Alexander鈥檚 Feast, the Barber of Seville overture and a review of popular TV themes are among the offerings in year-end concerts by 91看片 Davis singers and musicians. Also, the university鈥檚 resident Empyrean Ensemble will present its annual concert of new works by graduate student composers.
The University Chorus plans to perform Alexander鈥檚 Feast in a concert scheduled for 8 p.m. May 31 in Jackson Hall at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts.
George Frideric Handel wrote the music for Alexander鈥檚 Feast, which features a libretto by Newburgh Hamilton, who adapted the work from John Dryden鈥檚 ode Alexander鈥檚 Feast, or the Power of Music (1697).
It describes a banquet held by Alexander the Great and his mistress, Thais, in the captured Persian city of Persepolis. The success of the piece encouraged Handel to make the transition from writing Italian-language operas to English choral works.
The University Chorus鈥 presentation of Alexander鈥檚 Feast will feature soprano Elizabeth Weigle, tenor Benjamin Butterfield and baritone Jeffrey Fields, according to the Department of Music Web site.
Also on the evening鈥檚 program: Handel鈥檚 Coronation Anthems, including Zadok the Priest.
The Empyrean Ensemble concert, New Music from Davis: Graduate Student Composers, is set for 7 p.m. June 1 in the Mondavi Center鈥檚 Studio Theatre. The composers, writing specifically for the ensemble: Hendel Alm茅tus, Ben Irwin, Sue-Hye Kim, Garrett Shatzer, An Tan, Davide Verotta and Ching-Yi Wang. A preconcert talk, 鈥淒emystifying the Music,鈥 is set for 6 p.m.
The Symphony Orchestra concludes its 50th anniversary season with a family-friendly concert the evening of June 2 in Jackson Hall. The Department of Music advises people to take note of the early starting time: 7 p.m.
The program, with D. Kern Holoman conducting: the overture from Rossini鈥檚 comic masterpiece, the Barber of Seville, which includes Figaro鈥檚 famous aria 鈥淟argo al factotum鈥; Beethoven鈥檚 Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral), giving sound to the beauty of nature and then its untamed fury; and Mendelssohn鈥檚 Violin Concerto, with 91看片 Davis undergraduate John Abdallah, violin. This concerto proved to be Mendelssohn鈥檚 last and probably most influential orchestral work.
Next up is the University Concert Band鈥檚 Summer Serenade, at 7 p.m. June 3 in Jackson Hall. Bands from Roseville鈥檚 Buljan and Cooley middle schools are due to join the university band. The program lists Holst: A Moorside Suite; Hazo: Rush, otherwise known as Ride, Part II; Karrick: Mambo Furioso; Zaninelli: Roma Sacra; and Prime Time Review (popular TV themes).
Tickets: (530) 754-2787 or (866) 754-2787, or .
Media Resources
Dave Jones, Dateline, 530-752-6556, dljones@ucdavis.edu