NJFO Concertmaster to Lead 35th Anniversary Celebration Concert

On Saturday May 19, at 7 p.m, the New Jersey Festival Orchestra, under the baton of David Wroe, presents a magnificent season finale celebration of music linked in some way to England and its great city of London.

Leading the celebration, NJFO concertmaster Anton Miller will present one of the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams' most famous and most hauntingly beautiful works: The Lark Ascending, a serene romance that epitomizes the rolling green hills and meadows of the English countryside. Mr Miller’s solo violin is magical evocation of the skylark's flight as it soars above delicate orchestral textures.

“You won't want to miss this opportunity to experience the talents of our concertmaster Anton Miller”, commented NJFO Music Director David Wore. “I think his performance will be one of the dramatic high points of the NJFO season!”

Anton Miller has been NJFO Concertmaster for over 20 years. One of an esteemed line of "Dorothy DeLay protégées, " which includes Joshua Bell, Sarah Chang and many more, Mr. Miller has appeared throughout the United States and abroad as a soloist, chamber musician, recitalist, and pedagogue.

Mr. Miller has performed over fifty violin concertos with renowned orchestras on four different continents and has made a number of recital and chamber music tours to Europe with performances in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Greece, and England. As a member of the renowned Con Brio Ensemble for almost thirty years, he has also performed more than a hundred chamber music concerts and recitals in the New York City area.

A prolific solo and ensemble recording artist, Mr Miller is also sought after teacher, currently holding the position of Professor of Violin at The Hartt School, the performing arts conservatory of the University of Hartford, and a member of the violin and chamber music faculty at New York University.

The concert opens with Sir Edward Elgar’s exhilarating Introduction and Allegro for Strings, a work composed in 1905 to enable the string section of the New Jersey Festival Orchestra to showcase their virtuosic skills.

Enthused Wroe “We are thrilled to present works by two iconic British composers. Their special music represents the ‘end of the Empire’ - music which is broad, powerful but with a touch of wistfulness marking the changing times of British influence in the world.”

The concert concludes with Haydn’s joyous Symphony No. 104. Haydn, London's greatest adopted musical son, spent his final years in London where he produced much of his greatest symphonic output. The 'London Symphonies' are those commissioned for London musical extravaganzas, and each one grows progressively grand, culminating with No. 104. This high-spirited work, known as “London” will demonstrate the exuberance of the New Jersey Festival Orchestra and bring the NJFO season to a rousing conclusion.

Continues Wroe, “These outstanding musical masterpieces will leave you uplifted and refreshed. I can hardly imagine a better way to round off what has been a wonderful 35th anniversary season.”

In London Town takes place through the generous support of the NJ State Council on the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and The Victoria Foundation.

TICKET INFORMATION

In London Town takes place on Saturday May 19th at the Presbyterian Church in Westfield with a free pre-cocert lecture by Michael Rosin at 6pm. The concert will be repeated on Sunday May 20 at 3 p.m. at The Concert Hall, Drew University in Madison.

Tickets for both concerts ($28-$76, students U18 $15) are available online at www.njfestivalorchestra.org. Tickets may also be purchased by calling the box office (908) 232-9400.