Richmond Symphony to return to Longwood for free performance April 24

The Richmond Symphony will return to the Jarman Auditorium stage at Longwood University later this month for a special performance that is free and open to the public. The concert will be held on Friday, April 24, at 7:30 p.m. Doors will open at 7 p.m., and seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets are not required.

The symphony will perform three works under the baton of conductor Hae Lee: "Strum" by Jessie Montgomery, "Dance Card" by Jennifer Higdon and "Grand Partita" (Serenade No. 10, K. 361) by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

"We are delighted to welcome the Richmond Symphony back to campus," said Dr. Lisa Kinzer, professor of applied piano, piano literature and pedagogy and chair of the music department. "Thanks to the generous endowed gift from John Cook, we're able to share this cultural gem with our community year after year. Our string program is relatively new, and these performances play an important role in cultivating an appreciation for orchestral music in our region while inspiring our string majors. I can't imagine a more exciting opportunity than experiencing this performance in our new concert hall when it opens in 2028."

"Strum" salutes American folk idioms and the spirit of dance and movement, according to the celebrated American composer Jesse Montgomery. "Dance Card" is a suite of short movements, each inspired by a different style of dance. Higdon, one of today's most prominent American composers, often writes music that is engaging, vibrant and audience-friendly. The final piece, known as the "Grand Partita," is one of Mozart's most celebrated works for wind ensemble. The expansive seven-movement serenade is remarkable for its richness of texture, elegance and expressive depth.

Lee, an experienced opera conductor, is associate conductor of the Richmond Symphony and conductor of the Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra. He has conducted performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center and previously served as assistant conductor at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Academy. He studied conducting at the Korea National University of Arts, Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, Mannes School of Music and Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg.

The concert is underwritten by the Cook-Cole Symphony Fund of the Longwood University Foundation. For more than a decade, the Richmond Symphony has performed at Longwood through a partnership established by Cook, a 1952 alumnus and benefactor of the Cook-Cole College of Arts and Sciences. The endowed partnership provides for one performance each academic year. The concert is hosted by Longwood's Department of Music and supported in part by a grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities.

Longwood President W. Taylor Reveley IV described the Richmond Symphony's performance as "one of the academic year's standout cultural events."

"Having the opportunity to welcome world-class musicians to campus and share the power and beauty of a full orchestral performance with our students, friends and neighbors is an enriching experience we deeply appreciate," Reveley said.

Parking for the concert is available in the Wheeler Lot on Griffin Boulevard. For more information about this concert, please call the Longwood Department of Music at (434) 395-2504 or email [email protected].

Founded in 1957, the Richmond Symphony is the largest performing arts organization in Central Virginia, featuring an orchestra of more than 70 professional musicians. The Richmond Symphony is partially funded by the Virginia Commission for the Arts.