Hide Article Text (OCR)
THE SYRACUSE SYMPHONY STORYFounded in 1961. the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra has developed into a fully professional orchestra which performs, wtih its constituent groups, between three and four hundred concerts annually. The orchastra's growth in the past twelve years has been phenomenal, as evidenced by wide community support and a budget which places it at the top of the metropolitan category of United States Orchestras. The SSO regularly serves a fourteen county area in Central and Northern New York State, in addition to making tours throughout the northeast. Drawn originally from the remarkably rich talent of the Central New York area, th e Orchastra's musicians now come from across the country to form a responsive instrument capable Of performing the whole range of orchestral repertory. The orchestra's Music Director, Frederick Prausnitz is a distinguished conductor of international reputation whose direction reflects his years of experience with some of the finest orchestras in the world, including the BBC and the London Symphony. His recordings, a number of which have won Record Of the Year awards, are available on Columbia Masterworks, Epic and Angel labels. These included the Ferruccio Bosoni Violin Cincerto with solist Paul Zukovsky, Sir William Walton's Facade, narrated by Dame Edith Sitwell, and Elliott Caterr's Double Concerto with pianist Charles Rosen and harpsichordist Paul Jacobs. Of a performance by Maestro Prausnitz and the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra, music critic Michael Stienberg of the Boston Globe wrote: 'With remarkableintelligence and sympathy, Prausnitz conducted the two pieces, both of them exceedingly fifficult conceptually % well as technically. Indeed, so many of the passages which I have heard more celebrated conductors labor at, with confusing results, sounded astonishingly easy this time....I had not previously heard the andante and finale given with such control and such powerful expression,'In its home city, the Syracuse Symphony Ochestra offers each season a regular subscription series of eleven pairs of concerts, a ‘Heritage'series of four additional concerts, and numerous special events. The orchestra also performs a full season of concerts in Camillus, Watertown and Geneva. In addition, the SSO tours with major guest artists and conducts inresidence programs on college campuses throughout New York State. Guest artists appearing with the orchestra in the 1973-74 season include soprano. Eileen Farrell, violinist Nathan Milstein, guest conductor Maurice Abravanet, pianist Gary Graff-man, and cellist Janos Starker.Three years ago, the Syracuse Symphony Pops Orchestra was inaugurated by 'Mr. Pops' himself, Arthur Fiedler. Each year the Syracuse Symphony Pops Orchestra tours with Mr. Fiedler for a solid two weeks of sold-out concerts. Calvin Custer, the regular conductor of the Syracuse Pops, upholds the Fiedler tradition of the best in light classical music joined with pooular hits in superlative arrangements, often his own. (Several of Mr. Custer's arrangements have been recorded by the Boston Pops.)For its regular series of cabaret-style Pops concerts in Syracuse as well as engagements on tour, the Syracuse Symphony Pops Orchastra joins forces with some of the biggest names in the world of show business. In addition to Mr. Fiedler, this season's guest artists include, jazz pianist Dave Brubeck and guest conductor Mitch Miller, V \J i *••Each year the SSO, under the baton of Associate Conductor Calvin Custer, presents a series of Youth Concerts specially designed as an enjoyable educational experience for elementart school children. At the twenty Youth concerts during th 1972-73 season,'more, than 22,000 school children throughout Central and Northern New York State had the opportunity to experience the richness and variety of live orchestral sound. At the annual series of Tiny Tots concerts, Custer even manages to turn the preschool set on to great music. Assisted by the symphony Bird, 'Oliie Opus', Custer narrates his own inventive scenarios and conducts the orchestra in such programs as 'The Sounds Around Us', featuring musical imitations of sounds fro both the natural and man-made world, The kids may think they're listening to a summer storm, but they are really responding to an excerpt of Beethoven's 'Pastoral Symphony.'In addition to the full symphony orchestra and the Pops Oracestra, the Syracuse Symphony offers concerts by the Sinfonietta and eight smaller ensembles, these include the Casenovia String Quartet, the Symphony String Quartet, the Wind Quintet, and the Persussion, Brass, Baroque and Rock Ensembles. These