The Natchez Festival of Music proudly announces its 25th year celebration and presents its first concert for the 2014-2015 season with a tribute to America with a symphony concert aptly entitled “From the New World,” featuring the University of Southern Mississippi’s Symphony Orchestra.

Come this week and listen to the New World Sympony composed by Antonin Dvorak,to be performed at the Margaret Martin Performing Arts Center in Natchez at 8 p.m. Thursday.

During Antonin Dvorak’s brief 1890’s sojourn in New York City, he was so taken with American culture and its people that he subtly wove themes from American melodies into the symphony.

Listeners note that the third movement of the New World Symphony embodies themes from the spiritual-like song “Goin’ Home’” which actually was later written in 1922 by a student of Antonin Dvorak, William Arms Fischer.

Dvorak too was inspired by the poet Longfellow, “Songs of Hiawatha.” Dvorak was quoted in the New York Herald in 1893, a day before the premiere of the work in New York City, “I have not actually used any of the (Native American) melodies. I have simply written original themes embodying the peculiarities of the Indian music, and, using these themes as subjects, have developed them with all the resources of modern rhythms, counterpoint, and orchestral colour.”

Astronaut Neil Armstrong personally carried a recording of the New World Symphony into space on Apollo 11 for the first moon landing in 1969.

The orchestra also will perform Dvorak Cello Concert featuring Alexander Russakovsky, and the Star Spangled Banner in celebration of its bi-centennial anniversary written by the poet Francis Scott Key in 1814. The performance will be conducted by Jay Dean, University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra director of music and principal conductor, along with Ivan del Prado, assistant conductor.

The Grape Escape Club Room will open for drinks at 6:30 p.m. with the concert beginning at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 for adults; $10 for students and members of the military with ID. Cash bar only.

Buy tickets online from Natchez Pilgrimage Tours natchezpilgrimage.com, by telephone 1-800-647-6742 or at the door.

The Natchez Festival of Music is celebrating its 25th year, and the lineup of musical entertainment extends from light opera, the Merry Widow on Saturday, Oct. 25, to a Christmas Cabaret on Saturday, Dec. 5, followed by the Alcorn State University Concert Choir and Men’s Chorale at St. Mary’s Basillica on Sunday, Dec. 7. In May 2015, each weekend will bring fabulous music and musicians, including “Best of the Mississippi Blues — A Tribute to Robert Johnson,” Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, the Pirates of Penzance and many more diverse musical events enough to please all types of musical preferences.

Please watch for further announcements and the complete season of our Festival 25th year.

 

Fran Trappey is a member of the Natchez Festival of Music’s publicity and marketing department.