BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Holland Symphony Orchestra - ECPv6.15.18//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Holland Symphony Orchestra X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://hollandsymphony.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Holland Symphony Orchestra REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20240310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20241103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20260308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20261101T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20270314T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20271107T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250619T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250619T203000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250422T155008Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250520T174330Z UID:12591-1750359600-1750365000@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Pops at the Pier 2025: The Music of Judy Garland DESCRIPTION:Preconcert at 6 PM: Holland Concert Jazz Orchestra\nJoan Ellison\, Vocalist • Mark Alpizar\, Conductor\nA “rare combination of artist\, archivist\, and arranger” (Michael Feinstein)\, songstress Joan Ellison is the restorer of Garland’s original orchestral arrangements for the Judy Garland Heirs Trust\, bringing musical authenticity and a lifelong love for Judy to the stage. Add the lush sound of your Holland Symphony Orchestra under the baton of former Cleveland Pops conductor Mark Alpízar\, the Get Happy! A Judy Garland Celebration concert brings Judy Garland’s original symphonic arrangements back to life through a nostalgic trip from technicolor Hollywood to Carnegie Hall! The hit parade includes “The Trolley Song\,” “The Man That Got Away\,” “Get Happy\,” “Come Rain or Come Shine\,” “Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart\,” “Stormy Weather\,” “The Boy Next Door\,” “Chicago\,” and\, of course\, “Over the Rainbow.”\nEnjoy food from local truck vendors: Da Kidd BBQ\, PAC Pizza\, Dolce Tacos & Crepes by the Lake!\nA big thank you to the Eldean family for their continued hospitality and support of the HSO! \nTickets: $37. Seating is general admission.\n\nBUY TICKETS URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/pops-at-the-pier-2025-the-music-of-judy-garland/ LOCATION:Eldean’s Boat Shed\, 2150 S. Shore Drive\, Holland\, 49423\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Judy-Garland-Cover.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250808T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250808T210000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250214T154638Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250730T195447Z UID:12195-1754681400-1754686800@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSO Welcomes Midori DESCRIPTION:Buy Tickets\n \nFriday\, August 8th\, 2025\, at 7:30 PM  \nNEW VENUE: West Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nClick here to view or download a PDF of the West Ottawa Performing Arts seating chart. \nThe HSO Midori concerts are in memory of Jack H. Miller \nCall or email Amanda for accessible (ADA/handicapped) seating options or for $20 student tickets (ticketing@hollandsymphony.org\, 616-796-6780). \nAs part of Holland Symphony Orchestra’s 2025 Gift of Music summer offerings\, we are excited to announce a special pair of concerts featuring the violin superstar Midori.  She will make her Holland debut with music director and conductor Johannes Müller Stosch and the HSO in two performances of Mendelssohn’s towering Violin Concerto and Arvo Pärt’s raucous double violin concerto entitled Tabula Rasa with ZenViolin creator and prodigy Moni Simeonov.  The program will include Mendelssohn’s whimsical Hebrides Overture “Fingal’s Cave” and J. S. Bach’s regal Orchestral Suite No. 1.  The concerts will take place on Friday\, August 8\, 2025\, at 7:30 pm and Saturday\, August 9\, 2025\, at 2 pm at the West Ottawa Performing Arts Center. \nMidori is a visionary artist\, activist\, and educator who explores and builds connections between music and the human experience.  In the four decades since her debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11\, the “simply magical” (Houston Chronicle) violinist has performed with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras and has collaborated with world-renowned musicians including Leonard Bernstein\, Yo-Yo Ma\, and many others.  \nThese are special event prices and are not part of a subscription package.   \nTicket prices for the Midori concert are as follows: \nPremium seats (yellow): $45 \nChoice seats (orange): $40 \nMain (white): $35 \nA limited number of student tickets\, in the Main Section\, will be available for $20. \n\n\n\n \n \n\n \nConcert Sponsor:\n \n Tickets\n \n\nProgram\nProgram Notes\nArtist bio\n\nThe Hebrides\, “Fingal’s Cave\,” Op. 26Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)\nTabula RasaArvo Pärt (b. 1935)\n\n Ludus\n Silentium\n\nMidori and Moni Simeonov\, violins \nIntermission\nSuite No. 1\, BWV 1066\, in C MajorJohann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)\n\n Overture\n Courante\n Gavotte I & II\n Forlane\n Menuet I & II\n Bourrée I & II\n Passepied I & II\n\nViolin Concerto in E Minor\, Op. 64Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)\n\n Allegro molto appassionato\n Andante\n Allegretto non troppo – Allegro molto vivace\n\nMidori\, violin \nThe Hebrides\, “Fingal’s Cave\,” Op. 26Felix Mendelssohn \nBorn: February 3\, 1809\, HamburgDied: November 4\, 1847\, LeipzigWritten: 1830Premiered: May 14\, 1832\, LondonApproximate Duration: 10 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 2 horns\, 2 trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nScotland was an inspiration for nineteenth century art and music in France and Germany.  The location seemed exotic–far away\, mysterious\, full of picturesque and rugged landscapes\, rainy and misty\, and inhabited by people wearing kilts and plaids and speaking in the seemingly unintelligible Gaelic language.  Many students\, writers\, and artists traveled there\, seeking inspiration from this beautiful and foreign place.   \nIn 1829\, Mendelssohn’s father sent him on a tour of Europe to complete his education and gain cultural understanding\, as was common for young men of fortune at the time.  Mendelssohn and a friend began their travels in England and Scotland.  In Edinburgh\, they immersed themselves in the stories of Queen Mary and her personal secretary\, David Rizzio.  Mendelssohn wrote\, “We went to the palace of Holyrood where Queen Mary lived and loved. There is a little room to be seen there with a winding staircase leading up to it. This\, the murderers ascended and\, finding Rizzio\, drew him out. Three chambers away is where they killed him….  Everything is broken and moldering and the bright sky shines in.  I believe I found today in the old chapel the beginning of my Scottish Symphony.”  As they traveled farther north\, Mendelssohn wrote that the Scottish highlands “brew nothing but whiskey\, fog\, and foul weather.”  Eventually they made their way to the west coast of Scotland and to the island of Jaffa. \nFingal’s Cave is on the uninhabited island of Jaffa in the inner Hebrides.  The cave has a giant arched roof and is filled with the eerie sounds produced by the breaking waves. Its Gaelic name means “cave of melody.”  Sir Walter Scott described it as “…one of the most extraordinary places I ever beheld. It exceeded\, in my mind\, every description I had heard of it….  composed entirely of basaltic pillars as high as the roof of a cathedral\, and running deep into the rock\, eternally swept by a deep and swelling sea\, and paved\, as it were\, with ruddy marble\, baffles all description.”   \nAfter seeing the stunning scenery\, Mendelssohn composed the opening bars of his overture and sent it to his sister Fanny\, saying\, “In order to make you understand how extraordinarily the Hebrides affected me\, I send you the following\, which came into my head there.”  He continued to work on the overture as he traveled\, finally completing it a year later in Rome\, with a London premiere in 1832.  Critics\, including Wagner and Schumann\, praised the overture as a masterpiece. Mendelssohn originally entitled it The Lonely Island\, but soon changed the name\, rather confusingly using the title Hebrides Overture on the orchestral parts but Fingal’s Cave on the full score.  \nMendelssohn’s work was the first of a new type of overture which emerged during the nineteenth-century\, referred to as the concert overture.  These overtures are not drawn from a stage work or opera\, but rather\, are stand-alone works to be programmed as an opening piece in a concert hall.  Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture evokes a seascape including the grandeur of the cave\, the swelling of the sea\, the light on the water\, and the fury of the waves breaking on the cliffs. It was one of the first works of music to evoke nature in this way\, a hallmark of the emerging Romanticism of Mendelssohn’s time\, and remains one of the greatest of its genre. \nTo watch a video of Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture\, click here. \nTabula RasaArvo Pärt \nBorn: September 11\, 1935\, Paide\, EstoniaWritten: 1977Premiered: September 30\, 1977\, Tallinn\, Estonia\, with Gidon Kremer and Tatjana Grindenko\, violinists\, Tallinn Chamber Orchestra\, conductor Eri KlasApproximate Duration: 25 minutesInstrumentation: two violin soloists (or solo violin and solo viola)\, strings\, prepared piano \nIn the late twentieth century\, composers pushed classical music to its limits by challenging and re-examining conventions of  tonality\, structure\, and sound quality.  In the midst of that musical exploration\, Estonian composer Arvo Pärt emerged with a strikingly new style that he called “tintinnabuli.”  He described this as “an area I sometimes wander into when I am searching for answers–in my life\, my music\, my work.”  Pärt was a person of deep faith who had significant mystical experiences with chanted music and prayer.  He wanted to find a musical language that would invite  listeners to explore silence\, simplicity\, and spirituality\, which musicologists have dubbed holy or mystical minimalism.  Pärt’s style is characterized by distinct voices that move in simple arpeggiated triads\, representing bell tones\, and stepwise motion\, all at a slow and meditative pace. \nOne of Pärt’s best known tintinnabular pieces is Tabula Rasa\, composed in 1977.  The Latin title is translated “blank slate.”  Pärt intends this blank slate to be a fresh start\, an invitation to a contemplative journey of clearing one’s mind and soul\, allowing the musical experience to transform oneself and awaken a sense of musical rebirth.   \nFrom the first note of the first movement\, “Ludus” (Game)\, Pärt writes for the extreme high and low range of the violin\, evoking a wide-open environment.  The movement is structured with increasingly long and complex episodes of activity that seem to invite reflection on the entirety of human experience: from joy\, to sorrow\, to longing.  These Interludes are interspersed with moments of timeless stillness.  The movement culminates with a cadenza.  “Silentium” (Silence) is sparse and fragile.  In this simplicity\, Pärt encourages listeners to meditate on the hushed melodic fragments and the spaces between the sounds.  The piece concludes in the quiet depths of the orchestra\, inviting everyone into a final moment of contemplative rest.    \nTabula Rasa is written for two violin soloists\, string orchestra\, and prepared piano.  A prepared piano is a regular piano that has objects such as screws\, paper\, bolts\, or erasers placed between or on the strings to temporarily alter the sound but leave the piano unharmed.  Composers John Cage and Henry Cowell were some of the first to use this technique.  In this piece\, 24 screws and some felt are placed between specific piano strings to produce a variety of percussive-sounding notes.  These “unfamiliar” instrumental sounds add to the mystery of this piece.  \nTo watch a video Pärt’s Tabula Rasa\, click here. \nSuite (Overture) No. 1 in C Major\, BWV 1066Johann Sebastian Bach \nBorn: March 21\, 1685\, EisenachDied: July 28\, 1750\, LeipzigWritten: c. 1725Approximate Duration: 22 minutesInstrumentation: 2 oboes\, 1 bassoon\, harpsichord\, strings \nThe origin of J.S. Bach’s four orchestral suites is mysterious!  We don’t know when Bach wrote these pieces–either in his years at Cöthen (1717-1723) or while working in Leipzig (1729-early 1740s) with the Collegium Musicum\, a group consisting of university students and a few professional musicians.  Bach never assembled the suites into a finished volume\, as he did with the Brandenburg Concertos\, and there is no surviving autograph.  We only have instrumental parts copied by various people including Bach’s son and students. \nNevertheless\, Bach’s four orchestral suites represent the pinnacle of orchestral writing in the French Overture style\, an approach characterized by a stately introduction full of dotted rhythms\, trills\, and flourishes followed by a faster fugal section before ending with the stately opening music.  The overtures in these suites are proportionally so grand that the suites themselves are sometimes called “overtures.”  The remainder of the suites consist of lighter dance movements.  Bach may have intended these suites to be light and entertaining\, but they demand a high level of virtuosity from performers and display a remarkable level of thematic and rhythmic cohesiveness in their composition. \nBach’s first suite probably dates to 1725.   It is lightly scored for two oboes\, bassoon\, strings\, and harpsichord.  With these modest forces\, Bach achieves a variety of textures\, sometimes using the woodwinds as soloists.  This suite is noteworthy in Bach’s use of paired dance movements\, such as Gavotte I & II.  These movements are played in an ABA format\, with the second contrasting gavotte between two statements of the first.   \nTo watch a video of Bach’s first suite\, click here. \nViolin Concerto in E minor\, Op. 64Felix Mendelssohn\nBorn: February 3\, 1809\, HamburgDied: November 4\, 1847\, LeipzigComposed: 1844\, revised 1845Premiered: March 13\, 1845\, LeipzigApproximate Duration: 26 minutesInstrumentation: two flutes\, two oboes\, two clarinets\, two bassoons\, two French horns\, two trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nMusic donated by Diane Lewis \nIn 1838\, Mendelssohn wrote to his friend Ferdinand David\, one of the leading violinists of the mid-nineteenth century: “I should like to write a violin concerto for you next winter. One in E minor runs through my head\, the opening of which gives me no peace.”  Mendelssohn worked closely with David while composing the concerto.  Both men disliked the “empty showpiece concerto” of the early Romantic era that contained little more than what Mendelssohn called “juggler’s tricks and rope dancer’s feats.”  The two sought to produce a serious musical piece in the manner of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto.  The result is a piece wonderfully suited to the violin\, both musically and technically.  \nUnlike Classical concertos\, with long orchestral introductions\, Mendelssohn’s work begins with the soloist presenting the initial soaring theme that “haunted” the composer.  This melody is contrasted with a tender second theme\, introduced by the woodwinds.  Mendelssohn took an innovative approach to the cadenza; instead of putting it at the end of the movement\, he used it as a bridge leading from the development into the restatement of the movement’s opening themes.  Furthermore\, instead of leaving it to the soloist to improvise or write his or her own cadenza\, Mendelssohn provides a cadenza\, probably written by David. \nA single thread—a note sustained by one bassoon—provides the seamless bridge to the lyrical second movement\, an endearing song.  The melodies are harmonized and scored beautifully—sometimes peacefully\, sometimes restlessly.  Another brief transition\, which recalls the impassioned first movement\, the Finale begins\, a brilliant and sunny scherzo that recalls Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream.  The soloist is called upon to display light-hearted virtuosity alternating with long\, lyrical passages\, leading to a rousing conclusion.  \nTo listen to Mendelssohn’s violin concerto\, click here. \nProgram notes by Amanda W. Dykhouse \nMidori is a visionary artist\, activist and educator who explores and builds connections between music and the human experience. In the four decades since her debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11\, the “simply magical” (Houston Chronicle) violinist has performed with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras and has collaborated with world-renowned musicians including Leonard Bernstein\, Yo-Yo Ma\, and many others. Midori is the Artistic Director of Ravinia Steans Music Institute’s Piano & Strings program; summer 2024 is her first year in that role. \nThis season\, she premieres Spirituals — a new work written for her by Che Buford — on a recital program\, with pianist Özgür Aydin\, at the Edinburgh Festival; the 92nd Street Y\, New York; the Celebrity Series of Boston; San Francisco Performances; and the Colburn Celebrity Series. Other highlights of Midori’s 2024–2025 season include appearances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra\, Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Louisville Orchestra\, Seattle Symphony\, and Oklahoma City Philharmonic. \nOutside the U.S.\, she performs with the Vienna Philharmonic under Andris Nelsons in Vienna and on tour in Japan and Korea (Prokofiev’s First Violin Concerto); she appears twice in the spring of 2025 at the Berlin Philharmonic Hall\, with the German National Youth Orchestra in May\, performing Glanert’s Second Violin Concerto\, and with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (DSO) in June\, performing Dvořák’s Violin Concerto. She also joins the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under Jonathan Nott\, performing Sibelius’s Violin Concerto on a tour of Spain\, and has concert appearances in Geneva\, Köln and Nürnberg\, as well as Mumbai\, Istanbul\, Izmir and Colombo. \nDeeply committed to furthering humanitarian and educational goals\, Midori has founded several non-profit organizations; the New York City-based Midori & Friends and Japan-based MUSIC SHARING have both been active for over three decades. For the Orchestra Residencies Program (ORP)\, which supports youth orchestras\, Midori commissioned a new work from composer Derek Bermel\, Spring Cadenzas\, that was premiered virtually during the COVID lockdown and continues to be performed; this season\, she is working on creating a video recording of the work to be accompanied by a tutorial. ORP also worked recently with the Afghan Youth Orchestra\, which relocated to Portugal in order to continue operating. Midori’s Partners in Performance (PiP) helps to bring chamber music to smaller communities in the U.S.  In recognition of her work as an artist and humanitarian\, she serves as a United Nations Messenger of Peace and was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2021. \nBorn in Osaka in 1971\, she began her violin studies with her mother\, Setsu Goto\, at an early age. In 1982\, conductor Zubin Mehta invited the then 11-year-old Midori to perform with the New York Philharmonic in the orchestra’s annual New Year’s Eve concert\, where the foundation was laid for her subsequent career. Midori is the Dorothy Richard Starling Chair in Violin Studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She is the recipient of honorary doctorates from Smith College\, Yale University\, Longy School of Music and Shenandoah University\, and of the 2023 Brandeis Creative Arts Award from Brandeis University. \nShe plays the 1734 Guarnerius del Gesù ‘ex-Huberman’ and uses four bows – two by Dominique Peccatte\, one by François Peccatte and one by Paul Siefried. \nA native of Bulgaria\, Moni Simeonov began playing the violin at age 5\, and ten years later\, came to the United States on a full scholarship to the Idyllwild Arts Academy. He performs with the Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and Opera\, Ensemble San Francisco\, and until recently\, was the Concertmaster for the Sacramento Philharmonic. He has also served as a guest concertmaster with Reno Philharmonic\, Louisiana Philharmonic and the Pacific Symphony. His doctoral studies included minor fields in Viola Performance\, Schenkerian Analysis\, Japanese Language\, as well as an emphasis on the interpretation of the Balkan folk music. \nOn tour and in Los Angeles\, Mr. Simeonov dedicates considerable time and energy to community engagement work and to musical activities and presentations for young people. Moni has performed and coached alongside Midori for her Orchestra Residencies Program American and International tours. Until 2014\, he served as a director for the program. Outreach activities have taken him to places as diverse as homeless shelters in Peru and at-risk centers in Tennessee\, to Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon\, and hospitals for the terminally ill in Sri Lanka. \nMoni’s summer teaching includes engagements with the Interlochen Summer Festival\, the Singapore Violin Festival\, and the Atlantic Music Festival. Moni is also the founder of Bulgaria’s first chamber music academy – “Quartet Intensive” in Sofia. \nMoni has concertized and taught around the United States\, South America\, Europe\, Asia\, and the Middle East. His recordings have been archived by PBS\, NPR\, KUSC\, Bulgarian National Radio and TV\, as well as Japanese Broadcasting Company – NHK. \nMoni received his BM and PC from the Eastman School of Music under Zvi Zeitlin\, his MM and AD from Yale University with Ani Kavafian\, and his GC and DMA from USC’s Thornton School of Music where he studied with Midori. \nMoni served as Adjunct Instructor at USC’s Thornton School of Music until 2014. That year\, he was appointed Director of String Studies and Violin Professor with the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University\, Long Beach. Moni is also the creator of zenviolin.com. