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The Bijou Orchestra:
Launches 4th Season with a
Spotlight on Virtuosity
The Bijou Orchestra will feature
seven soloists when it opens its fourth season of performances at the
State Theatre on Saturday, September 16 at 8 PM with
I Love a Piano & The Joy of Sax. The concert is the first
performance of the Labadie Bijou Pops Series at the State
sponsored by Labadie Auto Company of Bay City. The performance will be
repeated on Sunday, September 17th
at 2 PM.
The title of this show is a
tongue-in-cheek pun based on the title of an old Irving Berlin
song and the name of a popular book from the early 70s. "The piano and
the sax are two of the instruments of The Bijou Orchestra," laughs
Neo Najar, artistic director of The Bijou. "We thought it would be a
fun hint of our musical offerings on this exciting program. The focus of
this concert is on the virtuoso members of the Bijou, all of whom will
be featured in orchestra favorites and several of whom will also be
featured as soloists."
"The Bijou is unlike any other orchestra
in the Midwest," reflects Najar. "Our repertoire puts tremendous demands
on players since this is the only place they play any of the difficult
arrangements that we feature. It takes a certain kind of musician to add
this challenge to a busy schedule of performing and teaching. I thought
the audience would like a chance to hear some of them featured as
soloists."
The soloists and their selections
consist of Bill Millicevic, violin (Meditation from 'Thais');
John Upton, trombone (Variations on The Bluebells of Scotland),
Jean Posekany, double bass (Miniature Waltz); Vickie
Bowlden, saxophone (Oblivion), Catherine McMichael,
piano (Children's Corner Suite); John Hill, xylophone
(Rainbow Ripples); Les Nicholas, clarinet (Variations for
Clarinet & Small Orchestra).
The Bijou will also get a workout on
several virtuoso ensemble numbers including Overture to a Midsummer
Night's Dream by Mendelssohn, The Evolution of Dixie by
Mayhew Lake, Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and a "couple of
surprises as well," according to Najar.
According to Najar, the upcoming season
for The Bijou will consist of three concerts in the Labadie Bijou
Pops, a family Halloween SPOOKtacular at the State, and the
fourth annual Holiday Pops to be given at Bay City's historic
First Presbyterian Church.
Following this debut performance, the second concert in the series takes place the weekend of October 14 and 15. The Movies Learn to Sing explores the music that was heard in the earliest sound pictures from the late 1920's through the first few years of the 30's. The third Labadie Series concert is called While Vienna Waltzed and will be given November 18 and 19. Everybody knows Vienna was dancing Strauss waltzes at the end of the century, but have you ever wondered what kind of music was popular in London, Paris, New York, and Detroit or for that matter, Bay City at that time? The program is a worldwide sampler of popular music from the end of the 19th century into the beginning of the 20th.
The regular concert season concludes
with Holiday Pops IV on December 6 and 8. The
program will be given for the first time this year in the beautiful
sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church, Bay City. The concerts are a
rich mixture of traditional and popular holiday music performed by a
variety of forces including chorus, vocal soloists and a variety of
special guests. The annual Klezmer set is a highly anticipated part of
this popular show.
Reserved seats for the season kick-off
are $22 ($15 for students with ID). Unreserved seating is
available for $17.50 ($11 for students with ID) Group rates are
available. Tickets may be purchased online at
www.BijouOrchestra.org
or by phone at 989-892-4200, or in person at the Bay Musical Arts
Box Office, 917 Washington Ave, Bay City.
The Bijou Orchestra takes its name from
the Bijou Theatre, one of the earliest Bay City theaters, which later
became known as the Bay and eventually the State. The ensemble is
composed of thirteen outstanding musicians drawn from Michigan and
beyond to perform in this challenging medium in which every player is a
soloist.
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