About This Program

​

Paying homage to the Baroque French dance suite, Maurice Ravel's Le Tombeau de Couperin was originally conceived for solo piano. Ravel created the orchestral version in 1919, and even though it was dedicated to the memory of friends who had passed away during WWI, the work has a light-hearted and reflective quality. 

​

Rarely performed and overshadowed by his signature violin concerto, Jean Sibelius' Two Serenades for Violin and Orchestra are hidden gems of the violin repertoire. Each work is only seven minutes long, but perfectly captures the composer's unique voice, and with it, the extreme imagery of Nordic life.

​

No orchestral work captures the sights and sounds of Italy better than Felix Mendelssohn's "Italian" Symphony. (Funny enough, Mendelssohn was in fact German.) And even though he never clearly expressed what he was trying to depict , it is not hard to imagine yourself racing through the Italian countryside on horseback or taking in the ancient customs of Rome during holy week.

Guest Artists

Geneva Lewis - violin