Newburgh Symphony returns with Sept. 11 concert
Newburgh. ‘Transfiguration’ to offer tribute to memorialize 9/11.
| 28 Aug 2021 | 03:24
The Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Russell Ger return to perform a concert focused on “Transfiguration” on Saturday, Sept. 11, at 7:30 p.m. at Newburgh Free Academy.
The Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra (GNSO) returns with fanfare to perform a concert focused on “Transfiguration” on Saturday, Sept. 11, at 7:30 p.m. at Newburgh Free Academy.
“The concept of transfiguration has a certain magic about it,” GNSO Music Director Russell Ger, said in the press release announcing the concert. “It is not just the transformation of one thing into something else; there is a kind of otherworldly element involved.
“Each piece of the program explores it in some way,” the music director added, “beginning with Missy Mazzoli’s ‘River Rouge Transfiguration,’ which depicts giant Detroit smokestacks turning into an enormous church organ, creating an almost tabernacular grace.”
Mazzoli is a young American composer who has been compared to Mozart.
‘A fitting tribute’
“This program is a fitting tribute to memorialize 9/11,” Ger added. “Richard Strauss’s ‘Death and Transfiguration’ starts with a sick man fighting impending death, but concludes with his glorious ascent into heaven. Richard Wagner’s ‘Lohengrin Preludes Act I and III’ could not be more different. The former represents a host of angels descending with the Holy Grail.
“The Prelude to Act III, by contrast, is a boisterous announcement of a forthcoming wedding. It leads directly into Wagner’s most famous passage, the bridal march known as ‘Here Comes the Bride.’ Finally, Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s ballet music in the famous fairy tale of ‘Sleeping Beauty’ is as beguiling and melodious as anything he ever composed.”
Beginning his fifth season of GNSO leadership, Ger has led the orchestra to new attendance records and artistic heights. This is the first subscription concert scheduled for the season.
Essentials
“Transfiguration” will be presented Saturday, Sept. 11, at 7:30 p.m. at Newburgh Free Academy.
Arrive at 6:30 p.m. for the concert preview by Gordon Shacklett.
Tickets: Balcony $50, Reserved $40, Open $35, Senior Citizen $25 – can be purchased online or at the door. Students are admitted free to open seating.
Call 845/913-7157 or visit www.newburghsymphony.org.