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hso-welcomes-midori/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Midori_Featured-Image.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250809T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250809T160000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250214T172807Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250730T195234Z UID:12201-1754748000-1754755200@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSO Welcomes Midori - Matinee Concert DESCRIPTION:Buy Tickets\n \nSaturday\, August 9th\, 2025\, at 2 PM  \nNEW VENUE: West Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nClick here to view or download a PDF of the West Ottawa Performing Arts seating chart. \nThe HSO Midori concerts are in memory of Jack H. Miller   \nCall or email Amanda for accessible (ADA/handicapped) seating options or $20 student tickets (ticketing@hollandsymphony.org\, 616-796-6780). \nTeachers and educators get a $10 discount per ticket! Use promo code LEARN at checkout online or by phone. \nAs part of Holland Symphony Orchestra’s 2025 Gift of Music summer offerings\, we are excited to announce a special pair of concerts featuring the violin superstar Midori.  She will make her Holland debut with music director and conductor Johannes Müller Stosch and the HSO in two performances of Mendelssohn’s towering Violin Concerto and Arvo Pärt’s raucous double violin concerto entitled Tabula Rasa with ZenViolin creator and prodigy Moni Simeonov.  The program will include Mendelssohn’s whimsical Hebrides Overture “Fingal’s Cave” and J. S. Bach’s regal Orchestral Suite No. 1.  The concerts will take place on Friday\, August 8\, 2025\, at 7:30 pm and Saturday\, August 9\, 2025\, at 2 pm at the West Ottawa Performing Arts Center. \nMidori is a visionary artist\, activist\, and educator who explores and builds connections between music and the human experience.  In the four decades since her debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11\, the “simply magical” (Houston Chronicle) violinist has performed with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras and has collaborated with world-renowned musicians including Leonard Bernstein\, Yo-Yo Ma\, and many others.  \nThese are special event prices and are not part of a subscription package.  \nTicket prices for the Midori concert are as follows: \nPremium seats (yellow): $45 \nChoice seats (orange): $40 \nMain (white): $35 \nA limited number of student tickets\, in the Main Section\, will be available for $20. \nConcert Sponsor:\n \n Tickets\n \n\nProgram\nProgram Notes\nArtist bios\n\nThe Hebrides\, “Fingal’s Cave\,” Op. 26Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)\nTabula RasaArvo Pärt (b. 1935)\n\n Ludus\n Silentium\n\nMidori and Moni Simeonov\, violins \nIntermission\nSuite No. 1\, BWV 1066\, in C MajorJohann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)\n\n Overture\n Courante\n Gavotte I & II\n Forlane\n Menuet I & II\n Bourrée I & II\n Passepied I & II\n\nViolin Concerto in E Minor\, Op. 64Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)\n\n Allegro molto appassionato\n Andante\n Allegretto non troppo – Allegro molto vivace\n\nMidori\, violin \nThe Hebrides\, “Fingal’s Cave\,” Op. 26Felix Mendelssohn \nBorn: February 3\, 1809\, HamburgDied: November 4\, 1847\, LeipzigWritten: 1830Premiered: May 14\, 1832\, LondonApproximate Duration: 10 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 2 horns\, 2 trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nScotland was an inspiration for nineteenth century art and music in France and Germany.  The location seemed exotic–far away\, mysterious\, full of picturesque and rugged landscapes\, rainy and misty\, and inhabited by people wearing kilts and plaids and speaking in the seemingly unintelligible Gaelic language.  Many students\, writers\, and artists traveled there\, seeking inspiration from this beautiful and foreign place.   \nIn 1829\, Mendelssohn’s father sent him on a tour of Europe to complete his education and gain cultural understanding\, as was common for young men of fortune at the time.  Mendelssohn and a friend began their travels in England and Scotland.  In Edinburgh\, they immersed themselves in the stories of Queen Mary and her personal secretary\, David Rizzio.  Mendelssohn wrote\, “We went to the palace of Holyrood where Queen Mary lived and loved. There is a little room to be seen there with a winding staircase leading up to it. This\, the murderers ascended and\, finding Rizzio\, drew him out. Three chambers away is where they killed him….  Everything is broken and moldering and the bright sky shines in.  I believe I found today in the old chapel the beginning of my Scottish Symphony.”  As they traveled farther north\, Mendelssohn wrote that the Scottish highlands “brew nothing but whiskey\, fog\, and foul weather.”  Eventually they made their way to the west coast of Scotland and to the island of Jaffa. \nFingal’s Cave is on the uninhabited island of Jaffa in the inner Hebrides.  The cave has a giant arched roof and is filled with the eerie sounds produced by the breaking waves. Its Gaelic name means “cave of melody.”  Sir Walter Scott described it as “…one of the most extraordinary places I ever beheld. It exceeded\, in my mind\, every description I had heard of it….  composed entirely of basaltic pillars as high as the roof of a cathedral\, and running deep into the rock\, eternally swept by a deep and swelling sea\, and paved\, as it were\, with ruddy marble\, baffles all description.”   \nAfter seeing the stunning scenery\, Mendelssohn composed the opening bars of his overture and sent it to his sister Fanny\, saying\, “In order to make you understand how extraordinarily the Hebrides affected me\, I send you the following\, which came into my head there.”  He continued to work on the overture as he traveled\, finally completing it a year later in Rome\, with a London premiere in 1832.  Critics\, including Wagner and Schumann\, praised the overture as a masterpiece. Mendelssohn originally entitled it The Lonely Island\, but soon changed the name\, rather confusingly using the title Hebrides Overture on the orchestral parts but Fingal’s Cave on the full score.  \nMendelssohn’s work was the first of a new type of overture which emerged during the nineteenth-century\, referred to as the concert overture.  These overtures are not drawn from a stage work or opera\, but rather\, are stand-alone works to be programmed as an opening piece in a concert hall.  Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture evokes a seascape including the grandeur of the cave\, the swelling of the sea\, the light on the water\, and the fury of the waves breaking on the cliffs. It was one of the first works of music to evoke nature in this way\, a hallmark of the emerging Romanticism of Mendelssohn’s time\, and remains one of the greatest of its genre. \nTo watch a video of Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture\, click here. \nTabula RasaArvo Pärt \nBorn: September 11\, 1935\, Paide\, EstoniaWritten: 1977Premiered: September 30\, 1977\, Tallinn\, Estonia\, with Gidon Kremer and Tatjana Grindenko\, violinists\, Tallinn Chamber Orchestra\, conductor Eri KlasApproximate Duration: 25 minutesInstrumentation: two violin soloists (or solo violin and solo viola)\, strings\, prepared piano \nIn the late twentieth century\, composers pushed classical music to its limits by challenging and re-examining conventions of  tonality\, structure\, and sound quality.  In the midst of that musical exploration\, Estonian composer Arvo Pärt emerged with a strikingly new style that he called “tintinnabuli.”  He described this as “an area I sometimes wander into when I am searching for answers–in my life\, my music\, my work.”  Pärt was a person of deep faith who had significant mystical experiences with chanted music and prayer.  He wanted to find a musical language that would invite  listeners to explore silence\, simplicity\, and spirituality\, which musicologists have dubbed holy or mystical minimalism.  Pärt’s style is characterized by distinct voices that move in simple arpeggiated triads\, representing bell tones\, and stepwise motion\, all at a slow and meditative pace. \nOne of Pärt’s best known tintinnabular pieces is Tabula Rasa\, composed in 1977.  The Latin title is translated “blank slate.”  Pärt intends this blank slate to be a fresh start\, an invitation to a contemplative journey of clearing one’s mind and soul\, allowing the musical experience to transform oneself and awaken a sense of musical rebirth.   \nFrom the first note of the first movement\, “Ludus” (Game)\, Pärt writes for the extreme high and low range of the violin\, evoking a wide-open environment.  The movement is structured with increasingly long and complex episodes of activity that seem to invite reflection on the entirety of human experience: from joy\, to sorrow\, to longing.  These Interludes are interspersed with moments of timeless stillness.  The movement culminates with a cadenza.  “Silentium” (Silence) is sparse and fragile.  In this simplicity\, Pärt encourages listeners to meditate on the hushed melodic fragments and the spaces between the sounds.  The piece concludes in the quiet depths of the orchestra\, inviting everyone into a final moment of contemplative rest.    \nTabula Rasa is written for two violin soloists\, string orchestra\, and prepared piano.  A prepared piano is a regular piano that has objects such as screws\, paper\, bolts\, or erasers placed between or on the strings to temporarily alter the sound but leave the piano unharmed.  Composers John Cage and Henry Cowell were some of the first to use this technique.  In this piece\, 24 screws and some felt are placed between specific piano strings to produce a variety of percussive-sounding notes.  These “unfamiliar” instrumental sounds add to the mystery of this piece.  \nTo watch a video Pärt’s Tabula Rasa\, click here. \nSuite (Overture) No. 1 in C Major\, BWV 1066Johann Sebastian Bach \nBorn: March 21\, 1685\, EisenachDied: July 28\, 1750\, LeipzigWritten: c. 1725Approximate Duration: 22 minutesInstrumentation: 2 oboes\, 1 bassoon\, harpsichord\, strings \nThe origin of J.S. Bach’s four orchestral suites is mysterious!  We don’t know when Bach wrote these pieces–either in his years at Cöthen (1717-1723) or while working in Leipzig (1729-early 1740s) with the Collegium Musicum\, a group consisting of university students and a few professional musicians.  Bach never assembled the suites into a finished volume\, as he did with the Brandenburg Concertos\, and there is no surviving autograph.  We only have instrumental parts copied by various people including Bach’s son and students. \nNevertheless\, Bach’s four orchestral suites represent the pinnacle of orchestral writing in the French Overture style\, an approach characterized by a stately introduction full of dotted rhythms\, trills\, and flourishes followed by a faster fugal section before ending with the stately opening music.  The overtures in these suites are proportionally so grand that the suites themselves are sometimes called “overtures.”  The remainder of the suites consist of lighter dance movements.  Bach may have intended these suites to be light and entertaining\, but they demand a high level of virtuosity from performers and display a remarkable level of thematic and rhythmic cohesiveness in their composition. \nBach’s first suite probably dates to 1725.   It is lightly scored for two oboes\, bassoon\, strings\, and harpsichord.  With these modest forces\, Bach achieves a variety of textures\, sometimes using the woodwinds as soloists.  This suite is noteworthy in Bach’s use of paired dance movements\, such as Gavotte I & II.  These movements are played in an ABA format\, with the second contrasting gavotte between two statements of the first.   \nTo watch a video of Bach’s first suite\, click here. \nViolin Concerto in E minor\, Op. 64Felix Mendelssohn\nBorn: February 3\, 1809\, HamburgDied: November 4\, 1847\, LeipzigComposed: 1844\, revised 1845Premiered: March 13\, 1845\, LeipzigApproximate Duration: 26 minutesInstrumentation: two flutes\, two oboes\, two clarinets\, two bassoons\, two French horns\, two trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nMusic donated by Diane Lewis \nIn 1838\, Mendelssohn wrote to his friend Ferdinand David\, one of the leading violinists of the mid-nineteenth century: “I should like to write a violin concerto for you next winter. One in E minor runs through my head\, the opening of which gives me no peace.”  Mendelssohn worked closely with David while composing the concerto.  Both men disliked the “empty showpiece concerto” of the early Romantic era that contained little more than what Mendelssohn called “juggler’s tricks and rope dancer’s feats.”  The two sought to produce a serious musical piece in the manner of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto.  The result is a piece wonderfully suited to the violin\, both musically and technically.  \nUnlike Classical concertos\, with long orchestral introductions\, Mendelssohn’s work begins with the soloist presenting the initial soaring theme that “haunted” the composer.  This melody is contrasted with a tender second theme\, introduced by the woodwinds.  Mendelssohn took an innovative approach to the cadenza; instead of putting it at the end of the movement\, he used it as a bridge leading from the development into the restatement of the movement’s opening themes.  Furthermore\, instead of leaving it to the soloist to improvise or write his or her own cadenza\, Mendelssohn provides a cadenza\, probably written by David. \nA single thread—a note sustained by one bassoon—provides the seamless bridge to the lyrical second movement\, an endearing song.  The melodies are harmonized and scored beautifully—sometimes peacefully\, sometimes restlessly.  Another brief transition\, which recalls the impassioned first movement\, the Finale begins\, a brilliant and sunny scherzo that recalls Mendelssohn’s Midsummer Night’s Dream.  The soloist is called upon to display light-hearted virtuosity alternating with long\, lyrical passages\, leading to a rousing conclusion.  \nTo listen to Mendelssohn’s violin concerto\, click here. \nProgram notes by Amanda W. Dykhouse \nMidori is a visionary artist\, activist and educator who explores and builds connections between music and the human experience. In the four decades since her debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11\, the “simply magical” (Houston Chronicle) violinist has performed with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras and has collaborated with world-renowned musicians including Leonard Bernstein\, Yo-Yo Ma\, and many others. Midori is the Artistic Director of Ravinia Steans Music Institute’s Piano & Strings program; summer 2024 is her first year in that role. \nThis season\, she premieres Spirituals — a new work written for her by Che Buford — on a recital program\, with pianist Özgür Aydin\, at the Edinburgh Festival; the 92nd Street Y\, New York; the Celebrity Series of Boston; San Francisco Performances; and the Colburn Celebrity Series. Other highlights of Midori’s 2024–2025 season include appearances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra\, Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Louisville Orchestra\, Seattle Symphony\, and Oklahoma City Philharmonic. \nOutside the U.S.\, she performs with the Vienna Philharmonic under Andris Nelsons in Vienna and on tour in Japan and Korea (Prokofiev’s First Violin Concerto); she appears twice in the spring of 2025 at the Berlin Philharmonic Hall\, with the German National Youth Orchestra in May\, performing Glanert’s Second Violin Concerto\, and with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin (DSO) in June\, performing Dvořák’s Violin Concerto. She also joins the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under Jonathan Nott\, performing Sibelius’s Violin Concerto on a tour of Spain\, and has concert appearances in Geneva\, Köln and Nürnberg\, as well as Mumbai\, Istanbul\, Izmir and Colombo. \nDeeply committed to furthering humanitarian and educational goals\, Midori has founded several non-profit organizations; the New York City-based Midori & Friends and Japan-based MUSIC SHARING have both been active for over three decades. For the Orchestra Residencies Program (ORP)\, which supports youth orchestras\, Midori commissioned a new work from composer Derek Bermel\, Spring Cadenzas\, that was premiered virtually during the COVID lockdown and continues to be performed; this season\, she is working on creating a video recording of the work to be accompanied by a tutorial. ORP also worked recently with the Afghan Youth Orchestra\, which relocated to Portugal in order to continue operating. Midori’s Partners in Performance (PiP) helps to bring chamber music to smaller communities in the U.S.  In recognition of her work as an artist and humanitarian\, she serves as a United Nations Messenger of Peace and was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2021. \nBorn in Osaka in 1971\, she began her violin studies with her mother\, Setsu Goto\, at an early age. In 1982\, conductor Zubin Mehta invited the then 11-year-old Midori to perform with the New York Philharmonic in the orchestra’s annual New Year’s Eve concert\, where the foundation was laid for her subsequent career. Midori is the Dorothy Richard Starling Chair in Violin Studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. She is the recipient of honorary doctorates from Smith College\, Yale University\, Longy School of Music and Shenandoah University\, and of the 2023 Brandeis Creative Arts Award from Brandeis University. \nShe plays the 1734 Guarnerius del Gesù ‘ex-Huberman’ and uses four bows – two by Dominique Peccatte\, one by François Peccatte and one by Paul Siefried. \nA native of Bulgaria\, Moni Simeonov began playing the violin at age 5\, and ten years later\, came to the United States on a full scholarship to the Idyllwild Arts Academy. He performs with the Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and Opera\, Ensemble San Francisco\, and until recently\, was the Concertmaster for the Sacramento Philharmonic. He has also served as a guest concertmaster with Reno Philharmonic\, Louisiana Philharmonic and the Pacific Symphony. His doctoral studies included minor fields in Viola Performance\, Schenkerian Analysis\, Japanese Language\, as well as an emphasis on the interpretation of the Balkan folk music. \nOn tour and in Los Angeles\, Mr. Simeonov dedicates considerable time and energy to community engagement work and to musical activities and presentations for young people. Moni has performed and coached alongside Midori for her Orchestra Residencies Program American and International tours. Until 2014\, he served as a director for the program. Outreach activities have taken him to places as diverse as homeless shelters in Peru and at-risk centers in Tennessee\, to Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon\, and hospitals for the terminally ill in Sri Lanka. \nMoni’s summer teaching includes engagements with the Interlochen Summer Festival\, the Singapore Violin Festival\, and the Atlantic Music Festival. Moni is also the founder of Bulgaria’s first chamber music academy – “Quartet Intensive” in Sofia. \nMoni has concertized and taught around the United States\, South America\, Europe\, Asia\, and the Middle East. His recordings have been archived by PBS\, NPR\, KUSC\, Bulgarian National Radio and TV\, as well as Japanese Broadcasting Company – NHK. \nMoni received his BM and PC from the Eastman School of Music under Zvi Zeitlin\, his MM and AD from Yale University with Ani Kavafian\, and his GC and DMA from USC’s Thornton School of Music where he studied with Midori. \nMoni served as Adjunct Instructor at USC’s Thornton School of Music until 2014. That year\, he was appointed Director of String Studies and Violin Professor with the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University\, Long Beach. Moni is also the creator of zenviolin.com. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hso-welcomes-midori-2/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Midori_Featured-Image.