The Moorpark College Symphony Orchestra will recreate musical masterpieces from two great 18th century composers at the “Mozart and Beethoven Concert” this Saturday, March 3.
Professor James Song, Moorpark’s Music Department Chair, will conduct and direct the show. “We spent a lot of time rehearsing,” Song said. “This is going to be a fun concert. I’d like to encourage a lot of people to come to see our college’s own orchestra perform.”
Performances will include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s “Bassoon Concerto,” Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “1812” Overture. Amy Gillick, professor of music and the bassoon, will join the MC Symphony Orchestra to present the Mozart piece.
“In an orchestra concert, Mozart’s ‘Concerto’ highlights a soloist,” Song said. “We wanted to showcase Amy Gillick.”
Gillick is the newest addition to Moorpark’s music faculty. She started playing the bassoon in eighth grade and has been mastering the instrument for the past 20 years. She received her master’s and doctorate degrees in music from UCLA, and she holds the distinction of being the university’s first doctoral graduate to specialize in the bassoon.
This concert will mark her debut performance for Moorpark College.
“It’s an honor to be asked to play,” Gillick said. “Mozart’s ‘Bassoon Concerto’ is a really lighthearted, happy piece that Mozart wrote when he was around 18 years old, about the same age as the students here. It has a really youthful energy to it.”
The “Mozart and Beethoven Concert” is the first in a series of four concerts that Moorpark’s Music Department will present this year. Generally, the department produces two shows each fall and spring semester.
Acceptance into MC’s Symphony Orchestra is highly selective, as Professor Song himself handpicks musicians through auditions. “We take great pride in the orchestra that we have here,” said Song.
The orchestra has been rehearsing weekly for their March 3 concert since the beginning of January.
Tim Swanson, an 18-year-old music major, will be one of six bass players performing in the show. He has been playing the double bass for 2 1/2 years and is very excited to perform for a live audience.
“It should be a great show. Everybody’s really good,” Swanson said. “The music is really fun – difficult, yet rewarding.”
The “Mozart and Beethoven Concert” will debut this Saturday, March 3, at 8 p.m. on the main stage in the Moorpark College Performing Arts Center. Tickets are available for purchase at the Moorpark College Box Office. Prices are $15 for adults and $10 for students, seniors, children, and staff. Advance tickets may be purchased online for a 20% discount at http://www.moorparkcollege.edu/PAC. Parking is $2 per day Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and parking on weekends is free.
Call the Box Office at 805-378-1485 for more information.
