The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s 2014-2015 Eastern Shore series begins at Chesapeake College, Friday October 17. It’s a program that will bring out the best of this highly acclaimed symphonic organization. The concert starts at 8:00PM with a pre concert conversation with the BSO’s artistic director Matt Spivey at 7:00PM.
The program begins with an overlooked composition by Swedish composer Elfrida Andree. The piece titled Concert Overture is a sonic rouser that will show off the versatility and quality of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. It will be a BSO premier performance. Mozart’s Flute Concerto in G featuring BSO’s principal flutist Emily Skala will follow it. The concert ends with Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 3 “Polish.”
Elfrida Andree, who was born in 1841, is one of a small group of female composers, who was best known in her lifetime as an organist and an activist in the Swedish women’s movement. She was the organist at Gothenburg Cathedral and composed two organ symphonies, which are frequently performed. She was also a conductor, and composed several works for orchestra and chamber music ensembles including the Concert Overture. Andree died in 1929.
Emily Skala, the BSO’s principal flutist, is a virtuoso performer. Her playing has been described as having a “blazing and flawless technique.” One of her many recordings has been described as representing the best in contemporary flute performance. The Eastman School of Music graduate has been affiliated with six major American orchestras before joining the BSO in 1988. Skala is also on the faculty of Johns Hopkins University Peabody Institute of Music.
Here’s a nice clip of her in performance:
The concert concludes with one of Tchaikovsky’s neglected works – Symphony No. 3. It highlights his most brilliant orchestrations, and Tchaikovsky considered it “a step forward in craftsmanship.”
The BSO will be led by Norwegian born Arild Remmereit who has built a solid career with many of the world’s leading orchestras. He was recently music director of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, where he regularly programed female composers including Alfrida Andree, Fanny Mendelssohn, Clara Schumann, Amy Beach and contemporary composers including Margaret Brouwer, Gabriela Frank and Sofia Gubaidulina.
Now in its 44th year, the Mid-Shore Symphony Society presents the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra concerts at Chesapeake College. The concerts are supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council, the Talbot County Arts Council, the Queen Anne’s County Arts Council, and the Kent County Arts Council.
Tickets are $40 for single seats, students $10, available at the door, or call 410 827 5867.
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