Sat 10/15 @ 7:30PM
Something very special will be happening at the University of Akron’s E.J. Thomas Hall when the Akron Symphony takes the stage this weekend under the baton of it music director, Christopher Wilkins.
Of course, the chance to hear Beethoven’s nature-inspired Symphony No 6 (“Pastoral”) yet again is considered special by many concert audiences. And they’ll have the opportunity to hear a piece by Florida-based contemporary composer Dr. Stella C. Sung, titled Rockwell Reflections and become familiar with music being made today.
But the centerpiece of the concert is Ordinary Magic: A Sunday in the Cuyahoga Valley, in collaboration with Northeast Ohio artist Amber Kempthorn. In it, Kempthorn created animations based on regional scenes and assembled them to produce the film, which are a visual interpretation of composer Benjamin Britten’s Peter Grimes: Four Sea Interludes.
“While the animation’s narrative is told through my visual vocabulary, I’ve had to approach my practice in an entirely new way; from considering how things move and interact with one another, to visually capturing the beauty of Britten’s compelling music,” says Kempthorn.
In addition to the premiere screening of the film during the concert, a selection of Kempthorn’s drawings for the film are currently on view at Bonfoey Gallery in Cleveland in a show called With)drawing; you can see them there through November 7.