Bear Valley Music Festival
The 42nd annual Bear Valley Music Festival begins Friday and will run through August 15th.
Randy Hanvelt, Co-Chairman of the event, was Thursday’s KVML “Newsmaker of the Day”.
Hanvelt, recently elected to the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors, has been a part of the Festival for around twenty-five years.
Carter Nice, who has been the festival’s Music Director and Conductor for 26 years and has conducted over 200 performances of the Bear Valley Festival Orchestra.
The Bear Valley Music Festival will present a wide variety of classical music during its sixteen-day season that begins with a contemporary opening on Friday night.
Dave Mason will open up the Festival on Friday and will be followed by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy on Saturday night. Guitars will be autographed by the talent on each night and will be auctioned off during intermission.
Hanvelt said, “We are pleased to welcome back the remarkable young pianist Di Wu who was such a hit with our audiences last year. Wu brings the piano to life.”
Wu will be featured with the orchestra at two performances.
On Friday, August 6th, the 7 p.m. program will include Frank Martin’s Concerto for 7 Winds and Orchestra, Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 5, Op. 107 in D major/D minor, and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 in E Flat major.
The Sunday, August 8th 2 p.m. performance will consist of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Overture to The Marriage of Figaro, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, and Antonin Dvorak’s Symphony No. 6, Op. 70 in D minor.
Back by popular demand, on Saturday, August 7, the Festival Orchestra will transport the audience to a romantic “Night in Old Vienna” that will feature an evening of sparkling waltzes. Everyone will be invited to dance and participate in the traditional clap-along Radetzky March. This program begins at 6 p.m.
A Tchaikovsky Feast, on Friday, August 13, will be a study in contrasts. The familiar and uplifting Nutcracker Ballet Suite injects a summertime holiday feeling, followed by the spirited Suite No. 4, Op. 61 Mozartiana in which Tchaikovsky pays tribute to Mozart by arranging four of his works. The introspective Symphony No. 5 concludes the evening with soaring melody. It all begins at 7 p.m.
The festival will conclude on Sunday, August 15th with a 2 p.m. program that includes Dmitri Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto in A minor, featuring a remarkable 14-year-old violinist, Stephen Kim, and Jean Sibelius’ powerful Symphony No. 2 in D major.
The Bear Valley Festival Orchestra is composed of more than 60 professional musicians from all over North America.
In addition to the afore mentioned concerts, the festival will feature many other musical treats ranging from Broadway Pops to opera, including an evening of Wine and Chamber Music. There will be other events such as the Teddy Bear Picnic, children’s concert, and community barbecue.
The Bear Valley Festival Orchestra performs in an acoustically designed temporary building called “the tent” located off State Highway 4 in Alpine County, just beyond the Calaveras County border.
Tickets may be ordered and a complete schedule of events can be viewed by visiting the festival website at www.bearvalleymusic.org or by calling toll free (800) 458-1618.
The Bear Valley Music Festival is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization governed by a board of eighteen people from throughout California who volunteer their time to make sure this time honored musical celebration continues to provide a unique and satisfying experience for all attendees. Donations to the festival are tax deductible.
The KVML “Newsmaker of the Day” is heard every weekday morning on AM 1450 KVML at 6:47, 7:47 and 8:47am.
Written by mark@mlode.com
