Inna Shames
On the evening of March 7, our very own amazingly talented Quail Creek pianist, Rada Neal, performed a piano concert to an absolutely packed house at the Community Performing Arts Center (CPAC) in Green Valley!
Not only was there not an empty seat in the house, but the standing ovations just kept on coming. And it was all for a great cause because Rada had generously offered up her talents for the benefit of The Women of Quail Creek (TWOQC) Scholarship Program. The concert raised $5,000 for this incredibly worthy cause.
Rada Neal is a graduate of the Indiana School of Music, and we are fortunate to have her as part of our Quail Creek community. Her past performances have included Carnegie Hall, The Grand Ole Opry, and the 1988 halftime Super Bowl, which included the likes of Chubby Checker and The Rockettes
The program was a perfect blend of well-known and loved movie standards by the likes of Michel Legrand and Henry Mancini, including themes from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Doctor Zhivago, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. This was followed by some of Rada’s classical favorites by composers such as Erik Satie and Isaac Albeniz. The real treat was a selection of Rada’s own compositions, including “Snowfall” (to remind us about that sort of thing here in sunny Arizona) and “Song for the Irish” with St. Patrick’s Day just around the corner. And to wrap things up,she played a few all-time pop favorites including “Hallelujah” and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”!
The TWOQC scholarship program provides tuition assistance to young women graduating from Walden Grove, Sahuarita and Rio Rico high schools and looking to continue their education, as well as to women 21 years or older who are residents of Pima or Santa Cruz Counties and want to resume their education to earn degrees or certifications. It began in 2016 with two scholarships of $1,000 each and has grown significantly over the years. As of 2025, a cumulative total of $344,700 has been awarded to 128 recipients. For more information about TWOQCsScholarships contact Deb Melton, director of scholarships at scholarships@womenqc.com.
The TWOQC Scholarship Program cannot begin to express their gratitude to Rada for doing this event, and of course a good time was had by all. Hopefully, there will be more local Rada Neal concerts down the road!
If you missed the concert, Rada’s music is available on your favorite streaming platforms. To date, she has recorded 14 CDs with a fifteenth on the way. More information about Rada can be found on www.pianopassions.com.