Northwest Sinfonietta’s ‘Baroque to Blue Ridge’ traces the fiddle across Atlantic, into the heart of Appalachia

November 18, 2022 in Orchestra

Northwest Sinfonietta’s ‘Baroque to Blue Ridge’ traces the fiddle across Atlantic, into the heart of Appalachia

TACOMA, Wash. – The Northwest Sinfonietta traces the fiddle and violin from Scandinavia to the British Isles, across the Atlantic and into the heart of Appalachia in “Baroque to Blue Ridge” on December 17 at 7:30 p.m. (Courthouse Square Ballroom, 1102 A St Suite 202-G, Tacoma, WA 98402) and December 18 at 2:00 p.m. (Pioneer Park Pavilion, 330 S. Meridian, Puyallup).

The family-friendly program lead by concertmaster Denise Dillenbeck and internationally acclaimed Scottish fiddler Brandon Vance opens with the popular “Holberg Suite” by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg. The five-movement suite is based on 18thcentury dance forms was originally composed for piano in 1884 and adapted by the composer shortly after into the string orchestra version performed by the sinfonietta.

Selections from English baroque-era composer Henry Purcell’s “The Fairy-Queen” follow. The so-called “semi-opera” by Purcell is an adaptation of the story from William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” first performed in 1692, only a few years before the composer’s death in 1695.

Two rousing works follow: Jennifer Sacher Wiley’s “Hanukkah Medley” and Brandon Vance’s “Gael Storm Set” for solo violin and string orchestra. Wiley’s medley utilizes unique string techniques to creatively present several traditional Hanukkah-themed melodies including “Who Can Retell,” “Sivivon Sov Sov Sov,” “Oh Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah” and the timeless Peter, Paul and Mary favorite “Light One Candle.”

Brandon Vance, who also performs as soloist “Gael Storm Set” is the youngest winner of the United States National Open Scottish Fiddling Championship winner (1999, 2001) and recipient of the 2017 Royal National Mòd “Sutherland Cup” in Scotland. He has performed and taught throughout the world, including as a guest lecturer at the University of Limerick’s Irish World Academy, as a guest artist at the William Kennedy Piping Festival and others. Vance is a founding member of the Celtic Ensemble Dreos and the World Music Ensemble Alchymeia.

Mark O’Connor’s “Appalachia Waltz” brings the program to a close, in an arrangement by the composer for string orchestra. The crowd-pleasing favorite which was originally composed for fiddle, cello and double bass trio, melds together traditional Appalachian and Scandinavian folk fiddling in a classical setting.

Tickets $22-50. Student, military and group discounts available. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit: www.nwsinfonietta.org.

The Northwest Sinfonietta 2022-2023 continues on January 28 and 29, 2023 with “Land(Wind)Fall” featuring works by Felix Mendelssohn, Nokuthula Ngwenyama, Viet Cuong and Erich Korngold.

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About the Northwest Sinfonietta: The Northwest Sinfonietta was founded in 1991 by harpsichordist Kathryn Habedank and conductor Christophe Chagnard. The 35-member ensemble is the premiere chamber orchestra in the Puget Sound region and blends the intimacy of chamber music with the power of a full orchestra. In 2015, the Northwest Sinfonietta became one of the few orchestras in the world to move to an Artistic Partner model of operations, giving the musicians of the ensemble a larger role in the programming and vision for the ensemble. Learn more about the orchestra at: www.nwsinfonietta.org.

Northwest Sinfonietta closes season with Mozart’s triumphant ‘Prague’ symphony

April 25, 2022 in Orchestra, Chamber Music

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Northwest Sinfonietta closes season with Mozart’s triumphant ‘Prague’ symphony

By Zachary C. Person

Media contact: Karin Choo

TACOMA, Wash. – The Northwest Sinfonietta under the direction of guest conductor Mei-Ann Chen closes the 2021-2022 season with “In Place and Time” May 21 at 7:30 p.m. at the historic Rialto Theater in Tacoma (310 S. 9th St.) and on May 22 at 2:00 p.m. at Pioneer Park Pavilion in Puyallup (330 S. Meridian).

