UW Chamber Orchestra Concert Sunday

“Airs and Dances, Old and New” is the title of the University of Wyoming Chamber Orchestra’s program Sunday, Feb. 11, at 7:30 p.m. in the Buchanan Center for the Performing Arts concert hall.

Tickets cost $10 for the public; $7 for faculty, staff and senior citizens; and $6 for students. Tickets are available at the Performing Arts box office and the Wyoming Union information desk, by calling (307) 766-6666 or going online at www.uwyo.edu/finearts.

The program features a classical period serenade by Mozart; a contemporary set of three pieces by Argentinian tango composer Astor Piazzolla; and airs and dances written in 1932 by Italian composer Ottorino Respighi. 

Written in 1776, when Mozart was just 20 years old, “Serenata Notturna, K. 239” is a work for chamber orchestra and solo string quartet and timpani. The soloists from the U.S. and two countries for this work include violinists Sophia Helmkamp, from Colorado; Mary Sanderson, from Indiana; Antonio Soria, from Spain; and Washington Pereira, from Brazil. 

Piazzolla, whose life spanned most of the 20th century, developed a style that combined classical idioms and forms with tangos, including “Tres Piezas Breves” (Three Short Pieces) for chamber orchestra and piano. 

The program ends with a virtuoso showpiece for chamber orchestra by Respighi. “Ancient Airs and Dances, Suite No. 3” is based on Italian Renaissance lute music in a style referred to as neoclassicism, combining old forms with late romantic expressionism. 

For more information, call Kathy Kirkaldie, UW Fine Arts coordinator, at (307) 766-2160 or email kirisk@uwyo.edu.