Stravinsky's THE RITE OF SPRING To Have Regional Premiere Performance With Western Piedmont Symphony

Western Piedmont Symphony will present MASTERWORKS: THE RITE OF SPRING, on Saturday, January 25. This season, the regional professional orchestra celebrates 60 years of music in the foothills of western North Carolina with more than seventeen concerts featuring music from across the centuries, from Bach to Beethoven, Stravinsky to Ravel, Gershwin to Ellington, and more.

This MASTERWORKS performance is a significant event as it marks the first time the Western Piedmont Symphony will perform the groundbreaking The Rite of Spring in its 60-year history. The concert also features a wide array of symphonic works, from the Debussy work for solo flute, Syrinx, the intense and suspenseful string suite from the movie Psycho by Bernard Herrmann, and the Russian folktale fantasy, The Night on Bald Mountain, by Mussorgsky.

"Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring is a piece that literally changed the course of musical history and had one of the most scandalous premieres (in 1913) within the performing arts," noted WPS Music Director Matthew Troy. "This piece has since become a landmark work and has made its way into pop culture when it was featured in Disney's animated classic, Fantasia."

"Western Piedmont Symphony is breaking new ground by performing this piece for the first time in its 60-year history. This will be one of the most significant arts events in the history of our area," added Troy.

MASTERWORKS: THE RITE OF SPRING is sponsored by Sandra Pait Clay and George Clay, III; Ann and John Hall; and an Anonymous Angel. Season media partner is Our State Magazine. Western Piedmont Symphony also receives funding support from Arts Culture Catawba and the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources

MASTERWORKS tickets are $20, $30, $40, $50 for adults, and $10 for students with valid ID. Concert start time is 7:30 p.m. To purchase tickets, visit wpsymphony.org, call 828.324.8603, or visit the WPS Box Office, located on the SALT Block at 243 Third Avenue NE, Hickory, NC, 28601. Box Office hours are 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Wed. - Fri. P.E. Monroe Auditorium is located at 775 6th St. NE, Hickory, NC 28601(on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University Please note: All programs, artists, venues, prices, and dates are subject to change.

To post a comment, you must register and login.