Knox-Galesburg Symphony Concert November 14

The Knox-Galesburg Symphony will feature its bassoon, flute and oboe principals at the Saturday, November 14 subscription concert. The concert, sponsored in part by Humana, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the historic Orpheum Theatre, 57 S. Kellogg, Galesburg, Illinois.

Under the direction of artistic director/conductor Bruce Polay, the KGS will perform Brahms' "Variations on a Theme of Haydn" and Mozart's Divertimento K. 131. KGS principal bassoon Douglas Huff will perform Johann Michael Haydn's Concertino for Bassoon in D Major and Franz Joseph Haydn's Concerto Number 3 in G Major for Flute and Oboe will be performed by KGS principal flute Carol Neuleib and KGS principal oboe Nancy Gillett.

KGS tickets with price ranges from $8.00 to $18.00 are available at the Orpheum Theatre Ticket Office (309-342-2299), 250 East Main Street, Galesburg or at the door. Children and students are half-price.

Guest Artists:
Dr. Douglas Huff, professor of music in bassoon and music appreciation at Western Illinois University and principal bassoon of the KGS since 1998, is also a member of the Camerata Woodwind Quintet. He has performed as principal bassoon with the Regensburg Philharmonic Orchestra and has been recipient of numerous awards including a Fulbright Grant to teach and perform in South Korea. Huff, who plays a restored Heckel bassoon, earned his M.M. degree from Indiana University and a D.M.A. from the University of Iowa.

Dr. Nancy Gillett, principal oboe for the KGS, studied at Kent State, East Carolina University and the University of Illinois. She is a member of the Heart of Illinois Wind Quintet and the St. Martin Chamber Players where she also performs on English horn, Baroque flute, and a 4-keyed flute. Gillett was principal flute for the Peoria Symphony Orchestra and Opera Illinois from 1978 to 1989 and also taught at Bradley University and Illinois Central College. Gillett currently maintains a private flute and oboe teaching studio in Peoria (IL).

Principal flute for the KGS for the past fifteen years, Carol Neuleib received her bachelor and master of music degrees from Illinois State University, where she studied with Max Schoenfeld. She continued her studies with Schoenfeld and Julius Baker, principal flute of the New York Philharmonic and professor at the Juilliard School of Music in New York. Neulieb, a member of the Classique Woodwind Quintet of the Quad Cities for over twenty years, has a private flute studio in Geneseo (IL).

Music Mornings:
On Saturday, November 14 at 10:00 a.m., Nancy Gillett will present "The Oboe" for the Music Mornings Program at the Galesburg Public Library. Music Mornings, co-sponsored by the Knox-Galesburg Symphony and the Galesburg Public Library in cooperation with Galesburg School District 205, is a FREE concert preview for children ages preschool through 5th grade. The next Music Mornings program "The Joy of Music" is slated for Saturday, January 16 and will be hosted by Dean Petrie, School District 205 Fine Arts Coordinator.

Program Notes:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), declared to Mozart's father Leopold by Franz Joseph Haydn "...your son is the greatest composer I know, either personally or by name." Showing a prodigious talent for music since early childhood, Mozart wrote the Divertimento in D Major for an outdoor occasion during one of his rare respites at his family home in Salzberg. His Divertimento is a sophisticated example of a genre in which the composer demonstrated unsurpassed mastery.

Franz Joseph Haydn (1732 -1809), often called the "Father of Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" due to his contributions to these genres, was also instrumental in the development of the piano trio and the evolution of sonata form. He was considered one of the most important, prolific and prominent composers of the classical period. During his lifetime, Haydn was one of the most celebrated composers in Europe.

Joann Michael Haydn (1737-1806), younger brother of Franz Joseph, did not achieve the lasting fame of his older brother but was considered a powerful influence in his time and a skillful and prolific composer who produced thirty symphonies, numerous concertos, and operas. Believed to have been composed in the early 1760's, the Concertino for Bassoon is a concertante movement from an orchestral serenade. Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) composed the "Variations on a Theme of Haydn" in 1873. The same year, the first performance was by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under Brahms' direction. The "Haydn Variations" is considered to be one of the greatest sets of orchestral variations ever written.