February 29, 2024 – The Symphony of the Hills presents the fourth concert in the 2023-24 season. Spring: Leaping Forward, on Thursday, February 29, 2024, at 7 pm in the Cailloux Theater.
Many composers have channeled the inspiration of spring into their music. Vivaldi comes to mind, but also Schumann whose Symphony No. 1 is the cornerstone for this performance. His Bb major symphony is full of potential and energy, with small motives bubbling up into soaring themes.
We first hear from the great Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi, whose opera Nabucco tells a winter-to-spring-like story of redemption and rebirth of a conquering king who eventually helps rebuild the Hebrew nation of Israel and their temple. It is also inspiring how the biblical stories of Israel in various times of bondage inspired African-American slaves to express their despair and their hope through Spirituals. Master composer-arranger-conductor Dave Mairs’ settings are sentient and beautiful.
Program:
Verdi – Overture to Nabucco
Spirituals Arranged by David Mairs
Vaughan Williams – The Lark Ascending
-Ryan Coppin, violin soloist
Schumann – Symphony No. 1 in Bb “Spring”
