February 22
The original artist has got to be our natural world, inspiring painters, musicians and inventors since the dawn of humanity. This month at Miller Symphony Hall, the Allentown Symphony Orchestra gets a jump on Earth Day's 50th anniversary with its Go Green! concert. Classical selections old and new, familiar and fresh, interpret our environment's many splendors in an event celebrating the only Earth we have.
“Artistic Director Diane Wittry made a very thorough work of putting this together,” says Director of Education Norma Nuñez-Ruch. “Insects, canyons, seasons, forests, rain forests—there's so much to explore.” Vivaldi's “Spring” will be well known to anyone who's been on hold, while Grofé's “On the Trail” from the Grand Canyon Suite gives a vivid impression of moseying through a rocky landscape on the back of a mule.
The concert is held during the week for local elementary school, homeschooled and charter school students, and on the weekend for the public. “Very often,” Nuñez-Ruch says of the students, “for 50 to 60 percent, it's the first time they're attending a classical concert.” The orchestra has worked closely with the Wildlands Conservancy to generate a manual for teachers to lead up to the show with relevant lessons. Imagery and animation projected behind the orchestra will help bring a visual dynamic to the music.
Beginning at 12:30 p.m., crafts and activities are offered upstairs to get the audience acquainted with the production they're about to see. An instrument “Petting Zoo” allows anyone to pick up and try the instruments they'll hear played by the orchestra and give them a strum or a toot. During the weekend show for the public, anyone 21 and younger is free to attend. Grab your kids and go!
$30; ages 21 and under: Free | 2 p.m. | Miller Symphony Hall | 23 N. 6th St., Allentown | 610.432.6715 | millersymphonyhall.org
