The 12th Annual Tucson Desert Song Festival

Celebrate Song!

Winter & Spring 2024

Join us as we celebrate the human voice and bring the world’s great vocal artists to warm, sunny Tucson.

Our stellar 2024 program features Lawrence Brownlee, Nicole Cabell, Cecilia Duarte, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Blue Heron, and a world-premiere song cycle by composer Jimmy López Bellido, created for the soaring tenor voice of Michael Fabiano.

Recitals

Opera

Symphony 

Jazz

Dance

Classical Guitar

Chamber Choir

Theater

Schedule

Blue Heron: Portraits In Song – Music from Renaissance Italy

Originally conceived as a musical complement to the exhibition The Renaissance Portrait from Donatello to Bellini (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, December 2011–March 2012), this program offers portraits of popes and nobles, lovers and married couples, patrons and friends, public figures, people unknown but for a first name given as an acrostic, and theatrical personalities including a cocky cook and a self-absorbed lover. Music by Johannes Ciconia, Guillaume Du Fay, Antoine Busnoys, Heinrich Isaac, and others offers vivid evocations of Renaissance people, performed by five singers and three players.

Sunday, January 14, 2024 @ 3:00 pm

Venue: St. Philip’s in the Hills Episcopal Church - 4440 N. Campbell Ave., Tucson, AZ

Tickets: $30.90

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Opening Lecture with Dr. Kristin Dauphinais: Unsung Voices – An Exploration of the Repertoire of Under-Represented Composers and Poets of Song

Mezzo-soprano Kristin Dauphinais is highly regarded for her artistry and versatility. She has worked in a variety of genres including musical theatre, opera, concert, oratorio, chamber music and solo recitals. Her performing career has taken her throughout the United States as well as internationally with tours in Italy, China, Australia and additional concert performances in Germany, Spain, Austria, and Luxembourg. As an orchestral soloist, Dr. Dauphinais has been often featured in works by Manuel de Falla, including Siete canciones populares Españolas, El amor brujo, and El sombrero de tres picos with orchestras such as the Phoenix Symphony, Tucson Symphony the Southern Arizona Symphony, and the Catalina Chamber Orchestra.   Additional performances as a featured soloist with orchestra include Alban Berg’s Sieben Frühe Lieder with the Arizona Symphony, Mozart’s Exultate, jubilate with the Apperson Strings and again with the Cadillac Symphony Orchestra, and Easy to Love – a review of Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, and Jerome Kern with the Sacramento Choral Society and Orchestra as well as Mozart’s Coronation Mass and Requiem, Mendelssohn’s St. Paul, Haydn’s The Creation, Handel’s Messiah, narrations with chamber orchestra in William Walton’s Façade, and Stravinsky’s A Soldiers Tale.

Dr. Dauphinais graduated magna *** laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a BFA in musical theatre performance from the Lee Harvey Honors College at Western Michigan University has her MM and DMA degrees in vocal performance from Arizona State University. She has served on the voice faculty of the American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) in Graz, Austria and currently serves on the voice faculty at the Saarburger Serenaden-International Music Festival in Germany and is the chair of vocal studies at of the University of Arizona.

Wednesday, January 17, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Cecile McLorin Salvant

MacArthur Fellow and three-time GRAMMY winner Cécile McLorin Salvant has a gift for storytelling and curating layered, evocative programs that draw connections between vaudeville, blues, international folk traditions, theater, jazz, and classical music. Since winning the Thelonius Monk competition in 2010, Cécile McLorin Salvant has received GRAMMY Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album for three consecutive albums: The Window, Dreams and Daggers, and For One To Love. Ghost Song, Salvant’s debut for Nonesuch Records, was released in March 2022 to critical acclaim and has gone on to receive two GRAMMY Nominations.

Friday, January 19, 2024 @ 8:00 pm

Venue: Centennial Hall - 1020 E University Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tickets: $35 – $75

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Mozart & Hagen: Two Important Encores

Mozart’s powerful C-Minor Mass was the first major work performed by True Concord and particularly appropriate for the 40th anniversary year of the award-winning film Amadeus. A new classic, Hagen’s Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, incorporates images of da Vinci’s writing and art throughout the 35-minute piece, but the focus is on her music. Hagen says, “The music meets the film on equal ground. I searched for the curiosity that drove da Vinci and drives human nature as a whole –I wanted people to experience this amazing feeling of the beauty of life.”

