University-Shenandoah Symphony Orchestra International Kaleidoscope

Journey with us as we present music from Germany, Poland, Spain, Russia, the United States, and Great Britain. We begin with Richard Wagner’s tranquil “Prelude to Act I” of his final opera, Parsifal, followed by Andrzej Panufnik’s Old Polish Suite, spotlighting the string students from Washington & Lee. We then travel to France and Spain, where French composer Maurice Ravel musically depicts various Spanish dances while maintaining certain French characteristics. The first half of the program will conclude with two musical encores: the highly satirical “Polka” from Dmitri Shostakovich's The Age of Gold and American composer John Adams’ minimalistic Short Ride in a Fast Machine. The second half of the program will consist of Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations, a set of inventive variations musically portraying Elgar’s close personal friends, his wife, and even himself.