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250809T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250809T203000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250422T160212Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250723T104321Z UID:12594-1754766000-1754771400@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Music Unites Us 2025: Grupo Super Nova DESCRIPTION:Free Community Concert!\nFamily-friendly activities start at 5 PM\, Concert at 7 PM\nThe Holland Symphony Orchestra’s annual Community Concert: Music Unites Us empowers our community to gather for free music\, art\, dance\, and local food. Over 1\,500 community members enjoy dancing in the sunshine\, live art making\, and orchestral folk music along with local food vendors such as DaKidd BBQ\, Robinson’s Popcorn\, Dolce Mini Cakes & Tacos\, PAC pizza\, and the Macatawa Bank Ice Cream truck. The 2025 concert will feature the local Cumbia band Grupo Super Nova with the Holland Symphony Orchestra and original arrangements by famed local composer Greg Scheer. Cumbia originated in Columbia and is a Latin American style of music and dance that combines African\, European\, and Indigenous influences. It’s known for its percussion-heavy sound and double beat. Muralist Chris Garcia will accompany the music with live painting!\nAlso enjoy a photo booth and dancing lessons by the Latin Americans United for Progress (LAUP) Salsarines!\nA special thank you to our event sponsors Corewell Health\, the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council\, Gentex\, the Michigan Arts & Culture Council\, and National Endowment for the Arts. \n\nProgram\nInformation\nProgram Notes\nArtist bio\nPre-Concert Video\n\nProgram\n  URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/music-unites-us-2025-grupo-super-nova/ LOCATION:Kollen Park Henry VanderLinde Bandshell\, 240 Kollen Park Dr.\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/IMG_5469.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250816T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250816T153000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250712T162946Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250816T122840Z UID:13092-1755352800-1755358200@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Our New Home Celebration - A Free Family-Friendly Concert DESCRIPTION:Sat\, Aug. 16\, 2025\, 2 PM\nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center (WOPAC) \n3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI 49424 (best to use Google Maps\, as Apple Maps is inaccurate for this location.) \nHSO Our New Home Celebration – ATTENDANCE IS FREE \nSponsored by Ruth & David Crouch \nEven if you forgot to RSVP\, we will welcome you at this concert and open house!  Feel free to come anyway! \nGeneral Admission Seating – First Come\, First Served \nThis family-friendly concert is part of HSO’s “Gift of Music” month! Please join us in celebrating our move into our new home at WOPAC. This is our way of treating our West Michigan audiences to an afternoon of sublime orchestral music. \nEnjoy fresh-baked goods\, candies\, and snacks from Marlene Buller’s local bakery\, Frosted Memories. A portion of each purchase will benefit HSO’s Education programs. Cash payment is preferred\, but Venmo is also an option. \nJohannes Muller-Stosch\, Music Director & Conductor \nRebecca VanDeWalker\, Principal Flute\, Susan & Randall Miller Chair \nPROKOFIEV    Peter & the Wolf \nJ.S. BACH    Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major* \nMOZART    Flute Concerto in D Major* \nHAYDN    Symphony No. 104 in D Major “London” * \n*Only the first movement will be performed \nThis family-friendly concert begins with one of the most famous musical children’s folktales\, Prokofiev’s Peter & the Wolf. Designed to introduce children to the instruments of the orchestra\, each character in the story is represented by a specific instrument\, allowing listeners to easily identify them through the music. The story follows Peter\, a young boy who disobeys his grandfather and ventures out into the meadow\, encountering various animals and ultimately capturing the wolf. This charming 35-minute masterpiece is full of brilliant melodies that listeners will carry with them throughout the day. Families with young children may leave after this piece\, should they not wish to stay for the more “classical” half of the concert. \nBach’s Brandenburg Concertos are among the most perfect examples of the Baroque concerto that we have today. Few works in the history of music can match their tireless invention\, their colorful instrumentation\, or the tremendous demands they make on performers. The Third Concerto\, for nine solo strings\, opens majestically\, with the soloists grouped by instrument (the violins play one figure\, the violas another\, and the cellos a third)\, although there are moments of independence for each of the soloists. This first movement is a prime example of Bach’s genius and offers music of lighthearted warmth and melodic majesty. \nMozart’s Flute Concerto No. 2 in D major\, K. 314\, is a vibrant and engaging piece\, originally written for oboe but later adapted for flute. The first movement is characterized by its bright disposition and virtuosic flute writing\, which will give HSO principal flute and Susan and Randall Miller chair Rebecca VanDeWalker\, the spotlight for rapid scales and trills\, countered by witty and charming orchestral passages. \nMozart studied and admired Haydn\, who is considered the father of the symphony and string quartet. His last group of symphonies were composed during his two trips to London in the 1790s. Number 104 is his last symphony and nicknamed the “London” symphony because it was Haydn’s farewell to the great city. From its triumphant grand opening to the brooding minor passages\, the first movement is noted for its expressive range\, including humor\, irony\, and emotional depth\, exploring a wide range of human emotions beyond simple joy and sadness. The work is a great way for listeners to hear the many colors of the full orchestra and the exceptional skill of its players. \nClick the RSVP button for tickets to this FREE event or call 616-796-6780. \n \n RSVP Now\n \n\nProgram\nArtist bio\n\nProgram\n  \nPeter and the WolfSergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) \nMichael Naess\, narrator \nBrandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G MajorJohann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)     1. Allegro moderato \nFlute Concerto in D Major\, K. 314Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)      1. Allegro aperto \nRebecca VanDeWalker\, flute \nSymphony No. 104 in D Major\, “London”Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)      1. Adagio – Allegro \n  \n\n\nRebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute \nArtistry\, connection\, and collaboration are at the heart of flutist Rebecca VanDeWalker’s performance and teaching. She is the principal flutist with the Holland Symphony and has deep experience as a classical musician.  \nShe is frequently described as a beautiful and brilliant musician with depth of heart and vibrancy\, possessing the ability to play “inside” the notes. Her mentor\, Darlene Dugan\, described her with these words: “Rebecca\, like most musicians\, is very sensitive\, but hers is a special two-way sensitivity. She also connects with and responds to the sensitivity of those around her. This gives her a magnetism and charisma that communicates at a deep level in her performances\, teaching\, and relationships. She has a strong\, positive\, passionate character. In our WMFA orchestra\, I frequently hear\, ‘Thanks for seating me next to Rebecca.’ Our members really enjoy her personality and love learning from her phrasing\, sense of direction\, and beautiful tone. Sometimes after she has a solo\, our orchestra members are so charmed that they forget to play (which causes my baton no small anxiety!) She is a model for my hope that competition\, co-operation\, and compassion can co-exist.”  \nRebecca has performed with various orchestras and ensembles\, including the Boston Philharmonic\, New England Chamber Orchestra\, New Life Symphony\, St. Cecilia Chamber Orchestra\, Holland Chamber Orchestra\, Muskegon Chamber Choir Orchestra\, Grand Rapids Civic Theater Orchestra\, Community Circle Theater\, New England Conservatory Philharmonia and Symphony Orchestras\, Boston University Tanglewood Institute Young Artists Orchestra\, and Empire State Youth Orchestra. In addition to her solo performances\, she has collaborated with colleagues from the Hope College Department of Music and participated in the Chamber Music Festival of Saugatuck\, as well as faculty recitals on campus and other musical events throughout West Michigan and beyond.  \nAs a dedicated flute instructor\, Rebecca’s mission is to empower her students with the skills and encouragement necessary to unlock their full potential\, fostering beautiful tone\, technical proficiency\, stylistic expression\, and kinesthetic awareness. She taught at Hope College from 1998 to 2006 and returned in the fall of 2014\, rejoining the Department of Music in 2022. She has taught flute lessons at various institutions and in her flute studio throughout New York State\, Massachusetts\, and West Michigan. A colleague\, Julie Sooy\, described her as\, “A superb teacher…Her students trust and respect her\, and under her patient tutelage\, excel in their playing abilities. They do well because they are consistently taught to listen\, to truly create music\, and to play with energy.” A Hope College graduate who went on to receive her Masters in Music\, described her experience with Rebecca as\, “In my years of study with her\, she put every ounce of energy into her teaching and professional flute career. In each lesson\, she was genuinely concerned about my growth as a flutist and challenged me to take the next step…her excitement about music is contagious and very stimulating to be around.”  \nExceptional teachers\, including the renowned soloist Paula Robison and Boston Symphony flutists Lois Schaefer and Fenwick Smith at the New England Conservatory of Music\, have guided Rebecca’s journey as a musician. Her early studies began with Janet Stockwell and Eleanor Barnes of the Albany Symphony. After NEC\, Rebecca thrived under the mentorship of Darlene Dugan\, a beloved educator and director of the West Michigan Flute Association (WMFA)\, as well as a former principal flutist of the Grand Rapids\, Kalamazoo\, and Amarillo (TX) Symphonies. She further honed her craft with private lessons from Carnegie Mellon University professors Jeanne Baxtresser\, former principal flutist of the New York Philharmonic\, and Alberto Almarza.  \nSince 1997\, Rebecca has been actively involved with the West Michigan Flute Association\, currently serving as its President. She frequently showcases her talents with the WMFA Flute Orchestra and Great Lakes Flutes at the annual conventions of the National Flute Association.  \nRebecca VanDeWalker lives a fulfilling life with her husband of 31 years\, Kent\, and their three beautiful children\, each of whom has been active in worship arts and world missions. Her interests include the art of floral arranging and design\, traveling\, and exploring the visual arts. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/our-new-home-celebration-a-free-family-friendly-concert/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/WOPAC-Exterior-View.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250906T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250906T210000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250422T201528Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250903T151755Z UID:12615-1757187000-1757192400@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Classics I: Orchestral Fate DESCRIPTION:BUY TICKETS\n \nJohannes Müller Stosch\, conductor  Ryan Darke\, Trumpet (Principal Trumpet of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra)  \nGuest Musician Hosts: Dr. Ronald & Jerrie Lynn Gibbs \nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nClick here to view or download a PDF of the West Ottawa Performing Arts seating chart. \nEnjoy fresh-baked goods\, candies\, and snacks from Marlene Buller’s local bakery\, Frosted Memories. Our friends PAC Pizza and Crepes by the Lake will also have their food trucks on-site. A portion of each purchase will benefit HSO’s Education programs. Cash payment is preferred\, but Venmo is also an option. We also have a FREE HSO Play Booth! Play children’s instruments\, pose with silly glasses\, and make memories you’ll see again in our special Facebook video. \nSCHREKER Tanz from Romantic Suite ARUTIUNIAN Trumpet Concerto TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 5 in E Minor\, Op. 64  \nTchaikovsky’s fifth symphony is a highly personal and emotionally charged unfurling of ominous “fate” themes transforming into exultant triumph. Alexander Arutiunian combined the post-Romantic Russian tradition with Armenian folk elements\, qualities readily evident in his beloved 1950 Trumpet Concerto\, a cornerstone of brass repertoire for its dance elements and challenging cadenza. Schreker composed his Romantic Suite during his prestigious position as director of the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin and is known for creating impressionistic sound worlds of ever-changing colors and moods. The Tanz (Dance) movement of his suite is a grand finale of orchestral fireworks and mercurial rhythms.  \n\nProgram\nInformation\nProgram Notes\nArtist bio\nPre-Concert Video\n\nProgram\nTanz (Dance) from Romantic SuiteFranz Schreker (1878-1934) \nTrumpet Concerto Aleksandr Grigori Arutiunian (1920-2012) \nRyan Darke\, Trumpet \nSymphony No. 5 in E Minor\, Op. 64Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)     1. Andante – Allegro con anima     2. Andante cantabile con alcuna licenza     3. Valse: Allegro moderato     4. Finale: Andante maestoso – Allegro vivace \nWe are looking forward to seeing you at HSO’s “Orchestral Fate” Concert! Know Before You Go!THIS CONCERT IS AT THE WEST OTTAWA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER! Where is the West Ottawa Performing Arts Center (WOPAC)? WOPAC is at 3685 Butternut Drive on the north side of Holland\, between Riley and Quincy.  The drive time from downtown Holland is approximately 11 minutes.  If you use a navigation app on your phone or in your car\, enter the address.  DO NOT SEARCH FOR WEST OTTAWA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER.  This might take you to the old performing arts center at Harbor Lights Middle School. We recommend that you use Google Maps\, as iPhone and Apple Maps programs have errors for this address.   From downtown Holland\, take River Ave until it becomes Butternut.  After the four-way stop sign at 144th St.\, continue straight on Butternut almost a mile.  Drive past the West Ottawa High School Campus and turn left (west) immediately after the tallest building—the performing arts center. We will have balloons\, our HSO sign\, and a volunteer greeter by the correct driveway on Butternut.    Where do I park?WOPAC has lots of parking!  There is a large lot to the immediate north and west of the performing arts center.  We will have balloons and a sign at the best entrance off Butternut.  There are some permanent ADA (handicapped) parking spaces\, and we will have other spaces saved with cones for people who have mobility needs. Once you have parked\, enter the building through the main door. What time does everything happen?The doors will open one hour before the concert begins.  This is our first performance at WOPAC\, so please allow a few extra minutes to park and find your seats.  Where are my tickets? If you selected “Will Call” tickets when you placed your order\, your tickets will be available for pick up at the “Will Call” table in the lobby. Season Subscribers: You only wait in line once—all of your tickets for the season will be stapled together. Keep your tickets for future concerts. HSO will not print your tickets again unless you request it.  If you selected “Print at Home” tickets when you placed your order\, click on the blue box in the email confirmation from HSO (emailed separately) that says “Print Tickets.” Bring these tickets to the concert.  If you selected “Mobile Tickets” when you placed your order\, open the email confirmation from HSO (emailed separately)\, and click on the blue box that says “View Mobile Tickets.” Take a screenshot of each of your tickets. This will save a lot of time in line.   If you want HSO to print your tickets\, please email ticketing@hollandsymphony.org by noon on Friday\, September 5. All your tickets will be stapled together and can be picked up at the concert at the Will Call table in the lobby. There’s no need to respond if you have already requested this. Keep the rest of your tickets for future concerts.  If you know you bought tickets but don’t have them\, email ticketing@hollandsymphony.org or call the office (616-796-6780) and Amanda will take care of you.  We will have additional tickets for sale in the box office in the lobby of WOPAC.  Where are my seats?We will have lots of volunteers who will help you find your seats. You can view the seat map by clicking here. How can I learn more about the music? All the program information is online. To read the program notes\, listen to recordings of the pieces on this concert\, or learn more about the soloists\, click the tab you want (such as “Program notes\, Artist bio\,” etc.). Will Ryan Darke be available for autographs? Ryan will be available to meet you and sign autographs in the lobby at intermission and after the concert.   What do I do with my walker? You may use a walker to get to and from your seat. Someone in your party can bring the walker to our secure area\, or an usher can do that for you. You cannot keep your walker with you in the seats.  During the concert\, walkers will be stored inside the performance hall\, on the sides by the loge seats.  Walkers will be tagged with your name and seat number\, if desired.  Let an usher know if you need help with your walker before or after the concert.   Where are the restrooms?Restrooms are available on the main level and the balcony level on the right side of the hall. What Hearing Assistance is available at WOPAC? WOPAC does not have a full loop system.  They have RF belt packs and personal loop devices that can be worn around patrons’ necks to connect to a hearing aid.  These devices will receive any speaking from the stage and projected audio.  The performance itself will not be amplified through the sound system.  These devices can be checked out at the Will Call table.  WOPAC is also working on another process to connect their system to your phones.  You can download the WaveCAST app here\, connect to the WOPAC WiFi (WO-guest\, no password necessary)\, and use your phone as a hearing assistance device in lieu of a belt pack\, but you will need your own headphones or means of connecting their hearing aid to your phone via bluetooth or another method if you have that ability.  What else do I need to know about the concert? WOPAC is offering free WiFi at this network: WO-guest.  No password is needed.  Some patrons are sensitive to perfumes\, colognes\, and other scented products. Please consider minimizing your use of these products. Thank you for your support of HSO! \n“Dance” from Romantic Suite\, Op. 14Franz Schreker \nBorn: March 23\, 1878\, MonacoDied: March 21\, 1934\, Berlin Written: 1900-1902Premiered: 1903\, 1910Approximate Duration: 7 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 4 horns\, 2 trumpets\, 3 trombones\, timpani\, percussion (cymbals\, triangle)\, strings \nAfter World War I\, Austrian composer Franz Schreker composed operas\, conducted\, and directed the prestigious Berlin Music Academy\, where he taught Paul Hindemith and influenced Alban Berg.  Drawing from late romantic composers like Tchaikovsky\, Strauss\, and Wagner\, Schreker also found inspiration in the many changing colors and moods of Impressionism.  He\, along with Richard Strauss and Arnold Schoenberg\, sought to “modernize” late Romantic music with unexpected harmonies\, extravagant orchestration\, and non-traditional programmatic structures.  His operas were very popular and occasionally scandalous.  In the 1920s\, he was second only to Richard Strauss in the number of performances of his operas in Germany.   \nHowever\, by the mid 1920s\, Schreker’s romantic style was considered “old-fashioned.”  Audiences that survived through World War I preferred the acerbic style of composers like Kurt Weill and Paul Hindemith.  Rising antisemitism in the 1930s further threatened his career.  In 1933\, Hitler added him to the list of “Degenerate” composers\, a list including modernists\, Marxists\, and Jews.  Although Schreker\, of Jewish descent\, found himself in illustrious company on that list\, with Schoenberg\, Mendelssohn\, and Mahler\, he was unable to work or have his music performed.  He died soon after\, and his musical reputation\, which had yet to reach beyond German-speaking countries\, fell into oblivion.  Schreker was all but forgotten\, but a small number of conductors\, scholars\, and orchestras have been re-discovering music by Schreker and his colleagues\, including Josef Marx and Franz Schmidt.  A few record companies have started to record and publish this neglected but remarkable music. \nSchreker wrote his Romantic Suite\, one of his few instrumental works\, not long after his graduation from the Vienna Conservatory.  