SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The South Orange Symphony presents its annual family concert on Sunday, Feb. 11, at 3 p.m. at South Orange Middle School, 70 N. Ridgewood Road. Admission is free. Conductor Susan Haig presents a variety of popular and lively selections to introduce children and adults to a wide range of orchestral music. Families and children are encouraged to attend.
During the intermission there will be an instrument “petting zoo,” where everyone can examine and try playing many orchestra instruments. Orchestra members will be on hand to demonstrate and even provide impromptu lessons for interested children.
With the Presidents Day holiday approaching, the concert features members of the South Orange Middle School chorus singing several American patriotic songs, accompanied by the orchestra; SOMS choral director Jake Ezzo will direct the choir as it sings “America the Beautiful” and “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”
Ezzo joined SOMS in 2013 and won first place in the 2017 Arts Ed NOW “What’s Does an Arts Ed Now Ambassador Look Like” contest in the middle school category.
Another patriotic number is John Philip Sousa’s “Liberty Bell March.” It is one of his best-known marches and is often played at presidential inaugurations. The audience is encouraged to clap along.
A more classical selection is the final movement of Franz Joseph Haydn’s 103rd Symphony. This features a simple theme, but one that Haydn builds into an intense and engaging sound.
Camille Saint-Saens Symphony No. 3 also has a straightforward theme that develops in an edgy and exciting way. Saint-Saens was a well-known organist, and this selection features an organ solo, played by Holland Jancaitis, who serves as musical director for Morrow Memorial United Methodist Church in Maplewood.
Do you like music with a strong percussion beat? The “Neger Danz” from Danish composer Carl Nielsen’s “Aladdin Suite” starts at a frenetic pace and becomes progressively wilder. When the percussion takes a break the strings step in and maintain the insistent beat with a rapid pizzicato — or plucking — phase. The piece runs about five minutes, but one is immersed in Nielsen’s world throughout.
A sharp contrast are two selections from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker Suite.” “The Waltz of the Flowers” is a serene and classic waltz, while “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” features syncopated rhythms that make one think of a ballerina’s precise steps. Children who have seen the Disney movie “Fantasia” may recognize the music.
For more information about the South Orange Symphony, visit http://www.sosymphony.org/.
Photos Courtesy of John Tierney
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