Youth Symphony
The Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra, now in its 87th season, has been anointed with all the adjectives—incredible, majestic, wonderful, professional.
Well, you get the picture.
In fact, there’s nothing that quite equals listening to this high-quality live orchestra led by Maestro Stuart Malina at the Forum in downtown Harrisburg. Here, the splendid notes of Beethoven, Tchaikovsky and Gershwin crescendo and decrescendo in a multi-dimensional way that technology can’t begin to match. And, whether you’re a classical music aficionado or a young person who is attending for the first time, you’ll walk away with your own exemplary adjectives.
HSO’s Masterworks series opens the season on Oct. 8 to 9 with the music of Hindemith, Beethoven and Bartok. Pianist Sara Davis Buechner, making her HSO debut, will be performing Bartok’s Piano Concerto No. 3.
“I’m particularly proud that the Harrisburg Symphony is bringing Sara Davis Buechner to Harrisburg,” said Patrick Wallen, HSO’s director of sales and marketing. “In my opinion, her story is inspiring.”
Buechner, a Baltimore native and a graduate of Juilliard in New York, was well on the way to a promising career as a concert pianist. Buechner had performed nationally and internationally, won competitions, played at the White House. But then Buechner made the decision to live authentically. Back then, Buechner’s first name was David. Now, it’s Sara. When she came out as transgender in 1998, friends deserted her, and no one in the music arena would hire her.
“She made the difficult decision to leave the United States and move to Canada,” Wallen said. “She found a generally more accepting environment in Canada.”
Little by little, Buechner began seeing changing social attitudes for transgendered people. Little by little, she started receiving more invitations to perform in the United States. She has now accepted a teaching position at Temple University and relocated to Philadelphia.
“Her story is a comeback story, and the Harrisburg Symphony may be playing a pivotal role,” Wallen added.
Other performances in the Masterworks series include the works of Faure and Berlioz on Nov. 12 to 13; Ravel, Rota and Mozart on Jan. 7 to 8; Little, Sibelius and Brahms on Feb. 11 to 12; Debussy, Strauss and Stravinsky on March 18 to 19; Tchaikovsky, Khachaturian and Shostakovich on April 8 to 9; and, rounding out the year, Gershwin and Rachmaninoff on May 6 to 7.
The ever-popular “Pops” series will feature the rock hits of Bruce Springsteen, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Queen and others from the ‘70s and ‘80s on Oct. 29 to 30; “The Music of James Bond and More” (“Live & Let Die,” “Diamonds are Forever”) as sung by Rachel York on Jan. 28 to 29; Ann Hampton Callaway singing the Barbra Streisand songbook on March 4 to 5; and Michael Cavanaugh singing the music of Elton John on April 22 to 23.
Along with a busy season of performances, HSO includes two youth orchestras offering concerts on Nov. 14, Dec. 17, Feb. 13 and a Mother’s Day Concert on May 14. Talented young musicians from the central Pennsylvania region get to play in an orchestral setting in what is considered one of the oldest youth orchestras in the country. There is also a Junior Youth String Orchestra comprised of string musicians in grades 6 to 9.
HSO also knows that it has to look towards nurturing and growing its future audiences. Along with the youth orchestras, it has devised a subscription program called “Musical Chairs,” whose goal is to grow and expand musical appreciation among its younger base. The program makes a Masterworks subscription of seven concerts affordable for families with students in kindergarten through 12th grade. For a low cost, participants can attend the full Masterworks series when accompanied by parents or teachers.
Accessible and compelling. In the case of the HSO, the splendid adjectives never end.
For tickets and more information about the Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra’s 2016-17 season, visit www.harrisburgsymphony.org or call 717-545-5527.
Author: Lori M. Myers