smaller emsembles are winning widespread recognition on their own. Following a Town Hall concert by the Syracuse Wind Quintet, music critic Peter Davis wrote m the New York Times,, 'As seasoned orchestral musicians, the Syracusans ard most sensitive regardingthe miceties of precision playing, delicately balanced sonority and ensemble teamwork. And since each musician commands a sure a proficient Instrumental technique, the musician commands a sure and proficient instrumental technique, the musician commands a sure and proficient, the musical results were highly satisfying.' The most unique of the orchestra's smaller groups is no doubt the Rock Ensemble, which combines the stron beat and novel instrumentation of Rock with the sophistication and complexity of serious music. Performing arrangements and original compositions by the orchestra's multi talented Associate Conductor, Calvin Custer, (who also plays acoustic guitar, trumpet and recorder with the group, the Rock Ensemble has brought cheering audiences to their feet at such places as New York's Lincoln Center, Boston's Prudential Center the Saratoga Center for the Performing Arts, and the Catskills'Concord Hotel.The Syracuse Symphony has excited considerable national interest because many people believe that this twelve-year-old organization provides a model of the way that orchestras should restructure themselves to remain vigorous in the future. Few orchestras can support themselves on the basis of full orchestral concerts alone. In order to offer full-time employment for its. musicians an orchestra would have to perform more concerts each year than most geographical areas can support. The Syracuse Symphony Orchestra policy of diversification has helped to solve this problem, and has at the same time provided a way to better meet the needs of the community it serves. By breaking down into smaller groups, the orchestra is able to bring music to many people who might not have attended a formal concert. An orchestra can't fit into a classroom, but a string quartet can. A community which can't afford to hire an eighty piece symphony orchestra might employ the 18 piece Baroque ensemble, or perhaps the persussion ensemble of four musicians and twenty instr u ments.By diversifying its activities, the Syracuse Symphony has been able to achieve another major goal -that of regionalization. As a major musical resource for Central and Northern New York State, the Syracuse Symphony has already out grown its name. In Watertown, 100 miles to the north of Syracuse, the orchestra's activities have expanded so sfediTy that the people of Watertown justifiably think of the SSo as their orchestra, too. During the 1973-74 season the full orchestra will perform six major concerts there, along with several Tiny Tots and Youth Concerts and more than 50 performances by the orchastra's ensembles.Running a 'music company' like the Syracuse Symphony can present some complicated logistical problems, fti any one day the Wind Quintet may be performing in Syracuse, the Rock Ensemble in Troy, and the Symphony String Quartet in Auburn. Perhaps the hero of the whole operation is the stage managerwho has been known fp pack up the Rock Ensemble's hefty gear after a concert in New York's Lincoln Center at 11 a.m. and drive the Symphony truck nearly 500 miles to set the stage for a full orchestral concert in Watertown the same night. Unlike the old-time hoofers who knew that if this is Tuesday, it must be Geneva, the members of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra are likely to be anywhere at any t ime.Plattsburgh Residency January 25 Rock Concert Hawkins Hall Theatre 4:00p.m.Free Az missionFamily Pops ConcertField House 8:00 p.m. Admission:SA members free General Admission $2.00 Special Admission $1.00 (Students, Senior Citizens, Children)Classical Concert Hawkins Hall Theatre 8:30 p.m.Admission:S A members free General Admission $3.00 Special Admission $1.50 (Students, Senior Citizens, Children)January 26 Lecture- Demonstration Brass EnsembleFA-300 1:15 p.m.String Quartet FA-300 2:30 p.m.Woodwind Quartet FA-300 3:45 p.m.cnrrmTmmTmTmnTnrTHESNACK BARHAS NEW HOURS SUNDA Y- THURSDAY11AM TO 12FRIDAY ft SATURDA Y 11:00AM TO 1:00AMIN THE BASEMENT OF MA CDONOUGH\DAME'S DISCOUNT LIQUOR STORE SHH, ’.V PLAZAFREE DELIVERY561-0660LOWEST PRICES L\-VI.LARGEST W ISE SELECTION IS MIRTH ERSV. _Thursday, January 24, 1974, CARDINAL POINTS-*#
Newspaper Details
Plattsburgh Cardinal Points
Plattsburgh, New York, US
Thu, Jan 24, 1974
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
NY, USA 17 Feb 2024
Other Publications Near Plattsburgh, New York
Plattsburgh Sentinel
Plattsburgh Republican
Plattsburgh Cardinal Points
