The Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra presents Brahms & Beach and the return of Supper at the Symphony

The Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra is delighted to present Brahms & Beach on November 6th at 7:30 PM at Tilson Auditorium. Concert repertoire includes Hector Berlioz’s overture to his opera Béatrice et Bénedict, Johannes Brahms’ Concerto for Violin and Cello (fondly known as the Double Concerto) with violinist and former THSO Associate Concertmaster Benjamin Hoffman and his sister and cellist Natania Hoffman. The THSO will close the evening with Amy Beach’s superb “Gaelic” Symphony. Preceding the concert will be the return of the THSO’s Supper at the Symphony! Indiana State University President, Deborah Curtis, is also pleased to host a reception following the concert in the Heritage Lounge of Tirey Hall.

 “I am really looking forward to welcoming Benjamin Hoffman back to perform as a soloist with the Terre Haute Symphony,” said David Bowden, Artistic Director and Conductor. “Benjamin, Natania and I are preparing an interpretive approach to the Brahms that is energetic and exciting.  Brahms’ Double and Beach’s Gaelic Symphony are such great masterpieces – paired together, along with the lively concert opener, it will be an evening of magnificent music.

It is not at all uncommon for Shakespeare’s plays to serve as a source of inspiration for new works of art. Hector Berlioz’s opera, Béatrice et Bénedict, based on Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, is a perfect example of such an adaptation. The overture is made up mostly of two musical themes found in the opera, which places more emphasis on the secondary couple of the play, Beatrice and Benedict. The overture expertly foreshadows the opera’s story of love, tricks, and hilarity.

Brahms wrote his Double Concerto as a sort of olive-branch to be extended to violinist Joseph Joachim, who had cut contact with Brahms several years earlier. In his program notes for this event, THSO Composer-in-residence Daniel Powers describes the piece as having moments of rhapsody, delicacy, and a lilting, dance-like theme. It features the violin and cello in a brilliant way that, at the time, was nearly unheard of.

The THSO will welcome guest artists Benjamin Hoffman, violin, and his sister Natania Hoffman, cello, for the Brahms Double Concerto. Both musicians have performed throughout Europe, Russia, India, China, New Zealand, Australia, and the United States. Benjamin is a former Associate Concertmaster of the Terre Haute Symphony. Natania’s performance with the THSO marks her first time back in the U.S. since the pandemic began and she is “delighted with this opportunity to collaborate with her brother.”

At just four years old, Amy Beach was playing the piano and composing her own melodies. It comes with little surprise that, in a time when women were generally discouraged from pursuing careers outside the home, she would be the first American woman to achieve success as a composer. It’s even more remarkable that during much of her life she was the most famous American classical composer in the world. In composing her Gaelic Symphony, she chose four authentic Irish tunes of “simple, rugged, and unpretentious beauty;” the rest of the melodic material she composed herself. While there have been some that feel the need to qualify their praise by referring to the composer’s gender, the fact is that Beach’s only symphony is a masterpiece by any standard, and certainly one of the finest concert works written by any American.

This concert is proudly sponsored by the THSO Symphony League, Robert L. Cowden, Fireplace World, and Jo Einstandig. The concert is being presented in honor of Indiana State University, Ramon Meyer, and Bob and Marilyn Billups.

Supper at the Symphony is Back!

The THSO is pleased to bring back Supper at the Symphony! Come to the concert early and enjoy a delectable three-course meal! Supper at the Symphony is served in the Heritage Ballroom of Tirey Hall, right down the hall from Tilson Auditorium. The cash bar opens at 5:00pm, and dinner is served promptly at 5:30pm. Tickets are $25 per person. Patrons will enjoy a Greek salad to start and choose one entrée of either molasses glazed pork loin, pesto salmon, or butternut squash ravioli. Raspberry Cheesecake will be served for dessert. Reservations can be made at www.thso.org or by calling the THSO office at (812) 242-8476 until 12pm on Tuesday November 2.

Want to Go?

Tickets: Patrons can purchase concert tickets by visiting www.thso.org or calling the Hulman Center at (812) 237-3737. Ticket prices for adults are $17, $38, and $54. Low-cost student and youth tickets are also available. Prices do not include facility and venue fees.

Masks: Per Indiana State University policy, all patrons will be required to wear a mask while indoors at Tirey Hall regardless of vaccination status when not eating or drinking.

Parking: Patrons may park in the Indiana State Parking garage located at 750 Cherry Street for free between 4 PM and 11 PM on the day of the concert. This parking garage is located across the street from Tilson Auditorium.