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Orchestra tackles complicated work for anniversary concert

For its 10th anniversary, the Northwest Festival Orchestra is working with a children's chorus to perform Gustav Mahler's "Third Symphony," a work with a level of complexity not attempted before in the Northwest suburbs, according to resident conductor Dr. Verne Schwager.

"That's no easy task," he said of the challenge of recruiting and rehearsing the 9- to 14-year-olds who will play a key role in the Summer Sonic Spectacular at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 30, in the Performing Arts Center at Harper College in Palatine.

The work also showcases an orchestra augmented by extra brass and woodwinds and a full percussion battery, including two sets of timpani, a women's chorus, contralto and soprano soloists Lindsey Baer and Angela DeVenuto, and an offstage trumpet soloist.

"It calls for a huge array of forces," Schwager said, with almost 100 performers involved.

The symphony also is unusually long, at 93 minutes, another reason it's not generally attempted in the suburbs, Schwager said.

The length is "impractical for an audience in a suburban setting," he said, adding that he has condensed it to about an hour, while keeping the flavor of all six movements.

"It's going to cost a huge amount of money, about $20,000" to stage, Schwager said. "No one has ever attempted anything like this in this neck of the woods."

The concert also will include brief American works by Stravinsky and Bernstein, as well as a patriotic tribute to America.

For tickets ($35 adult, $25 seniors, $20 students), email festorch@aol.com or call (847) 392-9003.

Lindsey Baer will be a soloist in the performance of Gustav Mahler's "Third Symphony." She's with resident conductor Dr. Verne Schwager. Courtesy of Northwest Festival Orchestra
Members of the children's chorus rehearse for the Northwest Festival Orchestra's 10th anniversary concert. Courtesy of Northwest Festival Orchestra
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