Friday, January 26, 2024 @ 3:00 pm

Venue: Valley Presbyterian Church - 2800 S Camino Del Sol, Green Valley, AZ 85622

Tickets: $23.50 – $63.50

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Noche Hispanoamericana: Cecilia Duarte, mezzo-soprano with Trio Chapultepec, guitars, Jesús Pacheco, percussion, & Misael Barraza-Díaz, guitar

The twelve romantic boleros on Duarte’s album Reencuentros, sung in Spanish, will be the program of one set of this concert with Duarte accompanied by Trio Chapultepec (Vincent A. Pequeño, Israel Alcala, and William Carlton Galvez) and special guest Jesús Pacheco on percussion. These Latin popular standards are truly art songs from the mid­-20th century. In the second set, Duarte will be joined by guitarist Misael Barraza-Díaz with a program primarily of Spanish song for voice, guitar, and percussion.

Cecilia Duarte writes this about the origin of Reencuentros: “This album is a reencounter with my past, a remembrance of the moments when I listened to my mother sing many of the songs compiled here, and a reflection of who I am as an artist today… Reencuentros represents where I come from and the stories that formed me. It is important for me to share this legacy of beautiful music, only a small token of the artistic richness of Latin American music.”

Friday, January 26, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tickets: $40

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Cecilia Duarte Masterclass

Singers from the UA School of Music participate in a masterclass led by celebrated mezzo-soprano Cecilia Duarte.

Free and open to the public.

Saturday, January 27, 2024 @ 1:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Mozart & Hagen: Two Important Encores

Mozart’s powerful C-Minor Mass was the first major work performed by True Concord and particularly appropriate for the 40th anniversary year of the award-winning film Amadeus. A new classic, Hagen’s Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, incorporates images of da Vinci’s writing and art throughout the 35-minute piece, but the focus is on her music. Hagen says, “The music meets the film on equal ground. I searched for the curiosity that drove da Vinci and drives human nature as a whole –I wanted people to experience this amazing feeling of the beauty of life.”

Saturday, January 27, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: Catalina Foothills High School - 4300 E Sunrise Dr, Tucson, AZ 85718

Tickets: $23.50 – $63.50

Click Here For Tickets

Mozart & Hagen: Two Important Encores

Mozart’s powerful C-Minor Mass was the first major work performed by True Concord and particularly appropriate for the 40th anniversary year of the award-winning film Amadeus. A new classic, Hagen’s Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci, incorporates images of da Vinci’s writing and art throughout the 35-minute piece, but the focus is on her music. Hagen says, “The music meets the film on equal ground. I searched for the curiosity that drove da Vinci and drives human nature as a whole –I wanted people to experience this amazing feeling of the beauty of life.”

Sunday, January 28, 2024 @ 3:00 pm

Venue: Catalina Foothills High School - 4300 E Sunrise Dr, Tucson, AZ 85718

Tickets: $23.50 – $63.50

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New Directions In Song

Singers from the UA School of Music will present a recital of contemporary art song, featuring new trends and discoveries. Hosted by faculty artist Dr. Kristin Dauphinais.

Free and open to the public.

Wednesday, January 31, 2024 @ 12:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Rossini’s The Barber of Seville

Considered one of the greatest opera buffa of all time, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville has maintained its popularity for over two hundred years. Count Almaviva falls hopelessly in love with the beautiful Rosina, the young ward of grumpy and elderly Bartolo, who intends to marry her and claim her dowry. With the help of his companion Figaro, Almaviva stops at nothing as he pursues Rosina through a series of comical hijinks and bait-and-switch facades.

Saturday, February 3, 2024 @ 7:30 pm

Venue: Linda Ronstadt Music Hall - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $30 – $145

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Rossini’s The Barber of Seville

Considered one of the greatest opera buffa of all time, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville has maintained its popularity for over two hundred years. Count Almaviva falls hopelessly in love with the beautiful Rosina, the young ward of grumpy and elderly Bartolo, who intends to marry her and claim her dowry. With the help of his companion Figaro, Almaviva stops at nothing as he pursues Rosina through a series of comical hijinks and bait-and-switch facades.

