COLUMBUS, Miss. -- The Starkville–MSU Symphony, which will feature Mississippi University for Women piano faculty, will be in concert Saturday, April 21 at 7:30 p.m. in Rent Auditorium, Whitfield Hall, on the campus of Mississippi University for Women.
This concert is the sixth and final of the 2017-2018 season, and will feature works by Brahms Symphony 1, Op. 68 and Mozart’s Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365.
Dr. Barry Kopetz, head of the Department of Music at Mississippi State University, will serve as conductor. The performance will feature Dr. Julia Mortyakova, chair of The W’s Department of Music, and Dr. Valentin Bogdan, assistant professor of music at The W, as the soloist on Mozart’s Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365.
The program will begin with Brahms Symphony 1, Op. 68. This work took Brahms 14 years to complete, but the brilliance of the composition is worthy of the lengthy time it took to come to realization. Brahms was already well-known at the time of the premiere of this work, but fretted over the audience’s reception. The quality of this first symphony earned a comparison to the works of the symphonic master Beethoven, and at the age of 43, Brahms produced a symphony that has long been celebrated for its scope and beauty.
Following this will be Mozart’s Concerto for Two Pianos, K. 365. Late in the 1770s, Mozart conceived this double concerto as something for he and his sister to perform. It is a unique work with its departure from the usual solo piano concerto emphasizing the dialogue between the two pianos. Throughout the work the two pianos exchange musical ideas, racing scales and trills--all in duplicate.
The entire family is invited to enjoy this event, which is free and open to the public.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 17, 2018