The Well-Tempered Ear

Classical music: The fall concert series by the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras starts this Saturday and includes the Wisconsin premiere of Martinu’s Symphony No. 3

By Jacob Stockinger

The Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras have sent information about their upcoming fall concert this coming Saturday and the following Saturday:

The Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (WYSO) opens their fall concert series on Saturday, Nov. 11, and Saturday, Nov. 18, with the WYSO Youth Orchestra performing Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu’s Symphony No. 3.  (You can hear the opening movement in the YouTube video at the bottom.)

“All our orchestras and ensembles have been digging deep into some amazing repertoire this fall,” said Interim Artistic Director Randal Swiggum (below).  “WYSO fans will love these concerts—a great mix of beloved classics like Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Capriccio Espagnol” and the Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture, and some compelling new works.  The students are super-excited to share it.”

Martinu’s fiercely energetic Symphony No. 3 was originally premiered by the Boston Symphony in 1945 while the composer (below) was a refugee from the Nazis; but the piece has not been performed by any orchestra in Wisconsin in 72 years.

“This is a remarkable piece,” Swiggum said, “Always rhythmic and exciting, it has really challenged the kids with its unusual colors and ideas.”

Tickets for the fall concert series are available at the door, and are $10 for adults and $5 for youth 18 and under.

The full concert repertoire is available at www.wysomusic.org/fall-2017-repertoire/.

Evelyn Steenbock Fall Concert Dates

• Saturday, November 11:
  1:30 pm – Percussion Ensemble (below), Harp Ensemble, Philharmonia Orchestra
  4:00 pm – Concert Orchestra, Opus One, Sinfonietta
  Mills Concert Hall, 455 N. Park St., Madison, WI
• Saturday, November 18
  7:00 pm – Youth Orchestra
  Middleton Performing Arts Center, 2100 Bristol St., Middleton, WI