The youthful piece is grounded in Schreker’s nineteenth century musical heritage and draws a lot of inspiration from Tchaikovsky. However\, its harmonies show the innovation of his mature musical language.  It is colorful and full of variety.  The music is light and cheerful\, portraying the optimism that was pervasive at the beginning of the twentieth century.  The Tanz (Dance)\, the suite’s final movement\, is fast and triumphant\, with a full\, noble sound fitting for the finale of a big symphony.  \nTo watch a video of Johannes conducting his university orchestra playing the Schreker\, click here. \nConcerto for Trumpet and Orchestra in A-flat MajorAlexander Arutiunian \nBorn: September 23\, 1920\, Yerevan\, ArmeniaDied: March 28\, 2012\, Yerevan\, ArmeniaWritten: 1950Approximate Duration: 17 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes (one doubling piccolo)\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 24 horns\, 2 trumpets\, 3 trombones\, tuba\, timpani\, percussion (bass drum\, cymbals\, snare drum\, triangle)\, harp\, strings \nAlexander Arutiunian was born in Armenia and pursued his early studies there.  After traveling to Moscow to study composition\, he returned to Armenia and served first as the Music Director of the Royal Philharmonic Society\, and later\, the Music Director of the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra.  He was given the “People’s Artist of the USSR” award in 1970 for his artistic efforts\, which included the incorporation of melodic\, harmonic\, and rhythmic characteristics of Armenian folk music into his orchestral works\, like fellow Armenian Aram Khachaturian.  He also showcased his heritage by incorporating the flavor of folk minstrel improvisations. \nArutunian’s trumpet concerto was his sixth major composition and the only one of his pieces that is regularly played in the United States. It was written in 1950 for the renowned trumpet player Timofei Dokschitzer\, who immigrated to the United States and brought the concerto with him. An energetic powerhouse of eastern European lyricism and harmonic textures\, Arutunian’s trumpet concerto has become one of the standard works for trumpet with orchestra and is a favorite with soloists due to its soulful melodies\, eastern European folk language\, and flashy technique.  \nArutunian’s concerto is presented in a single\, unbroken movement\, but the piece follows a traditional concerto pattern of alternating tempos and moods.  It opens with a series of dramatic statements by the orchestra\, to which the trumpet makes its equally dramatic replies.  After a few moments\, the orchestra introduces the first main section of the work\, which is fast and furious\, frequently broken up into unexpectedly irregular rhythms.  The clarinet\, singing a folk-inspired melody\, introduces a slower section\, next played by the trumpet.  After a restatement of the original material\, a beautiful slow movement features the “big band” sound of muted trumpet playing a poetic sounding tune.  Another clarinet solo leads back to the dramatic opening theme\, followed by a lengthy cadenza for the soloist\, and finally a brisk ending. \nTo listen to a recording of Timofei Dokschitzer playing the Arutiunian concerto\, click here. \nSymphony No.5 in E minor\, Op. 64Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky \nBorn: May 7\, 1840\, Votkinsk\, north-eastern RussiaDied: November 6\, 1893\, St PetersburgWritten: 1888Approximate Duration: 44 minutesInstrumentation: 3 flutes (one doubling piccolo)\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 4 horns\, 2 trumpets\, 3 trombones\, tuba\, timpani\, percussion (cymbals)\, strings \nPiotr Illych Tchaikovsky’s life was marked by turmoil and extreme sensitivity. He lost his mother at age fourteen and had to deal with the cold and hostile atmosphere of a military boarding school from age ten.  He began to study the piano at age five and showed remarkable gifts\, yet his father\, a mine inspector\, discouraged this skill.   Young Tchaikovsky “escaped” from his harsh and brutal world\, finding solace in music. At age nineteen\, he took a civil service job\, but became increasingly involved in musical circles across Europe. It was upon hearing Mozart’s Don Giovanni that Tchaikovsky decided to dedicate his life to music.  In 1863 he entered St. Petersburg Conservatory\, and three years later became a professor of harmony at the Moscow Conservatory.  \nOn a deeper and more personal level\, Tchaikovsky was tormented by his homosexuality\, often leading him to feel depressed and insecure. He attempted a marriage in 1877 with a young student\, but after nine short weeks\, he attempted suicide and had a nervous breakdown.  During this time\, another woman\, Nadejda von Meck\, entered his life as an elusive pen-pal and patron. She wished to subsidize him without ever meeting. This mysterious 14-year relationship offered Tchaikovsky peace of mind and confidence in his ability as a composer.  \nTchaikovsky had mixed feelings about his fifth symphony\, as he did about many of his works\, writing: “I am dreadfully anxious to prove not only to others\, but also to myself\, that I am not yet played out as a composer…  The beginning was difficult; now\, however\, inspiration seems to have come….  I have to squeeze it from my dulled brain….  It seems to me that I have not blundered\, that it has turned out well.”  Ten years had passed since his fourth symphony\, which Tchaikovsky had described as a journey of triumph over Fate.  Although Tchaikovsky did not provide such a descriptive program for his fifth symphony\, he did leave some notes about the first movement: “Introduction: Complete resignation before Fate—the inscrutable predestination of Providence.  Allegro: Murmurs of doubt\, complaints\, reproaches…  Shall I throw myself in the embraces of faith??? A wonderful program\, if only it can be carried out.” \nThe first movement opens with the clarinets in their lowest register introducing the “fate” theme.  Set to the low strings “stepping” in a moderate tempo\, the distinctive theme sounds like a funeral march.  The introduction gradually subsides\, coming to a suspenseful halt\, then the main part of the first movement begins in a quicker tempo.  The movement\, at times highly energized\, and at other times yearning with sadness and emotional turmoil\, ultimately vanishes in utter darkness. \nThe second movement presents one of Tchaikovsky’s most beautiful melodies\, sung by solo horn.  Expressive melodies from a solo oboe\, then clarinet lead to a contrasting central section\, which builds gradually towards a climax: a restatement of the “fate” motive by the brass.  After a shocked silence and a return of the initial theme\, this time in the strings\, the mood is shattered again by the return of “fate\,” and the movement ends with quiet\, exhausted despair. \nTchaikovsky provides a graceful waltz that opens the third movement instead of the typical scherzo.  A skittish middle section intrudes temporarily before returning to the serenity of the waltz tune.  Tchaikovsky adds a coda\, which includes a ghostly statement of the “fate” motive.  Here it is transformed into the triple meter of the waltz\, yet reminds us that relief is not yet here. \nThe last movement presents the “fate” theme in a major key\, now transformed into a triumphant march.  The music proceeds through melodies and moods ranging from forceful to hesitant\, recalling the anxiety of the second movement.  After an extended coda\, there is a surprise—the main theme of the first movement returns in the closing bars\, transformed into something exultant and optimistic\, as if the listener and composer have overcome the dark feelings that opened the piece; the music has come full circle and the spirit is victorious. \nTo watch a video of Tchaikovsky’s fifth symphony\, click here. \nTrumpeter Ryan Darke enjoys a diverse career as a performer and educator. He is currently in his 7th season as Principal Trumpet of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra led by conductor James Conlon and as Lecturer of Trumpet at the Bob Cole Conservatory at California State University of Long Beach. \nAs an educator\, his energy and commitment to his students is a tremendous priority and truly a passion of his. In addition to his position at CSULB\, Ryan is also a Lecturer of Pedagogy (Graduate Level) at The Colburn Conservatory of Music. Previously\, he was Assistant Professor of Trumpet at the University of Arizona (2015-2017)\, a guest lecturer at The Juilliard School\, Tianjin\, a studio teacher at the Orange County High School of the Performing Arts\, Program Director of Brass & Trumpet at the Montecito Music Festival\, a Graduate Assistant Teacher while a masters student at Rice University\, and the Brass Head at his alma mater Cerritos High School.   \nThroughout Ryan’s orchestral career he has played full seasons with The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (2nd trumpet)\, San Diego Symphony (principal trumpet)\, and a year of fellowship at New World Symphony Orchestra under Michael Tilson Thomas. In addition\, he has played short-term contracts with Auckland Philharmonia\, The Malaysia Philharmonic\, and the Stavanger Philharmonic.  \nIn addition\, he has played with orchestras across the United States including San Francisco Symphony\, Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Saint Louis Symphony\, Seattle Symphony\, Detroit Symphony\, Indianapolis Symphony\, Los Angeles Master Chorale\, Pacific Symphony\, Hawaii Symphony\, and the Mainly Mozart All-Star Orchestra in San Diego. With the Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Ryan has appeared as guest principal trumpet\, played in the LA Philharmonic Brass Quintet\, and joined two international tours (Venezuela and Scotland). \nHe has enjoyed positions at summer festivals including three seasons as associate principal at the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra\, in Santa Cruz. He has also played at Britt Festival Orchestra\, Castleton Festival Orchestra under Lorin Maazel\, two summers at the National Orchestra Institute\, the Aspen Music Festival\, Spoleto Festival Orchestra\, Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra\, Bar Harbor Brass Institute\, and seminars at Domaine Forget. \nIn addition\, Ryan enjoys recording work in Los Angeles\, and frequently performs at Warner Brothers\, Sony\, Capital Records\, and Fox Studios. He can be heard on many motion pictures and television shows including The Greatest Showman\, Turning Red\, The Mandalorian\, Mulan\, The Suicide Squad\, The Simpsons\, Star Trek: Picard\, and more. \nWhile in Los Angeles\, Ryan enjoys performing contemporary music with the modern music collective wildUp\, of which he is a founding member and has appeared on several grammy nominated recordings. He also has performed in salsa bands and a fantastic world music/Brazilian band named Badaue! \nThroughout his career\, Ryan has worked with many of the world’s great conductors\, including Gustavo Dudamel\, Michael Tilson Thomas\, Lorin Maazel\, Kurt Masur\, Marin Alsop\, Louis Langree\, and Esa Pekka Salonen. He also has enjoyed working closely with Christoph Eschenbach\, while serving two years as principal trumpet at the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival. While residing in Germany he was featured playing Mahler 5\, among other large works during several international tours. \nRyan received his Professional Studies Certificate at The Colburn School (2013) Masters in Music Performance from Rice University (2010)\, and his Bachelor’s Degree at the California State University Long Beach – Bob Cole Conservatory of Music (2008). His most influential instructors have been James Wilt\, Tony Prisk\, Rob Frear\, Richard Giangiulio\, Joan LaRue\, and Michael Sachs. \nIn addition to performing\, Ryan is an active teacher and mentor of young musicians. He is highly involved with the Jumpstart  program at The Colburn School\, where he mentors the conservatory students while they are honing their teaching skills. He has volunteered for OrchKids through the Baltimore Symphony\, Youth Orchestras of Los Angeles (YOLA) through the LA Philharmonic\, and while touring with the LA Philharmonic taught a master class in Venezuela’s “El Sistema”.  Ryan was asked to speak at a lecture series for Bard College Conservatory of Music students via the Los Angeles Philharmonic. \nTo watch the pre-concert video\, click here. \n \n BUY TICKETS URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/classics-i-orchestral-fate/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Ryan-Darke.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250914T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250914T170000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250904T150153Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250911T144424Z UID:13469-1757865600-1757869200@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Free Chamber Music - HSO Wind Quintet DESCRIPTION:HSO Wind Quintet (Rebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute; Caitlin Kramer\, Oboe; Gary June\, Clarinet; Kerrissa Silverthorne\, Bassoon; Greg Bassett\, Horn)  \n\nBeach\, Pastorale \n\n\nEwazen\, Roaring Fork \n\n\nBarber\, Summer Music \n\n\nColeman\, Umoja \n\nThe HSO Wind Quintet presents a program of American Landscapes:  music of composers Amy Beach and Eric Ewazen evokes the calm of a New Hampshire forest and the grandeur of the Roaring Fork River in Colorado.  The program concludes in Michigan\, with a piece commissioned and premiered in the state: Samuel Barber’s famous Summer Music. \nAttendance is FREE. Please RSVP using this link: https://forms.office.com/r/GXFWzvq5VS \nHSO is a non-profit so please consider using the following links to donate to the Second Reformed Church and the Holland Symphony Orchestra. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/free-chamber-music-hso-wind-quintet/ LOCATION:Second Reformed Church Zeeland\, 225 E. Central Avenue\, Zeeland\, MI\, 49464\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Second-Reformed-Church.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251004T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251004T210000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250422T200800Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250929T011128Z UID:12610-1759606200-1759611600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Classics II: Heroes & Villains DESCRIPTION:BUY TICKETS\n \n https://youtu.be/7fxE541Ozt0?si=FJR5gxgGO-VsLiIB \nJohannes Müller Stosch\, conductor Moni Simeonov\, Violin    \nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nClick here to view or download a PDF of the West Ottawa Performing Arts seating chart. \nEnjoy a pre-concert or intermission meal from our friends in PAC Pizza or the Cousins Maine Lobster Truck\, as well as fresh-baked goods\, candies\, and snacks from Marlene Buller’s local bakery\, Frosted Memories. A portion of each bakery purchase will benefit HSO’s Education programs. Cash payment is preferred\, but Venmo is also an option. \nSponsored by George & Sibilla Boerigter\, and Caron Farmer \nGuest Musician Hosts Ruth & David Crouch \nMOZART Overture to Don Giovanni\, K. 527 PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 2 in G Minor\, Op. 63 BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major\, Op. 55\, “Eroica”  \nMozart composed his frenetic overture to his opera Don Giovanni less than 48 hours before the opera’s premiere.  Its mixture of dark and light moods prefaces the opera’s contrasting themes of comedy vs tragedy. Prokofiev’s second violin concerto is a whirlwind mix of dance rhythms\, angular and athletic passages showcasing the soloist’s skills\, with a Spanish flare that pleased the audiences at its premiere in Madrid. Beethoven’s “heroic” third symphony signified a huge step towards romanticism with its grand orchestrations\, lush harmonic structure\, and bold depiction of the rise and fall of a hero. \nMoni Simeonov returns for his third appearance with HSO!  He teaches at the Bob Cole Conservatory at California State University Long Beach\, where he is a colleague and friend of Johannes.  He has concertized around the world and is passionate about music education for young people\, coached alongside Midori for her Orchestra Residencies Program American and International tours.  \nhttps://fromthetop.org/musician/moni-simeonov/   \n\nProgram\nInformation\nProgram Notes\nArtist bio\nPre-Concert Video\n\nProgram\nOverture to Don GiovanniWolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) \nViolin Concerto No. 2 in G minor\, Op. 63Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953)     1. Allegro moderato     2. Andante assai     3. Allegro; ben marcato \nMoni Simeonov\, violin \nSymphony No. 3 in E-flat major\, Op. 55 “Eroica”Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)     1. Allegro con brio     2. Marcia funebre: Adagio assai     3. Scherzo: Allegro vivace     4. Finale: Allegro molto \n \nOverture to Don Giovanni\, K. 527Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart \nBorn: January 27\, 1756\, Salzburg\, AustriaDied: December 5\, 1791\, Vienna\, AustriaWritten: 1787Premiered: October 29\, 1787\, National Theater\, PragueApproximate duration: 7 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 2 French horns\, 2 trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nAfter the successful premiere of The Marriage of Figaro at the National Theatre in Prague\, the opera house immediately commissioned another work from its composer\, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.  Mozart turned to the legend of Don Juan for subject matter\, inspired by the theatre of the Spanish Golden Age.  He stylized the work as a comic opera\, as he was commissioned to write\, but he also incorporated uniquely serious\, melodramatic\, and supernatural elements.  The plot follows the notorious nobleman Don Giovanni\, a brazen and fearless seducer who defies all moral codes.  After killing the Commendatore\, the father of one of his would-be conquests\, in a duel\, Don Giovanni pursues even more noblewomen with reckless abandon\, even as his former lovers seek vengeance and his servant\, Leporello\, challenges his schemes.  The work reaches its supernatural climax when Don Giovanni is haunted and confronted by the “Stone Guest” – a stone statue of the Commendatore that comes to life and drags Don Giovanni to his fiery punishment.   \nAlthough Mozart completed the opera with plenty of time for the cast to learn it\, he did not write the overture until the last minute.  According to legend\, he partied away the night before the opera’s premiere.  In fact\, his wife had to keep him awake the rest of the night to ensure the overture was written at all\, before delivering the scores to the copyists early the next morning.   \nFrom its first measures\, the overture foreshadows Don Giovanni’s fate\, using the same musical themes that appear when the Commandetore’s statue carries him down to hell.  After the slow introduction\, the rest of the overture sparkles with lively themes unique to the overture that embody a pleasure-seeking lifestyle.  This overture leads directly into the beginning of the opera\, but Mozart later wrote a “concert ending” so the it may be performed as a standalone piece. \nTo watch a video of Mozart’s Don Giovanni overture in the theater where the opera had its premiere\, click here. \nViolin Concerto No. 2 in G minor\, Op. 63Sergei Prokofiev \nBorn: April 23\, 1891\, Sontsivka\, UkraineDied: March 5\, 1953\, Moscow\, RussiaComposed: 1935Premiered: December 1\, 1935\, Teatro Monumental\, Madrid\, Spain\, with violinist Robert Soetens\, the Madrid Symphony Orchestra\, and conductor Enrique Fernández ArbósApproximate duration: 26 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 2 French horns\, 2 trumpets\, percussion (bass drum\, castanets\, snare drum\, suspended cymbal\, triangle)\, strings \nSergei Prokofiev grew up in a remote Ukrainian village.  Tchaikovsky was his earliest musical inspiration.  He played arrangements of Tchaikovsky’s music on the piano throughout his youth and musical education. In fact\, Prokofiev eventually became a “compositional grandson” of Tchaikovsky\, as his  primary teacher studied under the Russian composer himself.   Although Prokofiev still revered Tchaikovsky when he enrolled in the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1905\, the encroaching Russian Revolution in 1917 pushed him away from  traditional norms of refinement\, beauty\, and Romantic melodic and harmonic styles\, and towards a dissonant and sarcastic musical language.  After the revolution\, he left Russia and settled in the US\, Germany\, and Paris.  By the 1920s\, his compositional style evolved into what he called a “new simplicity\,” focusing on clear and Romantic melodies and classical textures and forms.  Prokofiev found this approach more sincere than the “contrivances and complexities” of 1920s modern music.  Although his orchestration tended to be lighter than Tchaikovsky’s\, he exercised his love for the Russian master through lush melodies and compositions for ballet\, opera\, and some film. \nWhen the Great Depression affected the US and Europe in the 1930s\, the homesick Prokofiev struggled to stage operas and ballets\, so he returned to his homeland in 1936.  He thought he would adapt easily to life in the Soviet Union\, writing\,  “I care nothing for politics—I’m a composer first and last.  