TESTAMENT: Listen to the complete concert on November 13

Our Testament concerts on October 29 and 30 were an incredible experience! If you missed the concerts, or just want to relive this performance highlighting courage, resolve, and the endurance of the human spirit, you can hear the concert rebroadcast this coming weekend.

At 4 PM on November 13, go to KAZU.org's classical station to experience the entire program performed by the Santa Cruz Symphony!

Here's how to listen: when you're on the KAZU website, click "All Streams" underneath the red Donate button and select the Classical station from the drop-down menu. Then just click the play button in the grey bar at the top left part of the page, right underneath the logo. At 4 PM on Sunday, clicking this button will play the Testament concert.

You can find more information about listening to KAZU broadcasts here, including how to tune in on your HD radio station.

We hope you’ll listen in!

Testament: highlighting courage, resolve, and the endurance of the human spirit

The Santa Cruz Symphony is honored to present Testament, our second concert of the season, on Saturday and Sunday, October 29 & 30. This will be a profoundly moving program featuring music written to reflect the deepest parts of our souls. 

We will begin with Valentin Silvestrov's Prayer for Ukraine, originally composed for chorus in response to the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014. After the Russian invasion earlier this year, Eduard Restasch arranged the work for chamber orchestra. Quiet and reflective, it speaks to the desires for freedom and peace that the Ukrainian people are yearning for today.

Next on the program is Béla Bartók's Viola Concerto, featuring soloist Yuchen Lu. Among the most beloved pieces for solo viola, the Concerto is one of the last works that Bartók wrote toward the end of his life. He passed away before its completion, and his friend Tibor Serly used the composer's sketches to finish the work in 1949. The piece moves through moods of intimate simplicity to grand, fully orchestrated gestures, finally ending with the lively Eastern European folk flavor for which Bartók is so loved.

Finally, the concert will conclude with Pyotr Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 Pathétique. Grand and emotionally turbulent, this final symphony reflects the rich panorama of Tchaikovsky's life. He experienced periods of great joy, depression, a failed marriage, popular successes, and academic criticism throughout his career. Tchaikovsky himself even declared that he had put his "whole soul into this work."

We know that the Santa Cruz Symphony will inspire you with this program’s rich journey into the depths of the human experience.

FEATURING YUCHEN LU

This year, at the 36th Irving M. Klein International String Competition, thousands of people worldwide delighted in the talents of nine semifinalists via livestream as they competed for cash prizes and performance contracts. A jury of seven determined the winners. The first prize was awarded to 22-year-old violist Yuchen Lu.

Mr. Lu also won second prize at the Lionel Tertis viola competition. He has attended the Morningside Music Bridge summer festival, and was a member of the Seiji Ozawa Orchestra Academy. He also performed at the Marlboro Music Festival in summer 2022. This exceptional young artist will perform a viola concerto by Bartók, one of the greatest composers of the 20th century!

 

Here are some accolades from people who attended our last concert

“The Santa Cruz Symphony is a jewel in this community."

 

"Just fantastic. The finale at the end was incredible. The dancers and music and everything, so beautiful. It left me teary eyed."

 

"Thank you for enduring and thriving. Daniel Stewart is a treasure."

 

WHEN AND WHERE TO SEE IT:

October 29 at 7:30 pm at the Civic Auditorium (pre-concert talk at 6:30 pm)

October 30 at 2:00 pm at the Henry J. Mello Center (pre-concert talk at 1:00 pm)

There's still time to join our online class

Dear Symphony Music Lovers and Lifelong Learners,

Want to learn about the pieces being featured in our upcoming Testament concert? It's not too late to sign up for our online class with Professor Anatole Leikin!

Dr. Anatole Leikin, Professor Emeritus of Music at UC Santa Cruz, will use his wealth of knowledge and his piano to demonstrate themes and motifs as we explore the background of the pieces we will hear at Testament.

Dr. Leikin is a music historian and pianist. He teaches at UC Santa Cruz in his semi-retirement, specializing in Classical and Romantic performance practice, music history, and theory, as well as piano performance. He enjoys a stellar reputation as a professor with his UCSC students!

Professor Leikin will lead a Zoom class on Wednesday evening October 19, 2022 at 7 pm. Allow up to 90 minutes for this class, which will go into greater depth than time permits at our pre-concert talks. We will record this class for those who can’t attend so you can view the recording ahead of the concert. The recording will be available before the concert dates on October 29-30.

The cost of the class is $25. To sign up, click the button below. You’ll be taken to a webpage where you can complete the payment process.

After you've paid for the class, we'll send you an email on Tuesday, October 18 with instructions, the Zoom link for the class, and some important details.

The Symphony's online classes are an excellent way to enhance your concert-going experience. Please share this email with any friends who may not be on our mailing list. We look forward to seeing you in class!

Ready to learn about Testament? Join the online class!

Dear Symphony Music Lovers and Lifelong Learners,

Our second concert of the season, Testament, will be happening October 29-30, and the Symphony is back with a new online class to help you fully appreciate the music!

We’re delighted to introduce you to our newest professor: Dr. Anatole Leikin, Professor Emeritus of Music at UC Santa Cruz. With his wealth of knowledge, and using the piano to demonstrate themes and motifs, Professor Leikin will explore the background of the pieces we will hear at Testament and provide a detailed listening guide to enhance our concert experience.

Professor Leikin will lead a Zoom class on Wednesday evening October 19, 2022 at 7 pm. He will dive into these pieces with his wealth of musical knowledge and perspective. And all in the comfort of your home!

Dr. Leikin is a music historian and pianist. He teaches at UC Santa Cruz in his semi-retirement, specializing in Classical and Romantic performance practice, music history, and theory, as well as piano performance. He enjoys a stellar reputation as a professor with his UCSC students!

The Testament concert program to be discussed will include:

  • Valentin Silvestrov’s Prayer for Ukraine, the orchestral version. Having heard the choral version last May, we’ll now learn how this music arose from the Russian annexation of Crimea and has become a frequently performed piece around the world today.

  • Béla Bartók’s Viola Concerto, featuring the Klein String Competition winner, Yuchen Lu. This piece has a fascinating history, and Bartók left it unfinished when he died. We will recognize the important themes and learn about the structure of the three movements. Perhaps we’ll hear about who helped get the work finished and ready for performance with an orchestra?

  • Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 Pathétique, a masterwork. Labeled by Tchaikovsky as a “Passionate” Symphony whose theme or “program” was to remain a “mystery,” we’re sure that Professor Leikin with enlighten us as to what the themes and development are within this structure.

Allow up to 90 minutes for this class, which will go into greater depth than time permits at our pre-concert talks. We will record this class for those who can’t attend so you can view the recording ahead of the concert. The recording will be available before the concert dates on October 29-30.

After you've paid for the class, we'll send you an email on Tuesday, October 18 with instructions with the Zoom link for the class and some important details.

Join your Symphony friends for this excellent class! Please share this email with any friends who may not be on our mailing list. We look forward to seeing you!