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Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale gear up for upcoming season
After a five - month hiatus, the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale will kick off their its new season entitled “Music Comes Aliv e e .” on Oct. 27 with a performance at the Lancaster Performing Arts Center featuring the music of Bach, Mussorgsky, and Berlioz .
On October 27, the The orchestra’s longtime conductor and artistic director David Newby will lead the musicians through a season filled with authentic themes, classic melodies , and unforgettable performances.
“Each year, I’m always most excited about the upcoming season. And this year we’re doing something new,” said Newby. “In the past, the orchestra has been fully made up of professional musicians, but now we’re beginning to include students from AV College's music program.”
Newby is also a music professor at Antelope Valley College. He directs both the orchestra and choral programs there and is the music director of the Tehachapi Community Orchestra. This season will be Newby’s ninth year directing the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale.
Five performances are scheduled for this season and almost all will include guest appearances by local artists.
“Enchanted Orchestra,” the first concert of the season on Oct. 27, is an ensemble of pieces from legendary composers . including Bach, Mussorgsky, and Berlioz.
Dr. Berkeley Price, an accomplished clarinetist and director of the Antelope Valley College Concert Band, will join Newby on the podium for this performance.
Newby said the compositions are fitting to create the spooky feeling of Halloween.
“The name of the performance ‘Enchanted Orchestra’ should give the audience a hint about what the performance will entail. Eerie music from these composers will fill the concert hall and transform it into ghostly place,” he said.
Joining the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale will be Antelope Valley College’s Civic Orchestra and Concert Band.
“This program is unique among California community colleges. We’re bringing student musicians up to the professional level,” said Newby. “This allows students to have the rare opportunity to be mentored one-on-one by professional musicians.”
Newby will follow-up his October direction with the December performances of George Frederic Handel’s well-known holiday themed composition “Messiah.” Because of the popularity of this concerto, two performances are scheduled.
“For more than 260 years this has been a favorite,” said Newby. He explained that this symphony is popular during both the Christmas and Easter seasons. “It’s Handel’s most famous composition and we’re doing it a bit differently than we have any of our other programs,” he said. “Our vocal soloists are alums who are professional musicians, or are pursuing careers in music.”
There will be four featured soloists, one of whom is traveling all the way from London where she is currently studying.
The theme of Newby’s spring performance is “Stars of Tomorrow.” Winners of the prestigious Gail Newby Concerto Competition will perform with the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra in March , 2008. There will also be a special appearance by the winner of the first annual Antelope Valley College Student Concerto Competition.
The Antelope Valley College Civic Orchestra will close “Stars of Tomorrow” with a Spanish mood by performing dances from Manuel de Falla’s The Three-Cornered Hat.
A special daytime performance of “Stars of Tomorrow” will be performed for area youth March 6. Tickets to this performance are reduced to only $5 per seat and are available to Antelope Valley school children.
Newby said that many of the children who come to see the performances have never been inside a concert hall. “It’s really important to make music available to kids--allow them to get up close and see music in action. It will change some of these kids’ lives forever,” he said.
“My ultimate goal is to get performances into the schools and encourage children who want to pursue a career in music to follow their dreams,” stated Newby. “We’re starting to do some of that this year on a very small scale.”
“Ode to Joy,” arguably one of Beethoven’s greatest musical compositions, will be performed as the season finale in May.
“There is no better way to go out with a bang than to perform ‘Ode to Joy.’ It’s incredibly uplifting and speaks about the importance of brotherhood. It will also give the audience something to look forward to for the next season,” concluded said Newby.
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