The 2010 winner of the Anchorage Festival of Music Young Alaskan Artist Award, cellist Patrick Hopkins of Fairbanks, will present his debut recital at 7:30 p.m. today at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 3900 Wisconsin St.

Hopkins, who will begin his sophomore year this fall on a scholarship at the Juilliard School in New York, won the school's Pre-College Concerto Competition in 2008. The year before, he was named a 2007 Young Performing Artist by the Yamaha Corp. of America. He has also won first place in the Alaska Music Teachers National Association Senior Strings competitions in 2007, 2008 and 2009, and won first place at the 2009 MTNA Northwest Division competition.

Hopkins appeared three times as soloist with the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra, as winner of its 2001, 2005 and 2006 Concerto Competitions.

Today's recital will feature works by Haydn, Schubert, Prokofiev and Chopin. Admission is by donation, suggested at $20 for adults and $10 for students and children. A portion of the proceeds goes to the award.

Textbook accuracy

Perhaps the most interesting art exhibits that opened this month are those still on display at the International Gallery of Contemporary Art, 427 D St. Pottery by Shoji Satake and Jen Allen and nudes by Mineko Hummel flank new drawings by Wanda Seamster in the front part of the shop.

Seamster's "Ink'd" is by far the most interesting. Long noted for her meticulous draftsmanship, Seamster notes that the pieces in this show reflect her previous work as an illustrator for scientific books, and the detail -- especially in the depictions of animals -- is remarkable.

However she also lets her fancy run with sometimes bizarre juxtapositionings, like a baby bird poking its head out of the eye socket of a human skull.

"Dirty Panties," an installation by Ruby Kennell, in the back room is also worth a look. A video of a girl rubbing dirt into her underwear plays behind the real items strewn in front of the screen.

It's difficult to see this display easily. That's because of a large pink box, somewhat on the lines of a camera obscura and ostensibly the work of a pair of other artists, jsun and Michael Gerace, blocks off much of the video installation. Craning for a peek of Kennell's piece makes one feel automatically voyeurish; that may be intentional on the part of the artist.

The exhibits remain up this week.

Another shoestring tour for Hill

Alaska alt/folk singer Emma Hill, aka "The Sleetmute Siren," sent out an e-mail last week noting that she and fellow musician Bryan Daste, a member of her backup group, stumbled upon a great JetBlue deal recently and plan to use it to the max between now and October.

They've lined up another coast-to-coast, Seattle to West Palm Beach national tour to be paid for, as all Hill concerts are, on a budget bordering on zero.

So they're looking for help from fans. "Please look down this list of cities and if you live in one of them and want to help by setting up a show, telling us where to play, who to play with, put us up on your floor, throw a BBQ/House show, LET US KNOW!" goes the e-mail.

The cities, by the way, range from Austin, Texas, to White Plains, N.Y. Get more information at www.myspace.com/emmamariehill or www. emmahillmusic.com.

Online auditions

Auditions for "The Winter Bear," by Anne Hanley, will be conducted utilizing Skype, as director Jayne Wenger will be casting from California.

The play, which will preview in Galena and at the Alaska Federation of Natives convention before opening at Cyrano's on Oct. 29, involves a suicidal Native youth sentenced to cut wood for real-life elder Sydney Huntington.

The two "combine their knowledge of old Koyukon ways and video games to subdue" a bear terrifying the village.

"This is going to be an extraordinary production using state-of-the-art projections and special effects to create magical and mythical alternate realities," reads the press release.

There are roles for both sexes, various ages and assorted animals. Scripts will be available for perusal at Cyrano's, 413 D St., starting Saturday. The Skype auditions will take place at 6 p.m. on Aug. 30. Questions? Call 274-2599.

Quilter gets into Wisconsin expo

Maria Shell of Anchorage has had two quilts accepted into the sixth annual Quilt Expo at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis.

The expo, which takes place Sept. 9-11, awards cash prizes in each of 10 categories plus Best of Show and Viewers' Choice winners.

Shell's quilts are titled "Albert Hofmann's Orbit" and "Owsley's Owls."

Highlights of the event include hundreds of quilts on exhibit, a vendor mall representing more than 150 national and regional companies, educational workshops, stage presentations by industry leaders, appearances by Nancy Zieman of public television's "Sewing With Nancy" and other events. Details are available at wiquiltexpo.com.

Blues train to roll again

Blues band Champagne and Temporary Saint will play a live concert onboard the Alaska Railroad, providing a complementing soundtrack to the scenic Chugach Forest, passing glaciers and wildlife.

The special Blues Train is a tour package from the Alaska Railroad and Blues Central that runs from Anchorage to Seward on Sept. 18 and kicks off a blues weekend of dancing and dining.

The round-trip event begins in Anchorage at 1 p.m. delivering guests in style aboard the Alaska Railroad to Seward where the festivities continue at The Pit bar. The train returns to Anchorage on Sunday. The cost is $249 per person based on double occupancy and guests must be 21 years of age or older.

For more information visit www.AlaskaRailroad.com/bluestrain. Tickets are available by calling 265-2494.