Symphony will perform a new program titled "Serenade to Spring" at 2 p.m. June 23 at The Alex Theatre. Sidney Weiss will perform on violin and conduct the ensemble. On the program are Spring from The Four Seasons by Vivaldi, the Holberg Suite by Grieg and Serenade For Strings, Op. 58 by Tchaikovsky. The serenade event will support the symphony's activities including its Aug. 17 season finale concert of works by Beethoven and Aaron Copland.

Joyce Rudolph All-American Boy's Chorus performs benefit concert GLENDALE -- A performance by The All-American Boy's Chorus will benefit the Glendale City Seventh-day Adventist Church Endowment Fund. The concert will be at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 9, at The Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd. in Glendale. Tickets range from $18 to $35 as well as a $150 VIP seating ticket that includes an after-concert reception with the chorus. For reservations, call the church business office at 244-7241 or The Alex box office at 243-2539.

Paul Andersen DOWNTOWN -- Glendale singer/songwriter Lisa Johnson and more than a dozen female artists will come together Sunday in a benefit concert for the Afghan Women's Mission, the American branch of the Revolutionary Assn. of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA). As Johnson sees it, the concert is a chance for her to act globally. "The recent events in Afghanistan are just one instance of the ongoing oppression of women that still take place in the world, and I feel it is our duty, with all the freedom we have here in the United States, to help our less fortunate sisters elsewhere," she said.

Alecia Foster GLENDALE -- Many Americans have spent the past week tackling a wide array of feelings after the recent terrorist attacks. "You feel so lucky that nothing happened here," said Leslyn Ray, manager of Giggles Nightclub. "Then you feel so frustrated because you're too far away to help." Ray and other business leaders in Glendale have found an answer to that sense of helplessness. They decided to help out by raising money for the families of those killed during the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

Alex Coolman GLENDALE -- When she was 6, Mary Grace Gellekanao visited three piano teachers, and each one of the teachers told her they wouldn't take her as a pupil. If it hadn't been for the persistence of Gellekanao's grandmother, she probably wouldn't have found a teacher at all. But the fourth teacher took her, and she has been playing ever since -- a labor of love that she said is also a tribute to her grandmother. Gellekanao only has one hand.

Claudia Peschiutta GLENDALE -- Support is growing for a local project that may have a global influence. Events to help raise money for the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry Charitable Trust have recently been held in locations around the world and brought Dr. Frieda Jordan of Glendale one step closer to achieving a dream. Jordan co-founded the project in 1999 in the hope of giving Armenians with blood-related diseases a better chance of finding bone marrow donors that meet their specific needs.

Midge Boardman The rafters will vibrate with the sweet music of love songs when Glendale Church of Religious Science brings back The Sounds of the Supremes in a benefit concert Thursday. You remember The Supremes back in 1964-74. Rivaled only by Elvis and The Beatles and named the most successful female group of their generation, they put out 10 No. 1 records and 20 smash hits in the Top 10. They helped define the Motown sound -- soul-tinged R&B with symphonic strings and horns in upbeat love songs.

BEST BET: The Khachaturian String Quartet will hold a benefit concert for the Glendale Youth Orchestra at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at First Congregational Church of Glendale, 2001 Canada Blvd. Tickets are $15 and seating is limited. For information or reservations, call (323) 660-5936 after 6 p.m. Pictured is Christopher Fazzi, the music director of the Youth Orchestra. TODAY Stories of Spirit presents "March Hares and April Fools" at 8 p.m. at Once Upon a Time, 2284 Honolulu Ave., in Montrose.

Debbie Friedman stars in benefit concert The Jewish Federation Valley Alliance presents "Celebrate!" a concert with singer/songwriter Debbie Friedman at 8 p.m. Saturday at The Alex Theatre in Glendale. Friedman has played to sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall and has recorded more than 15 albums. Much of her music comes from traditional Jewish text, combining Hebrew prayers with American folk music, influenced by Peter, Paul and Mary, Joan Baez, Judy Collins and Melissa Manchester.