Any government that lets me write my music in peace\, publishes everything I composed before the ink is dry\, and performs every note that comes from my pen is all right with me.  In Europe\, we all have to fish for performances\, cajole conductors and theatre directors; in Russia they come to me. I can hardly keep up with the demand…”   \nProkoviev wasn’t exactly correct\, however.  In 1936 and onward\, the Soviet government actively suppressed artistic dissent and had strict\, patriotic requirements for composers: “The main attention of the Soviet composer must be directed towards the victorious progressive principles of reality towards all that is heroic\, bright and beautiful.  This distinguishes the spiritual world of Soviet man and must be embodied in musical images full of beauty and strength.  Socialist Realism demands an implacable struggle against folk-negating modernistic directions that are typical of the decay of contemporary bourgeois art\, against subservience and servility towards modern bourgeois culture.”  For the most part\, Prokofiev managed to avoid censure\, but in 1948\, he was denounced by the government\, along with Shostakovich and Khachaturian\, for “western decadence.”  However\, Prokofiev literally ended his life free from the eyes of Soviet nationalist critics–he died within the same hour as Joseph Stalin\, so his death went largely unnoticed.     \nProkofiev’s second violin concerto was the last piece he wrote before returning home\, composed while he was on tour with French violinist Robert Soetens.  He recalled\, “The main theme of the first movement was written in Paris\, the first theme of the second movement in Voronezh\, the orchestration was finished in Baku and the premier was given in Madrid.”  This concerto features some of the most beautiful melodies Prokofiev ever wrote.  It begins with the violin alone\, playing a mournful folk-like melody in its lowest register\, before the orchestra captivates listeners with rapid\, unexpected changes in key and meter.  The contrasting second theme is in major key.  The second movement begins with gentle pizzicato (plucked) string accompaniment as the solo violin sings a simple melody that grows lush\, expansive\, and Romantic.  This movement recalls his Romeo and Juliet ballet\, which Prokofiev was composing at the same time\, featuring many variations of the opening melody and frequent exchanges between soloist and orchestra.  The energetic\, dancelike finale is structured as a rondo\, with a recurring theme interspersed with unique and contrasting episodes.  Prokofiev uses a surprising amount of percussion in this movement\, including liberal use of castanets\, perhaps celebrating the work’s premiere in Madrid.  He explores further dissonance in this movement\, as well as frequent heavy accents\, and marks the ending as “tumultuous\,” before the orchestra rushes wildly to the conclusion. \nTo watch a video of Prokofiev’s second violin concerto\, click here. \nSymphony No. 3 in E-flat Major\, Op. 55 “Eroica”Ludwig van Beethoven \nBorn: (Baptized) December 17\, 1770\, BonnDied: March 26\, 1827\, ViennaWritten: 1802-1804Premiered: private premiere at the palace of one of Beethoven’s patrons\, Franz Joseph von Lobkowitz\, in August 1804; official premiere: April 7\, 1805\, Theater an der WienApproximate duration: 47 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 3 French horns\, 2 trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nMusic donated by Diane Lewis \nIn the early 1800s\, Ludwig van Beethoven confronted personal challenges and encroaching hearing loss with a new level of awareness and openness.  In 1801\, he first began to tell his close friends.  The next summer\, he moved to the Viennese suburb of Heiligenstadt\, where\, in early fall 1802\, he wrote his illuminating Heiligenstadt Testament:  \n“O you men who think or say that I am hostile\, peevish\, or misanthropic\, how greatly you wrong me.  You do not know the secret cause that makes me seem so to you.  From childhood on\, my heart and soul were full of tender feelings of goodwill\, and I was always inclined to accomplish great deeds.  But just think\, for six years now I have had an incurable condition\, made worse by incompetent doctors\, from year to year deceived with hopes of getting better\, finally forced to face the prospect of a lasting infirmity (whose cure will perhaps take years or even be impossible).”   \nBeethoven could not bear the indignity of asking people to “speak louder\, shout\, for I am deaf\,” and felt he must retreat from society.  He even contemplated suicide\, confessing\, “A little more and I would have ended my life.  Only my art held me back.  It seemed to me impossible to leave the world until I had produced all that I felt was within me.” \nBeethoven’s hearing loss and growing self-awareness dramatically shifted his approach to his own music and composition.  In 1802\, he wrote\, “I am not satisfied with my works up to the present time.  From today I mean to take a new road.”  One of the first and most striking examples of this new approach was his third symphony\, the “Eroica\,” dating from 1803.  It was the first of his symphonies for which he suggested a programmatic theme.  Although Beethoven originally planned to dedicate the symphony to Napoleon Bonaparte\, whom he had long admired\, he became disillusioned when Napoleon crowned himself Emperor in 1804.  Ferdinand Ries\, a student and early biographer\, related the scene: “I was the first to bring him the news that Bonaparte had proclaimed himself emperor\, whereupon he flew into a rage and cried out: ‘Is he too\, then\, nothing more than an ordinary human being? Now he\, too\, will trample on the rights of man\, and indulge only his ambition!’ Beethoven went to the table\, took hold of the title page by the top\, tore it in two\, and threw it on the floor. The first page was rewritten and only then did the Symphony receive the title\, ‘ Sinfonia Eroica\,’ Composed to Celebrate the Memory of a Great Man.”   \nBeethoven’s contemporaries struggled to appreciate and understand “Eroica.”  To Beethoven’s audience\, it was shockingly modern\, with unprecedented length\, thick orchestration\, technical challenges\, and an uncompromising stance.  Someone at the premiere yelled\, “I’ll pay another kreuzer if the thing will only stop.”  Critics noted its “undesirable originality\,” with “too much that is glaring and bizarre\,” and thought the piece “lost itself in lawlessness.”  An early review said\, “one could soon reach the point where one would derive no pleasure from it… but rather would leave the concert hall with an unpleasant feeling of fatigue from having been crushed by a mass of unconnected and overloaded ideas and a continuous tumult from all the instruments.”  Unbeknownst to his critics\, however\, “Eroica” marked not just a turning point in Beethoven’s compositional output\, but a shift in all music.  By expressing personal feelings and ideals with new\, challenging textures and musical colors\, Beethoven ushered in the beginning of the Romantic movement in music.  Composers had no choice but to contend with the new reality that Beethoven introduced in this symphony. \nFrom its first measures\, “Eroica” innovates–the two striking tonic chords that open the symphony sound more like an ending than a beginning.  The first movement occupies a far bigger musical scale than any that had been written before it.  Its middle development section alone is longer than the first movement of many classical symphonies.  Beethoven fills this movement with melodic\, metric\, and harmonic surprises\, before concluding with the solid chords from the opening.  The second movement\, a funeral march\, is one of the most influential pieces of music Beethoven ever composed.  Many subsequent composers wrote marches into their symphonies\, often funereal in character\, following Beethoven’s example.  The violins present the somber theme over a drum-like bass part.  The tone brightens at moments in the movement\, notably in sections in major keys\, and a powerful fugal section based on the march theme emerges at the climax of the movement.   \nBeethoven replaced the traditional light-hearted “minuet” with an energetic scherzo\, changing the symphony’s tone\, but not its intensity.  The movement explores metric ambiguities and features the French horns in the middle trio section.  The finale starts with a mad dash in the seemingly “wrong” key.  This leads to a deceptively simple and unadorned baseline that seems ridiculously out of place.  Eventually a theme emerges.  Beethoven’s audience would have recognized it as a dance tune he had already used in three previous pieces\, including his ballet music for The Creatures of Prometheus.  Perhaps Prometheus\, the defiant yet heroic mythical figure\, served as the symphony’s dedicatee\, the “Great Man” that Napoleon failed to be.   Although listeners might have wondered why Beethoven recycled such a simple tune as the basis of the final movement of this massive symphony\, Beethoven’s theme evolves as he innovates on his own composition\, with variations ranging from playful to peaceful\, lamenting to assertive\, joyful to heroic. \nTo watch a video of Beethoven’s “Eroica” symphony\, click here. \nA native of Bulgaria\, Moni Simeonov began playing the violin at age 5\, and ten years later\, came to the United States on a full scholarship to the Idyllwild Arts Academy. He performs with the Los Angeles Philharmonic\, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and Opera\, Ensemble San Francisco\, and until recently\, was the Concertmaster for the Sacramento Philharmonic. He has also served as a guest concertmaster with Reno Philharmonic\, Louisiana Philharmonic\, and the Pacific Symphony. His doctoral studies included minor fields in Viola Performance\, Schenkerian Analysis\, Japanese Language\, as well as an emphasis on the interpretation of the Balkan folk music. \nOn tour and in Los Angeles\, Mr. Simeonov dedicates considerable time and energy to community engagement work and to musical activities and presentations for young people. Moni has performed and coached alongside Midori for her Orchestra Residencies Program American and International tours. Until 2014\, he served as a director for the program. Outreach activities have taken him to places as diverse as homeless shelters in Peru and at-risk centers in Tennessee\, to Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon\, and hospitals for the terminally ill in Sri Lanka. \nMoni’s summer teaching includes engagements with the Interlochen Summer Festival\, the Singapore Violin Festival\, and the Atlantic Music Festival. Moni is also the founder of Bulgaria’s first chamber music academy – “Quartet Intensive” in Sofia. \nMoni has concertized and taught around the United States\, South America\, Europe\, Asia\, and the Middle East. His recordings have been archived by PBS\, NPR\, KUSC\, Bulgarian National Radio and TV\, as well as Japanese Broadcasting Company NHK. \nMoni received his BM and PC from the Eastman School of Music under Zvi Zeitlin\, his MM and AD from Yale University with Ani Kavafian\, and his GC and DMA from USC’s Thornton School of Music\, where he studied with Midori. \nMoni served as Adjunct Instructor at USC’s Thornton School of Music until 2014. That year\, he was appointed Director of String Studies and Violin Professor with the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University\, Long Beach. Moni is also the creator of zenviolin.com. \nTo watch the pre-concert video\, click here. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/heroes-villains/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Moni-Simeonov.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251005T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251005T160000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250908T170507Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251003T010923Z UID:13537-1759676400-1759680000@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Grand Rapids String Quartet - Free Chamber Music - Hope Church DESCRIPTION:Grand Rapids String Quartet (Elise Smith\, violin; Ashley Grace Davies\, violin; Darren Chan\, viola; McCormack Wyn\, cello)  \n\nBorodin\, String Quartet No. 2 in D Major \n\n\nBoccherini\, String Quartet No. 4 in G Major\, “La Tiranna” \n\n\nBeethoven\, String Quartet No. 15 in A minor\, mvmt. II:  Allegro ma non Troppo \n\nHSO members McCormack Wyn and Darren Chan are joined by violinists Elise Smith and Ashley Grace Davies as the Grand Rapids String Quartet performs a concert of string quartet masterpieces.  Headlined by Alexander Borodin’s famous romantic String Quartet No. 2 in D major\, a monumental work that has inspired musicals and movie soundtracks\, the concert also includes Luigi Boccherini’s fiery Quartet No. 4 in G (“La Tiranna”)\, and the second movement of Beethoven’s Quartet No. 15 in A minor.  \nGrand Rapids String Quartet: \nThe Grand Rapids String Quartet brings together four young professional musicians based in Grand Rapids\, dedicated to sharing the depth and beauty of the string quartet repertoire. With a balance of artistry and accessibility\, they present programs that highlight both beloved masterworks and hidden gems of the chamber music repertoire. \nThe Program: \nLuigi Boccherini – String Quartet No. 4 in G Major\, “La Tiranna” \nKnown as one of the founding figures of the string quartet\, Boccherini infused his works with elegance\, wit\, and a distinctly lyrical voice. His Quartet No. 4\, nicknamed “La Tiranna” (“The Tyrant”)\, is full of dramatic contrasts and expressive flair\, blending courtly charm with flashes of intensity. \nLudwig van Beethoven – String Quartet No. 15 in A Minor\, Op. 132\, II. Andante \nBeethoven’s late quartets are often described as spiritual journeys. The second movement of his Quartet No. 15 offers a moment of serenity and grace\, with folk-like melodies and a gentle\, lilting character. It provides a respite of warmth and balance within one of Beethoven’s most profound works. \nAlexander Borodin – String Quartet No. 2 in D Major \nBorodin’s Second Quartet is a jewel of Romantic chamber music\, beloved for its lush harmonies and heartfelt lyricism. Written as a gift to his wife\, the work overflows with warmth and intimacy\, featuring one of the most famous slow movements in the quartet repertoire—the Nocturne—a soaring love song without words. \nPlease RSVP below. Attendance is FREE. Please consider using the following links to donate to the Hope Church Holland and the Holland Symphony Orchestra. \n \n RSVP Here URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/grand-rapids-string-quartet-free-chamber-music-hope-church/ LOCATION:Hope Church Holland\, 77 W. 11th Street\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Hope-Church-Holland-low-rez.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251006T183000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251006T193000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250930T184232Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250930T184618Z UID:13638-1759775400-1759779000@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSYO Youth Ensemble Open House DESCRIPTION:Monday\, October 6\, 2025\, from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM\nMidtown Center Study Hall\, 96 W. 15th Street\, Holland\, MI 49423\nGet to know the Holland Symphony Youth Orchestra programs for middle and high school students. \nCurrent & prospective families welcome! \n\nMeet & Greet\nExperience Rehearsal\nEnjoy Some Treats\n\nQuestions? Email Education@HollandSymphony.org   URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hsyo-youth-ensemble-open-house/ LOCATION:Midtown Center – Study Hall\, 96 W. 15th St.\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/HSYO-Open-House-graphic-header-low-rez.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251108T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251108T120000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250910T003823Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251018T171059Z UID:13560-1762599600-1762603200@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Peter & the Wolf - FREE Family Concert - Herrick Library Main 11 AM DESCRIPTION:RSVP HERE\n \nHSO Wind Quintet – Free Family Concert \nRebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute \nCaitlin Kramer\, Oboe \nGary June\, Clarinet \nKerrissa Silverthorne\, Bassoon \nGreg Bassett\, Horn \nAnne Pott\, narrator  \nPeter and the Wolf\, Op. 67 is a folk tale for children written by Sergei Prokofiev\, in which the instruments illustrate each character in the story. All ages welcome! \nRSVP here \n While this event is Free to attend\, we hope you will consider donating to the Holland Symphony Orchestra by clicking here.  URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/peter-the-wolf-free-family-concert-herrick-library-main-11-am/ LOCATION:Herrick District Library – Main\, 300 S. River Ave\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Peter-and-the-Wolf.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251108T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251108T140000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250910T004644Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251018T171344Z UID:13568-1762606800-1762610400@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Peter & the Wolf - FREE Family Concert - Herrick Library Main 1 PM DESCRIPTION:RSVP HERE\n \nHSO Wind Quintet – Free Family Concert \nRebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute \nCaitlin Kramer\, Oboe \nGary June\, Clarinet \nKerrissa Silverthorne\, Bassoon \nGreg Bassett\, Horn \nAnne Pott\, narrator  \nPeter and the Wolf\, Op. 67 is a folk tale for children written by Sergei Prokofiev\, in which the instruments illustrate each character in the story. All ages welcome!   \nRSVP HERE \n While this event is Free to attend\, we hope you will consider donating to the Holland Symphony Orchestra by clicking here.  URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/peter-the-wolf-free-family-concert-herrick-library-main-1-pm/ LOCATION:Herrick District Library – Main\, 300 S. River Ave\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Peter-and-the-Wolf.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251109T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251109T170000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250908T211016Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251104T142900Z UID:13541-1762704000-1762707600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Grand Rapids String Quartet - Second Reformed Church DESCRIPTION:RSVP Here\n \nGrand Rapids String Quartet (Elise Smith\, violin; Ashley Grace Davies\, violin; Darren Chan\, viola; McCormack Wyn\, cello)  \n\nBorodin\, String Quartet No. 2 in D Major \n\n\nBoccherini\, String Quartet No. 4 in G Major\, “La Tiranna” \n\n\nBeethoven\, String Quartet No. 15 in A minor\, mvmt. III: Molto Adagio\n\nHSO members McCormack Wyn and Darren Chan are joined by violinists Elise Smith and Ashley Grace Davies as the Grand Rapids String Quartet performs a concert of string quartet masterpieces.  Headlined by Alexander Borodin’s famous romantic String Quartet No. 2 in D major\, a monumental work that has inspired musicals and movie soundtracks\, the concert also includes Luigi Boccherini’s fiery Quartet No. 4 in G (“La Tiranna”)\, and the third movement of Beethoven’s Quartet No. 15 in A minor.    \nGrand Rapids String Quartet: \nThe Grand Rapids String Quartet brings together four young professional musicians based in Grand Rapids dedicated to sharing the depth and beauty of the string quartet repertoire. With a balance of artistry and accessibility\, they present programs that highlight both beloved masterworks and hidden gems of the chamber music repertoire. \nThe Program: \nLuigi Boccherini – String Quartet No. 4 in G Major\, “La Tiranna” \nKnown as one of the founding figures of the string quartet\, Boccherini infused his works with elegance\, wit\, and a distinctly lyrical voice. His Quartet No. 4\, nicknamed “La Tiranna” (“The Tyrant”)\, is full of dramatic contrasts and expressive flair\, blending courtly charm with flashes of intensity. \nLudwig van Beethoven – String Quartet No. 15 in A Minor\, Op. 132\, III. Molto Adagio \nBeethoven’s late quartets are often described as spiritual journeys. The Quartet No. 15 offers moments of serenity and grace\, with folk-like melodies and a gentle\, lilting character. It provides a respite of warmth and balance within one of Beethoven’s most profound works. \nAlexander Borodin – String Quartet No. 2 in D Major \nBorodin’s Second Quartet is a jewel of Romantic chamber music\, beloved for its lush harmonies and heartfelt lyricism. Written as a gift to his wife\, the work overflows with warmth and intimacy\, featuring one of the most famous slow movements in the quartet repertoire—the Nocturne—a soaring love song without words. \nPlease RSVP using the button above. Attendance is FREE. Please consider using the following links to donate to the Second Reformed Church and the Holland Symphony Orchestra. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/grand-rapids-string-quartet-second-reformed-church/ LOCATION:Second Reformed Church Zeeland\, 225 E. Central Avenue\, Zeeland\, MI\, 49464\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/GR-String-Quartet-Nov-2025.