Guest conductor Mei-Ann Chen, making her Northwest Sinfonietta debut, has been lauded as a compelling communicator on and off the podium, and to date has worked with over 110 orchestras worldwide. Chen currently serves as music director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta and Austria’s Recreation Grosses Orchester Graz at Styriarte, artistic partner of the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra in Houston, Texas, and artistic director and conductor of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra summer festival. Notable conducting engagements have included the symphonies of Toronto, Vancouver, Seattle, Indianapolis, Chicago, San Francisco and Houston, the BBC Scottish Symphony, Danish National Orchestra, Sweden’s Gothenburg and many others.

Reena Esmail’s “Teen Murti” for string orchestra opens the program. Named after New Delhi’s Teen Murti, the former residence of the first prime minister of India (which itself is named after the three sculptures standing in front of the building), the work draws on Hindustani musical traditions intertwined with western compositional techniques. Esmail is an Indian-American composer based in Los Angeles who works between the worlds of Indian and Western classical music. She has been commissioned by the Kronos Quartet, Imani Winds, Los Angeles Master Chorale, Chicago Sinfonietta and many others.

Demarre McGill, principal flute of the Seattle Symphony, is featured in the “Concierto Pastoral” by Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo. Written in 1978 for internationally acclaimed flute soloist James Galway, “Concierto Pastoral” exudes joyful freedom throughout. McGill is an internationally acclaimed soloist, recitalist and orchestral musician. Prior to joining the Seattle Symphony, he served as principal flute of the Dallas Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Florida Orchestra and Santa Fe Opera, and has also performed as acting principal flute of New York’s Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Accolades include an Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Sphinx Medal of Excellence, and solo appearances with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the symphonies of Chicago, Pittsburgh, San Diego, Baltimore and Dallas.

W.A. Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D Major, K. 504 “Prague” closes both the program and the season for the Northwest Sinfonietta. Already raving over his music, audiences in Prague were buzzing over rumors of an appearance by Mozart to conduct his hit opera “The Marriage of Figaro” in January, 1787. Upon arrival from Vienna, Mozart also brought with him the manuscript for a symphony completed only a few weeks prior in December, 1786. Despite not having composed a symphony for three years, No. 38 was an unequivocal triumph. Its musical heft, refined sophistication and mastery of the form made it an immediate sensation, and the “Prague” symphony has since earned its place as one of the finest symphonies in the western canon.

Tickets $22-50. Student, military and group discounts available. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit: www.nwsinfonietta.org

The Northwest Sinfonietta 2022-2023 season opens October 9 and 10 with works by Aaron Copland, Carlos Simon and Maurice Ravel. Season tickets available now; single tickets on sale September 1, 2022.

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Dazzling Cuban pianist Aldo López-Gavilán, Northwest Sinfonietta present ‘Archipelago’ Apr. 29, May 1

March 31, 2022 in Orchestra, Piano

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dazzling Cuban pianist Aldo López-Gavilán, Northwest Sinfonietta present ‘Archipelago’ Apr. 29, May 1

By Zachary C. Person

TACOMA, Wash. – The Northwest Sinfonietta presents “Archipelago” featuring acclaimed Cuban crossover pianist and composer Aldo López-Gavilán and a string quartet from the sinfonietta in a program of classical, Latin and jazz music.

The first performance, presented in collaboration with the University of Puget Sound School of Music and including students from the university orchestra, takes place at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 29 at Schneebeck Concert Hall in Tacoma (1567-1625 N. Union Ave.). The second performance is at 2:00 p.m. Sunday, May 1 at Pioneer Park Pavilion in Puyallup (330 S. Meridian).

Both concerts include works from López-Gavilán’s “Talking to the Universe,” “Ciernes de Ciudad,” “Pan con Timba,” “Aegean” and more.

Tickets $30. Student, military and group discounts available. Tickets may be purchased at: ups.universitytickets.com (April 29) and at www.nwsinfonietta.org (May 1)

Aldo López-Gavilán was born in Cuba to a family of internationally acclaimed musicians. By the age of five, he had written his first musical composition and by age seven had begun formal piano studies. He has been called “a formidable virtuoso” by the London Times and praised for his “dazzling technique and rhythmic fire” by the Seattle Times. He has been a Northwest Sinfonietta audience favorite for many years and has previously performed with the orchestra in 2015 and 2017.

