The Chamber Orchestra at St. Matthew’s with Conductor Tom Neenan concludes the season on Friday, June 1, at 8 p.m. with a program featuring an innovative blend of Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’ with Mark O’Connor’s contemporary concerto ‘The American Seasons.’ Also on the program at St. Matthew’s Church is the world premiere of a newly commissioned work by Grammy Award-winner Christopher Tin and the Concerto for Marimba and Strings by Emmanuel Sejourn’. Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’ is known to every lover of classical music and Mark O’Connor’s ‘American Seasons’ is quickly becoming a classic among lovers of folk and bluegrass violin playing. A product of America’s rich aural folk tradition as well as classical music, O’Connor absorbed knowledge and influence from the multitude of musical styles and genres he studied. He has melded and shaped these influences into a new American classical music, and a vision of an entirely American school of string playing. In April 2000, O’Connor premiered his ‘The American Seasons: Seasons of an American Life,’ at Troy Music Hall in Upstate N.Y. The Chamber Orchestra’s concertmaster, Yi-Huan Zhao, and guest violinist Kevin Kumar, will team up to present two concertos from each set in alternation. Tin’s new work, ‘Bembe,’ is based on a Lango rain-making litany and features two vocal soloists, a back-up choir, string orchestra and percussion. Rayvon Moore and Rose Beattie will be the featured soloists. Tin became an international sensation with his break-out album, ‘Calling All Dawns,’ with its award-winning song, ‘Baba Yetu.’ ‘Bembe’ carries on in the African vein, blending classical and folk elements in a wonderful mixture of old and new. Percussionist Aaron Smith will be the featured soloist in Sejourn’s Concerto. Tickets ($35) are available at the door or online at MusicGuild-Online.org. Contact: (310) 573-7422.
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