(PLAINFIELD, NJ) -- The Plainfield Symphony premiered an online family concert, Light Classics for All Ages, on March 6th which is available for viewing at any time. Watch members of the Plainfield Symphony string section led by Concertmaster Evelyn Estava perform light classical gems and tell a little about the evolution of the waltz. From Vienna, Maestro Charles Prince will introduce each selection.
The Plainfield Symphony is New Jersey's oldest community symphony and the third oldest in the country. This Arts program is made possible in part by a 2021 HEART (History, Education, Arts Reaching Thousands) Grant from the Union County Board of County Commissioners.
Featured on this hour-long program will be the following works:
* Selected movements from Eine Kleine Nachtmusik by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. This short serenade is one of Mozart’s most popular works. While most Viennese serenades of the time were played by ensembles of wind players, this work, scored only for strings, was rather exceptional. It was Mozart’s last serenade and is full of elegance, wit and charm.
* The 2nd movement Valse (Waltz) from Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings in C Major, Op.48 is quintessential Tchaikovsky and features one of his best melodies, lilting and graceful.
* Several well-known waltzes by Austrian composer Johann Strauss Jr. (“The Waltz King”): Wiener Blut (Vienna Blood) and The Blue Danube as well as his Pizzicato Polka.
* The Radetzky March, Op.228 by Johann Strauss Sr. has been a staple of each New Year’s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic since 1946 with the traditional audience rhythmic clapping.
If you enjoy the Light Classics for All Ages family concert, please consider making a donation to the symphony.
As New Jersey’s oldest community symphony, the Plainfield Symphony Orchestra represents the highest standard in musical excellence in programs designed to educate and uplift local audiences. PSO is known for its masterful performances of rarely performed works by master composers, including Mahler and Shostakovich; the sparkling sophistication of the best of Broadway presented in collaboration with leading Broadway performers; and concerts designed for the entire family to create a new generation of symphonic music enthusiasts.
For 100 years, PSO has been “the jewel in the crown of the Queen City,” interwoven with Plainfield’s rich history as one of New Jersey’s oldest and most substantial cities. Through the cultural leadership of the PSO, audiences have enjoyed collaborations with the Young Pianist Competition of New Jersey, the Crescent Choral Society, and the French School of Music. The annual Free Family Concert is PSO’s gift back to the community which has nurtured and supported it since its inception.
PSO has been led since 2009 by Charles Prince, who has led a wide range of international orchestras from the Moscow Symphony to the WDR Orchestra in Cologne and Essen, Germany, as well as the Munich Philharmonic and orchestras in Switzerland, Austria, Finland and Bulgaria. He is a regular guest conductor of orchestras such as the Oregon Sympony Orchestra, the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Kuopi Symphony in Finland, as well as the Canadian Brass with the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra. He is equally comfortable with pops music, having served as Associate Conductor for the New York Pops from 1996 to 2003, leading that orchestra on numerous occasions at Carnegie Hall. Charles Prince continues to bring PSO to new and exciting heights of excellence.
PSO performs in the sanctuary of historic Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, a Neo-Gothic styled church which features beautiful stained-glass windows, magnificent wood carvings, and a high arcing ceiling. The Sanctuary also houses an elaborate pipe organ built by Gilbert Adams and comprised of 5,124 pipes and a four-manual console.
The PSO is a multiple-year recipient of funding from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.
