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Columbus Symphony to Perform World Premiere of Donald Harris’ Symphony No. 2

April 3, 2012

Columbus Symphony to Perform World Premiere of Donald Harris’ Symphony No. 2

The world premiere of Donald Harris’ Symphony No. 2 will be performed by the Columbus Symphony April 13 and 14. CSO music director Jean-Marie Zeitouni will lead the symphony in the performance of its first commissioned piece in more than 20 years. Harris, professor emeritus of composition and theory and former dean of the College of the Arts at Ohio State, composed the traditional four-movement, large-scale symphony over a five-year period, and describes it as a kaleidoscope, which is also the title he chose for the first movement.

The work is part of the CSO’s program, The Satirist and the Philosopher, being presented at the Ohio Theatre at 8 pm April 13 and 14. Tickets are available by calling the Ohio Theatre Ticket Office at (614) 228-8600 or through Ticketmaster outlets.

“Seeing the patterns change as the kaleidoscope is shaken up or rotated has intrigued everyone at one time or other,” said Harris.” So too the motifs, harmonies, rhythms, or colors of my symphony can be seen (or heard) as resulting from a musical shaking up.”

The instrumentation of the four movements (Kaleidoscope, Arioso, Grave, and Tarentella) is marked by an extended use of percussion, used sparingly in the first movement and not at all in the second and third. The fourth movement calls for the use of 14 different percussion instruments plus timpani and harp. There is frequently a chamberorchestra feel to the piece, even though the instrumentation is large, particularly the woodwinds, calling for three flutes, two oboes, English horn, four clarinets, two bassoons, and contrabassoon, as well as the large assemblage of percussion.

WOSU’s Christopher Purdy will hold a free, pre-concert lecture about the program for ticket holders at 7 pm each night on the fourth floor of the Ohio Theatre’s Galbreath Pavilion.