CORVALLIS, Ore. - The Portland Youth Philharmonic, hosted by the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Society, will perform at 3 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 27, in the Austin Auditorium at the LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th Street.
Portland Youth Philharmonic music director David Hattner will lead the orchestra. Works on the program include George Gershwin's jazz-inspired Piano Concerto in F, featuring 14-year-old Joshua Ji, winner of the 2019 Portland Piano International/SOLO Piano Competition; Amy Beach's "Gaelic Symphony;" and "Batuque" by Brazilian composer Oscar Lorenzo Fernández.
Following the success of his "Rhapsody in Blue" in 1924, Gershwin received a commission from Walter Damrosch and the New York Symphony that resulted in his popular three movement piano concerto.
The "Gaelic Symphony" was the first symphony composed and published by an American woman. Despite her lack of European musical training, Beach was a highly regarded composer during the late-19th and early-20th centuries. In addition to her compositions, Beach was an acclaimed piano soloist and also served as president of the board at the New England Conservatory of Music.
Brazilian composer Oscar Lorenzo Fernández was primarily known for his three-act opera "Malazarte." "Batuque," the third movement from a suite for orchestra extracted from the opera, is based on an Afro-Brazilian folk dance adapted for symphony orchestra.
Tickets are $5 and all seating is general admission. Advance tickets are available at cosusymphony.org or at the box office beginning one hour prior to the performance. Accommodations relating to a disability may be made by calling 541-286-5580, preferably at least one week in advance.
