UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Penn State Philharmonic Orchestra will present its first concert of the 2014-15 season at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11, in Eisenhower Auditorium. The performance is in conjunction with the second annual Penn State Invitational Orchestra Festival, a one-day immersion in the art of musical performance for talented high school string players. The high school students will open the program with a performance of Mendelssohn's second string symphony. They will then joined by the collegiate Philharmonic Orchestra members for a side-by-side performance of "The Moldau," Smetana's sweepingly melodic tribute to his homeland.
After the high school students leave the stage, the Philharmonic will perform the first movement of the Bartók viola concerto with violist Santiago Osorio, winner of the 2013-14 Philharmonic Concerto Competition. The performance concludes with Johannes Brahms' third symphony. The Philharmonic Orchestra is conducted by Gerardo Edelstein.
This performance will be live streamed at Penn State School of Music.
Program
String Symphony No. 2 in D Major, MWV N 2 -- Felix Mendelssohn
"The Moldau" (from "Má Vlast") -- Bedřich Smetana
Moderato-Lento parlando (From Viola Concerto, Sz. 120, BB 128) -- Béla Bartók (with Osorio)
Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90 -- Johannes Brahms
Born into a musical family with an international background, Osorio is pursuing a diverse musical career. As a violist, he has performed in the Festival de Música de Cámara and the Orquésta Sinfónica de Minería in Mexico City, the New York String Orchestra and served as co-principal of the Youth Orchestra of the Americas. He has appeared as soloist with the Jóven Orquésta y Coro de Centroamerica, where he also served as assistant conductor and teacher. His awards include the Prix d’Instruments à Cordes from the Écoles d’Art Américaines in Fontainebleau, France, and he was named a semifinalist in the 2013 Sphinx Competition.
Osorio’s teachers include Samuel Rhodes and Stephen Wyrczynski. He has performed in masterclasses for eminent musicians including Kim Kashkashian, Gérard Caussé, Atar Arad, Roberto Diaz and Yuri Bashmet at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena. He currently serves as principal violist of the Pennsylvania Centre Orchestra and the Williamsport Symphony, and he participates in the Penn State Chamber Orchestra and Baroque Ensemble. Osorio holds a bachelor's degree in viola performance from The Juilliard School and is pursuing a master's degree in orchestral conducting at Penn State. He is a conducting student of Gerardo Edelstein and a viola student of Timothy Deighton.