Sat 4/16 @ 6PM
The not-very-exciting slogan of the Akron Symphony is “Part of You Life.” But the orchestra will make that slogan come to life at its latest concert, Sounds of Akron, taking place at EJ Thomas Hall.
The centerpiece of that concert will be the world premiere of a new “crowd-sourced” symphony written by local composer Clint Needham.
For six months last year, area residents submitted sounds to the Akron smartphone app — every-day sounds including cars on brick roads, birds chirping, people singing, children playing.
“While I have chosen to use many sounds throughout the work, both mundane and profound, it is those that offered a human spirit that gave the piece its direction,” says Needham.
Various local organizations also participating in collecting sounds, and Akron Symphony representatives attended signature events such as a RubberDucks game and the Akron Marathon in order to incorporate all aspects of the community into the work and engage them with the Symphony and each other.
The concert begins with a 6pm pre-concert party where more than 30 organizations will participate in creating an interactive event, spotlighting everything the community has to offer. The Akron Zoo will have animals on hand, Webster the RubberDucks mascot will be there for photo ops, the Wandering Aesthetics performance group will be telling stories, and even locally based business Earthquaker Devices, which sells its guitar effects pedals all over the world, will be there with pedals for visitors to try out. At 7pm, Needham and Akron Symphony music director Christopher Wilkins will give a pre-performance talk about how Needham went about putting all these sounds into his work.
Oh, and they’ll also talk about Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, the other half of the program, which seems like an afterthought on this program. The concert, which also features soprano Christine Brandes, electric guitarist Dan Flowers and the Miller South Steelband directed by Matt Dudack, starts at 8pm. Tickets are $25-$55.
akronsymphony.org/sounds-of-akron
University of Akron, Akron, OH 44304