Troy Peters named conductor of Middlebury College Orchestra
MIDDLEBURY, Vt.?Troy Peters, the music director and conductor of the Vermont Youth Orchestra, has been named the conductor of the Middlebury College Orchestra, a full symphony orchestra of approximately 60 members which is open to all Middlebury students who play orchestral instruments. Peters assumed his new position at the start of the current academic year in September. The orchestra and its new conductor will present four major concerts this season. The first of these four will take place Saturday, Oct. 30, at 8 p.m. in the Concert Hall in the College’s Center for the Arts on South Main Street (Route 30). Admission is free.
The Oct. 30 concert will feature works by three composers who explore humanity’s relationship with time and the mystery of existence. The program includes Dvorak’s “Legends,” Opus 59, nos. 1-5; Ives’ “The Unanswered Question;” and Haydn’s Symphony no. 101 in D Major, “The Clock.”
The orchestra’s second concert on Friday, Dec. 3, will offer music inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and its April 22 performance will draw on works from the Weimar Republic. The orchestra’s final concert of the season on May 1 will be a celebration of Hillel’s 50th anniversary at Middlebury College, featuring a collaborative performance of Bloch’s “Sacred Service” with the Middlebury College-Community Chorus and the Middlebury College Chamber Singers.
Peters has been the music director and conductor of the Vermont Youth Orchestra (VYO) since 1995 and will continue in this role. He and the VYO made news this fall when they traveled to New York City to make their Carnegie Hall debut with a program of works by Vermont composers, including Peters himself and Trey Anastasio, guitarist and composer for the recently disbanded rock band Phish.
Peters is also known for his work with professional orchestras-he has served as a guest conductor for many groups, including the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, the Northwest Mahler Festival, and the Vermont Mozart Festival Orchestra.
Acclaimed for his skill as a composer, Peters has received awards and grants from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Meet the Composer, and the Rockefeller Foundation. He holds degrees from the Curtis Institute of Music and the University of Pennsylvania, where his composition teachers included Ned Rorem and George Crumb. A versatile instrumentalist, Peters not only plays the viola, but has also performed on tenor banjo and electric guitar with symphony orchestras.
To follow is events calendar listings information:
Middlebury College Orchestra
Troy Peters, conductor
2004-2005 Season
Saturday, October 30
The Oct. 30 concert will feature works by three composers who explore humanity’s relationship with time and the mystery of existence. The program includes Dvorak’s “Legends,” Op. 59, nos. 1-5; Ives’ “The Unanswered Question;” and Haydn’s Symphony no. 101 in D Major, “Clock.”
Friday, December 3
The Dec. 3 concert will offer music from four different centuries, all inspired by William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream:” Weber’s “Oberon Overture;” Purcell’s Music from “The Fairy Queen;” Mendelssohn’s Wedding March from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream;” Satie’s “Cinq Grimaces pour Le songe d’une nuit d’ete;” and Elvis Costello’s “Il Sogno Suite.”
Friday, April 22
The April 22 concert will feature music from the Weimar Republic, including works by Hindemith, Pfitzner, and Weill, plus a student soloist, the winner of the annual Middlebury College Music Department Concerto Competition, to be held in February.
Sunday, May 1
The May 1 concert will offer a celebration of Hillel’s 50th anniversary at Middlebury College, featuring a collaborative performance of the Bloch’s “Sacred Service” with the Middlebury College-Community Chorus and the Middlebury College Chamber Singers.
All concerts will take place at 8 p.m. in the Middlebury College Concert Hall in the Center for the Arts on South Main Street (Route 30). All concerts are free.For more information on any of the orchestra’s concerts, contact the Middlebury College Box Office at 802-443-6433 or www.middlebury.edu/arts.
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