GREENVILLE SYMPHONY REVIEW Cellist takes spotlight at season opener

The performance included music from 'The Lord of the Rings.'
By NANCILYNN GATTA
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
GREENVILLE, Pa. -- To mark its 75th season, the Greenville Symphony Orchestra is celebrating. The celebration began Saturday night with a concert featuring a premiere performance of "Short No. 1: Fanfare and Waltzes" by cellist and Dana School of Music graduate Jason Howard.
The concert at Thiel College's William A. Passavant Memorial Center began with a salute to America with "The Star Spangled Banner," then proceeded into "Coronation March" from "The Prophet" by Giacomo Meyerbeer. Conductor Michael Gelfand then remarked that, "We're going to slow things down a little bit and highlight the richness of the string section." This introduced the next selection, Johann Pachelbel's "Canon." The piece is often played as a processional hymn for wedding services.
Centerpiece
The centerpiece of the first half was Howard's "Short No.1," commissioned for the concert.
Though the piece had a slight glitch beginning when there was feedback from a microphone, Howard corrected the problem, and the audience joined in on the joke.
Once the piece began, the performance was flawless. Howard's brother Ethan, who is also concertmaster of the symphony, was featured with a violin solo.
Many members of the 63-piece orchestra are from Youngstown State University's Dana School of Music, including faculty and alumni. Special guest pianist William Hurlbert is a Dana School of Music graduate.
While the grand piano was being set up onstage, Gelfand took an impromptu poll of the audience. He said he was curious to find out how far away they had come to see the performance. His Q & amp;A became a family-oriented joke when Gelfland revealed that two audience members from New York and California were his brother and sister.
Hurlbert played Richard Addinsell's "Warsaw Piano Concerto." This was the ninth time that the Greenville area native has performed with the orchestra. His playing enthralled the listeners with the clarity and beauty of the tones he produced. As a result, he was called back for two encores, "The Minute Waltz," and Debussy's "Clair De Lune."
"French Militaire, Op. 51" by Franz Schubert, a traditional selection for the orchestra, was performed. This piece was played during the Greenville Symphony Orchestra's inaugural year and as well at its 50th anniversary concert.
With a nod to an Academy Award winning film score, Gelfand led the ensemble through Howard Shore's original soundtrack "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring." The music vividly brought to memory scenes from the film. Musically, it offered warnings of danger, shared experiences and hope.
Gelfand stated, "We like to end each concert with a blockbuster piece." In this instance it was Ludwig van Beethoven's "Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Opus 67."
But approximately two hours of music was not enough of a celebration for the audience. The orchestra returned with one final piece. This allowed the evening to end on a jubilant note.
Shenango Valley Madrigal Singers previewed their upcoming holiday performances by singing selections in the hallway prior to the concert and onstage.