Symphony Orchestra Concert Spotlights Student Solos

Musical Talents of Patricia Brady-Danzig Concerto Competition Winners on Display

ALBANY (February 10, 2016) — The Saint Rose Symphony Orchestra will perform in concert Saturday, February 20, 2016, at 8 p.m. in the Kathleen McManus Picotte Recital Hall, Massry Center for the Arts, 1002 Madison Ave., Albany, New York.

The concert will feature solos by the Saint Rose students who won the Patricia Brady-Danzig Concerto Competition: Gabriel Pellino, cello, performing Cello Concerto in A Minor by Robert Schumann; Amarie King, flute, performing Hungarian Pastoral Fantasy for flute by Franz Doppler; and James Alexander, baritone, performing “The Count’s Aria” from The Marriage of Figaro by W. A. Mozart.

The concert is free and open to the public.

The Patricia Brady-Danzig Concerto Competition rewards young Saint Rose musicians with a perhaps once-in-a-lifetime experience: performing a solo with a full symphony orchestra. According to Dr. David Bebe, an assistant professor of music and orchestra director who started the competition in 2010, practicing for a competition requires skills that raise students’ musicianship to another level.

“It’s a challenge like no other performance. It’s like running a marathon – you don’t necessarily expect to win the marathon, but training prepares you to be a much bigger runner, an elite runner,” Bebe said.

The biggest hurdle to a competition such as this can be the cost of renting the music for the full orchestra. The generosity of Brady-Danzig, a Saint Rose alumna and ardent supporter of the College’s musicians, ensures that strong musicianship thrives by enabling students to select and perfect work that best showcases their talents and proficiency. Bebe collaborated with Brady-Danzig in 2013 to produce and perform the American premiere of Fabrizio the Musical! based on her Fabrizio children’s books. She was so impressed with the orchestra that she now sponsors the concerto competition through her foundation, PBD Associates.

Said Brady-Danzig, “It gives us great pleasure to contribute to the competition’s continued and worthwhile aim of discovering excellent instrumental and vocal students through auditions and performance opportunities.”

At the competition, held in November 2015, judges from outside Saint Rose selected King, Pellino and Alexander to perform with the orchestra. Concertgoers on February 20 will get to enjoy watching and listening to these three students who have pushed themselves to the max for the unique experience of performing solo with a symphony orchestra.

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