Sunday, February 4, 2024 @ 2:00 pm

Venue: Linda Ronstadt Music Hall - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $30 – $145

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Winter Concert: World Premiere Ballet “Eternal Love” – Songs of Edith Piaf sung by Katherine Byrnes

Celebrate dance, song, and romance just in time for Valentine’s Day with this captivating program. Love conquers all in the magnificent and haunting classical ballet masterpiece Giselle Act II. Artistic Director and Resident Choreographer Chieko Imada will create another dazzling world premiere featuring live music performed onstage with our talented company dancers. Christopher Wheeldon, world-renowned choreographer of MJ The Musical and An American in Paris, shares his iconic “After the Rain” Pas de Deux with Tucson audiences for the first time. Originally created for Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 40th Anniversary Season, Artistic Director Margaret Mullin brings her breathtaking ballet Lost In Light to our stage, featuring original music by Tucson Symphony Orchestra Composer-in-Residence Dan Coleman.

Friday, February 9, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: Leo Rich Theater - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $30 – $50

Click Here For Tickets

Winter Concert: World Premiere Ballet “Eternal Love” – Songs of Edith Piaf sung by Katherine Byrnes

Celebrate dance, song, and romance just in time for Valentine’s Day with this captivating program. Love conquers all in the magnificent and haunting classical ballet masterpiece Giselle Act II. Artistic Director and Resident Choreographer Chieko Imada will create another dazzling world premiere featuring live music performed onstage with our talented company dancers. Christopher Wheeldon, world-renowned choreographer of MJ The Musical and An American in Paris, shares his iconic “After the Rain” Pas de Deux with Tucson audiences for the first time. Originally created for Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 40th Anniversary Season, Artistic Director Margaret Mullin brings her breathtaking ballet Lost In Light to our stage, featuring original music by Tucson Symphony Orchestra Composer-in-Residence Dan Coleman.

Saturday, February 10, 2024 @ 2:00 pm

Venue: Leo Rich Theater - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $30 – $50

Click Here For Tickets

Winter Concert: World Premiere Ballet “Eternal Love” – Songs of Edith Piaf sung by Katherine Byrnes

Celebrate dance, song, and romance just in time for Valentine’s Day with this captivating program. Love conquers all in the magnificent and haunting classical ballet masterpiece Giselle Act II. Artistic Director and Resident Choreographer Chieko Imada will create another dazzling world premiere featuring live music performed onstage with our talented company dancers. Christopher Wheeldon, world-renowned choreographer of MJ The Musical and An American in Paris, shares his iconic “After the Rain” Pas de Deux with Tucson audiences for the first time. Originally created for Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 40th Anniversary Season, Artistic Director Margaret Mullin brings her breathtaking ballet Lost In Light to our stage, featuring original music by Tucson Symphony Orchestra Composer-in-Residence Dan Coleman.

Saturday, February 10, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: Leo Rich Theater - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $30 – $50

Click Here For Tickets

Winter Concert: World Premiere Ballet “Eternal Love” – Songs of Edith Piaf sung by Katherine Byrnes

Celebrate dance, song, and romance just in time for Valentine’s Day with this captivating program. Love conquers all in the magnificent and haunting classical ballet masterpiece Giselle Act II. Artistic Director and Resident Choreographer Chieko Imada will create another dazzling world premiere featuring live music performed onstage with our talented company dancers. Christopher Wheeldon, world-renowned choreographer of MJ The Musical and An American in Paris, shares his iconic “After the Rain” Pas de Deux with Tucson audiences for the first time. Originally created for Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 40th Anniversary Season, Artistic Director Margaret Mullin brings her breathtaking ballet Lost In Light to our stage, featuring original music by Tucson Symphony Orchestra Composer-in-Residence Dan Coleman.

Sunday, February 11, 2024 @ 2:00 pm

Venue: Leo Rich Theater - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $30 – $50

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The Creative Process: A Discussion with Michael Fabiano, tenor, Jimmy López Bellido, composer, & Nilo Cruz, poet

Join Tucson Desert Song Festival Coordinator George Hanson for a lively discussion about the creative process behind the world premiere of Quiet Poems, a new song cycle by Jimmy López Bellido with poems by Nilo Cruz. Pianist Laurent Philippe, Fabiano’s frequent and long-time performing partner, will join him onstage the following evening for a full recital program featuring the premiere. This work was commissioned by the Tucson Desert Song Festival through the Wesley Green Composer Project.

Free Admission

Wednesday, February 14, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Recital: Michael Fabiano, tenor & Laurent Philippe, piano – Jimmy López Bellido World Premiere “Quiet Poems”

Renowned tenor Michael Fabiano and long-time performing partner pianist Laurent Philippe present the world premiere of a new song cycle by Jimmy López Bellido with poems by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Nilo Cruz. The work, titled Quiet Poems, was commissioned by the Tucson Desert Song Festival through the Wesley Green Composer Project.