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251115T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251115T170000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250904T162336Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251104T143822Z UID:13481-1763222400-1763226000@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Free Chamber Music - HSO Wind Quintet - Harderwyk DESCRIPTION:RSVP Here\n \nHSO Wind Quintet (Rebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute; Caitlin Kramer\, Oboe; Gary June\, Clarinet; Kerrissa Silverthorne\, Bassoon; Greg Bassett\, Horn)  \n\nBeach\, Pastorale \n\n\nEwazen\, Roaring Fork \n\n\nColeman\, Red Clay and Mississippi Delta \n\n\nBarber\, Summer Music \n\n\nColeman\, Umoja \n\nThe HSO Wind Quintet presents a program of American Landscapes:  music of composers Amy Beach\, Eric Ewazen\, and Valerie Coleman evokes the calm of a New Hampshire forest\, the grandeur of the Roaring Fork river in Colorado\, and the bluesy southern charm along the Mississippi River.  The program concludes in Michigan\, with a piece commissioned and premiered in the state: Samuel Barber’s famous Summer Music. \nRSVP using the button above. Attendance is FREE. Please consider using the following links to donate to the Harderwyk Church and the Holland Symphony Orchestra. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/free-chamber-music-hso-wind-quintet-harderwyk/ LOCATION:Harderwyk Church\, 1627 W Lakewood Blvd\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/HSOWindQuintet-rotated.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251122T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251122T120000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20251105T201216Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251106T151722Z UID:13785-1763809200-1763812800@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Exclusive HSO Donor Brunch DESCRIPTION:Exclusive HSO Donor Brunch\nSaturday\, November 22\, 2025\nDoors Open at 10:30 AM. Music Starts at 11 AM\nMacatawa Bay Yacht Club \nEvent sponsors Jeff & Peg Padnos\nMimosa bar sponsors Luke & Katherine Panning \nEnjoy a performance by the HSO Wind Quintet in works by Brahms\, Valerie Coleman\, and Eric Ewazen\, and indulge yourself at the Mimosa bar with sparkling wine mixed with your choice of orange\, pineapple\, cranberry\, or grapefruit juices. Snack on a continental brunch\, including coffee\, muffins\, donuts\, sweetbreads\, and a variety of bagels while you catch up with all your favorite HSO family members. \nCurrent HSO Donors are encouraged to RSVP by November 13 by emailing Ticketing@HollandSymphony.org or by calling 616-796-6780. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/exclusive-hso-donor-brunch/ LOCATION:Macatawa Bay Yacht Club\, 2157 S Shore Dr\, Macatawa\, MI\, 49434\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/2025-Donor-Appreciation-Brunch-low-rez-image.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251123T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251123T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20251013T152407Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251013T191012Z UID:13670-1763910000-1763915400@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Holland Symphony Youth Orchestra - Fall 2025 Concert DESCRIPTION:Buy Tickets\n \nHolland Symphony Youth Orchestra –  Fall 2025 Concert\nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center (3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI 49424) Enjoy baked goods and sweet treats from Marlene Buller’s Frosted Memories\, as well as hot food from Wok Me Up and Inspired Eats food trucks. 15% of all food sales support HSO’s education programs\, so eat up!  \nHolland Area Concert Strings\nConductor & Music Director: Kyle NesterSelections from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker  \nHolland Area Youth Orchestra\nConductor & Music Director: Josh ZallarVaughan Williams: Fantasia on GreensleevesSelections from Tchaikovsky’s String SerenadeSelections from Haydn’s Symphony No. 101\, “The Clock” General Admission Tickets: Adults $11\, Students $6 Special thanks to HSYO supporters Bob & Jean Olney and the John & Dede Howard Fund Questions? Call 616-796-6780 or email Ticketing@HollandSymphony.org URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/holland-symphony-youth-orchestra-fall-2025-concert/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/PB172652-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251213T153000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251213T170000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250422T202344Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251213T150149Z UID:12620-1765639800-1765645200@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Home for the Holidays 2025 Matinee: Steve & Allison Martin DESCRIPTION:BUY TICKETS\n \nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nEnjoy fresh-baked goods\, candies\, and snacks from Marlene Buller’s local bakery\, Frosted Memories\, and hot food from the Inspired Eats food truck. A portion of each purchase will benefit HSO’s Education programs. Cash payment is preferred\, but Venmo is also an option. \nHolland Symphony Orchestra & Deos Contemporary Ballet \nGuest Artists Hosts Lee & Linda De Visser  \nJohannes Müller Stosch\, Music Director & Conductor Steve & Allison Martin\, vocalists  \nLocal favorites Steve and Allison Martin join HSO for festive selections from The Nutcracker\, Leroy Anderson’s classic Sleigh Ride\, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas\,” and some of the Martins’ favorite songs\, including “The Prayer\,” “O Holy Night\,” and “Ave Maria.”  Rounding out the family-friendly concert will be the audience favorite “Christmas Singalong\,” full of well-known holiday carols! Steve and Allison are well known in West Michigan\, having sung on opera stages and musical productions locally and around the country.  Allison received her Masters of Music from Michigan State University.  Steve holds a doctorate and master’s in music from Michigan State University.  He has taught at the college level and is now Director of Music and Fine Arts at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston\, Texas. \nA special thank you to Guest Artists sponsors Lee & Linda De Visser \n\nProgram\nInformation\nArtist bio\n\nProgram\nLa Péri – FanfarePaul Dukas \nAve MariaJohann Sebastian Bach/Charles Gounod \nPanis Angelicus César Franck \n“Carillon” and “Farandole” from L’ArlésienneGeorges Bizet \nO Holy NightAdolphe Adam\, arr. René Clausen \nAdorationFlorence Price \nWhite ChristmasIrving Berlin\, arr. Robert Russell Bennett  \nIt’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like ChristmasMeredith Wilson\, arr. Daryl McKenzie \nChristmas SongRobert Wells & Mel Torme\, arr. Daryl McKenzie \n“Arabian dance\,” “Dance of the Reed Flutes\,” & “Waltz of the Flowers” from The NutcrackerPeter Ilych Tchaikovsky \nSleigh rideLeroy Anderson \nThe PrayerCarole Bayer Sager & David Foster\, arr. Larry GossChristmas Singalong \nAllison Martin received her Masters of Music in Vocal Performance from Michigan State University and Bachelors of Arts in Music Performance from Goshen College. She has performed throughout the U.S. and in Italy singing both opera and musical theater. She has performed roles such as Annina in Verdi’s La Traviata\, Countess Charlotte in Sondheim’s A Little Night Music\, Casilda in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Gondoliers\, Laetitia in Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief\, and Catherine in Schwartz’s Pippin with companies such as Opera in the Rock\, Opera Grand Rapids\, and The Other Mirror Production Company. On the oratorio stage\, she was the soprano soloist for Mozart’s Missa Brevis in Fmajor in Vienna and Saltzburg\, Austria\, Handel’s Messiah with the Mennonite Choral Society\, Brahms’ Ein Deutches Requiem with the St. Joseph Valley Camerata\, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at Goshen College where she was also an invited masterclass clinician. Martin currently serves as Interim Managing Director for the Next Festival of Emerging Artists (www.next-fest.org).  \nStephen Martin has enjoyed engagements spanning throughout Italy\, China\, Austria\, and the United States singing leading roles in staged works such as La Traviata\, La Bohème\, The Tales of Hoffmann\, Gianni Schicchi\, The Grapes of Wrath\, Les Misérables\, and many more. He has performed with companies such as The Santa Fe Opera\, The Glimmerglass Festival Opera\, Sarasota Opera\, Minnesota Opera\, Opera in the Rock\, Chicago Summer Opera Festival\, Kenosha Opera\, The Detroit Symphony Orchestra\, Motor City Brass Band\, Flint Symphony Orchestra\, Saginaw Symphony\, and others. Stephen has twice won the East Tennessee District Metropolitan Opera Competition and is the recipient of an Encouragement Award at the Mid-South Regional Metropolitan Opera competition. He was a grand finalist in the Rochester International Voice Competition\, a semi-finalist in the Mildred Miller International Voice Competition\, Opera Index Competition\, and Birmingham Opera competitions\, was awarded the Mandelker/Harris Award for Outstanding Returning Studio Artist at Sarasota Opera\, and won the Charlotte Ruppel Memorial Voice Competition. \nIn 2019 Stephen took a step back from full-time performing and became an Assistant Professor of Voice at the University of Central Arkansas where he served for two years until transitioning into full time music ministry. He currently serves as the Director of Music and Fine Arts at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston\, Texas. \nStephen holds a Doctorate in Voice Performance\, Masters Degrees in Voice Performance and Music Theory Pedagogy\, and a Bachelor’s degree in Voice Performance all from Michigan State University.  \nYou can learn more about Stephen at StephenMartinTenor.com \nDeos Contemporary Ballet \ninspire (a) movement. \nDeos Contemporary Ballet uplifts artists through a culture focused on diversity\, wellness\, and empathy. We inspire a broader audience through innovation in education\, film and live performances. We make contemporary ballet accessible to all through profound and relatable works of art. \nour history \nTess Sinke (Artistic Director) envisioned a professional ballet company named “Deos” in the early 2000’s. After meeting Andrew Hoekstra (Executive Director) in 2016\, they formed Deos Contemporary Ballet in 2018. \nDeos Ballet began with the first-ever COLLIDE Summer Series\, bringing dancers from across the country together for a short-term contract during their summer layoff from year-round commitments.  Since 2018\, Deos has continued to host dancers for our annual Summer Series. COLLIDE continues to be Deos Ballet’s largest program of the season\, bringing together 12 professional dancers\, a handful of collegiate interns\, and other guest artists for a fast-paced\, short-term rehearsal and performance season. \nSince 2018\, Deos has expanded to provide our core dancers (those local to Grand Rapids\, or those who have relocated to Grand Rapids) performance opportunities and Dance for Film recording contracts throughout the year\, with the goal of curating a full season in Grand Rapids and further cementing our footprint in the Michigan dance scene.  This goal was achieved in the fall of 2022 when we announced our first full season of year-round performances: EPILOGUE (fall series)\, EMBER (winter series)\, AWAKEN (spring series)\, and COLLIDE (summer series). During the 2023-2024 performance season\, our annual offerings grew to include an instant hit\, Cracked Nuts: Not Your Mother’s Nutcracker. The premiere weekend of Cracked Nuts entirely sold out\, even when adding an additional performance evening. Deos Ballet continues to grow and participate in outreach performances in partnerships with the Grand Rapids Art Museum\, local and touring orchestras/choirs\, churches\, and other arts organizations throughout the city. \nFor more information\, click here. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/home-for-the-holidays-2025-steve-allison-martin/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Steve-Allison-Martin-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20251213T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20251213T210000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250422T202803Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251213T150240Z UID:12624-1765654200-1765659600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Home for the Holidays 2025 Evening: Steve & Allison Martin DESCRIPTION:BUY TICKETS\n \nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center  \nEnjoy fresh-baked goods\, candies\, and snacks from Marlene Buller’s local bakery\, Frosted Memories\, and hot food from the Inspired Eats food truck. A portion of each purchase will benefit HSO’s Education programs. Cash payment is preferred\, but Venmo is also an option. \nHolland Symphony Orchestra & Deos Contemporary Ballet \nGuest Artists Hosts Lee & Linda De Visser  \nJohannes Müller Stosch\, Music Director & Conductor Steven & Allison Martin\, vocalists  \nHSO welcomes students from the Holland Area Youth Orchestra and Music Director Josh Zallar for select movements. \nLocal favorites Steve and Allison Martin join HSO for festive selections from The Nutcracker\, Leroy Anderson’s classic Sleigh Ride\, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas\,” and some of the Martins’ favorite songs\, including “The Prayer\,” “O Holy Night\,” and “Ave Maria.”  Rounding out the family-friendly concert will be the audience favorite “Christmas Singalong\,” full of well-known holiday carols! Steve and Allison are well known in West Michigan\, having sung on opera stages and musical productions locally and around the country.  Allison received her Masters of Music from Michigan State University.  Steve holds a doctorate and master’s in music from Michigan State University.  He has taught at the college level and is now Director of Music and Fine Arts at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston\, Texas.  \nA special thank you to Guest Artists sponsors Lee & Linda De Visser \n\nProgram\nInformation\nArtist bio\n\nProgram\nLa Péri – FanfarePaul Dukas \nAve MariaJohann Sebastian Bach/Charles Gounod \nPanis Angelicus César Franck \n“Carillon” and “Farandole” from L’ArlésienneGeorges Bizet \nO Holy NightAdolphe Adam\, arr. René Clausen \nAdorationFlorence Price \nWhite ChristmasIrving Berlin\, arr. Robert Russell Bennett  \nIt’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like ChristmasMeredith Wilson\, arr. Daryl McKenzie \nChristmas SongRobert Wells & Mel Torme\, arr. Daryl McKenzie \n“Arabian dance\,” “Dance of the Reed Flutes\,” & “Waltz of the Flowers” from The NutcrackerPeter Ilych Tchaikovsky \nSleigh rideLeroy Anderson \nThe PrayerCarole Bayer Sager & David Foster\, arr. Larry GossChristmas Singalong \nAllison Martin received her Masters of Music in Vocal Performance from Michigan State University and Bachelors of Arts in Music Performance from Goshen College. She has performed throughout the U.S. and in Italy singing both opera and musical theater. She has performed roles such as Annina in Verdi’s La Traviata\, Countess Charlotte in Sondheim’s A Little Night Music\, Casilda in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Gondoliers\, Laetitia in Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief\, and Catherine in Schwartz’s Pippin with companies such as Opera in the Rock\, Opera Grand Rapids\, and The Other Mirror Production Company. On the oratorio stage\, she was the soprano soloist for Mozart’s Missa Brevis in Fmajor in Vienna and Saltzburg\, Austria\, Handel’s Messiah with the Mennonite Choral Society\, Brahms’ Ein Deutches Requiem with the St. Joseph Valley Camerata\, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at Goshen College where she was also an invited masterclass clinician. Martin currently serves as Interim Managing Director for the Next Festival of Emerging Artists (www.next-fest.org).  \nStephen Martin has enjoyed engagements spanning throughout Italy\, China\, Austria\, and the United States singing leading roles in staged works such as La Traviata\, La Bohème\, The Tales of Hoffmann\, Gianni Schicchi\, The Grapes of Wrath\, Les Misérables\, and many more. He has performed with companies such as The Santa Fe Opera\, The Glimmerglass Festival Opera\, Sarasota Opera\, Minnesota Opera\, Opera in the Rock\, Chicago Summer Opera Festival\, Kenosha Opera\, The Detroit Symphony Orchestra\, Motor City Brass Band\, Flint Symphony Orchestra\, Saginaw Symphony\, and others. Stephen has twice won the East Tennessee District Metropolitan Opera Competition and is the recipient of an Encouragement Award at the Mid-South Regional Metropolitan Opera competition. He was a grand finalist in the Rochester International Voice Competition\, a semi-finalist in the Mildred Miller International Voice Competition\, Opera Index Competition\, and Birmingham Opera competitions\, was awarded the Mandelker/Harris Award for Outstanding Returning Studio Artist at Sarasota Opera\, and won the Charlotte Ruppel Memorial Voice Competition. \nIn 2019 Stephen took a step back from full-time performing and became an Assistant Professor of Voice at the University of Central Arkansas where he served for two years until transitioning into full time music ministry. He currently serves as the Director of Music and Fine Arts at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church in Houston\, Texas. \nStephen holds a Doctorate in Voice Performance\, Masters Degrees in Voice Performance and Music Theory Pedagogy\, and a Bachelor’s degree in Voice Performance all from Michigan State University.  \nYou can learn more about Stephen at StephenMartinTenor.com \nDeos Contemporary Ballet \ninspire (a) movement. \nDeos Contemporary Ballet uplifts artists through a culture focused on diversity\, wellness\, and empathy. We inspire a broader audience through innovation in education\, film and live performances. We make contemporary ballet accessible to all through profound and relatable works of art. \nour history \nTess Sinke (Artistic Director) envisioned a professional ballet company named “Deos” in the early 2000’s. After meeting Andrew Hoekstra (Executive Director) in 2016\, they formed Deos Contemporary Ballet in 2018. \nDeos Ballet began with the first-ever COLLIDE Summer Series\, bringing dancers from across the country together for a short-term contract during their summer layoff from year-round commitments.  Since 2018\, Deos has continued to host dancers for our annual Summer Series. COLLIDE continues to be Deos Ballet’s largest program of the season\, bringing together 12 professional dancers\, a handful of collegiate interns\, and other guest artists for a fast-paced\, short-term rehearsal and performance season. \nSince 2018\, Deos has expanded to provide our core dancers (those local to Grand Rapids\, or those who have relocated to Grand Rapids) performance opportunities and Dance for Film recording contracts throughout the year\, with the goal of curating a full season in Grand Rapids and further cementing our footprint in the Michigan dance scene.  This goal was achieved in the fall of 2022 when we announced our first full season of year-round performances: EPILOGUE (fall series)\, EMBER (winter series)\, AWAKEN (spring series)\, and COLLIDE (summer series). During the 2023-2024 performance season\, our annual offerings grew to include an instant hit\, Cracked Nuts: Not Your Mother’s Nutcracker. The premiere weekend of Cracked Nuts entirely sold out\, even when adding an additional performance evening. Deos Ballet continues to grow and participate in outreach performances in partnerships with the Grand Rapids Art Museum\, local and touring orchestras/choirs\, churches\, and other arts organizations throughout the city. \nFor more information\, click here. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/home-for-the-holidays-2025-evening-steve-allison-martin/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Steve-Allison-Martin-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260110T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260110T143000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20251229T204358Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260106T143805Z UID:13985-1768050000-1768055400@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSO Norbert Mueller Memorial Young Artist Competition DESCRIPTION:Free Event – RSVP Here\n \nSaturday\, January 10\, 2026\, 1 PM\nGrand Valley State University\nThomas J. and Marcia J. Haas Center for the Performing Arts – Sherman van Solkema Recital Hall\nEnjoy a concert full of young talent! Students in grades 9-12 compete in a recital for the three top cash prizes. Judges have been hand-picked from the ranks of the Holland Symphony Orchestra. \nMason Sybesma\, violin\, Kim Mast\, pianoMax Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor\, Op. 26: II \nNatalie Im\, violin\, Sarah Bast\, pianoCharles de Bériot: Violin Concerto No. 9 in A Minor\, Op. 104: I \nTanner Reynolds\, bassoon\, Emily Grabinski\, pianoCamille Saint-Saëns: Sonata in G Major: I & II \nCharlotte Beckman\, violin\, Sarah Bast\, pianoCharles de Bériot: Scene de Ballet \nAbram VandenBerg\, cello\, Sarah Bast pianoEdward Elgar: Cello Concerto in E minor\, Op. 85: IV \nJack Sherman\, violin\, Sarah Bast\, pianoFelix Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor\, Op. 64: I \nAnnika Johnson\, French horn\, Paul Connelly\, pianoRichard Strauss\, Horn Concerto No. 1 in E-flat Op. 11; I \nBeret Anna Hilsman\, violin\, Sarah Bast\, piano \nThe Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto – He Zhanhao & Chen Gang \nTyler Michielsen\, trumpet Paul Connelly\, pianoJoseph Hadyn: Trumpet Concerto in Eb Major\, I. \nA special thank you to our host\, GVSU professor & HSO principal cellist Pablo Mahave-Veglia\, and our accompanist\, education committee chair\, and board member Sarah Bast\, as well as our program supporters Jean & Bob Olney\, the Mueller Memorial Fund\, Howard Endowment\, Michigan Arts & Culture Council\, and the John and Judy Spoelhof Foundation. \nAdmission is free\, and seating is general admission. Please RSVP using the button below or above. \n \n Free Event – RSVP Here URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hso-norbert-mueller-memorial-young-artist-competition/ LOCATION:GVSU – Haas Center for the Performing Arts\, 10610 S Campus Drive\, Allendale\, MI\, 49401\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/HSO-YAC-2025-Performers.