The start of 2018 has been a busy – but exciting – two months at the Akron Symphony Orchestra and we are making headlines with our performances.

The new year started off as we welcomed guest conductor Daniel Hege and guest pianist Gabriela Martinez to the stage for an evening of Brahms and Prokofiev. In his review at Cleveland Classical, Mike Telin wrote that, “guest conductor Daniel Hege led the first-rate Akron Symphony in a riveting performance of Prokofiev’s visceral Piano Concerto No. 2 in g, with the brilliant Gabriela Martinez as soloist. Hege led a tight performance that allowed the ASO and soloist to act as a synchronized team.” (Read the full review here.)

The following week we partnered with the LeBron James Family Foundation on a private concert for approximately 200 fourth graders and their families in the foundation’s I PROMISE Program. During the almost hour-long concert, Music Director Christopher Wilkins led the audience through the various periods of classical music, introduced the principal players for each section of the orchestra, and took questions from the audience. (Read more about the event in this article from Amanda Garrett The Akron Beacon Journal.)

Video: LeBron James Family Foundation students and parents have private concert with Akron Symphony

February brought a pair of concerts, starting with our collaboration with NEOS Dance Theatre for Stravinsky’s Petrushka. According to Daniel Hathaway at Cleveland Classical, “Petrushka marked the second collaboration between the ASO and Robert Wesner’s company, and the complement of dancers included the University of Akron’s Dance Institute, Christina Foisie, director. The addition of choreography is a boon to the audience. The Orchestra gets wonderfully evocative material to play, and Christopher Wilkins and the ASO musicians had great fun with it. Gary Davis, playing principal trumpet for the evening, was a standout among the soloists.” (Read the full review here.)

Finally, the community joined together for one of the most electric nights we’ve seen in a long time for the 25th edition of Gospel Meets Symphony. In the days leading up to the concert, The Akron Beacon Journal published a story by Malcolm Abram on how Gospel Meets Symphony has been bridging genres and cultures for 25 years, and a story from Kerry Clawson on how gospel music has bonded the performers in the choir across races.

Pretty exciting, right? And we are only into March!

We still have three performances left on the concert schedule this season, and we invite you to join us and experience what makes an evening with the Akron Symphony Orchestra so memorable.

Our upcoming concerts include:

• Planet Earth on March 23 @ 8 p.m.
• Jazz Meets Symphony with the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra on April 14 @ 7:30 p.m.
• Verdi’s Requiem with the Akron Symphony Chorus and Summit Choral Society on May 5 @ 8 p.m.

We look forward to seeing you at an upcoming performance as we continue to make headlines across Northeast Ohio.