Classical music is not just for old people - just ask any of the 70 members of the Tufts Symphony Orchestra.
This week, the orchestra is warming up for its Spring Concert, which falls on Saturday, April 14. "Pictures at an Exhibition," written in 1874 by Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, will be the focus of the symphony's performance.
Mussorgsky composed this piece following the death of his friend Viktor Hartmann, a 19th-century artist. "Pictures at an Exhibition" is like a classical soundtrack depicting the composer walking through his dead friend's exhibition, using music to describe each of the paintings that he sees. The music is almost cinematic in its expression of visual occurrences.
"It was a ground-breaking piece when [Mussorgsky] composed it," Malka Yaacobi, the orchestra's conductor, said. "You can hear the walking music in 'Promenade' and the music of the pictures. You really hear the imagery."
Despite its solemn topic, Mussorgsky's music offers a variety of emotions to its audience. "You have movements that are very lively, funny and so forth, but you also have very elegant and majestic movements," Yaacobi said.
The orchestra will be accompanied by two soloists, who are the winners of a concerto competition that the music department holds annually. Freshman Brian Chau will begin the concert with part of "Piano Concerto No.3 in C major, Op. 26" by Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev. Chau will be followed by baritone sophomore John Erban singing "Granada" by Agust?n Lara. The concert will conclude with "Pictures at an Exhibition."
The orchestra has faced many challenges this semester. Moving into the new Granoff Music Center was problematic because flooding affected many students in their ability to practice.
"The most challenging things are the deadlines of everyday life. For instance, this semester we moved to a new place, and the basement of the new building was flooded and practice rooms were closed for three weeks. But we had to stick to our concert schedule," Yaacobi said. "The question is, how do we get around life with art? This is something that every artist has to ask, something any actor or athlete has to face. In the end, you just have to do what you can, and perform to the best of your ability."
Orchestra members have to cope with the same sort of problem when they travel abroad every winter. The orchestra returns from winter break about 10 days early in order to perform in other countries, which have included Bermuda, Brazil, Iceland and Costa Rica in recent years. Often, these places are unprepared to host a full-sized orchestra.
"Each place is so unique. When we go abroad, we may have to sit in a different configuration or play outside, but music transcends everything," Yaacobi said.
Promoting orchestral music is very important to the Tufts Symphony Orchestra. In addition to traveling abroad, they hold concerts for schoolchildren in Medford. The attendance to these performances is impressive, with around 1,500 children present this year alone. Regardless of age or nationality, Yaacobi believes that the orchestra's music has a profound effect on everyone who hears it.
"It's very interesting to see how people react when they hear the symphony orchestra for the first time. They can tell that they are hearing a great art, and every art that can be considered great has something very deep and universal, but on the other hand, something very personal," Yaacobi said. "Everyone immediately understands that it is very deep and tells a story."
As for the concert this Saturday, Yaacobi hopes that Tufts students will be affected by the orchestra's music as well as appreciate the talent of the performers.
"I think the students are very good players, and they care a lot about the music," Yaccobi said. "It's great to see your colleagues do so well: two soloists who are amazing, and the Tufts Symphony playing one of the most exciting pieces of orchestra literature."
