Symphony Time!

When: September 30th, 2014, at 7:30pm
Where: Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Preforming Arts
Who: Missouri State University Orchestra
What: Rossini, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Rimsky-Korsakov

Here are a few things you might like to know before you attend this absolutely free and open to the public event.

Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868) was Italian and he composed operas that were so popular in his day that he was able to retire when he was just 38-years-old. The MSU orchestra will be playing the overture to his opera, La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie). This is a fun piece of music, it is very up-beat and will sound familiar to many of you.The snare drum is featured in this overture and it will be fun to watch the different sections of the orchestra as they trade off the lime light throughout the performance. If you would like to read a little more detail about Rossini and this opera here are a couple of links, about Rossini himself and about la gazza ladra.

Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) was a British composer who could paint a picture with the orchestra. His music is very lyrical - in fact he composed a lot of songs, setting poetry to music - and it is easy to imagine that the instruments are telling you a story. RVW did not set out to write a story with music, but when you listen to the four movements of his Symphony No. 3, try to think about a place you would like to visit, maybe in the first movement you can hear the instruments take turns showing you around? Dr. Quebbeman, the conductor of the MSU orchestra, told me that this is one of his favorite symphonies. For more about Vaughan Williams and about A Pastoral Symphony click on the links.

Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908) was a Russian composer who was great at letting all of the instruments in the orchestra show-off a little bit. What we will hear is the third movement of the Tsar Sultan Suite. This movement is titled "The Three Wonders" I will give you a link to some more information about the opera and story of the Tsar Sultan so you can think about what the three wonders might be. According to Dr. Quebbeman this will be a big finish, and I'm excited to listen, but also to watch all the performers! For more about Rimsky-Korsavov, and about the Tsar Sultan.





I hope you can make it to the symphony next week, if you do attend here are a couple of things to keep in mind: Be respectful, all of the performers have worked very hard to learn the music and get up and give it their best, so we need to do our part by listening quietly. The theater will be kind of dark, so using a tablet or phone even on silent will be distracting. If you need to get up and move around try to wait until everyone is clapping, it might help to do a little dance in that quick moment to release some energy. Sitting on the ends of the rows will also make it easier to step out without disturbing others. It is going to be a fantastic evening, I hope I see you there!