Be there when tomorrow’s conducting stars take on audience favorites!

Copland composed his sublime Appalachian Spring in 1944 for Martha Graham and originally called it “Ballet for Martha.” Right before the premiere, she renamed it Appalachian Spring, inspired by the Hart Crane poem, “The Dance.” In it, Crane’s reference to spring is to a water source, not the season, but the poem does describe a journey to greet springtime. This transcendent and quintessentially American work captures the optimism of our national spirit, the sustenance of the land, and the joy of new beginnings.

With its iconic four note opening motif, Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony is the most famous piece of Western music ever written. Its premiere, however, was far from auspicious. The Viennese audience shivered in the freezing concert hall; the piece began more than two hours into a four-hour concert; and the nearly deaf composer who was conducting the orchestra had to stop the ensemble and go back to the beginning. It was only when the music critic E.T.A.Hoffmann got hold of the score and wrote a glowing review that people began to take notice. They haven’t stopped since.

The run time for this performance is 1 hour 30 minutes.