The Ear has received the following announcement from the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras to post:
Join us for our second concert series of the season, the Diane Ballweg Winterfest Concerts on this Saturday, March 10, in Mills Concert Hall, 455 North Park Street, on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.
“Every one of these concerts is jam-packed with great music—the kind of classics that have endured,” said interim WYSO artistic director Randal Swiggum (below).
“These concerts will inspire audiences, guaranteed, not just with masterworks like Holst’s ‘Jupiter’ from The Planets, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, but with the energy and freshness that young musicians bring to this music.” (You can hear the dramatic and well-known opening of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, with an engaging graphic display of its structure, in the YouTube video at the bottom.)
Additional highlights from the concerts include an Opus One collaboration with the WYSO Music Makers Honors Ensemble on the traditional piece Goin’ To Boston; a guest appearance from NBC-15 TV News Anchor/Reporter John Stofflet (below top) who will narrate Sinfonietta’s performance of Lincoln at Gettysburg; and concerto performances from the 2017-2018 Youth Orchestra Concerto Competition winners, violist Maureen Sheehan (below middle) of Middleton and violinist Dexter Mott (below bottom) of Madison.
“Both Maureen with the Walton Viola Concerto, and Dexter with the Sibelius Violin Concerto, have tackled mature pieces that demand not just technical prowess, but thoughtful, nuanced interpretation,” Swiggum said. “I know audiences will be truly moved by their playing.”
Tickets are available at the door the day of the concerts, and are $10 for adults and $5 for youth 18 and under.
Diane Ballweg Winterfest Concerts Schedule
11:30 a.m. – Opus One with WYSO Music Makers (below, playing at the Wisconsin Union Theater) and Sinfonietta with NBC-15 News Anchor/Reporter John Stofflet narrating Lincoln at Gettysburg.
1:30 p.m. – Harp Ensemble (below) and Concert Orchestra.
4:00 p.m. – Philharmonia Orchestra (below), with a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, and Holst’s “Jupiter” from The Planets.
7:00 p.m. – Youth Orchestra, with performances from the 2017-2018 Youth Orchestra Concerto Competition winners, Dexter Mott and Maureen Sheehan.
REMINDER: The Con Vivo! (music with life) chamber music ensemble (below) invites the public to its debut performance at the Stoughton Opera House on this coming Sunday night. The concert has been rescheduled to this Sunday evening due to the snowstorm last weekend.
Here are the details: Sunday, February 8, 2015, at7:30 p.m. Stoughton Opera House 381 E. Main St. Stoughton, WI (608) 877-4400 Tickets are $20, $10 for an obstructed view and are available at www.stoughtonoperahouse.com
Here is the program: Sergei Prokofiev: “Overture on Hebrew Themes” for Piano, string quartet and clarinet, Op.34 Max Bruch: “Romance” for Viola and Piano op. 85 Jay Ungar: “Ashokan Farewell” for violin and piano John Williams – “Air and Simple Gifts” for violin, cello, clarinet and piano (It was performed by violinist Itzhak Perlman, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, clarinetist Anthony McGill and piano Gabriela Montero and others at President Barack Obama’s first inauguration.) George Gershwin – Preludes for solo piano Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Quintet for Clarinet and String Quartet, KV 581
Here is a link to the original post about the concert:
Our friends at the outstanding local chamber music group “Con Vivo” (Music With Life), which made its Carnegie Hall debut last season, has sent the following word:
Hello Friends,
The Madison-based chamber music ensemble con vivo! … music with life (below) invites you to our debut performance at the Stoughton Opera House on this Sunday afternoon, Feb. 1, at 3 p.m.
The beautifully restored Stoughton Opera House (below, from the outside and inside) is located at 381 E. Main St. Stoughton. For more information, call (608) 877-4400.
You can get tickets at the door or by visiting www.stoughtonoperahouse.com The prices are $20 for regular admission and $10 for an obstructed view.
It’s sad that the Packers aren’t playing in Super Bowl XLIX — that’s 49 to normal people — but if you intend to watch the big game anyway, come spend your pre-game with us. You will be home in time for the kick-off!
Jay Ungar: “Ashokan Farewell” for violin and piano. (It was famously used in the Ken Burns documentary ‘The Civil War.” You can hear it in a lovely and moving YouTube video that features the composer at the bottom.)
John Williams: Air and Simple Gifts for violin, cello, clarinet and piano