Thursday, October 31, 2019

November Concert Features Liszt Symphonic Poem, Viola Soloist and Guest Conductor

Nov. 7 concert with wonderful music by Liszt, Prokofiev, Steiner, and Bruch. Tickets available: Link to purchase tickets


Music inspired by poetry graces the next OSU concert on Thursday, Nov. 7, at 7:30 p.m. in the Heritage Center.  Prokoviev's musical portrayal of "Romeo and Juliet, the theme from "Gone with the Wind" by Steiner, and the first of Liszt's "Symphonic Poems" are on the program. Guest violist Ling Yu plays the Romance by Bruch.


Guest Artists to Join the Orchestra of Southern Utah for a night of Symphonic Poetry
By Tanisa Crosby

On November 7, at 7:30 PM, the Orchestra of Southern Utah(OSU), will take to the
Heritage Theatre stage to perform a “Poetic Concert”. The concert, conducted by Xun Sun, will
feature two guest artists, viola soloist Ling Yu and guest conductor Jianan Yan. Poetry expresses
beauty and an intensity of emotion; it has a long-rooted history in the written word, from the famous
sonnets of William Shakespeare to new-age poems. It is no surprise that music, also expressing
emotion and capturing the beauty, often takes inspiration from the written word.

Ling Yu will perform Romance by Max Bruch. Yu, a previous member of OSU, was an
adjunct professor at Southern Utah University, and a conductor of the Suzuki String Orchestra in
Cedar City. She is currently working on her doctorate degree in viola performance at the
University of Utah and is studying with Julie Edwards. She has studied under Dr. Hasse Borup
for chamber music, Dr. Robert Baldwin for conducting, and is currently under the supervision of Dr.
Miguel Chuaqui In doctoral studies. Yu will perform the Bruch “Romance” on a viola made by
renowned string instrument maker John Moroz.

OSU is thrilled at the opportunity to play select movements from Prokofiev’s Romeo and
Juliet. Guest conductor, Jianan Yan, will conduct the orchestra for this piece. Yan received his
Doctorate of Conducting from the Moscow P. I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory. He currently
conducts the Tianjin Opera Orchestra, the Tianjin Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Tianjin
University Beiyang Youth Symphony Orchestra. He will be conducting selections from Romeo and Juliet, by Prokofiev, based on Shakespeare’s tragedy. This composition was originally composed for a ballet. This orchestral retelling captures the essence of the star-crossed tale of two lovers from the houses of Montague and Capulet.

The Orchestra will also perform two other pieces that highlight the beauty of musical
poems. Max Steiner’s “Tara’s Theme” from Gone with the Wind, is a “tone poem”-- orchestral
music revolving around a descriptive or rhapsodic theme. Liszt’s Symphonic Poem No. 1,
“What one hears on the mountain”, will also be performed. Large-scale programmatic music,
the piece highlights the beauty and trials of the mountains on a grand scale. Both pieces will be
conducted by Xun Sun.

The Poetic Concert will take place on November 7, 7:30 pm, at the Heritage Center
Theatre (105 N 100 E, Cedar City, UT, located behind Lins). Tickets are $12 for adults and $6
for students and can be purchased at the Heritage Theatre or online through the Heritage Center website. Children 6 and older are welcome to attend with adult supervision.  No babies please as the concert will be recorded.  For more information contact OSU Manager Rebekah Hughes at (435) 590-6829 or beckyosucedarcity@gmail.com.

Listening Link to preview the Music:  Videos including full ballet of Romeo and Juliet

Guest Artist Bios:

Viola Soloist for the Bruch Romance: Ling Yu was an adjunct professor at Southern Utah University, a member of OSU, and a conductor of the Suzuki Strings Orchestra in Cedar City. Currently, she is working on her doctoral degree in viola performance with professor Julie Edwards at the University of Utah. As a student, Ling earned a scholarship with the Mt. Olympus Honors String Quartet to study chamber music with Dr. Hasse Borup ((String Area Head). Ling is also studying conducting as a related field with Dr. Robert Baldwin (Director of Graduate Studies and Director of Orchestral Activities). She is a member of the U’s premier Utah Philharmonia Orchestra. Ling teaches the String Methods Class with a Teaching Assistant Scholarship under the supervision of Dr. Miguel Chuaqui, the Director of the School of Music at the University of Utah. She will perform on a viola made by John Moroz.

Guest Conductor Jianan Yan has completed his Doctorate of Conducting at the Moscow P. I. Tchaikovsky Conservatory.  He is the Conductor of the Tianjin Opera Orchestra, Conductor of the Tianjin Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Principal Conductor of the Tianjin University Beiyang Youth Symphony Orchestra. In 2005, he studied at the Odessa Nezhdanova Music Academy under Professor David Iosifovich Sipitinera. In 2007, he studied at the Lviv National Musical Academy Lysenko under the class of Professor Yuri Lutsiva. In September 2011, he worked at the Tianjin Conservatory. In 2012, he worked as the Assistant Conductor of the orchestra of Tianjin Opera House. He has collaborated with many orchestras, including the Royal Academy of Music Chamber Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra of Belgorod State Philharmonic, Symphony Orchestra of Schnittke Moscow State Institute, The Lviv Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra of opera studio attached to the Mykola Lysenko Lviv National Music Academy, chamber and symphony orchestra of the Kharkov Philharmonic, Khmelnitsky Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Chernigov Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, Ningxia Symphony Orchestra, Tianjin Symphony Orchestra, and Hunan Symphony Orchestra.



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