ORCHESTRAL SPLENDOR
Saturday, October 7, 2023 | 7:30 p.m.
in Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts
HIGDON: Percussion Concerto
SIBELIUS: Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 43
She-e Wu, percussion
CUSO opens the 2023-24 season with an incandescent evening of blockbuster works. Percussionist extraordinaire She-e Wu will amaze you in Jennifer Higdon’s imaginative Percussion Concerto. The spotlight will also shine on the CUSO’s brass in the beloved tone poem Finlandia by Jean Sibelius. The Symphony No. 2 by Sibelius is an awe-inspiring masterpiece and one of the composer’s greatest works. Join CUSO for musical grandeur at its finest!
TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age
BAROQUE GEMS
Saturday, November 4, 2023 | 4:00 p.m.
Faith United Methodist Church
1719 S. Prospect Ave., Champaign
LÜBECK: Präludium in E Major
J. S. BACH: Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 in G Major, BWV 1049
G. F. HANDEL: Concerto Grosso in F Major, Op. 3, No. 4, HWV 315
RAMEAU: Pièces de Clavecin en concert
La Forqueray
La Cupis
Tambourin en Rondeau
TELEMANN: Tafelmusik II
Maria Arrua, violin
Mary Leathers Chapman and Amanda Pond, flute
Stephen Alltop, Conductor, harpsichord, and organ
The Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra continues its tradition of popular baroque concerts with an array of sparkling selections. Concerto grossi by George Frideric Handel and Evaristo Felice Dall’Abaco offer an exciting interplay of solo lines with spirited responses by the full ensemble. The virtuosity of Concertmaster Maria Arrua will be featured in Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 4. Gracious music by Jean-Philippe Rameau and thrilling music for trumpet, oboe, and strings by Georg Philipp Telemann will round out this joyous program.
The Baroque Gems concert will be performed at Faith United Methodist Church in Champaign in the North Sanctuary. Seating is general admission.
TICKETS
General Admission (open seating) Adults: $32
Youth and Students of any age: $10
A SEASON OF JOY
Wednesday, December 6, 2023 | 7:30 p.m.
in Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts
arr. LECK and CABLE: Ding Dong! Merrily On High (Traditional English Carol)
BACH arr. Leck: Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
HAYDN: Organ Concerto in C Major, III. Allegro molto
BACH: Christmas Oratorio (selections)
JESSELL arr. GOULD: Parade of the Wooden Soldiers
WILLIAMS: Two Songs from Home Alone
Somewhere in My Memory
Star of Bethlehem
PRAETORIUS: Dances from Terpsichore
ANDERSON: Sleigh Ride
arr. NAUGHTIN: Christmas Angels Sing-Along
HANDEL: “Hallelujah Chorus” (from Messiah)
Central Illinois Youth Chorus, Andrea Solya, Conductor
University of Illinois Oratorio Society, Andrea Solya, Conductor
Stephen Alltop, Conductor and chamber organ
Join CUSO for a holiday concert of wide-ranging delights designed to usher in a Season of Joy. From popular favorites like songs from Home Alone and Parade of the Wooden Soldiers to magnificent selections from the Christmas Oratorio of Bach, there will be music to please every listener. The lovely voices of the Central Illinois Youth Chorus and the University of Illinois Oratorio Society will add great beauty and cheer to the evening. There’s a good chance Santa Claus will also make an appearance! The finale will make spirits bright as Maestro Alltop leads a sing-along of favorite carols and the “Hallelujah Chorus.”
TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age
CELEBRATION: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BRUCKNER!
Saturday, February 10, 2024 | 7:30 p.m.
in Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts
MOZART: Symphony No. 41 in C Major, K. 551 (“Jupiter”)
DVOŘÁK: Festival March
BRUCKNER: Locus iste
BRUCKNER: Os justi
BRUCKNER: Te Deum
Stephen Alltop, Conductor
University of Illinois Oratorio Society and Chamber Singers, Andrea Solya, Conductor
Michelle Areyzaga, soprano
Tetyana Vakhnovska, mezzo-soprano
John Swedberg, tenor
Ricardo Herrera, bass-baritone
This jubilant celebration begins with the engaging concert opener Outburst by the 2023 Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Abels. From sublime melodies to incredible contrapuntal genius, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 is the epitome of the composer’s work in this genre. Following the rarely heard and lively Festival March of Antonín Dvořák, we’ll join with the musical world in celebrating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Anton Bruckner with his majestic and soul-inspiring Te Deum for soloists, chorus, and full orchestra.
TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age
Pre-Concert Talk by Stephen Alltop
“Bruckner and Mozart, Masters of Austrian Music”
Saturday, February 10, 2024, 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Orchestra Rehearsal Room on Level 2, Krannert Center
Admission: free
Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor
Kathy Saltzman Romey, Chorus Master; Artist-in-Residence
Ricardo Herrera, Associate Professor of Voice and Chair of Voice Area
Admission to the afternoon pre-concert talk is free. The Orchestra Rehearsal Room is located on Level 2 of Krannert Center. Park for free in the North Parking Garage, take the elevator or the stairs to Level 2 and follow the signs. Download a map here.
FANFARES FINALE—A MEMORIAL TRIBUTE TO PAUL VERMEL
Saturday, April 20, 2024 | 7:30 p.m.
in Foellinger Great Hall, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts
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PUCCINI: Crisantemi
ARUTIUNIAN: Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra
EVERSON: Festival Fanfare (World Premiere)
HINDEMITH: Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber
John Hagstrom, trumpet
Our season finale is a heartfelt memorial tribute to former CUSO Music Director and Conductor Paul Vermel, who led the orchestra from 1974 to 1994. The concert begins with Brahms’ beautiful Variations on a Theme by Haydn and Crisantemi, an eloquent elegy by Puccini. CUSO will also honor Maestro Vermel’s memory by performing music that he conducted with the orchestra. John Hagstrom, long-time member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra trumpet section, will dazzle in the tuneful and energetic Trumpet Concerto by Alexander Arutiunian. Hindemith’s brilliant Symphonic Metamorphosis is a tour de force for the symphony orchestra and a thrilling tribute to Paul Vermel’s celebrated musical tenure as CUSO’s Conductor.
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$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age
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April 9–10, 2024