Bay of Plenty Symphonia's final concert of 2022 marks two significant events in the community orchestra's history: 75 years since its inaugural concert as the Tauranga Orchestral Society; and the 10th anniversary of Justus Rozemond's appointment as music director and principal conductor.
The symphonia will mark these milestones on November 20 with ‘Celebrating Greatness', a concert featuring Schubert's ‘Great' C major Symphony, an exciting up-and-coming young clarinet soloist, and an early work by perhaps the greatest of New Zealand composers, Douglas Lilburn.
Lilburn's ‘Drysdale Overture' was written in London while he was a student under Ralph Vaughan Williams. Written to celebrate his upbringing on the family farm near Whanganui, it reflects Lilburn's nostalgia for the New Zealand landscape and his idyllic boyhood messing about in the bush and on the river.
Clarinettist Stefenie Pickston, a final year student at Waikato University, has already made a name for herself as a highly talented, up-and-coming performer. The orchestra will accompany her in Louis Spohr's ‘2nd Clarinet Concerto'. Spohr was a contemporary of Beethoven and this festive concerto showcases the versatility and virtuosity of the clarinet in the style of the times.
Schubert's majestic ‘Symphony No. 9 in C Major', which completes the programme, also shows Beethoven's influence. It is nicknamed ‘The Great' – a good description for its length and grandeur. With gorgeous themes and lots of brass, this will be a fitting end to the symphonia's special year.
‘Celebrating Greatness' is on Sunday, November 20, from 4pm at Holy Trinity Church, Devonport Rd, Tauranga City.
Tickets from: www.eventfinda.co.nz and at i-SITEs and cost $15 plus booking fee for adults.
Door sales (cash and Eftpos) cost $20 for adults, and under 18s can attend for free.
The Weekend Sun has one double pass to see Bay of Plenty Symphonia's final concert of 2022 for one lucky reader who can tell us how many years it's been since their inaugural concert.
Enter online at: www.sunlive.co.nz
Entries close Tuesday, November 8.