Northwest Symphony to honor Lincoln at concert
The Northwest Symphony Orchestra will present the second concert of its 57th season at 3:30 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 18, in the Theatre for the Performing Arts at Maine West High School, 1755 S. Wolf Road in Des Plaines.
The concert, titled, "Happy Birthday, Mr. Lincoln!", will feature music by American composers who lived during and after President Lincoln's time.
Music Director and Conductor Paul Vermel has chosen Aaron Copland's celebrated "Lincoln Portrait" to honor the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. The distinguished radio personality, Mel Zellman, formerly of WFMT, will be the narrator, recalling Lincoln's final words of the Gettysburg address:
"That this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom and that government of the people, by the
people, and for the people shall not perish from the earth."
The afternoon will begin with Dudley Buck's "Festival Overture on the Star Spangled Banner." Other selections will include the "Prelude to "Oedipus Tyrannus" by John Paine, "The Unanswered Question," by Charles Ives, George Chadwick's "Noël and Jubilee," and Louis Gottschalk's "A Night in the Tropics." The concert will feature a special appearance by the Arlingtones Barbershop Chorus.
Preconcert commentaries will be presented one hour before the concerts by Carolyn Paulin, a producer and program host at radio station WFMT 98.7 Chicago.
The 70-member Northwest Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1951; its musicians range from talented students to music professionals, who meet weekly to play and enjoy great symphonic orchestral music. Symphony members, whose ages extend from the late teens to the eighties, live in Des Plaines and more than 45 surrounding communities. The members represent a wide spectrum of interests and backgrounds, including financial analysts, real estate agents, engineers, physicians, music performers and educators, as well as both students and retirees.
Individual concert tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for seniors, and $10 for students. Children under age 14 are admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult. Tickets also will be available at the door on the day of the concert.
Those who wish to purchase tickets in advance have two options: Mail requests and payment checks to the Northwest Symphony Orchestra, 1100W. Northwest Hwy., Suite 205, Mount Prospect, IL 60056; or online order forms available at the orchestra's Web site, northwestsymphony.org.