ASO concert will feature local talent

By Jimmy Mincin, jmincin@altoonamirror.com

POSTED: April 3, 2008

The Altoona Symphony Orchestra is getting closer to marking a new era.

On Saturday, the ASO will present its final concert of the 2007-08 Classical Music Series at the Mishler Theatre, Altoona, by welcoming the fourth and final candidate for the orchestra’s music director position.

Guest conductor Teresa Cheung of New York City will lead the ASO in a performance featuring Mozart’s "Cosi Fan Tutte" overture, Stravinsky’s "Firebird Suite," and works by Bach, Dukas and Francaix.

"Teresa definitely has some positive credentials under her belt," said Brooke Welsh, executive director of the ASO. "She’s very well-rounded and has been recognized in a number of ways. It’s exciting for us to have a female in our mix of our candidates."

Cheung, who declined to give her age, is the assistant conductor for the New York-based American Symphony Orchestra and music director and conductor for the Manhattan College Orchestra. She began her conducting career as apprentice conductor of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra, and for six years she served as resident conductor for the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra (Evansville, Ind.), Welsh said. During her tenure there, she led the Evansville Philharmonic Youth Orchestra on its first international concert tour to Japan in 2002.

"That’s the place that taught me everything. It’s the heartland of America," Cheung said of her experiences at Evansville. "I got to experience so many different issues, so it really helped me to understand people. It was also about collaboration, and in a job like this, your job really is to bring everybody together."

The concert also will feature four members of the ASO as soloists: Warren Davidson, concertmaster; Debra Trudeau, violin; Mariela Rodriguez-Bohannon, horn; and Lenny Young, oboe.

"I look forward to every concert, but this one is going to be very special because this time, we’re promoting our local artists," said ASO President Lue Kormanski. "I think it’s going to be an amazing, magical night. When you feature local talent, the audience always appreciates it."

As part of the search for the ASO’s 11th music director, the audience will have the opportunity to participate in the decision making process by filling out an evaluation form on the guest conductor to choose the maestro "just right" for Central Pennsylvania and the ASO, according to a release.

The orchestra will select their Maestro the week following the concert, Kormanski said.

"We have four really good candidates. I’ll be happy with any one of them," she said. "I think it’s going to be a difficult decision, but that’s a good place to be — to have four great candidates you’ll be happy with."

ASO members also are involved in the selection process, offering their views and opinions, she said.

Welsh sees the performance as a step toward the future.

"It’s our grande finale, in a way," she said. "Next season, we’ll have a new music director, so it’s kind of a right of passage into our 80th year. Stravinsky should be a great conclusion to our season — it’s a really exciting piece."

Cheung anticipates her first visit to Altoona.

"It’s always exciting to work with a new group of people," she said. "It’s like meeting someone for the first time — it’s that feeling of anticipation. You rarely get to work with so many soloists in one concert setting."

As an ASO member, Trudeau feels good about all the candidates.

"I feel like part of the group — just one voice of many," she said. "It’s exciting. All the candidates have been well-qualified. I haven’t seen Teresa perform yet, but I’ve been very impressed with all of them so far.

As for the concert itself, she’s looking forward to playing with Warren Davidson.

"He and I both have a background in baroque violin and early music performance practices," she said. "It’s really easy to slide into that groove with him. It’s wonderful when you don’t have to use words to speak the same language."

Though the soloists will be playing on modern instruments, the performance will be "a historically informed interpretation" of the selected works, she said.

Mirror Staff Writer Jimmy Mincin is at 946-7460.