Making Music
The Pittsburgh Philharmonic on Friday presents the first of four concerts at Butler County Community College under the leadership of its new music director Edward Leonard.
Leonard was the winner of the 2007 Butler County Symphony Orchestra young conductors competition.
He recently completed his final of three summers as a conductor at the Pierre Monteux School in Maine. He serves as the assistant conductor for the Opera Theater of Pittsburgh and is the pianist for the Morningside Trio.
The Friday concert will begin at 8 p.m. in the Succop Theater. The concert, just under two hours long, will have one intermission.
“This is a nice opening show,” said Leonard. “It has a fall feeling; when I hear most of this music, I think of the fall season.”
The theme for the philharmonic’s season is “Going Abroad,” and this first concert features “Czech and Hungary.”
Bartok’s “Hungarian Sketches” will open the program after which tribute will be paid to Halloween with Dvorak’s “Noon Witch.”
Young artist concerto competition winner Andrew Percy will play violin in Lalo’s “Symphonie Espagnole.”
“We have a lot of soloists this year,” Leonard said. “That’s one our focuses, more soloists, and we’ll have more concertos, too.”
The program will conclude with Dvorak’s “Symphony No. 8.”
Tickets are $18 in advance, or $22 at the door; students pay $10. Call 724-284-8505 or visit www.bc3.edu/theater.
Future concerts by the philharmonic at BC3 include:
n “Holidays from Around the World,” Dec. 9.
n “Italian Riviera,” March 23
n “Russian Steppes,” May 18.
Performances begin at 8 p.m.
The primarily volunteer orchestra is open to new members. For audition information, visit the website www.pghphil.org.
