The Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra opens the season with Amanda Harberg’s Viola Concerto, composed for and played by her friend Brett Deubner, a champion of new works for the viola. The Oct. 10 and 11 concerts also feature José Pablo Moncayo’s Huapango and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, known as the “Pathétique.”
Deubner has soloed with more than 40 orchestras on four continents, garnering praise for his “dynamic virtuosity” and “infectious capriciousness.” He’s collaborated with some of today’s most noted composers. More than 80 works for viola have been dedicated to and premiered by him. He’s also recorded 10 CDs. This season he plans to travel with SASO to Brazil and give recitals in Ecuador and Italy.
Harberg, a Philadelphia native and Juilliard graduate, composes “truly beautiful” and “hauntingly moving” music. Her compositions are said to engage audiences and performers alike on both emotional and intellectual levels.
The viola as a solo instrument has gained in popularity in recent decades in part for its rich, warm, mellow resonance and range that is five notes lower than a violin. Many composers have played and written for the viola, including Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Dvořák and Hindemith.
Moncayo’s lively and immensely popular Huapango was inspired by folk tunes from the Veracruz region of Mexico. SASO first played this piece at a free concert in Tucson in September, sponsored by the Mexican Consulate in Tucson and the Instituto Cultural Mexicano de Tucson.
Leopold Stokowski once said of Tchaikovsky: “His musical utterance comes directly from the heart and is a spontaneous expression of his innermost feeling. It is as sincere as if it were written with his blood.” The “Pathétique” symphony was Tchaikovsky’s last. He died just nine days after its premiere. The work was named for its overall pathos by his brother Modest.
Longtime philanthropist, artist and musician Dorothy Vanek is the SASO season sponsor – for the ninth consecutive year.
The first performance will be Saturday, Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at the SaddleBrooke Desert View Performing Arts Center, 39900 S. Clubhouse Dr. in SaddleBrooke, north of the town of Catalina. Tickets are $24 in advance or $25 at the door. They can be ordered online at http://tickets.saddlebrooketwo.com or by calling 825-2818. Season tickets also are available for $91. This performance is sponsored by SaddleBrooke residents Tom and Carolyn Cochran.
The second concert, sponsored by Patricia Linder, will be Sunday, Oct. 11 at 3 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, 7575 N. Paseo del Norte. Individual tickets at St. Andrews are $23 for adults and complimentary for ages 17 and under. Order online at www.sasomusic.org or by calling 308-6226. Season tickets also are on sale for $90.
Music Director Lerner conducts four of the five SASO programs this season. Lerner also serves as music director of the Symphony Orchestra of Rio Grande do Norte in Brazil. He’s conducted orchestras, operas, choruses and instrumental groups around the globe – including his native Brazil and in Bulgaria, China, the Czech Republic, Italy, Mexico, South Korea, Spain and Turkey. He’s also an international clinician and vocal coach. He has led SASO musicians on two tours of China and appearances at the Oaxaca Opera Festival in Mexico for the past three summers.
The SASO season continues with four more programs:
- Nicholas Armstrong, artistic director of the Brooklyn Symphony Orchestra, guest conducts the second program on Nov. 7 and 8. The soloists for the Mendelssohn Concerto for Violin, Piano and Strings are two Bulgarian brothers. Ivo Stankov plays the violin and Lachezar Stankov the piano. The program also includes Sibelius’ Karelia Overture and Vaughan Williams’ Symphony No. 5.
- The third SASO concert will be presented three times, on Jan. 28, Feb. 5 and Feb. 6. The program includes Gould’s American Salute, Rachmaninoff’s ever-popular second piano concerto with SASO’s own Sheryll McManus at the keyboard, and Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9, known as “From the New World.”
- Christi Amonson and Larry Leung return to solo with SASO in the fourth concert cycle on April 1, 2 and 3. Soprano Amonson sings Whitacre’s Goodnight Moon. Leung performs He Zhanhao’s Eternal Regret of Lin’An on a traditional Chinese guzheng. The program also features the winner of the annual Dorothy Vanek Youth Concerto competition sponsored by SASO and Bruckner’s Te Deum with the SASO Chorus and soloists.
- The season concludes May 7 and 8 with Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture, Barber’s Violin Concerto with Australian-born soloist Emily Sun and Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique.
SASO released its first professional recording — Celebration! — showcasing the diverse musical range of six Tucson composers. The 75-minute CD is on sale now at www.sasomusic.org for $18.50 including shipping. The orchestra’s next recording will be Harberg’s Viola Concerto with Deubner as soloist in 2016.
This orchestra is a vital community resource that has united performers and audiences through a passion for music. Founded in 1979, SASO presents world premieres, seldom-performed treasures and classical favorites. For more information visit www.sasomusic.org or call 308-6226.