Best known for his enormously successful opera Bel Canto, also with libretto by Cruz, commissioned and premiered by Chicago Lyric Opera, Peruvian composer Jimmy López Bellido has had works performed by major orchestras and opera companies around the world. His champions include Renée Fleming and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Michael Fabiano stands among the most dynamic and prolific tenors on the world stage today. The recipient of the 2014 Beverly Sills Artist Award and the 2014 Richard Tucker Award, he is the first singer to win both awards in the same year and is considered one of the great voices of our time.

Thursday, February 15, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tickets: $40

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Master Class – A Play by Terrence McNally

Master Class, the Tony-winning play by Terrence McNally, tells the story of the uncompromising opera diva Maria Callas as she delivers a life altering master class to students at an elite opera training program. During the class, she encounters three vastly different students who are by turns hilariously crushed, soulfully uplifted, and profoundly inspired by her singular artistry. Based on a series of real-life classes Callas delivered at Juilliard, Master Class inspires us, transports us, and transforms us by carving a window into the soul of one of the most complicated and celebrated artists of the 20th century who pushed the boundaries of artistic sacrifice and quality.

Saturday, March 2, 2024 @ 7:30 pm - Saturday, March 23, 2024 @ 7:30 pm

Venue: Temple of Music and Art - 330 S Scott Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $25 – $90

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Lawrence Brownlee Masterclass

Singers from the UA School of Music participate in a masterclass led by celebrated tenor Lawrence Brownlee.

Free and open to the public.

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 @ 6:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Mark Morris Dance Group: The Look of Love – Songs of Burt Bacharach With Vocalist Marcy Hariell

Following the roaring success of his Beatles tribute Pepperland, Mark Morris teams up again with musical collaborator Ethan Iverson for The Look of Love, a wistful and heartfelt homage to the chart-topping songs of Burt Bacharach. A towering figure, across decades of popular music, Bacharach is known for crafting soaring melodies embedded in unique orchestrations influenced by jazz, rock, and Brazilian music – his longtime lyricist Hal David providing unsentimental, often bittersweet lyrics.

This evening-length showpiece features original choreography by Morris and new, lush musical arrangements by Iverson, performed by an ensemble of vocals, piano, trumpet, bass, and percussion, with singer, actress, and Broadway star Marcy Harriell on lead vocals.

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 @ 7:30 pm

Venue: Centennial Hall - 1020 E University Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tickets: $39 – $69

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Recital: Lawrence Brownlee, tenor with Kevin Miller, piano

Lawrence Brownlee is a leading figure in opera, both as a singer on the world’s top stages and as a voice for activism and diversity in the industry. Captivating audiences and critics around the globe, he has been hailed as “an international star in the bel canto operatic repertory” (The New York Times), “one of the world’s leading bel canto stars” (The Guardian), and “one of the most in-demand opera singers in the world today” (NPR).

Wednesday, March 13, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tickets: $40

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Verdi’s Requiem with Katie Van Kooten, soprano, Ronnita Miller, mezzo-soprano, Mario Chang, tenor, & Morris Robinson, bass

One of the pinnacles of the orchestral-choral repertoire, Verdi’s Requiem is infrequently presented because of its large forces. When it does come around, performances are always an event, especially with this hand-picked quartet of international soloists (Katie van Kooten, soprano, Ronnita Miller, mezzo-soprano, Mario Chang, tenor, and Morris Robinson, bass) and the uplifting massed voices of the TSO Chorus led by Maestro José Luis Gomez. These concerts mark the work’s 150th anniversary.

Friday, March 22, 2024 @ 7:30 pm

Venue: Linda Ronstadt Music Hall - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $14 – $90

Click Here For Tickets

Verdi’s Requiem with Katie Van Kooten, soprano, Ronnita Miller, mezzo-soprano, Mario Chang, tenor, & Morris Robinson, bass

One of the pinnacles of the orchestral-choral repertoire, Verdi’s Requiem is infrequently presented because of its large forces. When it does come around, performances are always an event, especially with this hand-picked quartet of international soloists (Katie van Kooten, soprano, Ronnita Miller, mezzo-soprano, Mario Chang, tenor, and Morris Robinson, bass) and the uplifting massed voices of the TSO Chorus led by Maestro José Luis Gomez. These concerts mark the work’s 150th anniversary.

