Department of Music

• Saturday, November 20, 2010
• Old Cabell Hall
• 8:00 p.m.
• $10-35 Adults / $10 Students / Free for UVa students (if reserved in advance)

• Sunday, November 21, 2010
• Monticello High School
• 3:30 p.m.
• $10-35 Adults / $10 Students / Free for UVa students (if reserved in advance)

The Charlottesville & University Symphony Orchestra turns up the heat on its 2010-11 “Feast of Sound” season with a sizzling program titled “Melt” on Saturday, November 20, 8:00 p.m., at Old Cabell Hall on the U.Va Grounds, and Sunday, November 21, 3:30 p.m., at Monticello High School in Charlottesville.

Conducted by Music Director Kate Tamarkin, the concert includes Silvestre Revueltas’

“Sensemayá,” “Nine Variants on Paganini” by Frank Proto, Astor Piazzolla’s “Contrabajeando” and “Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber” by Paul Hindemith.

Featured as the guest artist in “Nine Variants on Paganini” and “Contrabajeando” is double bassist Jeffrey Bradetich.  Described by the New York Times as “the master of his instrument,” Jeff Bradetich is regarded as one of the leading performers and teachers of the double bass in the United States today.  Since his Carnegie Hall debut in 1982, he has performed more than 450 concerts on four continents.  He has won many major solo competitions, recorded six solo albums of music for double bass and piano and been featured on radio and television throughout North and South America and Europe, including CBS, CNN, the BBC, CBC and NPR.

Bradetich has taught on the faculties of the University of Michigan and Northwestern University prior to his 1994 appointment as director of the largest double bass program in the world at the University of North Texas.  He will give a master class at Old Cabell Hall on Friday, November 19, 3:00 pm; admission is free. 

Kate Tamarkin describes the program as “rhythmic, bright and bold.”  Mexican in flavor, “Sensemayá” is taken from a poem by Afro-Cuban poet Nicolás Guillén and driven by a chant to kill a serpent.  Frank Proto’s “Nine Variants on Paganini” is a virtuoso vehicle for double bass.  “Contrabajeando” reinforces Astor Piazzolla’s reputation in his beloved Argentina as “king of the tango.”  Paul Hindemith’s “Symphonic Metamorphosis” shows him at his best: concise, upbeat and orchestrated with a dizzying array of color.

For those who want to “get behind the scenes,” pre-concert lectures will be presented 45 minutes before each concert.  Free of charge, these informative and entertaining lectures by McIntire Department of Music Chairman and Associate Professor of Music Richard Will offer both novice and experienced patrons a deeper appreciation of the performances.  Saturday’s lecture will take place in Minor Hall; Sunday’s lecture will be held in the Forum at Monticello High School. 

Free parking is available in the U.Va Central Grounds Parking Garage, located on Emmet   Street, on Saturday night and at the high school on Sunday afternoons.  Both venues are wheelchair accessible.                                                                                            

Tickets are priced at $35, $30, $25 and $20 for adults, and $10 for students.  U.Va students may request one complimentary ticket in advance.  Tickets may be purchased at The University of Virginia Arts Box Office, (434) 924-3376, 12:00-5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday in the lobby of the Drama Building at 109 Culbreth Road, or on-line at www.artsboxoffice.virginia.edu.

Remaining dates in the Feast of Sound season are:

February 12-13 Crave with Dmitri Shteinberg, piano

March 26-27: Indulge with Laura Zuiderveen, mezzo-soprano and the Women of the U.Va University Singers

April 30-May 1: Savor with Paul Neebe, trumpet

Pro-rated subscription tickets for the remainder of the season are available at the orchestra office (434) 924-3139.