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Virginia Symphony Orchestra

Symphony Notes

November 2024 | Edition 03

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Orchestrated October: A Symphony of Thrills and Spills
Evening of Hope
National Mentorship Month
What About The Music?
Upcoming Performances
November Spotify
Double Your Impact

October was a month filled with extraordinary musical experiences at the Virginia Symphony Orchestra! We were thrilled to welcome back our Connie and Marc Jacobson Music Director Laureate, JoAnn Falletta, who conducted a breathtaking performance of Saint-Saëns’ Organ Symphony. The evening also featured the exceptional Brendon Elliott, who captivated audiences with his stunning renditions of Concerto No. 2 in G major for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 5, and Sonata No. 4 in E minor. This concert was a testament to the artistry and brilliance that our audiences have come to cherish.

 

                                                            

We also brought the magic of music to a new generation through the return of our beloved PB & J series. Our Halloween Spooktacular enchanted families with a fun and spooky symphonic adventure, making it a perfect celebration for young music lovers.

                                                       

In another thrilling highlight, Alfred Hitchcock’s classic masterpiece Psycho came to life on the big screen, accompanied by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra performing the iconic score live. The combination of suspenseful cinema and a live orchestral performance created an unforgettable, spine-tingling experience for our audience.

                                                           

 

Thank you to everyone who joined us for these spectacular events! We look forward to sharing even more unforgettable moments with you throughout the season.

 

Evening of Hope

In addition to the VSO’s amazing shows in October, The Urban Renewal Center partnered with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra to host the 3rd annual Evening of Hope. The event commemorated victims and survivors of violence and honored frontline professionals who bring messages of hope to Hampton Roads. The night featured moving performances by the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Dr. Alex Harris, Rev. Nate Griffin, Amber Garrett, Stephanie Sanders, Shark City Drum and Dance Corps, and a local community choir. It was a powerful evening that united the community in hope and healing.

Thanks to your generosity, the VSO can continue working toward our mission, in creating world-class symphonic performances, and purposeful community engagement throughout Southeastern Virginia. Your support helps us remain an active and impactful member of our community.

VSO Mentorships

We recently interviewed Margaret Albrecht (Bass Clarinet), Carter Melin (Cello), and Helen Wargelin (Horn) from the Virginia Symphony Orchestra in honor of National Mentorship Month. They shared their thoughts on the importance of mentorships and what having strong mentors means to them, highlighting how these relationships shape both personal and professional growth.

What About The Music?

Did you know that Aaron Copland was born in 1900 in Brooklyn, NY? As a child, he wanted piano lessons but could only learn from his sisters. It wasn’t until after high school that he began to seriously engage in music, eventually choosing it as his career. Similarly, Aoife O’Donovan grew up spending summers in Ireland, singing with her extended family—a tradition that inspired her love of folk music. To learn more about the artists and composers featured in our upcoming performance, click here.

 

Appalachian Spring & Aoife O’Donovan

This year marks the 80th anniversary of Martha Graham’s Appalachian Spring ballet, where Aaron Copland’s iconic music first debuted, shaping the American musical landscape. His full-orchestra suite from the ballet has since become a cultural cornerstone. Grammy Award-winning songwriter Aoife O’Donovan will join the VSO and her husband, Music Director Eric Jacobsen, to present America, Come, her musical tribute to women’s voting rights. The piece draws inspiration from the words and lives of Carrie Chapman Catt and President Woodrow Wilson during the pivotal summer of 1920.

COFFEE CONCERT: Appalachian Spring
Ferguson Center For The Arts
November 15, 2024
11:00 am

Appalachian Spring & Aoife O’Donovan
Ferguson Center For The Arts
November 15, 2024
7:30 pm

A Very Merry Musical Market

Get your holiday shopping done early while you listen to live chamber music and
sip on tasty brews from Elation Brewing.

A Very Merry Musical Market
Elation Brewery
November 21, 2024

A Gospel Christmas featuring A Tribute to Richard Smallwood

The Virginia Symphony Orchestra is thrilled to welcome Dr. Henry Panion back to Chrysler Hall for a soulful seasonal celebration. This performance features a powerful community gospel choir led by Minister Earl Bynum, Director of The Mount Unity Choir. We’ll also honor gospel music legend Richard Smallwood, with Dr. Panion’s uplifting orchestral arrangements of his iconic songs sure to bring the audience to their feet!

A Gospel Christmas featuring a Tribute to Richard Smallwood
Chrysler Hall
November 30, 2024
7:30 pm

November Spotify

Take a listen to Eric Jacobsen’s curated November Spotify playlist, filled with his favorite tracks for the season. It’s the perfect soundtrack to accompany the VSO’s performances this month!

