There is much excitement in the air as we begin our 81st season! Each of our concerts will feature something new for our audience. Look for poetry from the Plaza del Toros in October and the Scottish legend of Tam o' Shanter, complete with bagpipe, in November.
Our first concert, Harvest of Harmony, on October 15th begins with a carnival in Bohemia and ends with a fiesta in Mexico. In between, we will present two of Kitsap County's finest young pianists, and we are honored to bring you the second performance ever of a new work by Leroy Osmon, his Lorca Symphony.
Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto in C minor is his musical response to Mozart. This masterpiece of structure derives both its simple, triadic yet monumental, unifying theme, and its lyrical woodwind passages from Mozart’s earlier concerto in the same key. This is the piece that solidified Beethoven's reputation as the greatest living composer of solo concertos. It was also an excellent career move to dedicate the work to Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, perhaps the highest ranking fine pianist in all of Europe. Our soloist is Cyrus Yan, a winner of our 2023 Young Artists Competition.
Damaris Harvey, a winner of our 2022 Young Artists Competition, brings us the first movement of Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto. Many consider this to be the most difficult of all the concertos in the standard repertoire. It features moody melodies, fiendishly difficult piano writing, huge chords, delicious lines, and lush orchestral textures. At the beginning of the 20th century, only Vladimir Horowitz and Rachmaninoff, himself, were brave enough to perform this work in concert. You will see how Ms. Harvey navigates the many treacherous musical passages, seemingly with ease.
It must also be noted that both of our fine young pianists are students of Dr. Irene Bowling.
Dvorak's Carnival Overture is light, bubbly, extremely tuneful, and a sheer delight for both performers and listeners.
Osmon's Lorca Symphony was inspired by one of the greatest poems of Federico García Lorca, Lament for Ignacio Sánchez Mejías. Mejías was one of the most famous, fearless, and beloved Matadors of Spain. He was gored by a bull at exactly five o'clock on the afternoon of August 11, 1934, and died shortly thereafter. His demise was immortalized by several poets and now in music by Mr. Osman, who has over 100 published compositions. Lorca, one of the most beloved Spanish poets, died almost exactly two years later, in August 1936, killed by the Nationalist forces of Generalissimo Franco. Each of the three symphonic movements refers to a specific section of the poem. Doña Martitha May, founder of the Kitsap Immigrant Assistance Center, will join us on stage and help us understand the poetry.
After the more modern musical language of Leroy Osmon, we will conclude with a traditional up-tempo, colorful Mexican fiesta dance by Moncayo, known as Huapango.
See you at the symphony!
Harvest of Harmony will be performed at Central Kitsap High School Performing Arts Center. All seats are reserved. Concessions will be available for purchase. Tickets: $28 adults, $10 young adults ages 19-29, $5 youth 18 and under. Full Season subscriptions and Pick Four packages available. Purchase here!