CONWAY — The Conway Symphony will kick off its 26th season with four subscription-series concerts, a children’s concert and an outdoor community concert. Tickets range from $6 to $38, and season tickets are still available. Call (501) 450-3265 or visit www.uca.edu/tickets. All performances are held at Reynolds Performance Hall unless otherwise noted.
Season opener “Days in the Orient, Nights in Arabia” will feature guest conductor Cao Che from the Fujian Province Symphony Orchestra in China sharing the podium with Conway Symphony Orchestra Conductor/Music Director Israel Getzov at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Getzov will conduct the stories of Rimsky-Korzakov’s Scheherazade, and Che will present the American debut of original Chinese compositions about the Fujian Province, with visual displays of the region. The concert is underwritten by Regions Bank and Morgan Keegan. Student musicians from local schools are invited to attend this concert for free, with support from Rose Law Firm, Centennial Bank and Linn’s Auto.
The holiday concert will be held at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 4. The Conway Symphony Orchestra will be joined by the Arkansas Festival Ballet performing selections from The Nutcracker; the Central Arkansas Children’s Choir; and the TUBA Christmas Troupe for “Tinsel, Tutus, Tunes and TUBAS!” The concert is underwritten by Fortier Inc. with a guest-artist sponsorship from Smith Ford.
Guest Artist Jin Cao, soprano, will take the stage with the orchestra at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 19, for “Beauty and the Brahms.” The music of Brahms Symphony No. 2 and arias by Mozart and Lehar will be performed. The concert is underwritten by the Ralph Behrens Legacy, with a hospitality sponsorship from Nabholz Construction.
The subscription series will end with “Songs of the American West” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 12, the final concert of the Songs Unlimited four-day festival of music, literature and art. The music of Copland, Grofe, Puccini and composer-in-residence Libby Larsen will bring the Old West to life. The concert is underwritten by Acxiom, with a guest-artist sponsorship from College Square.
First Security Bank will present Lemony Snicket’s The Composer is Dead at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 23.
To end the season, the orchestra will perform an outdoor concert, free to the community, presented by Southwestern Energy.
Through the support of corporate and individual donors, the Conway Symphony Orchestra sponsors a classroom educational program and several outreach partnerships, while also keeping tickets affordable, making the enjoyment of classical and popular music available to the entire community.