Symphony, Choral Ensembles' Season Opener Will be Last For Conductor Ric Soto

The OCC Symphony’s performance on Saturday, Oct. 3 will serve as a curtain call for popular orchestra conductor Ricardo Soto, and he’s going out with a bang … literally.

The program, titled “There’s No Place Like Home,” will start at 7:30 p.m. and will feature several bold pieces, including Tchaikovsky’s “1812” Overture, a piece known for a climactic explosion of cannons meant to represent the Battle of Borodino between Russian and French forces in 1812. OCC’s Chamber Singers and Chorale will add their nearly 100 voices to the work.

“The cannons with the huge orchestra … it’s very exciting!” said Soto. “If you’re not familiar with classical music, this is a really good program to come and see.”

Other pieces that will be featured in the program include Smetana’s “The Moldau” and Aaron Copland’s “Appalachian Spring,” which tells a story of a prairie family in the 19th century. The performance also will serve as an educational experience, with Soto interspersing the program with some discussion about each piece.

“We’re doing all programmatic literature, or literature that tells a story, and in this case the stories are all about the composers’ homelands. I chose this program with my students in mind,” said Soto. “We always discuss these pieces in class, and it’ll be so nice to be able to play it for them and then discuss it with them.”

Soto’s replacement as conductor of the OCC Symphony will be Christopher Gravis, a doctoral candidate from the University of Southern California. Gravis has been the director of music at St. Wilfrid of York Episcopal Church for the past five years, and has served as a guest conductor with the San Diego Symphony and the Clarion Singers at Canterbury Cathedral in England. He also has taught graduate and undergraduate conducting, and directed the women’s chorus and the University Singers at Cal State Fullerton.

“The orchestra needs someone to come in and take it to the next level,” said Soto, who will continue to teach at OCC and co-direct the College’s Chorale. “We are very lucky to have [Gravis] with us.”

Tickets for the Oct. 3 performance of “There’s No Place Like Home” are $15 for general admission and $10 for OCC students, and can be purchased at (714) 432-5880 or online at www.occtickets.com. Tickets also may be purchased at the door.