The Symphony Takes to the Outdoors with Thematic Program
The University Symphony Orchestra will open the 2014-15 ensemble season at CSU on Thursday, Sept. 25 and Friday, Sept. 26 at 7:30 p.m. with a concert entitled ‘The Symphony Takes to the Outdoors’ in the Griffin Concert Hall at the University Center for the Arts, located at 1400 Remington St.
Tickets are $7 for CSU students, $1 for youth (under 18), and $12 for the public. Please note that the University Center for the Arts (UCA) ticket office hours have changed. Tickets are available at the ticket office in the UCA lobby 90 minutes prior to any UCA performance and through intermission. Information about upcoming performances can be found at (970) 491-ARTS (2787). Advance or online purchase is recommended to avoid at-the-door fees.
With a program centered around the theme of the outdoors, the ensemble performs Two Mountain Scenes, written about Colorado from outstanding young composer, Kevin Puts; a terrific new Trombone Concerto by master arranger and conductor Jeff Tyzik, featuring CSU faculty Chris van Hof; and the beloved Pastorale Symphony of Beethoven.
“This concert is a terrific way to start out the season,” said Wes Kenney, director of orchestras at CSU.
Commissioned by Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival and the New York Philharmonic in celebration of the Festival’s 20th anniversary, Two Mountain Scenes premiered at New York’s Avery Fisher Hall on July 3, 2007 and was performed again at the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail Valley, Colo. on July 25, 2007.
From Composer Kevin Puts:
“With the impressive backdrop of the Rocky Mountains in mind, I set out to create a true showpiece for the stellar musicians of the New York Philharmonic. The first movement, marked maestoso, begins with a quartet of virtuoso trumpets combined to create the sonic illusion of a single trumpet reverberating across the valley. The strings answer with lyrical melodies which rise and fall in long-breathed arches, suggesting the silhouettes of mountain peaks.”
This piece celebrates the majesty of the mountains during this great time of year to enjoy the outdoors in Colorado.
About Kevin Puts
Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Silent Night, Kevin Puts has had works commissioned and performed by leading orchestras, ensembles and soloists throughout North America, Europe, and the Far East. Known for his distinctive and richly colored musical voice, Mr. Puts has received many of today’s most prestigious honors and awards for composition. An early boost to his career came in 1996 when Mr. Puts was named Composer-in-Residence of both Young Concert Artists, Inc., and the California Symphony at the invitation of Barry Jekowsky, the orchestra's Founder and Music Director. Read more.
About Chris Van Hof
A native of Grand Rapids, Mich., Chris Van Hof is the assistant professor of trombone and euphonium at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo. He earned his degrees from Western Michigan University (BME), the Eastman School of Music (MM) and the University of Wisconsin (DMA). Chris happily leads an active and varied career as a performer in all styles on the trombone and euphonium; a teacher and clinician in brass, chamber music, and jazz; and a writer and arranger of music for ensembles from trombone choir to symphony orchestra.
About Wes Kenney
The 2007 Grand Prize Winner of the Varna (Bulgaria) International Conducting Competition, Wes Kenney is now in his tenth season as Music Director of the Fort Collins (Colorado) Symphony. Named in 2004 to an additional post as Music Director of Opera Fort Collins, he currently conducts three professional operatic productions as well as numerous orchestra concerts and dance performances each season throughout Northern Colorado. Read more.
The University Center for the Arts at Colorado State University provides an enriched venue in which the study and practice of Art, Dance, Music, and Theatre are nurtured and sustained by building the skills and knowledge needed by future generations of arts professionals to become contributors to the essential vitality of our culture and society.
For more information, visit UCA.Colostate.edu.