Alexandria Symphony Orchestra will present “Lushness & Lyrical” on Saturday, April 2 and Sunday, April 3.
Some music makes me want to sing. Other music makes me want to dance. And there is yet another kind of music that fires my imagination to create pictures and stories. This last category of music is often described as being “romantic.” What exactly does that mean? In music, Romanticism refers to the qualities that dominated 19th and early 20th century music: imagination over reason; fantasy over reality; long-breathed melodies over tightly constructed ones; rich harmonies over simple harmonies; color for color’s sake in the realm of harmony; textures and orchestration (choice of instruments); a lushness of sound; etc. Often there is an underlying sense of longing and desire for the unattainable.
James Newton Howard’s music is often described as having a “romantic sensibility.” His “Peter Pan” is a perfect choice for our concert because the story itself comes out of the same romantic tradition as the music. Howard creates a realm of fantasy where we can imagine a world where we can “never grow up!”
See you at the concerts!