Piedmont Symphony Orchestra holiday concert coming soon

Following a successful opening concert last month, the Piedmont Symphony Orchestra continues its 2011-12 season performances with an annual holiday concert in December.

With five concerts in all, this season, titled “Ethos” by music director Glenn Quader, features a wide range of repertoire from Mahler to Pink Floyd.

“The theme came from music that makes you feel better and it’s positive effect on you,” said music director and conductor Glenn Quader. “I think to a certain degree each concert will draw its own unique audience.”

Their last concert, “The Heavenly Voice,” featured the music of Faure, Schubert, Mozart and Mahler in a tribute to both the late son of orchestra founder Michael Hughes, who passed away in June, as well as Daniel Pearl, a former reporter for the Wall Street Journal and gifted violinist, who was murdered in Pakistan in 2002.

Hughes, who regularly appears as a guest conductor at orchestra events, called the orchestra “very kind” for allowing him to conduct Faure’s “Pavane” in memory of his son, who formerly played with the orchestra.

“I was deeply touched and highly honored,” he said.

Orchestra members feel their performance of Mahler’s “Symphony No. 4” may have been the most technically difficult of all the selections in this year’s line up.

“Starting off with Mahler was a very difficult piece on a lot of different levels,” said Lee Brewster, first chair violin and concert master. “Musically, it reaches a new depth in perception in tone and style.”

In addition to traditional holiday pieces, the next concert, “The Nutcracker and Friends,” will also feature solos by orchestra principal flute Debbie Gilbert and principal harp Meredith Mancini.

“It gives them a chance to play some of the great solo repertoires out there [and] lets the audience see that we have virtuosos in the orchestra,” Quader said.

Gilbert described her solo, “Suite Antique” by John Rutter, as “light,” and “very accessible to the audience,” with a number of beautiful rhythms, melody movements, and a jazz waltz.

New this year, the orchestra will integrate dancers from the Fairfax Ballet Company in its performance of excerpts from the Nutcracker Suite.

“I think people will see that the music actually supports the dance,” Quader said. “The focal point is the music in the concert, but when you put the Nutcracker in its proper context, the orchestra is the background for what will happen on stage.”

The orchestra will follow it’s winter performance with three concerts in 2012, including its annual young artist concert in February, an all Dvorak concert in April featuring cellist David Cho, and “a progressive rock orchestral journey” in June.

The Piedmont Symphony Orchestra will perform it’s holiday concert Saturday, Dec. 3 at 7 p.m., and again on Sunday Dec. 4 at 3 p.m. at Highland Center for the Arts in Warrenton. For more information on the orchestra’s upcoming concerts, visit http://www.piedmontsymphony.org To pu.rchase tickets for the holiday concert, visit http://www.highlandcenterforthearts.org