Spcial musical guest Chad Ibison will join the Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra for the March 25 performance. Visit BVSO.org for ticket information. On Sunday, March 25, 2012 at 5 p.m. at Rudder Theatre on the Texas A&M University campus, the Brazos Valley Symphony, led by Music Director Marcelo Bussiki, will present a unique program for its fourth concert of the 2011-2012 Subscription season titled “The Americas & Beyond.”
Generously sponsored in part by Knowledge Based Systems, Inc., this program features works from Mexican, Spanish, Cuban, Brazilian, and American composers, including the internationally recognized guest composer and Texas A&M University Performance Studies Faculty member, Peter Lieuwen. Special musical guest, Chad Ibison, winner of the 2010 Texas A&M International Guitar Symposium and Competition, will join the Symphony to perform a technically stunning concerto considered to be one of the world’s most legendary classical guitar masterpieces.
WHAT “The Americas & Beyond”
WHEN Sunday, March 25 at 5pm
WHERE Rudder Theatre, Texas A&M University
PROGRAM
Gomes: Overture to Il Guarany; Lecuona: Malagueña; Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez with Chad Ibison, guitar; Lieuwen: Astral Blue; Márquez: Danzón No. 2; Moncayo: Huapango
Bussiki explains that this particular program is diverse both in the countries represented and its musical language, intending to showcase interconnectedness of music among the continents, while highlighting musical richness inside unique national and cultural boundaries. He said, “I strive for the combination of unity at one level and contrast on another to produce programs that are both exciting and cohesive, and this is how I approached this program: a Brazilian composer with a late Romantic European language, an American piece with hints of minimalism, three works with nationalistic overtones, and a guitar concerto from a Spanish composer that fits well with the rest of the program.”
Lieuwen’s Astral Blue offers an element of the unity Bussiki seeks to convey to audience
members. The piece “is intended to evoke spiritually uplifting pastoral settings…such as the soft glow of a clear morning sky or the gradual emergence of stars at twilight,” explained Lieuwen. “In addition to being the American contribution to this program, Astral Blue refers to natural phenomena that can be enjoyed and experienced globally.”
The Concierto de Aranjuez by Spanish composer Joaquín Rodrigo and performed by guest artist Ibison offers some of the intensity Bussiki aims to feature from among the composers. According to Ibison, this work has “achieved a level of universal popularity rarely seen in the classical world. It is a definitive example in the guitar repertory showing extreme emotional depth while exhibiting a dazzling array of virtuosic techniques. With all the challenges this piece possesses, what I want to communicate with the audience is the vibrant essence of the piece that is full of life and character.” Bussiki added, “I am very excited to work with Chad. I had the opportunity to see his performance during the 2010 guitar competition and I think that the Concierto is the perfect piece for him; it will showcase his impeccable technique as well as his intense musicianship. Chad will thrive on that piece; the slow movement is one of the most beautiful ever written.”
Rounding out the evening will be the performances by the Brazos Valley Symphony with works by Brazilian composer Antônio Carlos Gomes, Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona, Mexican composer José Pablo Moncayo, and Mexican composer Arturo Márquez. Each of these composers’ works display the deep love and hopes they had for their homeland and their particular cultural heritage—emotions that should translate easily to the Symphony’s audience.
“We are an amazingly culturally diverse community here in the Brazos Valley,” said Mary
Koeninger, executive director, “and I believe this program will resonate with our community members on a level like never before. We are so proud to present this beautiful program to our community; we hope it is as impactful on our audience members as it has been on those of us who have worked to bring it together.”
Individual tickets ($32 for adults, $12 for students/children) for this concert are on sale now and can be purchased in person at the MSC Box Office, located in the Rudder Theater Complex lobby, by phone (979) 845-1234, or online at http://boxoffice.tamu.edu.
Tickets will also be on sale at the door the night of the concert. Call the Brazos Valley Symphony Office at (979) 696-6100 with any further questions or visit BVSO.org.
