Windsor Symphony Orchestra expands appeal for new season
If the lush arrangements of Tchaikovsky aren’t your thing, there’s always sorcery and gang rivalry. The Windsor Symphony Orchestra opens its 2018-2019 season Saturday, boasting offerings for “two different kinds of crowds.” “There’s an effort on our part to make sure we’re not just putting on concerts, but that we’re really making the effort to connect in the community in every way that’s viable and real and important,” said maestro Robert Franz.
The symphony’s pops series opens Saturday with West Side Story In Concert, in honour of composer Leonard Bernstein’s 100th birthday this year.
The WSO will follow that up next week with the start of its masterworks series. Renowned pianist Spencer Myer will play Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A on the WSO’s new $250,000 Steinway, which he helped pick out. “For me, music is about relationships and connections with people in our community and beyond that come here and make music with us,” said Franz.
The symphony will perform West Side Story In Concert on Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. There will be no dancing or costumes, but have no fear. Franz promises you’re still in for a good time.
“The reason that it works is because the music is so extraordinary that it tells the story as you go along,” he said. “You will definitely get a sense of a feel for the entire modern story of Romeo and Juliet that Bernstein set to music.” Students from the St. Clair College music theatre department and University of Windsor’s School of Creative Arts will sing in the chorus. Franz also travelled across Ontario auditioning soloists. “So all the solo parts — Tony, Maria, Anita — are all really super talented comedian singers,” he said. “Some from Toronto, some from further away.”
Franz said another “exciting” collaboration will happen Sept. 29 when Myer takes the stage with the Steinway piano. The symphony bought it last year with a $250,000 donation.
“This is his debut with the Windsor Symphony Orchestra and the first time he’s been back with the piano since he helped choose it last September,” said Franz. He’ll be playing Edvard Grieg ’s Piano Concerto in A. “Which is one of the great piano concertos of all time,” said Franz.
“Alongside that we’re performing Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4. It’s a really big, lush, beautiful, dramatic piece of music. So it’s going to be a really great evening. But it’s going to be really terrific to hear Spencer playing the Steinway piano that he helped choose.” Other upcoming performances include a Harry Potter tribute in October with music from the films. There will be a holiday pops concert in December with music from the Polar Express film, and a Gershwin concert in February. A fiddling concert in April will feature Caitlin Warbelow, who is currently playing in the Tony nominated Come From Away on Broadway. She’s taking a few days off from her Broadway gig to make her Windsor debut.
“She got permission for us to do two of the songs from Come From Away here at the symphony,” said Franz.
“The music from Come From Away has only been done, as far as I know, on Broadway and in Toronto. It has not been excerpted and done with any symphony. So we’ll be doing the first symphony doing that.”