Show will share the gift of well-known Christmas-themed music
Published in the December 7 – 20, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
The South Valley Symphony will entertain local music lovers with a rousing “Holiday Stocking Stuffers” concert to celebrate the winter festivities at the Gavilan Community College Theater 4 p.m. Dec. 18.
The symphony’s music director and conductor Anthony Quartuccio said that this year’s holiday concert will share with audiences the gift of well-known classic Christmas-themed music as well as some music which will be new and daring.
Among the popular tunes performed by the orchestra will be the “Die Fledermaus Overture” from the operetta by Johann Strauss II from a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée. The original literary source for the comic show was a farce by German playwright Julius Roderich Benedi that premiered in Berlin in 1851. “Die Fledermaus” music has become a staple of Christmas concerts because of its festive cheer.
Another piece that will be performed at the concert is the well-loved “March of the Toy Soldiers” from the operetta “Babes in Toyland” composed by Victor Herbert, with a libretto by Glen MacDonough. The original story wove together various characters from Mother Goose nursery rhymes into a Christmas-themed musical extravaganza which first opened in the Chicago Opera House in 1903.
Another piece that will be performed at the holiday concert is “Ancient Airs & Dances,” a set of three orchestral suites by Italian composer Ottorino Respighi. It is freely transcribed from original pieces composed for the lute. Besides his works as a renowned composer and conductor, Respighi was also a notable musicologist whose interest in Italian music of the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries led him to compose works inspired by the music of these periods. The piece that will be performed by the South Valley Symphony reflect his passion for the music of this period.
“Gloria” by Antonio Vivaldi is another piece that will be performed at the holiday concert with the orchestra accompanied by Phil Robb and a chorus. Vivaldi wrote at least three settings of the hymn “Gloria in excelsis Deo,” whose words date from the 4th century and which is an important components of the Catholic Church’s liturgy.
A favorite part of the concert – especially for families – will be an audience sing-along of favorite Christmas songs with concert master Beverly Blount.
Along with the Mother’s Day concert at the San Juan Bautista Mission, the symphony’s holiday concert is so popular that it usually sells out, so Quartuccio recommends buying tickets early online on the symphony’s website at southvalleysymphony.org or at Morgan Hill’s BookSmart store, Gilroy’s Porcellas Music and First Street Cafe, Hollister’s Postal Graphics or San Juan Bautista’s The Mission Gallery.
Quartuccio encourages families to share the festive fun of the holidays by attending the upcoming concert. Children can attend for free with accompanying paying adult (but the child must get a ticket to be admitted). Students with identification can also attend the concerts for free. During the intermission, Quartuccio invites children to the stage to learn about the instruments.
“We’re bringing in people from local and remote places to share their talent and families should experience the whole spectrum of these flavors in music.”
