Maestro's Notes

We are opening the season with two celebrated masterpieces in the symphonic repertoire. Philippe Bianconi will be sharing the stage with our Symphony of Southeast Texas on the Concerto No. 5 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Philippe has played with the SOST and in the community on numerous occasions, always leaving the audience thrilled by his performances. This Fifth Piano Concerto of Beethoven was a … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: The Titans of the Classics

People often ask me what does the SOST do during the summer months. There’s really two perspectives: Our musicians, in addition to the upcoming July 4th concert, will perform with other orchestras in Houston and Southeast TX, which keeps them pretty busy. As for me and the staff, this is planning time- we review all of our feedback on concerts, then begin to set programs for future … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: Summer!

We have had an amazing season this year for the Symphony of Southeast Texas. There have been many highlights with the music and the guest artists who have joined us on stage. We are going to conclude our season with a program that we are calling French Pairings. All three pieces on the program are by French composers. We will open the program with the Bacchanale from the opera Samson and Dalila … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: French Pairings

This is such an exciting time for the Symphony of Southeast Texas. We got our 2019 portion of the season off to a rollicking start with our Classics 3 program that featured a breathtaking performance of the Grieg Piano concerto with Claire Huangci lighting up the stage with her musical abilities. Then we followed that up with a reading of Rachmaninov's Symphony No. 2, which had not been played by … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: An Evening with The Texas Tenors

Happy New Year! This first concert of 2019 features two masterpieces of the Romantic era from two different portions of the world: Edvard Grieg from Norway and Russian master Sergiu Rachmaninoff. Grieg’s famous Piano Concerto has special memories for me, during this Anniversary year, as it was one of the works featured on my audition concert over ten years ago! That performance was … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: Passionate Portraits

We always have so much fun with this concert because it is the one where we feature a member of the SOST as our soloist.  This year we will be presenting our principal trombonist, Dr. Timothy Dueppen.  He will be performing the Johann Albrechtsberger Concerto for Alto Trombone. The Alto Trombone is a smaller version of the tenor trombone that is most commonly used in the orchestra.  It is a … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: Pastoral Germanic Settings

I am so excited about the start of our Pops series this year.  I attended Eastman School of Music for one of my music degrees, and while there I became friends with an amazing trumpet player.  Trumpeter Byron Stripling introduced me to the complexities of Jazz.  Over the years, we have worked together numerous times.  When he played with the Symphony of Southeast Texas several years ago, the … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: Ella & Louis, Great Friends – Great Music

I just love this time of the year. Orchestras all around the country are preparing to begin their seasons. We have another amazing season ahead for the SOST. It is hard to believe that this is my 10th season; to see the growth that the orchestra has made over that span and how the community continues to embrace our orchestra through their support. So often we spend so much time playing music by … [Read more...] about Maestro’s Notes: New York, New York… Jazz Meets Classics