ONNY Dreams of Spring Featuring Young Artist and Composer

The Orchestra of Northern New York, the North Country's only year-round professional symphony orchestra, will present two performances of classical music that evokes the joy and renewal of spring while celebrating the talents of two exceptional young people.

Dreams of Spring will take place on Saturday, April 2 at 7:30 pm in SUNY Potsdam's Hosmer Hall, and on Sunday, April 3 at 3 pm in Watertown's First Presbyterian Church.  

The program opens with Haydn's Symphony No. 88 in G Major followed by Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major, performed by the 2022 Young Artist Competition winner, Victoria Huffman, 16, Theresa. She played the piece from memory to take First Place in the competition, earning a chance to solo with the full orchestra and the $500 first prize.

The second half begins with a new work, "Waves," composed in MuseScore by Potsdam High School Ninth Grader Constantine Darie during the pandemic. He started composing after being introduced to the computer program, Garage Band, by former Crane student Thomas Lawton, currently a Music Teacher at the Harlem Children's Zone. Constantine includes the composer Toby Fox as one of his major inspirations. It is the first time ONNY has performed a piece composed by a teenager.

The program continues with Mascagni's "Ratcliff s Dream" from Guglielmo Ratcliff (William Ratcliff). Concluding the concert will be all four movements of Smetana's "Vlatava" ("The Moldau") from Ma Vlast (My Fatherland). It is a piece about the great river, Vlatava, or 'The Moldau" on its journey from its source in the mountains of the Bohemian Forest through the Czech countryside to the city of Prague. The music captures the passage through a forest hunt, peasant wedding, a nymph's dance in moonlight, and the rapids of St. John.

ONNY musicians are eager to perform in-person once again. For the safety of musicians and concertgoers, the public is asked to wear masks while in all public places, such as the lobby, restrooms, and while socially distanced in the concert hall.

Tickets are $27 for adults, discounted to $24 for seniors (60+), military personnel (active and veterans), and all healthcare workers as an expression of ONNY's thanks for their tireless efforts during the past two years of the pandemic. Tickets for teens (13-17) are $5 while children (12 and younger) are always admitted free.

A $5 discount is available to all those who donate a gently used musical instrument at the Watertown concert on April 3. ONNY is partnering with Watertown-based HarmoNNY Performing Arts Community to build an lending library that will provide instruments to school districts, adults, and children interested in learning to play one.

ONNY is sponsored, in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature; and by the Northern New York Community Foundation.

For more information about the instrument drive or tickets for the concert, visit onny.org, Brick & Mortar Music, 15 Market St., Potsdam, the CPS Box Office in the Performing Arts Center at SUNY Potsdam, or by calling 315-267-2277.

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