The WHSO will resume performances with an ‘Opening Concert’ on Nov. 7.

Submitted

After almost two years of no performances, the West Hartford Symphony Orchestra musicians look forward to bringing back the joy of live music to our audiences on Sunday, Nov. 7 at 3 p.m. at the Roberts Theater at Kingswood Oxford School.

This has been the most unusual season that the West Hartford Symphony Orchestra has faced since its founding in 2002. Due to COVID-19 protocols, many changes have taken place in the world around us as well as within the WHSO.

The orchestra is still together and strong, facing a challenging year of rehearsal space as well as concert spacing. The WHSO is on a mission to return to normal conditions as soon as possible while keeping our membership and our supportive subscribers safe and healthy.

We are easing our way into our 19th season which will have some changes. All our concerts this year will be in the lovely Roberts Theater on the Kingswood Oxford campus with our opening concert on Sunday, Nov. 7 at 3 p.m. Seating for the opening concert will be restricted to 300 tickets.

Please see the organization’s COVID-19 protocols on the WHSO website.

The concerts will be shorter than usual, with no intermission and no refreshments of any sort offered. At previous concerts, we would have items for sale on the tables in the lobby, but that will not be the case this season. Regarding our usual lovely programs that contained concert and artist information as well as many advertisements, we have decided to conserve our funding and not print them at this time.

The WHSO is very proud of our two featured soloists. Each soloist is a Conard High School senior who will be graduating next June and leaving our orchestra to pursue their dreams as they enter their college years.

Cellist Maggie Slap has been a member of the town’s orchestra since she was a student at Sedgwick Middle School. She will be performing the charming and challenging “Rococo Variations” by Tchaikovsky.

Our violist, Thomas Tarutin, joined the orchestra during his freshman year and will be playing the lovely “Romanze for Viola and Orchestra” by Max Bruch.

Two fanfares will round out the program. Aaron Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man” and Music Director Richard Chiarappa’s own “Fanfare for the Uncommon Person.”

It is our hope that you will continue to support the orchestra during these challenging times, and we look forward to seeing your smiling faces in the audience.

After almost two years of no performances, our musicians are looking forward to bringing back the joy of live music to our audiences. Our special “Welcome Back” non-refundable ticket price is $10. Tickets may be purchased on line at WHSO.org or by calling 860-521-4362. All attendees must wear masks and provide proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 PCR test within 48 hours of the performance.

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