“As you can tell from this month’s playlist, I’m having a real moment with all things Leonard Bernstein! He is truly such an inspiration.” – Eric Jacobsen

  • Mahler: Symphony No. 9, I. Andante comodo – I love this recording, conducted by Bernstein!
  • Bernstein: Symphonic Dances from West Side Story – we cannot wait to perform this for you in March!
  • Bernstein: Somewhere – such a beautiful song! I also love Dawn Upshaw’s version (available on YouTube).

Double Your Impact

The VSO Fellows mentor local students

VSO Fellow Omari Abdul-Alim with students at a Norfolk school, helping students move from music study to performance careers.

Right now, all donations to the Virginia Symphony Orchestra are being matched! This is your chance to make your gift go twice as far and have an even greater impact. Click here to donate and double your support! By clicking here, you can also learn more about our donor levels and benefits. Don’t miss this opportunity to double your support.

Emmanual Losa

Emmanuel Losa

Cello

Born in 1998, Emmanuel Losa grew up in Marietta, Georgia to a Nigerian father and Jamaican mother. Starting his cello studies at the age of 12, he began to have an affinity for the orchestral world and later studying with the esteemed cellists of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, his primary instructor was Joel Dallow; in addition, studying with Dona Vellek (Assistant Principal Cello Emeritus) and Karen Freer (Assistant Principal Cello).

Emmanuel heavily enjoys studying various pieces of solo, chamber, and orchestral music, spending his summers at various festivals such as Bowdoin International Music Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, and Aspen Music Festival to name a few.

A student of Alan Stepansky at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, Emmanuel is pursuing an undergraduate cello performance degree in orchestral performance. He continues his studies with a focus on winning a position with a major orchestra.

Zacherie Small

Zacherie Small

Double Bass

After migrating from his native island of Barbados, Zacherie Small began his Double Bass studies the age of 19 with Jonathan Dadurka at Miami-Dade College where he graduated with a Associate of Arts in Music. Afterwards, he went on to study with Luis Gomez-Imbert at Florida International University where he now holds a Bachelor of Music in Double Bass Performance; Cum Laude, and a Masters of Music in Double Bass Performance. Also, recently graduated with his second Masters from Temple University studying with members of the Philadelphia Orchestra such as Nathaniel West, Joseph Conyers, and Robert Kesselman.

Small has performed with various orchestras. He is a member of the Miami Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Eduardo Marturet. He was also the Principal Double Bass of the Miami Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Jorge Vazquez. Small periodically performs with the Colour of Music Festival Orchestra.

Small has attended the Miami Summer Music Festival at Barry University for 3 years. During the festival, he has performed in many concerts with various conductors like Michael Rossi, Yuriy Bekker, Joel Smirnoff, David Efron, Stephanie Rhodes, and Steve Gruman. Also, participated in the Philadelphia International Music Festival to study with Nathaniel West and under the baton of Kensho Watanabe.

As well as being a performer, Small is the secondary music director South-Dade Middle School and does masterclasses at various schools in Miami, FL. He is also a teacher for the Artist of the Miami Music Project where he guides children in troubled neighborhoods to bring about social change, cultivate lessons, and run ensembles.

Tyler McKisson

Tyler McKisson

viola

Tyler McKisson is a 26-year-oldorchestral and freelance violist originally from Arvada, Colorado. He has recently received an Artist Diploma from The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music as a Diversity Fellow where he regularly performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. McKisson received a Master’s degree in viola performance at the University of Colorado Boulder and a Bachelor’s degree in Viola Performance at the University of Northern Colorado with honors. McKisson’s musical career started at age ten when he joined his school’s string orchestra program and at age fourteen, he began his studies under his first private instructor, Brian Cook. McKisson has also studied under Christopher Luther, Anne Leilehua Lanzilotti, Erika Eckert, and Catharine Carroll Lees. He has played with several American orchestras including the Cheyenne Symphony with tenure, Atlanta Symphony, Kentucky Symphony, National Repertory Orchestra, and the Aspen Conducting Academy.

Camille Jones

Camille Jones

violin

A passionate collaborator and advocate for diversity in the arts, Camille has worked with various festival orchestras and chamber groups, including the National Orchestral Institute and Festival (NOI + F), Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Next Festival of Emerging Artists.

