UGA Symphony Orchestra, cellist to present music of Antonín Dvořák

Cello professor David Starkweather will join the University of Georgia Symphony Orchestra in performing the masterworks of Antonín Dvořák on Thursday, September 13 at 8 p.m. in Hodgson Concert Hall. Tickets for the program, which opens the 2012-2013 Hugh Hodgson School of Music’s 2^nd Thursday Scholarship Concert Series, are $18/$5 for students and available via the UGA Performing Arts Center box office at 706/542/4400 or online at www.uga.edu/pac.

Known for the frequent use of folk melodies in his compositions, Dvořák was born in the modern-day Czech Republic in 1841. After spending a majority of his life in Europe, Dvořák spent several of his remaining years an expatriate in America, assimilating the country’s musical styles and utilizing them in his work.

Thursday’s concert showcases the UGA Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Professor Mark Cedel as it performs three of the Dvořák’s most beloved compositions: Carnival Overture, Symphony No. 8 in G major, and his Cello Concerto, featuring Starkweather, cellist on the faculty at UGA since 1983. The concerto is a staple of the classical cellist’s repertoire and one of the Romantic composer’s longest-lasting legacies.

“It’s one of the best concerti ever written for any instrument,” said Starkweather, who has performed around the world as well as recorded suites by Bach and sonatas by Shostakovich and Rachmaninov, among others.  Dvořák occupies a special place among composers because of his distinct blending of styles and influences, from his time in Bohemia to his exposure to American folk music.

Established in 1980, the 2^nd Thursday Scholarship Series offers showcase performances by UGA students and faculty the second Thursday of each month throughout the academic year. Proceeds from individual ticket sales and season subscriptions allow for year-long academic scholarships and assistantships for students and presents donors the opportunity to sponsor individual students of the music school at several levels of giving. In 2011, the 2^nd Thursday series provided scholarships to 30 students based on faculty recommendations, academic achievement and performance ability.

The next concert in the series will be in Hodgson Concert Hall on October 11 at 8 p.m., when the UGA Opera Workshop presents a staging of scenes from Jacques Offenbach’s Tales of Hoffmann.  For more information on the 2^nd Thursday Series or the Hodgson School of Music, please visit www.music.uga.edu.