The Americas

Join us to celebrate the rich heritage of folk melodies from the United States and Mexico reborn by 20^th Century composers. The program opens and closes with works by the incomparable American composer Aaron Copland. The first, El Salón México, is named after a dance hall said to have played three kinds of music: one for the upper-class, a more vigorous working-class music and foot-stomping music of the peasantry. Each is brilliantly exemplified in this rhythmic work! The second, his Appalachian Spring orchestral suite, is perhaps best known for the “Simple Gifts” melody. First presented by a solo clarinet, the well-known theme is then majestically reiterated by orchestra and brass – real goosebump music!

In between, we’ll travel south of the border to hear from Arturo Marquez (b. 1950), who captures the essence of his native Mexico in his charming Concerto for Harp, “Mascaras” and from Carlos Chávez, whose Symphony No. 2, “Sinfonía india” consists of three melodies originating from native-American tribes of northern Mexico. Composed 1935–36, the Symphony is Chávez’s most popular composition.

Eckart Preu, Conductor

Maestro Eckart Preu (Eck-art Proy) began his tenure as Music Director of Long Beach Symphony in 2017 and has already made a strong impression on the city of Long Beach, surrounding regions, and with critics for his programming and dynamic stage presence. Critics, the orchestra, and audiences alike have celebrated his ability to …

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Yolanda Kondonassis, Harp

Yolanda Kondonassis is celebrated as one of the world’s premier solo harpists and is widely regarded as today’s most recorded classical harpist. With “a range of color that’s breathtaking”(Gramophone Magazine), she has been hailed as“a brilliant and expressive player” (Dallas Morning News), with “a dazzling …

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