Symphony Orchestra at USU Presents a Tour Of Italian-Inspired Music
Utah State University’s Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of music department faculty member Sergio Bernal, presents “Peregrinazioni” — a tour of Italian-inspired music. The featured soloist for the evening is Russell Fallstad, the violinist of USU’s resident Fry Street Quartet.
The concert is Thursday, Dec. 6, at 7:30 p.m. at the Kent Concert Hall in the Chase Fine Arts Center (approximately 1110 E. 610 North, Logan). Tickets for the concert are available at the door. General admission is $5 and students are admitted free.
The three works on the program have texts that touch on Italian life and religious themes, conductor Bernal said. The composers, however, are not Italian. Tchaikovsky’s “Francesca da Rimini” depicts a dark episode from Dante’s “Divine Comedy” in which Francesca is tricked into committing adultery and is then murdered for it.
“Tchaikovsky’s score is extremely powerful and reflects the composer’s own life, troubled by adversity,” Bernal said.
Berlioz’s “Harold in Italy” portrays the Italian journey of Childe Harold, the anti-hero from Lord Byron’s poem. Berlioz called the work a symphony in four movements with solo viola. The piece was written for Paganini, the legendary hero of violin playing (and viola), a sort of contemporary Childe Harold, Bernal said.
“It has been wonderful to work with soloist Russell Fallstad on this project,” he said. “He is helping the orchestra develop a beautiful sound and is giving to the music a very special imprint.”
Finally, John Rutter’s “Magnificat” is a setting of Latin and English texts about the Annunciation — more specifically, the “Song of Mary” which, according to the Bible, Virgin Mary sang after being told by the Archangel Gabriel that she was pregnant with Jesus.
Members of USU’s choirs, along with the orchestra, will be conducted by music department faculty member and choral director Cory Evans. They will perform three movements from this glorious work, Bernal said.
Contact: Sergio Bernal [sergio.bernal@usu.edu] (435) 797-0487
Source: Music Department
Featured soloist for the evening is Russell Fallstad, the violinist of USU's resident Fry Street Quartet
Comments and questions regarding this article may be directed to the contact person listed on this page.