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260207T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260207T170000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250908T211836Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260202T215910Z UID:13543-1770480000-1770483600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSO Piano Trio at Harderwyk Ministries DESCRIPTION:RSVP for Free Concert\n \nHSO Piano Trio (Amanda Dykhouse\, violin; Lee Copenhaver\, cello; Allison Keep\, piano)  \n\nBeethoven Piano Trio in D Major\, Op. 70\, No. 1\, “Ghost” \n\n\nFaure Piano Trio in D minor\, Op. 120 \n\nJoin violinist Amanda Dykhouse\, cellist Lee Copenhaver\, and pianist Allison Shinnick Keep in a concert presenting two masterpieces for piano trio.  Beethoven’s well-known “Ghost” trio opens and closes with energetically joyful movements surrounding a hauntingly beautiful slow movement.  Fauré’s elegant trio is full of warm melodies\, rich harmonies\, and virtuosic piano writing.  \nRSVP for Free here or with the button above. \nWhile these concerts are free to attend\, the cost to produce them is not free. Please consider donating to support these free concerts. You may donate at the event to HSO and Harderwyk\, online by clicking here\, or mail a check to Holland Symphony Orchestra\, PO Box 2685\, Holland\, MI 49422 \nA special thank you to the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council for their support of HSO Chamber Music. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hso-piano-trio-at-harderwyk-ministries/ LOCATION:Harderwyk Church\, 1627 W Lakewood Blvd\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Harderwyk-Sanctuary-1.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260222T160000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260222T170000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250908T212130Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260212T165054Z UID:13546-1771776000-1771779600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSO Piano Trio at Second Reformed Church Zeeland DESCRIPTION:RSVP for Free Here\n \nHSO Piano Trio (Amanda Dykhouse\, violin; Lee Copenhaver\, cello; Allison Keep\, piano) \n\nBeethoven Piano Trio in D Major\, Op. 70\, No. 1\, “Ghost”\n\n\nFaure Piano Trio in D minor\, Op. 120\n\nJoin violinist Amanda Dykhouse\, cellist Lee Copenhaver\, and pianist Allison Shinnick Keep in a concert presenting two masterpieces for piano trio.  Beethoven’s well-known “Ghost” trio opens and closes with energetically joyful movements surrounding a hauntingly beautiful slow movement.  Fauré’s elegant trio is full of warm melodies\, rich harmonies\, and virtuosic piano writing. \nTo RSVP for this Free concert\, click here or use the button above. \nWhile these concerts are free to attend\, the cost to produce them is not free. Please consider donating to support these free concerts. You may donate at the event to HSO and Second Reformed Church\, online by clicking here\, or mail a check to Holland Symphony Orchestra\, PO Box 2685\, Holland\, MI 49422 \nA special thank you to the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council for their support of HSO Chamber Music. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hso-piano-trio-at-second-reformed-church-zeeland/ LOCATION:Second Reformed Church Zeeland\, 225 E. Central Avenue\, Zeeland\, MI\, 49464\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/HSO-piano-trio-pic-from-harderwyk-APPROVED.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260301T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260301T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260127T204132Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T144430Z UID:14163-1772377200-1772382600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:HSO Piano Trio at First Reformed Church Holland - Free to Attend DESCRIPTION:RSVP for Free Here\n \nHSO Piano Trio (Amanda Dykhouse\, violin; Lee Copenhaver\, cello; Allison Keep\, piano)  \n\nBeethoven Piano Trio in D Major\, Op. 70\, No. 1\, “Ghost” \n\n\nFaure Piano Trio in D minor\, Op. 120 \n\nAs part of the Free@3 concert series\, join violinist and HSO Concertmaster\, Amanda Dykhouse\, cellist Lee Copenhaver\, and pianist Allison Shinnick in a concert presenting two masterpieces for piano trio.  Beethoven’s well-known “Ghost” trio opens and closes with energetically joyful movements surrounding a hauntingly beautiful slow movement.  Fauré’s elegant trio is full of warm melodies\, rich harmonies\, and virtuosic piano writing.  \nRSVP here for free. Seating is general admission. \nWhile these concerts are free to attend\, the cost to produce them is not free. Please consider donating to support these free concerts. You may donate at the event to HSO and First Reformed Church\, online by clicking here\, or mail a check to Holland Symphony Orchestra\, PO Box 2685\, Holland\, MI 49422 \n \n Donate Now URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/hso-piano-trio-at-first-reformed-church-holland-free-to-attend/ LOCATION:First Reformed Church Holland\, 630 State Street\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/HSO-piano-trio-pic-from-harderwyk-APPROVED.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260314T110000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260314T120000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260216T173714Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260227T144959Z UID:14263-1773486000-1773489600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Family Event: Musical Adventures of Ferdinand the Bull 2026 DESCRIPTION:RSVP Here\n \nFree Kids Concert: The Musical Adventures of Ferdinand the Bull\nSaturday\, March 14\, 202611 AM – 12 PMHerrick Main Branch Library\, HollandCommunity Room \nIdeal for families with kids who love music and story time. \nBack by popular demand! Join our friends at the Herrick Main Library and a string quartet from the Holland Symphony Orchestra for a free performance of the beloved classic The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf\, accompanied by beautiful\, dramatic music from Bizet’s famous opera Carmen! \nAttendance is free\, and seating is general admission. Please RSVP here or use the button at the top of this page. \nFunded by the National Endowment for the Arts\, Michigan Arts and Culture Council\, and the Holland Symphony Orchestra Annual Fund. \n \n Donate to Support Free Concerts URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/family-event-musical-adventures-of-ferdinand-the-bull-2026/ LOCATION:Herrick District Library – Main\, 300 S. River Ave\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ferdinand-the-Bull-Image.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260322T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260322T163000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260209T180228Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260317T164758Z UID:14217-1774191600-1774197000@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Holland Symphony Youth Orchestra - Spring 2026 Concert DESCRIPTION:Buy Tickets\n \nHolland Symphony Youth Orchestra –  Spring 2026 Concert\nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center (3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI 49424) Enjoy baked goods and sweet treats from Dolce Mini Cakes and Inspired Eats food trucks\, and Marlene Buller’s Frosted Memories. 15% of all food sales support HSO’s education programs\, so eat up! \nHolland Area Junior Strings\nConductor: Victoria Zokoe \nSword Dance by Thoinot Arbeau (arr. Phillips) \nStar Dancer by Mark Williams \nPetite Tango by Casimer Kriechbaum \nDance of Fire by Frank J. Halferty \nHolland Area Concert Strings\nConductor & Music Director: Kyle Nester \nStar Wars Main Theme by John Williams (arr. Larry Clark) \nA Little Bit of …. Space …. Time by Samuel Adler \nJupiter from The Planets\, Op. 32\, by Gustav Holst (arr. by Deborah Baker Monday) \nVariations on a Mozart Theme (Twinkle\, Twinkle Little Star) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (arr. by Robert Longfield) \nHolland Area Youth Orchestra\nConductor & Music Director: Josh ZallarHighlights from Wicked by Stephan SchwartzSelections from Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and Franz Von Suppé’s Poet and Peasants’ Overture  “Composed in 1846 for a Viennese “comedy with songs\,” Franz Von Suppé’s Poet and Peasants’ Overture is filled with dramatic contrast. From the slow brass chorale opening to the cello solo with harp accompaniment\, and concluding with a fast-paced dance\, this overture keeps the listener entertained. Many of these themes have found their way into pop culture\, finding places in cartoons\, such as Looney Tunes\, amongst others.  General Admission Tickets: Adults $11\, Students $6 Special thanks to HSYO supporters Bob & Jean Olney and the John & Dede Howard Fund Questions? Call 616-796-6780 or email Ticketing@HollandSymphony.org\n \n Donate to HSO Youth Ensembles URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/holland-symphony-youth-orchestra-spring-2026-concert/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Concert-03695.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260328T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260328T210000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250424T210334Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260324T192803Z UID:12627-1774726200-1774731600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Classics III: Dreams of Heaven & Earth DESCRIPTION:BUY TICKETS\n \nJohannes Müller Stosch\, conductor Michelle Areyzaga\, soprano  \nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nClick here to view or download a PDF of the West Ottawa Performing Arts seating chart. \nEnjoy baked goods and sweet treats from the Inspired Eats food truck and Marlene Buller’s Frosted Memories. 15% of all food sales support HSO’s education programs\, so eat up! \nA special thank you to our guest artist hosts Gary & Jane Handel. \nBEETHOVEN Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus\, Op. 43DEBUSSY Petite Suite MAHLER Symphony No. 4 (chamber version) \nBeethoven’s overture to his only full-length ballet\, The Creatures of Prometheus\, was based on the ancient myth of Prometheus\, who stole fire from the gods and brought it to mankind. This key transitional work bridged his early\, classical style with the “heroic” period\, as heard in the unconventional\, dramatic opening and thematic material that depicts the Olympian grandeur of the godly hero and\, in the main body of the piece\, the exuberant joy of the mortals who benefit from the gift of fire. Motivated by the poems of Paul Verlaine (1844-1896)\, Debussy’s 1889 Petite Suite (Small Suite) was originally composed for piano duet and later orchestrated by his colleague Henri Büsser. The four movements of this whimsical tone poem paint musical pictures of 18th-century aristocrats on country outings\, a romantic boat ride at dusk on a dark lake\, a playful menuetto\, and a sparkling ballet.  Mahler’s fourth symphony is a contrapuntal\, folk-tune inspired musical journey from experience to innocence\, from complexity to simplicity\, and from earthly life to heaven\, complete with tender string passages\, brass chorales\, and lilting soprano lines. Klaus Simon’s 2007 chamber arrangement retains Mahler’s unmistakable orchestral sound in a way that enables chamber orchestras to perform this intimate and tender symphony. \nHSO audiences first met Chicago-based soprano Michelle Areyzaga at the 2022 holiday concert.  Back by popular demand\, Michelle Areyzaga makes her second appearance with HSO.  “Soprano Michelle Areyzaga sang with a round\, clear tone throughout her register. Areyzaga’s luminous soprano plumbed the depths of the text\, alternating between plaintive folkishness … to soaring\, operatic grandeur.” – Chicago Classical Review  \n \n Donate to Support Musicians\n \n\nProgram\nInformation\nProgram Notes\nArtist bio\nPre-Concert Video\n\nProgram\nOverture to The Creatures of PrometheusLudwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) \nPetite SuiteClaude Debussy (1862-1918)     1. En bateau (In the Boat)     2. Cortège (Procession)     3. Menuet     4. Ballet \nSymphony No. 4 in G MajorGustav Mahler (1860-1911)\, orch. Klaus Simon     1. Bedächtig; nicht eilen (Deliberately. Not rushed)     2. In gemächlicher Bewegung; ohne Hast (In easy motion. Without haste)     3. Ruhevoll (Serene)     4. Sehr behaglich (Very leisurely) \nMichelle Areyzaga\, Soprano \n  \nOverture to The Creatures of Prometheus\, Op. 43Ludwig van Beethoven \nBorn: December 17\, 1770 (baptized)\, Bonn Died: March 26\, 1837\, ViennaComposed: 1800-1801Premiered: 1801\, Burgtheater\, ViennaApproximate Duration: 5 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes\, 2 oboes\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 2 French horns\, 2 trumpets\, timpani\, strings \nBeethoven composed his only ballet\, The Creatures of Prometheus\, in 1801.  In sixteen scenes\, Beethoven tells the story of Prometheus from Greek mythology\, reinterpreting the myth through the ideals of the Enlightenment.  Beethoven portrays Prometheus\, the Greek god who fashions the first man and woman from clay and water and then gives them life with fire stolen from heaven.  His creations come alive\, but\, like statues\, they lack essential qualities that make them fully human.  Prometheus takes them to Mount Parnassus to be enlightened.  Gradually\, various gods and goddesses teach them science\, music\, dance\, and drama\, granting them emotion\, intellect\, reason\, humor\, and pleasure\, so they may truly begin life’s journey.  Although Prometheus encounters punishment and death in both the original myth and the ballet\, The Creatures of Prometheus focuses on happiness\, human advancement\, and the Enlightenment ideal of the power of arts to refine humanity. \nThe production was such a huge success that it contributed greatly to Beethoven’s emerging reputation as a major artist.  The popularity of his first major theatrical venture led directly to a commission for a full-length opera\, Fidelio.  Beethoven also borrowed themes from the ballet for his Eroica symphony.  However\, only the Prometheus Overture has remained in modern concert performances.  For a long time\, it was the only overture in Beethoven’s repertoire\, so his concerts often opened with this piece.  It begins in an unusual manner\, with forceful\, dissonant chords outside the home key\, before journeying to C major through a chain of harmonic progressions.  The brilliant allegro section\, which sparkles with energy\, often is said to represent Prometheus fleeing from heaven after stealing fire from the gods. \nTo watch a video of Beethoven’s Overture to The Creatures of Prometheus\, click here. \nPetite SuiteClaude Debussy \nBorn: August 22\, 1862\, Saint-Germaine-en Laye\, near ParisDied: March 26\, 1918\, ParisOrchestrated: Henri BüsserComposed: for piano four-hands in 1889; orchestrated in 1907Premiere: Piano four-hands version: Paris\, 1 March 1889; private salonPremiere: Orchestral version: Paris\, 4 November 1907Approximate Duration: 14 minutesInstrumentation: 2 flutes (one doubling piccolo)\, 2 oboes (one doubling English horn)\, 2 clarinets\, 2 bassoons\, 2 French horns\, 2 trumpets\, timpani\, percussion (cymbal\, suspended cymbal\, tambourine\, triangle)\, harp\, strings \nEarly in his compositional life\, before developing the Impressionist style that would define his “voice” as a composer\, Debussy found inspiration in French Baroque music\, particularly the refinement of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s (1683-1764) dance suites.  Debussy completed two four-hand (two players on one piano) piano suites in 1889\, the Petite Suite and the Suite Bergamesque\, which includes his famous “Claire de Lune.”   Both pieces consist mainly of dance suites\, combining the Baroque structure with the colors and harmonies that would come to define Debussy’s work. \nDebussy’s Petite Suite is best known today in its orchestral setting by Henri-Paul Büsser.  Büsser was a composer\, organist\, arranger\, and teacher.  Like Debussy\, he attended the Paris Conservatoire and received the Prix de Rome.  He had Debussy’s blessing to re-cast the suite in an orchestral setting faithful to Debussy’s color and style.   \nDebussy based the first two movements on poems by Paul Verlaine (1844-1896) that narrate eighteenth century aristocratic country outings.  “En bateau” (In a boat) opens with a sigh before depicting romantic trysts at dusk on shimmering and gentle water.  This gentle lullaby evokes Verlaine’s poem (translated): “Meanwhile the moon sheds its glow / On the skiff’s brief course below\, / Gaily riding the dream-like flow.”   The central section is based on whole tone scales\, one of Debussy’s trademarks.  “Cortège” (Procession) begins with a distant procession that grows in volume and complexity as it arrives before listeners.  Verlaine’s poem describes an elegant woman escorted by a uniformed monkey.  The woodwinds are crisp and the percussion is gentle\, portraying this playful and mischievous scene.  The Menuet is warm and melodic\, a nostalgic courtly dance looking back to Baroque sensibilities  The last movement is an energetic Ballet.  This wasn’t intended to be music for a choreographed nineteenth-century ballet\, but recalls the sixteenth century Italian balletti\, a dance-like vocal piece intended for personal entertainment.  These were brought to England as balletts and often contained a characteristic wordless “fa-la-la” refrain.  Debussy’s festive movement sometimes sounds like a waltz\, but toward the end it gets faster\, resembling a sparkling jig.   \nTo watch a video of Debussy’s Petite Suite\, click here. \nSymphony No. 4 in G MajorGustav MahlerArranged by Klaus Simon \nBorn: July 7\, 1860Died: May 18\, 1911\, Vienna Composed: 1899-1900Arranged: 2007Premiered: November 25\, 1901\, MunichApproximate Duration: 54 minutesInstrumentation (original): 4 flutes (2 doubling piccolo)\, 3 oboes (one doubling English horn)\, 2 clarinets\, e-flat clarinet\, bass clarinet\, 3 bassoons (one doubling contrabassoon)\, 4 French horns\, 3 trumpets\, timpani\, percussion (bass drum\, cymbals\, glockenspiel\, sleigh bells\, tamtam\, triangle)\, harp\, strings\, sopranoInstrumentation (arrangement): 1 flute (doubling on piccolo)\, 1 oboe (doubling on English horn)\, 1 clarinet (doubling on bass clarinet)\, 1 bassoon\, 1 French horn\, percussion (bass drum\, cymbals\, glockenspiel\, sleigh bells\, suspended cymbal\, tamtam\, triangle)\, piano\, harmonium\, strings\, soprano \n“A symphony should be like the world\,” Mahler told Jean Sibelius in 1907\, “it must contain everything.”  It is this sentiment that set Mahler apart from all previous composers of symphonies and that makes his works such milestones for orchestras and musicians to perform.  He composed on a grand scale\, for very large orchestras that often included choirs and solo vocalists\, with an unprecedented range of moods and orchestral colors\, often stretching the late Romantic harmonies to new places.  Many of his symphonies explore “epic” themes like good and evil\, heaven and hell.  However\, Mahler also borrowed from “everyday” sounds—bugle calls\, bird songs\, dance tunes—and quoted his own music as well as that of Weber\, Wagner\, Liszt\, and Berlioz.  No wonder audiences initially had a difficult time appreciating Mahler’s work! \nThe fourth symphony is Mahler’s “lightest” symphony.  He wrote it during the summers of 1899 and 1900\, when he had some freedom from his demanding position as the music director of the Vienna Opera.  Its original version called for a large woodwind section but did not include trombones or tubas.  (By contrast\, many of Mahler’s symphonies use double the size of a standard Romantic era brass section).  Mahler found his subject matter in a collection of poetry published a century earlier known as Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Youth’s Magic Horn).  Mahler set over twelve of these poems to music\, either for voice and piano or voice and orchestra\, incorporating some of these song settings in his symphonies.  