If you are looking for an excuse to go into New York City this weekend, be sure to take advantage of the free New York Philharmonic Memorial Day concert at 8:00 p.m. at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. What a great way to end the long weekend. Although this is not promoted as a children's activity, intellectually curious youngsters over the age of seven would gain immensely from this activity.
The program consists of Charles Ives’s Unanswered Question, a short work that delves into man's place in the universe in a conversation between the different sections of the orchestra. This work is followed by Samuel Barber's contemplative and emotionally charged Adagio for Strings. Ralph Vaughan William's The Lark Ascending was inspired by George Meredith's poem about a lark's flight and song; the composer's music portrays the lark as a solo violin. Karen Gomyo, a Canadian violinist who received the Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2008, is the soloist. Olivier Messiaen's L'Ascension, a musical meditation, concludes the concert. David Robertson, music director of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and principal guest conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, will lead this concert.
If you wish to gain an understanding of orchestral music, you may consult Richard Baker's The Magic of Music, Ethan Mordden's A Guide to Orchestral Music and William Thomson's Music for Listeners.
