NEWS RELEASE
Date: May 3, 2019 Contact: Lexi Locke
For Immediate Release Phone: 417.864.6683
Photos Available Upon Request Cell: 417.860.9690
lexi@springfieldmosymphony.org
Springfield Symphony to perform all-Star Wars music at final concert of 2018-19 season
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Springfield Symphony is excited to wrap up its 2018-19 season, The Big Questions, with an evening of musical selections from the Star Wars saga. The “What Is Your Destiny?” pops concert will be held on Saturday, May 11 at 7:30 p.m. at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts (525 S. John Q. Hammons Pkwy).
“What’s great about the music from the Star Wars saga is that it is unquestionably some of the best orchestral music of modern times,” exclaimed Kyle Wiley Pickett, music director/conductor. “This isn’t just Hollywood filler background music—this is music that draws on centuries of classical composers’ ideas and themes and holds an important place in the line-up of great symphonic works. John Williams is a truly exceptional composer, one who can write memorable themes and musical ideas that stay with audiences long after the credits have rolled. His music is as an essential element of Star Wars as the special effects and fantastical costumes. Watching Star Wars without the soundtrack would be an entirely different experience, and I would say far less thrilling.”
“There aren’t many movie series that have had the kind of cultural impact that the Star Wars franchise has,” continued Pickett. “Everyone knows Star Wars. Everyone knows lines from Star Wars, the music from Star Wars, the characters from Star Wars. It defined space movies for a generation, and then went on to define space movies for the children of the original Star Wars generation. Although we play a lot of Star Wars music at our community concerts and pops concerts, this is going to be my first concert with the Springfield Symphony that will be an entire concert of just music from the Star Wars movies, all the way back from the original trilogy starting in 1977 to the most recent releases. This is going to be a fun, exciting finale to our season! Come with your kids, come with your favorite Star Wars fan, come in costume, and come have a great time hearing all the best music from one of the best movie franchises of all time. ”
Pre-concert music will begin at 6:45 pm in the lobby and the Symphony performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are currently on sale at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall box office, and can be purchased by calling (417) 836-7678 or online at www.missouristatetix.com. Ticket prices range from $10 – $40 and discounts are available for students and seniors.
Pickett is available for any interviews or questions. Please feel free to email him at kwpickett@gmail.com. The concert is being sponsored by Reliable Superstore (Presenting Sponsor), TLC Properties, KOLR10, Meyer Communications, and Springfield News-Leader.
The Springfield Symphony Orchestra is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation and an Equal Opportunity Employer. Additional funding for all Springfield Symphony Orchestra programming is provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency. For more information, visit www.springfieldmosymphony.org or www.facebook.com/springfieldsymphony.
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