Since winning the Danny Kaye International Children’s Award at age 11, López-Gavilán has embarked on a wide-ranging international performance career including concerts with the National Symphonic Orchestra of Cuba, Venezuela’s acclaimed Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra, Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, the Harlem String Quartet, with legendary jazz musician Chucho Valdés at the Havana Jazz Festival and many others.

López-Gavilán’s extensive discography includes 10 albums of original compositions and major classical works. Highlights as a composer include music for the award-winning documentary “The Poet of Havana,” a trumpet concerto premiered by Cuban virtuoso Arturo Sandoval and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and his own dazzling concerto for piano and orchestra.

Other local events surrounding the “Archipelago” performances include two screenings of “Los Hermanos,” a film about Aldo and his brother Ilmar, at Tacoma’s The Grand Cinema (more information at: www.grandcinema.com) at 1:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, April 19 and López-Gavilán performing his own piano concerto with the University of Puget Sound symphony orchestra on Saturday, April 30 (more information at www.pugetsound.edu).

The Northwest Sinfonietta 2021-2022 season concludes May 21-22 with “In Place and Time” featuring flute soloist Demarre McGill and conductor Mei-Ann Chen in a program of works by Esmail, Rodrigo and Mozart.

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Northwest Sinfonietta presents free ‘Close-Up’ neighborhood concerts Mar. 31, Apr. 14

March 08, 2022 in Orchestra

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Northwest Sinfonietta presents free ‘Close-Up’ neighborhood concerts Mar. 31, Apr. 14

By Zachary C. Person
Media contact: Karin Choo, Northwest Sinfonietta

TACOMA, Wash. – The Northwest Sinfonietta presents two “Close-Up Concerts” this spring in collaboration with community arts partners. The free hour-long “neighborhood performances” will be held on Thursday, March 31 at the Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center (T.U.P.A.C.) (1105 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Tacoma) and on Thursday, April 14 at Mt. Tahoma High School (4634 S. 74th St., Tacoma).

Both concerts begin at 6:00 p.m. and are free and open to all. Advance registration is requested but not required. To learn more or register in advance, visit: www.nwsinfonietta.org.

“Song & Dance” on March 31 features a chamber ensemble from the Northwest Sinfonietta, and dancers from T.U.P.A.C. and Tacoma’s Sabor Flamenco. The program includes variations on “Black Noir Black” and juxtaposes works by prominent Black composers William Grant Still (“Lyric Quartet”), Joseph Boulogne Chevalier de Saint-Georges (a movement from his second symphony), Jessie Montgomery’s “Strum” and a looping cello work by Gretchen Yanover with the well-known “La Musica della Strade di Madrid” by Italian classical-era composer Luigi Boccherini and Aaron Copland’s “At the River” from his second set of American songs.

“Pictures in Song” on April 14 features soloist Denise Dillenbeck, concertmaster of the Northwest Sinfonietta, a chamber ensemble of musicians from the sinfonietta, and the Mt. Tahoma High School orchestra directed by Emily Golan. The Mt. Tahoma High School orchestra will perform two works side-by-side with members of the Northwest Sinfonietta.

“It has been such a great experience having Northwest Sinfonietta musicians work with my students,” says Golan, “and we are all excited about the upcoming concert. It will definitely be something they never forget!”

The spring-themed program includes “Flowering Jasmine” by Latvian composer Georgs Pelēcis; the popular “Spring” from Antonio Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons”; and two works by Astor Piazzolla: “Primavera Porteña” from the “Four Seasons of Buenos Aires” and an arrangement “Oblivion” for string orchestra.

Concertmaster and violin soloist Denise Dillenbeck also serves as concertmaster of the Yakima Symphony Orchestra (Yakima, Washington), the Lake Chelan Bach Festival (Chelan, Wash.) and the York Symphony Orchestra in Pennsylvania. Dillenbeck has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Oregon Symphony and Baltimore Symphony, and has served as concertmaster for orchestras in Germany and England.

