Upcoming Concert: The Muse

“O! for a muse of fire, that would ascend the brightest heaven of invention.” – William Shakespeare

Join your Symphony friends and family for a special concert of powerfully emotive works that feature the Symphony’s talented string section on Saturday, January 24, 8 p.m. at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium and Sunday, January 25, 2 p.m. at Watsonville’s Mello Center for the Performing Arts. We perform Samuel Barber’s deeply stirring Adagio for Strings, Stravinsky’s elegant Apollon Musagète and Tchaikovsky’s ravishingly sensual, Serenade for Strings.

We open with Samuel Barber’s fragile and hauntingly beautiful work, Adagio for Strings. From its 1938 premiere by Toscanini it has become a staple of American life and one of the most popular classical works of the 20th Century. It was featured at the funeral of Albert Einstein, the broadcasts of the deaths of presidents Roosevelt and Kennedy, in movies such as Platoon, Lorenzo’s Oil, and The Elephant Man, television series including The Simpsons and South Park and recently at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

Then the Symphony performs Apollon Musagète, Igor Stravinsky’s lyrical portrayal of Greek mythology. Apollon Musagète was a ballet commissioned in 1927 by Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge who, unable to pursue a career as a concert pianist, instead impacted the world of classical music by commissioning works with major composers of the day including Britten, Copland, Ravel, Bartok and Prokofiev.

Stravinsky was given no limitations in the theme of the piece and was excited to explore Greek mythology through music and dance. The rich harmonies and expressiveness of the strings make this grand and beautiful work among Stravinsky’s most delectable and masterful.

The program concludes with Tchaikovsky’s vibrant and lush Serenade for Strings. This innovative and deeply expressive composition is simply breathtaking. Tchaikovsky felt the serenade represented some of his best work. He wrote the work simultaneously with The 1812 Overture, but said “The overture will be very loud and noisy, but I wrote it without any warm feelings of love and so, it will probably be of no artistic merit. But the serenade, on the contrary, I wrote from inner compulsion. This is a piece from the heart, and so, I venture to hope that this work is not without artistic qualities.”

Symphony League Luncheon Preview at Seascape Golf Club

The Santa Cruz Symphony League will present Maestro Daniel Stewart for a special preview engagement on Friday, January 23, at 12:00 noon at the Seascape Golf Club in Aptos. Don’t miss this special opportunity to meet and learn more about the upcoming concert in an intimate setting with other classical music lovers.

The cost to attend is $30 for League members and $35 for subscribers and others and includes a lunch selection of your choice and refreshments. For more details or to purchase tickets visit the League’s website or call Cheryl Hammond at 475-9482. Please note attendance must be reserved in advance of the Preview.

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For more information on the Symphony League’s activities, classical music education, Symphony News, reviews and more, check out the Symphony League’s free newsletter, Musical Notes.

Tickets: Single tickets ($25 – $70) are on sale now. Call 831.420.5260 or visit SantaCruzTickets.com. Single tickets are also available now for the June 6 Benefit Concert and the March 1 Family Concert.

Student Rush: Bring your student ID to the box office between 6:30 pm and 7:30 pm at the Civic and 1:00 pm and 1:30 pm at the Mello and pay just $10! Group Sales are also available. For details, call 831.462.0553, ext. 11.

Season Tickets for the remaining concerts of the 2014/15 season are be available now or by calling 462-0553, ext. 10. Subscribe and save!

Donations: Less than 40% of the cost to perform a Symphonic concert come from ticket sales. The Symphony is made possible only through the generous support of classical music lovers like yourself. Donate to the Symphony Today!