Berkshire Symphony
Fri, April 25th, 2025
7:30 pm
- This event has passed.
The Williams College Department of Music presents the Berkshire Symphony in concert.
This gala concert features three outstanding Williams students who were selected in February at the Berkshire Student Soloist Competition to perform with the Berkshire Symphony. They are:
Jessie Burdette ’25, viola
playing George Enescu – Concertstück
student of Ah Ling Neu
Locke Meyer ’25, clarinet
playing Claude Debussy – Première Rhapsodie
student of Michael Dee
Richard O’Donnell ’27, violin
playing Samuel Barber – Violin Concerto, op. 14, I. Allegro
student of Joanna Kurkowicz
Ronald Feldman conducts the program of solo and orchestral works:
Ludwig van Beethoven – Egmont Overture
Claude Debussy – Première rhapsodie
Locke Meyer ’25, clarinet
Béla Bartók – Romanian Folk Dances, Sz.68
George Enescu – Concertstück
Jessie Burdette ’25, viola
Jacob Fanto ’25 – Sungrazer
World Premiere
Samuel Barber – Violin Concerto, op. 14, I. Allegro
Richard O’Donnell ’27, violin
Aaron Copland – Appalachian Spring (1944) Doppio Movimento, Coda
This event is free and open to the public. There are no reservations or ticketing.
The Berkshire Symphony is a 75-member symphonic orchestra comprising, in roughly equal proportions, Williams College music students, Williams music faculty members, and area professionals. The Symphony performs music by a range of composers, including Beethoven, Brahms, Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, and Wagner. Students are paired with their teachers and mentors throughout the rehearsal period and throughout the performance season. Seated this way, the students are exposed to a level of professionalism and discipline that is rare in an educational setting. At the same time, the students’ infectious enthusiasm contributes to the Berkshire Symphony’s remarkable energy and rich sound. Four concerts are presented each season. The goal is to expose students to a broad range of symphonic repertory, while maintaining a commitment to perform music by living and American composers.