The Northwest Sinfonietta 2021-2022 season continues April 29 and May 1 with “Archipelago” featuring Cuban cross-over pianist Aldo López-Gavilán and concludes on May 21-22 with “In Place and Time” featuring flute soloist Demarre McGill and conductor Mei-Ann Chen in a program of works by Esmail, Rodrigo and Mozart

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Northwest Sinfonietta presents “Violet Sunrise,” Lockington’s final performances March 5-6

February 15, 2022 in Orchestra

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Northwest Sinfonietta presents “Violet Sunrise,” Lockington’s final performances March 5-6

By Zachary C. Person

TACOMA, Wash. – The Northwest Sinfonietta under the direction of artistic partner David Lockington presents “Violet Sunrise” March 5 at 7:30 p.m. at the historic Rialto Theater in Tacoma (310 S. 9th St.) and on March 6 at 2:00 p.m. at the Pioneer Park Pavilion in Puyallup (330 S. Meridian).

Tickets $22-50. Student, military and group discounts available. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit: www.northwestsinfonietta.org.

These performances mark the last of Lockington’s tenure with the Northwest Sinfonietta. In 2015, the Northwest Sinfonietta became one of the few orchestras in the world to move to an “artistic partner” model of operations, allowing the musicians of the ensemble to take a larger role in the artistic decisions and vision for the orchestra. Lockington was one of three inaugural artistic partners that season and in 2018 was named principal artistic partner.

“Violet Sunrise” features three brilliant works for small orchestra. Franz Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 6 in D Major “Le Matin” opens the program. Composed in 1761 by a youthful Haydn who had just joined the Esterházy court, “Le Matin” (“Morning”) was not written as an explicitly programmatic work, though the opening adagio introduction clearly depicting a sunrise has inspired many others to refer to the remaining movements as “noon” and “evening.”

Two movements from W.A. Mozart’s Oboe Concerto in C Major, K. 314 follow, featuring Northwest Sinfonietta Youth Concerto Competition winner Sebastian Kelzenberg. Now considered a popular and successful concerto for oboe, somehow K.314 was lost during Mozart’s lifetime and was “rediscovered” in the 1920’s in Salzburg, Austria by Mozart scholar Alfred Einstein. The second movement, in typical Mozartian fashion, is expressive and operatic in nature with delicately balanced phrases; the playful third movement features a theme later reused by Mozart in his opera “Abduction from the Seraglio.”

Kelzenberg is an award-winning young oboist from Washington state. He was winner of the Music Teachers National Association woodwind competition in 2019, a Merit Award recipient from the YoungArts Foundation, and was grand prize winner of the 2020 King FM/Seattle Chamber Music Society Young Artist Awards.

David Lockington’s “Violet Viola Concerto” featuring soloist Libor Ondras closes the program. The concerto is named after Lockington’s first granddaughter, Violet, who was born while he was composing the piece. Two days after her birth, a lullaby appeared to Lockington, which he wrote down and took to Ondras to play; that lullaby became the focus of the concerto’s second movement. The first movement, an “appassionata,” evokes a feeling the composer associated with Eastern European expression. The third and final movement, which Lockington describes as a “stomping type of dance” evokes a sense of travel. The concerto was premiered in 2019 by the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra (Grand Rapids, Michigan) and composed for soloist Libor Ondras.

Soloist Libor Ondras is a viola recitalist, conductor and educator. He began his studies with the famed violist Yuri Bashmet at the Moscow Conservatory as a recipient of a Slovak Ministry of Culture fellowship. Ondras continued his studies at the Academy of Music Arts in Prague and holds a doctorate from the University of Houston (Texas). He is currently associate professor, string specialist and director of orchestras at Grand Rapids Community College in Grand Rapids, Mich.

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Corvallis-OSU Symphony livestream set for Nov. 22

November 09, 2020 in Orchestra

For Immediate Release: November 9, 2020

Corvallis-OSU Symphony livestream set for Nov. 22

By Zachary C. Person

Source: Marlan Carlson

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Corvallis-OSU Symphony string ensemble under the direction of Maestro Marlan Carlson performs a concert livestreamed from The LaSells Stewart Center at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 22.

The performance is free and open to the public and can be viewed online at: mu.oregonstate.edu/live.

Selected movements from Antonín Dvořák’s Serenade for Strings, Op. 22 open the program. Written in 1875 in only two weeks-time, the five-movement string serenade was composed on a smaller scale than Dvořák’s weightier and well known symphonies and remains one of his most popular works.