Sunday, March 24, 2024 @ 2:00 pm

Venue: Linda Ronstadt Music Hall - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Tickets: $14 – $90

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Nicole Cabell: Gloria & Bernstein

Take Bernstein’s hit musical Candide of French genius Voltaire, mix in the Chichester Psalms, the most played piece worldwide for Bernstein’s Centennial Celebrations, and top it off with the 20th-Century French master composer (on his 125th birthday) Francis Poulenc’s glorious Gloria, and you have the ideal True Concord program! Add in the fabulous soprano Nicole Cabell – winner of the Singer of the World Competition, one of the most prestigious prizes won by such luminaries as Barton Hvorostovsky and Terfel – in her True Concord debut.

Friday, April 5, 2024 @ 3:00 pm

Venue: Valley Presbyterian Church - 2800 S Camino Del Sol, Green Valley, AZ 85622

Tickets: $23.50 – $63.50

Click Here For Tickets

Nicole Cabell: Gloria & Bernstein

Take Bernstein’s hit musical Candide of French genius Voltaire, mix in the Chichester Psalms, the most played piece worldwide for Bernstein’s Centennial Celebrations, and top it off with the 20th-Century French master composer (on his 125th birthday) Francis Poulenc’s glorious Gloria, and you have the ideal True Concord program! Add in the fabulous soprano Nicole Cabell – winner of the Singer of the World Competition, one of the most prestigious prizes won by such luminaries as Barton Hvorostovsky and Terfel – in her True Concord debut.

Saturday, April 6, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: Catalina Foothills High School Theater - 4300 E Sunrise Dr, Tucson, AZ 85718

Tickets: $23.50 – $63.50

Click Here For Tickets

Nicole Cabell: Gloria & Bernstein

Take Bernstein’s hit musical Candide of French genius Voltaire, mix in the Chichester Psalms, the most played piece worldwide for Bernstein’s Centennial Celebrations, and top it off with the 20th-Century French master composer (on his 125th birthday) Francis Poulenc’s glorious Gloria, and you have the ideal True Concord program! Add in the fabulous soprano Nicole Cabell – winner of the Singer of the World Competition, one of the most prestigious prizes won by such luminaries as Barton Hvorostovsky and Terfel – in her True Concord debut.

Sunday, April 7, 2024 @ 3:00 pm

Venue: Catalina Foothills High School Theater - 4300 E Sunrise Dr, Tucson, AZ 85718

Tickets: $23.50 – $63.50

Click Here For Tickets

Recital: Nicole Cabell, soprano with Welz Kauffman, piano

The magnificent soprano Nicole Cabell – winner of the BBC Singer of the World Competition, one of the most prestigious prizes won by such luminaries as Barton, Hvorostovsky, and Terfel – makes her Tucson Desert Song Festival debut. The recital program will include favorite opera and Great American Songbook selections including Puccini, Gounod, Gershwin, Jerome Kern, and Cole Porter.

Tuesday, April 9, 2024 @ 7:00 pm

Venue: UA School of Music, Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tickets: $40

Click Here For Tickets

Dates: January 14 - April 9, 2024

Venues

Linda Ronstadt Music Hall - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Leo Rich Theater - 260 S Church Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Centennial Hall - 1020 E University Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tucson Jewish Community Center - 3800 E. River Road, Tucson, AZ 85718

Fox Tucson Theater - 17 W Congress St, Tucson, AZ 85701

Crowder Hall and Holsclaw Hall - 1017 N Olive Rd, Tucson, AZ 85721

Catalina Foothills High School Theater - 4300 E Sunrise Dr, Tucson, AZ 85718

Stevie Eller Dance Theater - 1737 E University Blvd, Tucson, AZ 85719

Tucson Symphony Center - 2175 N 6th Ave, Tucson, AZ 85705

Grace St. Paul’s Episcopal Church - 2331 E Adams St, Tucson, AZ 85719

Pima Community College Center for the Performing Arts - 2202 W Anklam Rd, Tucson, AZ 85709

St. Francis in the Valley Episcopal Church - 600 South La Cañada Drive, Green Valley, AZ 85614

Lutheran Church of the Risen Savior - 555 South La Cañada Drive, Green Valley, AZ 85614

Temple of Music and Art - 330 S Scott Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701

Click here for more information