Sibelius' Violin Concerto – Joe Liu, soloist
Jeremy Beck's: Symphony No. 1 – world premiere
Bellefield Hall Auditorium, free
The University of Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s upcoming concert will feature the world premiere of Jeremy Beck’s Symphony No. 1 and outstanding student performer Joe Liu in the first movement of Sibelius’ Violin Concerto.
Jeremy Beck is a celebrated composer whose opera The Biddle Boys and Mrs. Soffel received its critically acclaimed premiere in Pittsburgh during 2001. Beck has earned awards, grants and honors from the American Composers Orchestra, California Arts Council, the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Composers Forum, Kentucky Foundation for Women, Millay Colony for the Arts, Meet the Composer, Wellesley Composers Conference, Oregon Bach Festival, Iowa Arts Council, and the American Music Center.
The orchestra will continue their exploration of early 20th century violin concertos when Pitt Junior Joe Liu performs the first movement of Sibelius’ famous concerto (1903–04). Liu is the University Orchestra’s concert master and was concert master of the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra before enrolling at Pitt. He is majoring in biology with a chemistry minor.
The concert takes place on Wednesday, February 20 at 8 p.m. at Bellefield Hall Auditorium (315 S. Bellefield Avenue) and is free to the public.
The University of Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra performs not only works of the standard art music literature, but new works, especially those of Pitt's student composers. Outstanding students appear as concerto soloists, and the personnel consists of music students, students from the University at large, faculty, staff, and members of the metropolitan community.