The program continues with excerpts from Edvard Grieg’s “Holberg Suite, Op, 40,” a work originally written for piano in 1884 and later adapted by the composer for string orchestra. The five movement work, written in the style of a Baroque-era dance suite, was composed on the occasion of the 200th birthday of the distinguished Norwegian writer Ludvig Holberg. Grieg originally penned the work for solo piano, adapting it a year later into the string orchestra version that the Corvallis-OSU Symphony string ensemble performs.

W.A. Mozart’s Adagio and Fugue in c minor, KV. 546 and the opening movement of the Serenade for Strings Op. 13, KV. 525 “Eine kleine Nachtmusik” close the program. Long one of Mozart’s popular compositions, “Eine kleine Nachtmusik” is a lighthearted little “bon-bon” of a work, charming audiences and performers alike since its premiere in 1787.

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About the OSU College of Liberal Arts: The College of Liberal Arts includes the fine and performing arts, humanities and social sciences, making it one of the largest and most diverse colleges at OSU. The college’s research and instructional faculty members contribute to the education of all university students and provide national and international leadership, creativity and scholarship in their academic disciplines.

Corvallis-OSU Symphony performs all-Rachmaninoff program Feb. 25

February 03, 2020 in Orchestra

For Immediate Release

Corvallis-OSU Symphony performs all-Rachmaninoff program Feb. 25

By Zachary C. Person
Source: Marlan Carlson

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Corvallis-OSU Symphony under the direction of Maestro Marlan Carlson performs an all-Rachmaninoff program at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 25 in the Austin Auditorium at The LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th St., Corvallis.

The concert features two works by Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff: “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini,” Op. 43 for piano and orchestra featuring student soloist Christopher Yoon, and the Symphony No. 1 in D-minor, Op. 13.

The “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini” Op. 43, composed in the summer of 1934, is one of only six works Rachmaninoff composed after fleeing Russia in 1917 as a result of the revolution in February of that year. At the time of its composition, Rachmaninoff had largely abandoned writing music in order to pursue his career as a virtuoso piano soloist in order to provide support and stability to his family after losing nearly everything as a result of their self-imposed exile from Russia.

His Op. 43 derives its main theme from the 24th and final caprice for solo violin by Niccolo Paganini. Over a span of 24 minutes, Rachmaninoff spins Paganini’s famous theme through 24 increasingly virtuosic variations in a variety of keys and tempi.

Rachmaninoff wrote his first symphony in 1895 at the youthful age of 22, a few short years after graduating from the Moscow Conservatory of Music. Despite his youth, Rachmaninoff was already one of the most respected musicians in Russia; his first piano concerto had already received its premiere while he was still a student, and Rachmaninoff had received a prestigious gold medal in composition upon graduation from the conservatory. The premiere of the symphony in 1897 was an unmitigated disaster; when Rachmaninoff later fled to the west, he left the score for his first symphony behind, and only acknowledge its existence by naming his next symphony as his second. Op. 43 remained unperformed and almost entirely unknown for decades, though following its American premiere in 1948 by the Philadelphia Orchestra it has since established itself as a work of importance worthy of inclusion in the standard symphonic repertory.

Tickets are $22 to $32 in advance or $25 to $35 at the door. Tickets are available online at www.cosusymphony.org. Up to three K-8 students accompanied by a ticketed adult, and all high school and college students with ID, may be given free general admission tickets at the door starting one hour prior to the concert, subject to availability.

Corvallis Arts for All discounts apply with a valid SNAP card and are available one hour prior to performance. For accommodations relating to a disability please call 541-286-5580, preferably one week in advance.

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On-campus TV and radio studios: Oregon State University is equipped with on-campus television and radio studios that can be used by journalists. Live or live-to-tape broadcast television studio interviews can be conducted using Vyvx. Oregon State staff can also gather b-roll and coordinate live-to-tape interviews on locations throughout campus. For radio, Oregon State’s ISDN phone line provides a broadcast-quality audio feed.