Mahler originally planned on adding a seventh movement to his third symphony\, a setting of the song he had written earlier to the Wunderhorn poem “Der Himmel hängt voller Geigen” (Heaven is full of violins).  He changed his mind and decided to use this setting\, which he entitled Das himmlische Leben (The heavenly life)\, as the final movement of his fourth symphony.  In this work\, Mahler imagines a child’s view of heaven and earth\, perhaps to escape the complexities and existential challenges he faced both in his daily life and in his other compositions. \nMahler uses the standard four movement structure for this symphony.  The first movement is melodic\, often punctuated by sleigh bells.  It is charming and graceful\, with a joyful and tender mood.  The many changes in tempo and dynamics give it a playful and whimsical quality.  The ominous second movement resembles a scherzo.  It was inspired by a painting by the Swiss artist Arnold Böcklin: Self-Portrait with Death Playing the Fiddle (1872).  A  solo violinist leads the orchestra in the dance\, but the violin is tuned a step higher than normal\, giving it a brighter and slightly pinched sound to resemble a rustic fiddler.  The slow third movement ushers in a calm mood.  Cellos introduce the peaceful main theme which\, as in all the movements\, is recast in many different forms and transformed by a quickening tempo.  Toward the end\, the brightness of a giant E major chord contrasts greatly against a shadowy interpretation of the movement’s main theme.  The last movement begins with a relaxed pace.  Here\, the soprano soloist gives words to the child’s view of heaven as a place full of playing\, dancing\, good food\, good music\, saints\, and martyrs.  The text recalls some of the moments and moods heard earlier in the piece.  Mahler orchestrates the poem with color and charm\,.  Eventually the movement shifts to the bright key of E major before the symphony ends peacefully. \nEver since the invention of the symphony and the concerto\, these large compositions have frequently been arranged for smaller forces.  Several of the Beethoven piano concertos\, for example\, were arranged soon after their debuts for string quartet/quintet and soloist.   At a time when recorded music was not available\, these reduced instrumentations provided a practical and economical way to perform and enjoy this music in private performances and small spaces.  Similarly\, several of Mahler’s symphonies have been arranged for smaller orchestras\, enabling groups to perform his works without the massive forces required for most of his symphonies.  There are at least five alternate versions of the fourth symphony.  These arrangements were performed frequently at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic\, when musicians needed to be distanced from one another onstage.  Klaus Simon re-orchestrated this symphony in May 2007 for the Holst Sinfonietta\, a chamber orchestra in Freiburg.  He preserved Mahler’s orchestral sound and instrumental colors well\, enabling each instrument\, and especially the soprano soloist\, to participate fully and be heard well. \nTo watch a video of this version of Mahler’s fourth symphony\, click here. \nPraised for her “radiant and all-encompassing soprano” (Chicago Tribune)\, Michelle Areyzaga performs a diverse range of orchestral\, oratorio\, opera\, and chamber repertoire. As a “consummate vocal actress” (Fanfare)\, she is held in high regard throughout the United States and abroad for her “appealing\, expressive soprano” (New York Times). \nMichelle has appeared as soloist with orchestras and festivals across the country including the Chicago Symphony\, Chicago Philharmonic\, Buffalo Philharmonic\, Minnesota Orchestra\, Phoenix Symphony\, Rhode Island Philharmonic\, Richmond Symphony\, Colorado Symphony\, North Carolina Symphony\, Wichita Symphony\, Flint Symphony\, Fort Wayne Symphony\, Cheyenne Symphony\, Hartford Symphony\, San Antonio Symphony\, Cleveland Orchestra\, Toledo Symphony\, Rochester Symphony; the Ravinia\, Oregon Bach\, Blossom\, and Grant Park music festivals. \nAbroad\, Ms. Areyzaga has performed with the Orquesta Sinfónica de México\, Orquesta Filarmónica de Montevideo\, and Uruguay’s Orquesta Sinfónica del Sodre. She sang in Costa Rica’s first performance of Bach’s B Minor Mass with the National Symphony Orchestra under conductor John Nelson. She appeared as soloist in Vaughan Williams’ Mass in G Minor at England’s York Minster Cathedral\, Ely Cathedral\, and St. Mary’s Church in Oxford. At Paris’s L’église de la Madeleine\, she was soloist in Haydn’s Lord Nelson Mass with the orchestra of London’s Royal Academy of Music and the St. Charles Singers. \nMichelle has sung leading roles for New York City Opera\, Chicago Opera Theater\, Opera Birmingham\, and other regional companies. Some of her favorite roles include Micaela (Carmen)\, Cio-Cio-San (Madama Butterfly)\, Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro)\, Musetta (La Bohème)\, Pamina (Die Zauberflöte) and Cunegonde (Candide). Her staged portrayals have consistently garnered high praise such as “sensational” for her performances of Lauretta in Gianni Schicchi (The Chicago Reader) and “stunning” as Bubikopf in Der Kaiser von Atlantis (Opera Magazine\, London). \nHighly respected for her work as an avid chamber musician and recitalist\, Michelle has been a repeat guest of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center\, the New York Festival of Song\, the Avalon String Quartet\, The Lincoln Trio\, and has been a member of the Chicago Ensemble since the beginning of her career. \nRenowned for her artistry with new music and contemporary composers\, Ms. Areyzaga has been honored to perform and record multiple world-premieres for composers Gwyneth Walker\, Lita Grier\, Stacy Garrop\, Fabio Luisi\, and Gustavo Leone. Her most recent art song album\, Were I With Thee\, features all contemporary American art songs with texts by women\, including world-premiere recordings of works by Wayland Rogers and Gwyneth Walker. Artsong Update praised Were I With Thee as “one of the finest art song CDs ever… a ground-breaking art song CD of twenty-first century sensibility.” \nAs a lifelong champion of Leonard Bernstein’s music\, Michelle toured Bernstein on Broadway for six years together with Leonard Bernstein’s daughter\, Jamie. Ms. Areyzaga was named Musical Ambassador of the Ravinia Festival’s Bernstein at 100 Centennial Celebration. \nMs. Areyzaga is artist faculty at Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University and Loyola University Chicago. Michelle is passionate about guiding and inspiring her private voice students through her knowledge of vocal literature\, technique\, and her training as a life coach. \nTo watch the pre-concert video\, click here. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/classics-iii-dreams-of-heaven-earth/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Michelle-Areyzaga.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260402T180000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260402T190000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260210T190419Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260210T191232Z UID:14237-1775152800-1775156400@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Free Chamber Music - HSO Wind Quintet - Warm Friend DESCRIPTION:This is a private event for Warm Friend-Resthaven residents and family members only. \nHSO Wind Quintet (Rebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute; Caitlin Kramer\, Oboe; Gary June\, Clarinet; Kerrissa Silverthorne\, Bassoon; Greg Bassett\, Horn) \n\nBeach\, Pastorale\n\n\nEwazen\, Roaring Fork\n\n\nColeman\, Red Clay and Mississippi Delta\n\n\nBarber\, Summer Music\n\n\nColeman\, Umoja\n\nThe HSO Wind Quintet presents a program of American Landscapes:  music of composers Amy Beach\, Eric Ewazen\, and Valerie Coleman evokes the calm of a New Hampshire forest\, the grandeur of the Roaring Fork river in Colorado\, and the bluesy southern charm along the Mississippi River.  The program concludes in Michigan\, with a piece commissioned and premiered in the state: Samuel Barber’s famous Summer Music. \nThe generous community leaders at the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council and HSO donors fund our chamber music performances. Please consider using the following link to donate to the Holland Symphony Orchestra. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/free-chamber-music-hso-wind-quintet-warm-friend/ LOCATION:Warm Friend – Resthaven\, 5 East 8th Street\, Holland\, MI\, 49423\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/HSOWindQuintet-rotated.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260412T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260412T150000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260402T203759Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T204307Z UID:14728-1776002400-1776006000@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Free Chamber Music - HSO Wind Quintet - Saugatuck DESCRIPTION:RSVP Here\n \nThis is free chamber concert. Please RSVP using the button above. \nHSO Wind Quintet (Rebecca VanDeWalker\, Flute; Caitlin Kramer\, Oboe; Gary June\, Clarinet; Kerrissa Silverthorne\, Bassoon; Greg Bassett\, Horn) \n\nBeach\, Pastorale\n\n\nEwazen\, Roaring Fork\n\n\nColeman\, Red Clay and Mississippi Delta\n\n\nBarber\, Summer Music\n\n\nColeman\, Umoja\n\nThe HSO Wind Quintet presents a program of American Landscapes:  music of composers Amy Beach\, Eric Ewazen\, and Valerie Coleman evokes the calm of a New Hampshire forest\, the grandeur of the Roaring Fork river in Colorado\, and the bluesy southern charm along the Mississippi River.  The program concludes in Michigan\, with a piece commissioned and premiered in the state: Samuel Barber’s famous Summer Music. \nThank you to our gracious hosts at the Saugatuck Douglas Library and the generous community leaders at the Macatawa Area Coordinating Council. \nPlease consider using the following link to donate to the Holland Symphony Orchestra. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/free-chamber-music-hso-wind-quintet-saugatuck/ LOCATION:Saugatuck-Douglas Library\, 174 Center Street\, Douglas\, MI\, 49406\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/HSOWindQuintet-rotated.jpeg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260425T193000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260425T210000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20250424T211252Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260312T142434Z UID:12631-1777145400-1777150800@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Classics IV: Romantic Connections DESCRIPTION:BUY TICKETS\n \nJohannes Müller Stosch\, conductor  Mikhail Korzhev\, piano  \nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center \nA special thank you to our guest artist hosts Ruth & David Crouch. \nArturo Márquez Danzón No. 2 (Audience Choice 2026) BONDS Montgomery Variations MARX Romantic Piano Concerto  \nMexican composer Arturo Márquez’s Danzón No. 2 is one of the most frequently performed Latin American pieces in the orchestral canon today. It is based on the Cuban danzón. Márquez writes\, “Danzón 2 … endeavors to get as close as possible to the dance\, to its nostalgic melodies\, to its wild rhythms\, and although it violates its intimacy\, its form and its harmonic language\, it is a very personal way of paying my respects and expressing my emotions towards truly popular music.” \nAfter studying piano and composition with Florence Price in Chicago\, Margaret Bonds composed her variations in the wake of the 1963 firebombing of Birmingham\, Alabama’s 16th Street Baptist Church. She describes them as “a group of freestyle variations based on the Negro Spiritual theme; I want Jesus to Walk with Me. The treatment suggests the manner in which Bach constructed his partitas – a bold statement of the theme\, followed by variations of the theme.” A profound lyricist and yearning optimist\, Austrian composer Joseph Marx considered himself a musical poet of happiness.  HSO Music Director Johannes Müller Stosch describes his 1919 Romantic Piano Concerto as “the Austrian counterpart of Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto\, with lush romantic melodies\, harmonies\, and plenty of technical fireworks for the soloist.”  The piece was resurrected and made popular by famed pianist Jorge Bolet\, is a rarely performed gem melding orchestra with piano in a duet of energy and radiant lyricism.   \nMikhail Korzzev is one of the few pianists of this generation who has the boldness\, technique\, and strength to take on Marx’s Romantic Piano Concerto.  He “projects strength\, atmosphere and the ability to tangle even the knottiest passages…” (International Record Review) \n \n Support HSO Musicians\n \n \n Tickets\n \n\nProgram\nInformation\nProgram Notes\nArtist bio\nPre-Concert Video\n\nProgram\nArturo Márquez Danzón No. 2 (Audience Choice 2026)  \nThe Montgomery VariationsMargaret Allison Bonds (1913-1972)     1. Decision     2. Prayer Meeting     3. March     4. Dawn in Dixie     5. One Sunday in the South     6. Lament     7. Benediction \nRomantic Piano Concerto (Michigan premiere)Joseph Marx 1882-1964     1. Lebhaft (Allegro moderato)     2. Nicht zu langsam (Andante affettuoso)     3. Sehr lebhaft (Allegro molto) \nMikhail Korzhev\, piano \nLearn more about the music…\nWe will be hosting not only the Classical Chat series at Freedom Village\, but also Pre-Concert Talks!  Details below: \nClassical Chats at Freedom Village:  These informative and fun talks are led by Johannes Müller-Stosch and take place at 3 pm on the Thursday before each Classics concert.  (Freedom Village\, 6th Floor Auditorium\, 145 Columbia Ave.) \nPre-Concert Talks:  These talks\, led by Johannes Müller-Stosch and Amanda Dykhouse\, are online under the “Pre-Concert Talk” Tab.   \nNew to the Symphony?  Check out the Frequently Asked Question page… \n  \nMikhail Korzhev\, a pianist that “projects strength\, atmosphere and the ability to tangle even the knottiest passages…” (International Record Review) is equally active as a solo recitalist\, a performer with various chamber groups\, a soloist with orchestras\, and as a recording artist. His latest CD recordings\, the two volumes of a Complete Piano Concertos by Ernst Krenek in collaboration with English Symphony Orchestra and Kenneth Woods were released by Toccata Classics in 2016 and 2017 to enthusiastic reviews in Gramophone\, Diapason and other publications\, made it to the “want list” of Fanfare magazine\, became one of “10 Best Contemporary Records of the Year” by The Times (London)\, and in December 2017 made it to the list of “Top 10 Best Classical Records of the Year” by Forbes magazine. In September 2017 Korzhev became a recipient of a prestigious Anassilaos Prize\, the annual award for the achievements in Arts and Sciences given by the local government of the province of Calabria (Italy). \nKorzhev collaborated with several distinguished conductors: Sergiu Commissiona\, Carlo Ponti Jr. and others\, his chamber music collaborations include performing with soloists of Russian National Orchestra\, Mladi Chamber Orchestra\, Lyris String Quartet\, and members of St. Petersburg and Tokyo String Quartets among others. His collaborative work was highly appreciated by Eugenia Zukerman\, Richard Stolzman\, Oleh Krysa and other noted musicians. Korzhev’s performances received a high critical acclaim from American and European press: ”The young Russian pianist… displayed a notable technical mastery which allowed for passionate moments of ardent lyricism as well as wonderful purity and fluency…” (Momento Sera\, Rome).”Korzhev belongs to that exclusive club of super musicians…he already performs like a keyboard legend…he is a major talent.” (Salt Lake Tribune). \nHis particular interest in contemporary music has lead Korzhev to participate in the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition in 2005\, which had the emphasis on the music of Ernst Krenek. As a winner of that competition Korzhev gave a recital in the Vienna’s Konzerthaus about which the Wiener Zeitung wrote: “Korzhev obviously has a lot of affection for Krenek’s style… brings out well the dramatic qualities of his music…” Following the success of his Vienna debut Korzhev recorded a CD of Krenek’s piano music\, released by Phoenix Edition/Naxos in 2008 that became an instant top seller and received several very enthusiastic reviews in the press. \nKorzhev’s discography also includes three CD recordings featuring compositions for solo piano and chamber works by a prominent English composer Gerard Schurmann (in collaboration with Alyssa Park and Lyris string quartet) and a compilation of 40 classical standards for the online music library Megatrax.com.   \nKorzhev combines his performing career with teaching. He taught at University of Southern California. Currently he is on the faculty of California State University at Fullerton and Chapman University. Since 2008 Korzhev is the faculty member at Beverly Hills International Music Festival. In the summer of 2009 he taught a summer course at the Bosendorfer Piano Academy in Vienna\, Austria. \nKorzhev holds a doctorate in piano performance from University of Southern California\, where he studied with Daniel Pollack. His previous teachers include Alexander Satz and Vera Khoroshina at Moscow Conservatory College. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/classics-iv-romantic-connections/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Mikhail-Korzhev.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260618T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260618T203000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260306T142041Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260312T142546Z UID:14446-1781809200-1781814600@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Pops at the Pier 2026: From Broadway to the Big Screen DESCRIPTION:FROM BROADWAY TO THE BIG SCREEN \nPops at the Pier \nTHURS\, JUNE 18\, 2026\, AT 7 PM \nEldean ShipyardFernanda Lastra\, Guest ConductorDee Donasco\, Vocalist \nA special thank you to the Eldean family for their hospitality and support. \nEnjoy hits from Les Misérables\, The Greatest Showman\, Wicked\, Chicago\, and West Side Story featuring your HSO\, the 2024 Women in Classical Music award-winning conductor Fernanda Lastra\, and the soaring vocals of Tennessee favorite Dee Donasco. The orchestra will take the spotlight with hits from movies such as Star Wars\, Harry Potter\, Titanic\, and Indiana Jones. Enjoy the pre-concert performance of the Holland Concert Jazz Orchestra at 6 pm\, along with a variety of food trucks and beverages for sale. \nTickets: $40 Adults\, $12 Students \nRenewing subscribers will receive their 2026-2027 HSO brochure and order forms in the mail in late March. Subscriber seats will be held until April 30. New subscriptions go on sale on May 1st\, and single tickets on July 1st. For more information\, email Ticketing@HollandSymphony.org\, or call 616-796-6780. ​ Join us in celebrating the artistry\, community impact\, and legacy of the Holland Symphony Orchestra! ​ \n\n Dee Donasco\, Vocalist URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/pops-at-the-pier-2026-from-broadway-to-the-big-screen/ LOCATION:Eldean’s Boat Shed\, 2150 S. Shore Drive\, Holland\, 49423\, United States ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Lastra-low-rez.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260815T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260815T153000 DTSTAMP:20260403T185043 CREATED:20260306T142803Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260316T174440Z UID:14450-1786802400-1786807800@hollandsymphony.org SUMMARY:Music Unites Us: Free Family Concert DESCRIPTION:THE ARTHUR J. AND KATHRYN MERVENNE FOUNDATION \nCOMMUNITY CONCERT \nFree Family Concert \nSAT\, AUG 15\, 2026\, AT 2 PM\nWest Ottawa Performing Arts Center\nJohannes Müller Stosch\, Conductor\nAmanda Dykhouse and Michelle Bessemer\, violins\nAllison Shinnick Keep & David Keep\, pianos \nProgram: \nCLAUDE DEBUSSY: “Allegro giusto” from Petite Suite \nCAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS: The Carnival of the Animals \nJOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH: Double Concerto in D minor\, BWV 1043 \nOTTORINO RESPIGHI: Ancient Airs and Dances: Suite 1 \nJoin your HSO for a family-friendly afternoon of four-hand piano fun and sizzling strings featuring HSO principal violinists. Famed for its brilliant musical wit\, vivid imagery\, and accessible charm\, The Carnival of the Animals is a “zoological fantasy” that uses instruments to mimic animals\, such as the double bass for an elephant\, the xylophone for fossils\, and the cello for the swan. \nAttendance is free. Subscribers and donors will receive priority seating. \nSupporting sponsors include Corewell Health\, Gentex\, and the Woman’s Literary Club of Holland. URL:https://hollandsymphony.org/events/music-unites-us-free-family-concert/ LOCATION:West Ottawa Performing Arts Center\, 3685 Butternut Drive\, Holland\, MI\, 49424\, United States CATEGORIES:Community Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://hollandsymphony.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/jms-bright-color-copy.jpg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR