26 Sep 2009 Conway Symphony Orchestra celebrates silver anniversary

The Conway orchestra exists to create meaningful experiences through performances and education. The 2009-2010 CSO roster is composed of both professional and pre-professional musicians performing seven concerts, plus classroom educational programs.

Subscriptions are now available for the CSO’s silver anniversary season beginning with ArtsFest weekend’s grand finale Saturday, Oct. 10.

“We’ll raise the roof on Reynolds Hall as 100-plus chorus members from the University of Central Arkansas and Hendrix College join the CSO for the performance of Alexander Borodin’s Polovtsian Dances,” said music director and conductor Israel Getzov. In addition, the CSO will perform Joseph Haydn’s 104th and final symphony and Russian Sailors’ Dance by Reinhold Gliere for the season’s inaugural concert, underwritten by Acxiom.

For the second concert of the season, Ludwig von Beethoven’s well-known and energetic 7th Symphony is paired with the “Prelude and Love-Death” from Richard Wagner’s groundbreaking opera Tristan and Isolde for a Tuesday, Nov. 17, performance, underwritten by Regions Bank.

Arkansas Festival Ballet joins the CSO on Saturday, Dec. 5, for Tchaikovsky’s holiday classic, The Nutcracker Suite, and The Skater’s Waltz. Christmas carols and a visit from Santa help make this concert, underwritten by Fortier Inc., a great way to ring in the season.

“25 Years and Counting” is the theme for the Silver Anniversary concert Tuesday, April 20, featuring Conway’s own star cellist Stephen Feldman playing the timeless Cello Concerto by Antonin Dvorak along with Robert Schumann’s 4th Symphony.

Additional performances by the CSO include a Children’s Concert presentation of Peter and the Wolf sponsored by First Security Bank, and the traditional Independence Day celebration, “Lights Over the Lake,” sponsored by Southwestern Energy. All seats are $5 for the children’s concert at Reynolds Performance Hall at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 13, and the outdoor concert at Beaverfork Lake Park at 7 p.m. Saturday, July 3, is free.

The CSO will be a part of the UCA Public Appearances series in a bonus performance outside its regular season with “An Evening with Marvin Hamlisch and the Conway Symphony Orchestra” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9. “When an award-winning composer and pops conductor like Hamlisch takes the podium, it elevates the orchestra’s performance and the audience’s experience,” said Getzov. Tickets for the UCA Public Appearances concert are also available from the Reynolds box office.

New and renewing subscribers can order season tickets in person at the Reynolds box office at UCA; by phone at 501.450.3265 or toll free at 1.866.810.0012; or by mail to the CSO, P.O. Box 1307, Conway, 72033. Prices for season tickets range from $60 to $100 and all four performances begin at 7:30 p.m. at Reynolds Performance Hall in Conway.

Single tickets go on sale Monday, Sept. 28, priced from $5 to $35, with significant discounts for children and students, thanks to underwriting from Nabholz Construction. The UCA community also receives discounted pricing, with support from the university. Single tickets are available at the box office, by phone, or online at www.uca.edu/tickets.

Through the support of corporate and individual donors, the CSO keeps tickets affordable, making the enjoyment of classical and popular music available to the entire community.