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captivating performances Beethoven’s Seventh Highlight’s Asheville Symphony’s November Concert
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One of Beethoven’s most popular symphonies will headline the program when the Asheville Symphony Orchestra takes the stage November 17 for the third concert in its Masterworks series.
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MICHAEL J. MOREL
infectious, unyielding use of rhythm as a driving force Lissie Okopny, the Asheville Symphony’s principal flutist, will highlight the Bach work, which is considered one of the most recognizable works for flute. Okopny, who is a faculty Music Director Daniel member at Lenoir-Rhyne Meyer will conduct the Asheville University in Hickory, N.C., Symphony Orchestra as it peris a member of the Western forms Beethoven’s Symphony Piedmont Symphony in No. 7 for the second half of the Hickory. She maintains an acconcert. The first half includes Lissie Okopny, the tive performance schedule as Bach’s Suite in B Minor, which Asheville Symphony’s soloist and chamber musician will feature one of the orchesprincipal flutist. as well as a teaching studio in tra’s own members, Bartok’s Winston-Salem, N.C. Divertimento. Okopny received her master’s degree in The concert starts at 8 p.m. at Thomas music from The Juilliard School in 2008 and Wolfe Auditorium in the U.S. Cellular Center. her bachelor’s of music in 2006 from the InMeyer will give a preconcert lecture at 7 p.m. diana University Jacobs School of Music. She The lecture is free to ticketholders. made her professional solo debut with the BirBeethoven’s Seventh Symphony is one mingham-Bloomfield Symphony (Michigan) of the most performed and popular works in in 2004, performing the Ibert Flute Concerto. the classical canon. It is also one of the most Her other awards and honors include influential – Richard Wagner called the work first prize in the 2003 Detroit Bohemian the “apotheosis of the dance” because of its
Concerto Competition and third prize in the 2011 Myrna Brown Artist Competition. She was awarded scholarships from The Juilliard School, Indiana University, the National Repertory Orchestra in 2007, and the Sarasota Music Festival in 2005. Her teachers include world-renowned flutists Carol Wincenc, Thomas Robertello, Ervin Monroe, and Jeffery Zook. Bartok’s Divertimento, which highlights the string section, is an homage to the Hungarian musical heritage.
IF YOU Beethoven’s Symphony No. GO 7, performed by the Asheville
Symphony Orchestra, November 17 at 8 p.m. in the U.S. Cellular Center’s Thomas Wolfe Auditorium. Tickets are available at the U.S. Cellular Center box office, and range in price from $20 to $58. Subscriptions are also available at prorated prices, or on a “pick three” basis for $55 to $169. Significant discounts for students are available. For details, call (828) 254-7046, or visit www.ashevillesymphony.org.
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Choral Experience
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Have you ever experienced a major choral work performed by more than 200 voices? You will have that opportunity right here in Asheville—something you might not find in major cultural centers in the USA. In a spectacular, first-ever collaboration, the Asheville Choral Society and the Asheville Symphony Chorus will join forces to present Brahms’ German Requiem in two performances, November 8 and 9. The 200+ chorale
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will sing under the direction of Dr. Melodie Galloway on Friday evening, 7:30 p.m., and under Dr. Michael Lancaster on Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m., both at Arden Presbyterian Church, 2215 Hendersonville Rd., Arden. The two choruses have graced Asheville’s music scene for decades. The Asheville Choral Society, one of the first chorales in the community (1977), is known for its excellence in
The Asheville Choral Society
6 November 2013 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — Vol. 17, No. 3
BILLIE SUE THOMPSON
performing an eclectic repertoire of music from classical to pop. They give three performances a year to appreciative audiences. The Asheville Symphony Chorus, formed in 1991 for the purpose of complementing the Asheville Symphony Orchestra, performs large classical works with ASO twice a year. In addition, ASC gives one independent concert each year, focusing on classics both traditional and contemporary. Both choruses have new and exciting directors who teach in the local academic community: Dr. Galloway, Director of Choral and Vocal Studies at UNCA; and Dr. Lancaster, Director of Choral Activities at WCU. The two conductors agreed that joining 200+ voices for the Brahms Requiem would be a monumental experience for singers and audience alike. Truly the Brahms Requiem requires a substantial body of voices. The sonorous opening that explodes into soaring passages of joy escorts music lovers into both the emotional and intellectual life of the composer. Brahms wrote this work in the midst of ‘Choral Experience’ continued on page 8