When the Orchestra of Northern New York opens its 36th season on September 2, it will celebrate a Season of Discovery. With a world premiere, four new guest conductors, two of whom are finalists for the position of ONNY’s next Music Director, and a money-back guarantee for first-time concertgoers, ONNY is sure to delight long-time audience members and newcomers.
The season begins September 2 at the Clayton Opera House with Dances and Escapades, conducted by Dr. Brian Doyle, the Director of Bands at the Crane School of Music since 2006. He also conducts the Crane Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band, as well as teaches courses in conducting.
The program he selected includes Ma Mere l’Oye (the Mother Goose Suite) by Maurice Ravel; Breathe by Carlos Simon, and Appalachian Spring by Aaron Copland.
A special work premiering for the first time anywhere is Escapades, by John Anthony Lennon. Performing the soprano saxophone solo is former Crane School of Music professor Christopher Creviston, who is joining the Orchestra from Arizona.
The second performance of Dances and Escapades takes place Sunday, September 3 at 3 pm in Hosmer Hall, SUNY Potsdam.
The fall concert features Michael Colburn as conductor, one of the two finalists for the Music Director position. Colburn is the former Director of “The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band. He also was the leader of its Chamber Orchestra, in which he conducted musicians primarily in performances at the White House.
He has programmed Felix Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture (Fingal’s Cave), George Walker’s Lyric for Strings, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol, and Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations.
Performances are Saturday, October 28 at 7:30 pm in Hosmer Hall and Sunday, October 29 at 3 pm in First Presbyterian Church, Watertown.
ONNY encourages the public to celebrate Holiday in Brass, which welcomes a 23-piece brass and percussion ensemble to the stage. Dr. James Madeja, a retired Crane School of Music professor of trumpet as well as a former member of the Potsdam Brass Quintet, will conduct.
Works range from Fisher Tull’s Variations on an Advent Hymn, Valerie Coleman’s Umoja: The First Day of Kwanzaa, and Festive Sounds of Hanukkah arranged by Bill Holcome and Bill Holcombe, Jr. Christmas Fanfare for Brass and Percussion, Suite of Carols for Brass Choir, and Christmas Toons are just a few of the many other works to be performed.
Performances are Saturday, December 16 at 7:30 pm in Hosmer Hall, SUNY Potsdam, and Sunday, December 17 at 3 pm in First Presbyterian Church, Watertown.
The April concert introduces the second finalist for the position of ONNY Music Director. Adrian Slywotzky is currently Director of Orchestras at the Crane School of Music. He is a prizewinner of the Atlantic Coast International Conducting Competition in Portugal in 2016 and the Audite International Conducting Competition in Poland in 2017. For three years he was the Associate Director of Orchestraas at the University of Michigan.
His program choices are titled Visions and Reflections and include: The Abduction from the Seraglio by Amadeus Mozart; Crystal Gazing by Dolores White; Le Tombeau de Couperin by Maurice Ravel; and Symphony No. 2 by Jean Sibelius.
Performances are Saturday, April 27, 2024 at 7:30 pm in Hosmer Hall, and Sunday, April 28 at 3 pm in First Presbyterian Church, Watertown.
The final concert of the season is An American Salute, a rousing program of American music such as Liberty Bell March by John Philip Sousa, Cuban Overture by George Gershwin, selections from The Sound of Music by Richard Rodgers, and The Cowboys by John Williams, among several others.
The program will be conducted by Michael Colburn.
Performances are slated for Tuesday, July 2 at 8 pm in Watertown’s Thompson Park, the ever-popular free Concert in the Park; Wednesday, July 3 at 7:30 pm in Hosmer Hall; and a free concert on Thursday, July 4 at 7 pm at Thousand Island Park on Wellesley Island.
Tickets may be purchased online at onny.org or by phone at 315-212-3440.
First-time concertgoers are promised a money back guarantee. If not completely satisfied with their initial ONNY musical experiences, they will receive a full refund.
ONNY is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization designated by the IRS as a charitable entity, with donations tax-deductible.
Its major sponsors are the New York State Council on the Arts, the Northern New York Community Foundation, SUNY Potsdam, and the Crane School of Music.