CSO presents the final Masterpiece Concert of the 2020-21 Season, Fantastic Finales.
When: Friday, April 17, 2021 Time: 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM
Where: Cheyenne Civic Center Tickets: On sale now
Social distancing measures will be in place and patrons will be required to wear masks. The concerts will be performed without intermission and last about 90 minutes. The 7:30 PM performance will also be live streamed for those who prefer to watch from the comfort of home.
CSO welcomes pianist David Korevaar as soloist in Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, called the “Emperor” concerto. Even though he is a world-class pianist, David won’t be traveling far to perform in Cheyenne: he is on the faculty of the University of Colorado in Boulder. “We appreciate David filling in for English pianist Michael Roll who was originally supposed to perform the Beethoven concerto with us, but who couldn’t fly ‘across the pond’ due to the pandemic”, said William Intriligator, CSO conductor and Music Director. “This concerto is one of the greatest of the greatest, Beethoven at his best. Powerful, dramatic, virtuosic, and achingly gorgeous in the slow movement. I have been dreaming of performing this music again; it has been too many years since I’ve conducted it. You will love it!”
Also on this program is the elegant 18th-century Symphony No. 1 by Joseph Bologne, the Chevalier de Saint-Georges. This is a composer everyone should know, listen to, and appreciate; he was an excellent violinist, composer, and conductor. Chevalier de Saint-Georges was the first classical composer of African descent, sometimes called “The Black Mozart” (although his music is more akin to Haydn). He was a member of high society in France in the late 1700s, friendly with Marie Antoinette, and earned the title chevalier (knight); some say he may have been the inspiration for Aramis, the character in The Three Musketeers. In addition, he was a champion swordsman, marksman, and athlete, even impressing future US President John Adams with his marksman skills. “Although he was friendly with the aristocracy, he ended up fighting for the revolution and leading a troop of black soldiers,” Intriligator explains. “His life really needs to be made into a PBS Masterpiece special! And his music is just lovely, so you won’t want to miss it!”
The concert ends with Rossini’s wonderful Overture to his final opera, William Tell. Yes, that’s right, the Lone Ranger strikes again! But before the Lone Ranger section, CSO musicians will perform the first sections of the overture: a beautiful quintet of solo cellos playing heartfelt music full of nostalgia, a musical storm that grows from pizzicato raindrops to a full-fledged downpour; and the shepherd’s song between flute and English horn made so famous by cartoons.
The Classic Conversations educational seminar that precedes each concert will be live streamed on the CSO Facebook page on the Friday prior to the concert at noon and made available on the CSO website for on-demand viewing. Media interviews with Maestro Intriligator and David Korevaar can be arranged by calling Lindsey Reynolds at 307-778-8561.
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