Erich Kunzel Ill with Pancreatic Cancer

Music in Cincinnati is saddened to learn that Erich Kunzel is ill.
   The beloved Cincinnati Pops conductor is suffering from pancreatic, liver and colon cancer and will begin chemotherapy treatment in Cincinnati after next week's Pops concerts at Music Hall.
   Kunzel, 74, was diagnosed with the disease on Wednesday after returning to Cincinnati from his home in Naples, Florida.  Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra president Trey Devey notified the players on Friday.
   Kunzel does not plan to curtail his conducting activities at this time, said CSO representative Christopher Pinelo.
   The Pops concerts, which feature vocalist Sandi Patty in a Broadway-themed program, are 8 p.m., May 8 and 9 and 3 p.m., May 10 at Music Hall.  They are the final concerts of the Pops' 2008-09 Music Hall season. 
   Kunzel, who has put the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra on the world map since the CSO created it for him in 1977, will be inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame in ceremonies May 6 at Memorial Hall in Cincinnati.
   He is also scheduled to open the Pops' 2009 Riverbend season with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir June 18 in the Riverbend pavilion on the Ohio River.
   Tickets for the concerts are available by calling (513) 381-3300. or on the Pops' web site www.cincinnatipops.org