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Pinckney Side-by-Side Concert

May 15, 2008, 7:30 pm
Pinckney High School's Jane Tasch Theatre

On May 15 at 7:30 pm the Pinckney School Orchestras and the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra will celebrate the first Livingston County high school orchestra program with second annual side-by-side concert at Jane Tasch Theater. Tickets are $10 and are on sale now at Pinckney Community Education at 810-225-3950 , Pinckney Central Offices at 810-225-3900 , and Busch's at 734-878-7500 .

The side-by-side concert features the newly formed Pinckney High School Orchestra, Pinckney Middle School Orchestra students and the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra. As part of this performance, the musicians of the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra and Pinckney School Orchestras will share stands on stage. The two orchestras, professionals and students, will perform a movement from the light-hearted Symphony No. 2, often called "Little Russian, by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikoskvy; the beloved Western favorite Hoe Down by the American composer Aaron Copland; and the Ashokan Farewell by Jay Ungar, a lilting Scottish waltz was used in the PBS series on the Civil War.

The Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra will also perform the final movement of Symphony No. 2, Op. 73, by Johannes Brahms. The final movement opens in a swirl of colors that contrasts with briefly with softer, singing moments before the movement drives to an energetic end.

This performance builds upon the first side-by-side concert that took place in March 2007 and upon years of collaboration between the Pinckney Community Schools and the A²SO.

Leading up to this performance, A²SO Music Director Arie Lipsky will conduct the Pinckney Middle and High School orchestras twice and will conduct a side-by-side rehearsal with A²SO musicians and the high school orchestra. The A²SO String Quartet performed for the students in October 2007 at a kickoff ice cream social attended by Maestro Lipsky, Pinckney Superintendent Dan Danosky, and Pinckney Orchestra Director Jeff Campbell. The Pinckney School Orchestras attended an A²SO dress rehearsal in the fall 2007.

The Pinckney School Orchestra students have also been receiving group lessons in preparation for this concert as part of a grant received from the Southeastern Community Foundation in support of the side-by-side concert.

The Pinckney Elementary Schools are also very involved with the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra. Four of the schools are enrolled in the A²SO's Orchestra 101 program, which includes visits from the Brass, Wind, String and Percussion Ensembles, a visit from Maestro Lipsky and a field trip to the A²SO Youth Concert.

Contact Laura Dunbar at laura@a2so.com or at 734/994-4801 for more details on this program.

Highlights