Corvallis-OSU Symphony performs Shostakovich’s tenth symphony Nov. 24

November 05, 2019 in Orchestra

For Immediate Release: November 5, 2019

Corvallis-OSU Symphony performs Shostakovich’s tenth symphony Nov. 24

By Zachary C. Person

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Corvallis-OSU Symphony under the direction of Maestro Marlan Carlson performs works by Antonín Dvořák, Zoltán Kodály and Dmitri Shostakovich at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 24 in the Austin Auditorium at The LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th St., Corvallis.

Antonín Dvořák’s “Carnival Overture” Op. 92 opens the program. The rousing nine-minute work from 1891 forms the second in Dvořák’s trilogy of concert overtures inspired by the composer’s impressions of life, love and nature which embody the human experience.

Zoltán Kodály’s "Dance of Galanta," a four-part whirlwind of folk melodies and gypsy tunes, follows. Like his contemporary Béla Bartók, Kodály spent his lifetime collecting folk music melodies in the remote areas of Hungary, Transylvania and other areas of Eastern Europe. "This passion for the unblemished and authentic musical expressions of mostly illiterate people with no formal musical education eventually manifested itself in many of their compositions," says Maestro Carlson. "And like the food of this area, the music of these composers is both exhilarating and sensorially intoxicating."

The Tenth Symphony in E minor, Op. 93 by Dmitri Shostakovich closes the program. Shostakovich began composing the four-movement symphony shortly after the death of Josef Stalin in 1953, and the symphony forms a musical portrait of both Stalin as a person and Shostakovich’s experience of living under the Stalinist regime.

The symphony was premiered in 1953 by the Leningrad Philharmonic under the direction of Yevgeny Mravinsky to huge success, though the overall pessimistic tone of the work quickly attracted public scrutiny from the Soviet Composer’s Union as being an "optimistic tragedy” and “non-realistic.” Despite the criticism, Shostakovich, who was well accustomed to politically motivated ridicule of his works - and very adept at publicly apologizing for their content - did not offer to rewrite the symphony. His Op. 93 stands today as a mid-century masterwork and an astute if somewhat less than overt political statement summing up in a mere 53 minutes Shostakovich’s experiences during decades of Stalinism.

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Corvallis-OSU Symphony Society hosts Portland Youth Philharmonic Oct. 27

October 01, 2019 in Orchestra

Corvallis-OSU Symphony Society hosts Portland Youth Philharmonic Oct. 27

Story by: Zachary Person
Source: Josh Espinoza

CORVALIS, Ore. – The Portland Youth Philharmonic hosted by the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Society performs at 3:00 p.m., Sunday, October 27 in the Austin Auditorium at The LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th Street.

Portland Youth Philharmonic music director David Hattner leads the orchestra in three works: George Gershwin’s jazz-inspired Piano Concerto in F (1925) featuring 14-year-old Joshua Ji, winter of the 2019 Portland Piano International / SOLO Piano Competition; Amy Beach’s “Gaelic Symphony” (1894); and “Batuque” (1941) by Brazilian composer Oscar Lorenzo Fernández.

Following the immense success of his “Rhapsody in Blue” in 1924, George Gershwin (1898-1937) received a commission from Walter Damrosch and the New York Symphony that resulted in his popular three movement piano concerto. Unlike any composer before or since, Gershwin transcended the boundaries between jazz and classical music with his catalog of jazzy, blues-inflected works.

The “Gaelic Symphony” by Amy Beach (1867-1944) was the first symphony composed and published by an American woman. Despite her lack of European musical training, Beach was a highly regarded composer during the late-19thand early-20th centuries. In addition to her well-known compositions, Beach was an acclaimed piano soloist (frequently performing her own music) and also served as president of the board at the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music.

Brazilian composer Oscar Lorenzo Fernández (1897-1948) was primarily known for his three-act opera “Malazarte.” “Batuque,” the third movement from a popular suite for orchestra extracted from the opera, is based on an Afro-Brazilian folk dance brilliantly adapted for symphony orchestra.

Tickets $5, all seating general admission. Advance tickets available at cosusymphony.org or at the box office beginning one hour prior to the performance. Accommodations relating to a disability may be made by calling 541-286-5580, preferably at least one week in advance.

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About the OSU College of Liberal Arts: The College of Liberal Arts includes fine and performing arts, humanities and social sciences, making it one of the largest and most diverse colleges at OSU. The college’s research and instructional faculty members contribute to the education of all university students and provide national and international leadership, creativity and scholarship in their academic disciplines.

Corvallis-OSU Symphony opens season with Mozart, Bruckner October 6

September 19, 2019 in Orchestra

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 19, 2019

Corvallis-OSU Symphony opens season with Mozart, Bruckner October 6

By Zachary C. Person

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Marlan Carlson opens the 2019-2020 season at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 6 in the Austin Auditorium at The LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th Street, Corvallis.

The program include three works from the classical and romantic eras: W.A. Mozart’s Overture to “Don Giovanni” K.527 and Sinfonia Concertante for Four Winds K.297b, and Anton Bruckner’s “Te Deum” for orchestra, choir and vocal soloists.

Mozart’s popular Overture to “Don Giovanni” K.527 opens the program. “The ominous chords at the very beginning,” says Maestro Carlson “show that though this dramma giocoso may include many humorous moments, it is not going to end well for Signor Giovanni. The Overture to Mozart’s masterpiece captures the essence of the opera from the very first note.”

The Sinfonia Concertante for Four Winds K.297b by Mozart follows. The 28-minute work in three movements features OSU music faculty members Carol Robe (clarinet), Ann Kosanovic-Brown (bassoon), Lawrence Johnson (horn), and retired faculty member Fred Korman (oboe) as soloists.

Anton Bruckner’s “Te Deum” in C Major, WAB 45, conducted by OSU director of choral studies Dr. Steven Zielke, comprises the second half of the concert. The performance features guest choirs from Corvallis High School, Crescent Valley High School, South Albany High School and West Albany High School. Current OSU music students Grace Dawald, Naomi Bennett, Jacob Hungerford and Tyson Zagelow perform as soloists.

The five-movement, 25-minute work was one of Bruckner’s few successes during his lifetime. Originally sketched in 1881, “Te Deum” is one of only two mature sacred works by the deeply religious composer. Unlike his symphonies, this work was an immediate success and received tens of performances during the final decade of his life. Curiously to the modern audience to whom Bruckner’s music has become a staple of the repertoire, the 50 gulden that Bruckner earned from the publication of “Te Deum” was the only money he earned as a composer.

The Corvallis-OSU Symphony season continues on Sunday, November 24 with works by Shostakovich and Kodály.

Tickets $22-32 advance, $25-35 door. Advance tickets available online at www.cosusymphony.org. Up to three K-8 students accompanied by a ticketed adult, and all high school and college students with ID, may be given free general admission tickets at the door starting one hour prior to the concert, subject to availability. CAFA discounts apply with valid SNAP card, available one hour prior to performance at the LaSells Stewart Center. For accommodations relating to a disability please call 541-286-5580, preferably one week in advance.

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Corvallis-OSU Symphony performs Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring Feb. 24

February 07, 2019 in Orchestra

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 7 February 2019

Corvallis-OSU Symphony performs Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring Feb. 24

By Zachary C. Person, 541-737-4671, zachary.person@oregonstate.edu

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Marlan Carlson presents “Stars of the Orchestra” at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, February 24 in the Austin Auditorium at The LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th Street, Corvallis.

Student soloists from OSU who were selected at a competitive audition in October, 2018 are featured in in the opening half:

· Hailey Cervantes: “Con Forza” from Concerto for Percussion by Joseph Schwantner

· Christopher Yoon: “Adagio-Moderato” from Concerto for Cello by Edward Elgar

· Adrian Galash and Ralph Musni: “Allegro” from Concerto for Two Clarinets by Franz Krommer

· Bettine Rehr-Zimmerman: Selections from “Carmen Fantasy” for violin and orchestra by Pablo de Sarasate

· Eric Russell: “Allegro” from Concerto for Horn by Gordon Jacob

· Andrew Yoon: “Rhapsody in Blue” for piano by George Gershwin

Oboists Robert Koll, Stephanie Brannan and Janie Anderson, and horn players Eric Russell and Luke Schroeder will also be featured in the first movement of J.S. Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto No. 1,” conducted by OSU music education student Rolly Toribio.

Igor Stravinsky’s landmark “Rite of Spring” is the major work on the program. The ballet score induced a riot at its inaugural performance at Paris’s Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in 1913, shocking the audience with a highly complex rhythmic scheme and an audacious approach to tonality. The entire ensemble is showcased in the “Rite of Spring” through Stravinsky’s virtuosic solo writing, brilliant passagework and genius command of orchestration and thematic development.

In the words of Maestro Marlan Carlson, “this is a concert I’ve been dreaming about for years - a concert featuring many of our outstanding student instrumentalists as soloists combined with the 20th century’s all-time star composition for orchestra, the ‘Rite of Spring’ by Igor Stravinsky. No other work composed in the last 120 years can touch the Rite of Spring (1913) in terms of its creative brilliance and its impact on the course of music history. I’ve known this piece for many decades, performed it many times, and in fact had the opportunity to play it as acting principal viola in the London Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Leonard Bernstein.”

Reserved seating $22, $27, $32. Advance tickets available online at www.cosusymphony.org. Up to three K-8 students accompanied by a ticketed adult, and all high school and college students with ID, may be given free general admission tickets at the door starting one hour prior to the concert, subject to availability. CAFA discounts apply with valid SNAP card, available one hour prior to performance at the LaSells Stewart Center. For accommodations relating to a disability please call 541-286-5580, preferably one week in advance.

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Corvallis-OSU Symphony, violin soloist Jessica Lambert celebrate Bernstein Centenary Nov. 18

November 02, 2018 in Orchestra

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 2 November 2018

Corvallis-OSU Symphony, violin soloist Jessica Lambert celebrate Bernstein Centenary Nov. 18

By Zachary C. Person

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Marlan Carlson presents its season opening concert “Bernstein 100” at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, November 18.

The concert will be held in the Austin Auditorium at The LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th Street, Corvallis.

Arthur Honegger’s programmatic “Pacific 231” (1923) opens the program. The widely performed work vividly evokes a steam locomotive gathering terrifying speed and wildly racing down the tracks before the relentless machine finally grinds to a noisy, exhausted halt.

Violinist Jessica Lambert, concertmaster of orchestra since 2007, joins as soloist for Leonard Bernstein’s infrequently performed “Serenade (after Plato’s Symposium).” While not strictly programmatic, the 1954 composition is based on Bernstein’s interpretation of Plato’s famed dialogue “The Symposium.” Bernstein explained that “the music, like the dialogue, is a series of related statements in praise of love, and generally follows the Platonic form through the succession of speakers at the banquet.” Each of the five movements draws its focus from characters in the dialogue: I. Phaedrus; Pausanias; II. Aristophanes; III. Eryximachus; IV. Agathon; V. Socrates.

Lambert is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where she studied with Zvi Zeitlin and members of the Cleveland String Quartet. She is artistic director of the Oregon State University Chamber Music Workshop and maintains a large private studio in Corvallis. Previous professional engagements include the Oregon Symphony Orchestra, the El Paso Symphony and the El Paso Pro Musica.

Carl Nielsen’s Fifth Symphony, Op. 50 (1922) comprises the entire second half of the program. Unusually, the symphony eschews the traditional symphonic form and is written in only two lengthy and highly contrasting movements. The inclusion of Nielsen’s work celebrates Leonard Bernstein’s conducting legacy and influence on modern concert programming. Bernstein was long a champion of works by Carl Nielsen, Jean Sibelius and other (at the time) ‘neglected’ composers including Gustav Mahler, and his profound impact as an interpreter and conductor of works by lesser-known composers forms one of the most important and lasting parts of his tremendous legacy.

The Corvallis-OSU Symphony will continue its exploration of Leonard Bernstein’s legacy throughout the remainder of the 2018-2019 season. On November 30, the orchestra will be joined by the OSU Chamber Choir for a performance of Bernstein’s charming “Chichester Psalms.” In February, Maestro Carlson will lead the ensemble in a performance of Igor Stravinsky’s savage “Rite of Spring” and in May, the orchestra will perform Gustav Mahler’s heart wrenching ninth and final symphony. The Stravinsky and Mahler works were at the core of Bernstein’s conducting repertoire and his interpretation and approach of both masterpieces have long stood the test of time.

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