As a 2019 Sphinx Orchestral Futurist Fellow, she has helped commission works and curate a professional development workshop for K-12 students in Prince George’s County, Maryland.This project piloted what is now the K12 New Music Initiative, a commissioning project to expand the repertoire of K12 orchestras with music by BIPOC composers. In the Fall of 2018, she curated Voices Unheard, a concert series at UMD that celebrated works by women composers and composers of color. In addition, she had the opportunity to collaborate with esteemed cello professor Anthony Elliott for a concert series at the Kerrytown Concerthouse titled Passing the Torch in 2021 and 2022. Camille is establishing herself as a freelance artist in the Michigan area as well, having performed for singer Michael Bublé, rapper Big Sean and Darren Criss. She has also served as a teaching artist for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Youth Ensembles as well as the Sphinx Overture program in Detroit.

Camille received her B.M. in Violin Performance at the University of Maryland, College Park and a M.M. in Violin Performance from the University of Michigan, having studied under Danielle Belen.

Daphine Henderson

Daphine Henderson

bass

Daphine Henderson, a double bassist and vocalist in the DC metro area, completed her Master’s Degree in Double Bass Performance at the University of Maryland College Park in Spring 2023, where she also received two Bachelor’s Degrees in Music Performance with concentrations in Double Bass and Soprano Voice in Spring ’20. She was the first black woman to earn a Master’s Degree in Double Bass Performance at University of Maryland and the third black woman to receive a graduate degree in strings. Teaching herself the double bass at age 12, Daphine became extremely involved in music through her high school career, ranging from performing with the Maryland Senior All State Orchestra to being the drum major of her high school marching band. She is actively involved in the University of Maryland School of Music community, performing with numerous classical and wind ensembles.

Throughout her time at UMD, Daphine served as one of the ensemble assistants for the UMD Treble Choir, where she actively engaged with and lead her section. She sat as one of the student chairs and founding members of the School of Music’s IDEA Committee, which focuses on bringing diversity, accessibility, and inclusive engagement to the music community at College Park. Daphine is also a founding member of the PAGE (Project for All Gender Equality) for Bassists, where she spoke on a panel in the 2019 and 2021 International Society of Bassists conventions. Daphine teaches in Prince George’s County and Montgomery County, Maryland, and is an active strings coach for the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestra. Additionally, she teaches all string instruments, piano, and voice at Crescendo Studios in Falls Church, Virginia.

Daphine is taking steps in her musical career to create an impact and be an inspiration for younger musicians of color that would otherwise not have ample resources and opportunities to pursue their passion. Following the completion of her graduate degree, Daphine plans to continue establishing herself as an advocate through her performance and an arts administrator for underserved and minority musicians, while continuing to inspire others through her love for music.

Avery Robinson

Omari Imhotep Adbdul-Alim

Violin

Omari Imhotep Abdul-Alim is an accomplished violinist and educator with a Master of Music in Violin Performance from the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He is a dedicated instructor with extensive experience teaching violin to a diverse range of students, from young children to adults, in both individual and group settings.

Omari has also contributed significantly as a violin instructor and orchestral strings coach at the Academy for Discovery at Lakewood, as a member of VSO's first inaugural class of African American Fellowship.

In addition to his teaching accomplishments, Omari has an extensive performance background. He has been a substitute with VSO, New World Symphony, Chicago Civic Orchestra, and Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera. For the last year Omari has been an active performer in the San Diego area, playing with Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra, Poway Symphony Orchestra, the City Ballet of San Diego, La Jolla Symphony Orchestra and as resident violinist at First Lutheran Church of San Diego.

Omari is committed to enriching our musical education and performance landscape through his expertise and passion for music.

Avery Robinson

Avery Robinson

Cello

Avery Robinson grew up in Western Massachusetts where he was influenced by his parents’ love for jazz music. At the age of 10 he started playing piano and began learning bass when he was 12 years old. As a young musician, Avery’s passion for jazz persisted however, as he became exposed to the wonderful sounds of the symphony, his musical passion grew to include a second genre: classical music. After joining his high school orchestra, his career path was set.

Avery has studied at many top music schools such as the Eastman School of Music, The Hartt School of Music, and the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and has graduated with honors. His teachers include Rachel Calin, Albert Laszlo, and Robert Black. Avery has been a member of the Kentucky Symphony, and most recently, the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra. He has also worked as a substitute for the Amarillo Symphony and the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas. In addition to his orchestral career, Avery is also an accomplished recitalist, having performed many solo and chamber recitals at various venues such as the Chautauqua Institution and at the “Classical Revolution” Series in Cincinnati. His love for performing with others shows in his expressive and sometimes fervent style of playing.

Avery has other passions in addition to music. Firstly, he is a huge art and history buff and loves to frequent museums and galleries whenever he can. He is also a lover of sports and an avid golfer.