The Valley Symphony Orchestra will take the stage for the first time in nearly two years on Friday, November 12. The 70th anniversary season will begin with Antonin Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, a masterful staple of the Symphonic repertoire. Maestro Peter Dabrowski will conduct the full orchestra onstage at the McAllen Performing Arts Center.

 

The piece is also known as the “New World Symphony,” and Dvořák wrote it to herald the coming of a new era – a most appropriate selection for the beginning of this season. The Symphony was composed in 1893 while Dvořák was the director of the National Conservatory of Music of America and premiered in New York City on December 16, 1893. The work is among the most popular and most frequently performed symphonies around the world and weaves together melodies from Native American music and traditional African American spiritual songs. It has been said that Dvořák was inspired by the “wide open spaces” of America, such as prairies he may have seen on his trip to Iowa in the summer of 1893. The program also includes Brahms’ Hungarian Dance No. 6.

The concert will take place at the McAllen Performing Arts Center, starting at 8 p.m. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online anytime or in person at the McAllen Performing Arts Center box office (801 E. Convention Center Blvd.). For further assistance, patrons can call the VSO office at (956) 661-1615. For more information, visit their website at https://www.valleyorchestra.org/. Their website also include links to last year’s virtual performances.