Welcome to CCO’s 42nd season!  Guest conductor Jordan Webster will lead the orchestra in Antonin Dvorak’s American Suite, and Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony #5.

Dvorak composed the American Suite in 1894, during his short stay in the U.S. as director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York City.  During his tenure, he enthusiastically studied American indigenous and cultural music. Though one of his lesser-known works, the American Suite blends the beloved folk melodies of Dvorak’s native Czechoslovakia with American musical influences.  Felix Mendelssohn’s monumental Symphony #5, the “Reformation Symphony,” is likely better-known today than during his lifetime. Mendelssohn intended on performing it in 1830, to mark the 300th anniversary of a historic document that symbolized the Protestant Reformation. However, several circumstances delayed the symphony’s timely completion. Mendelssohn finally performed it two years later, but perhaps due to self-criticism, it was last time he ever did.

This concert is dedicated to the memory of long-time CCO violist and board member, Gail Bishop Welter, who passed away in May. A reception will follow the concert.