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St. Olaf Orchestra to conclude longest domestic tour with home concert Tuesday, Feb. 13

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February 6, 2001

NORTHFIELD, Minn. ? After earning rave reviews from audiences and critics in nine states, the St. Olaf Orchestra will conclude its winter tour with a free, public "home" concert Tuesday, Feb. 13, at St. Olaf College.

Tuesday?s concert, capping the longest domestic tour in the Orchestra?s history, will be at 8 p.m. in Skoglund Center Auditorium. The 94-member Orchestra performed in Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. The tour started Saturday, Jan. 27, with concerts in a number of historic halls and churches, including Phoenix Symphony Hall in Arizona.

In another historic event, the Orchestra will join the St. Olaf Choir for a joint performance in San Antonio, Texas, Thursday, Feb. 8. It will be the first joint tour concert for the St. Olaf Choir and the St. Olaf Orchestra. Music to be performed at Tuesday?s "home" concert includes "Thieving Magpie Overture" by Goachinno Rossini, "Canzona di Centone" by Charles Forsberg, "Death and Transfiguration" by Richard Strauss, and Ottorino Respighi?s "The Pines of Rome."

The St. Olaf Orchestra, conducted by St. Olaf music faculty member Steven Amundson, is one of the finest collegiate orchestras in the nation. It has developed a national reputation for excellence, appearing frequently on National Public Television, and is a major part of the acclaimed St. Olaf Christmas Festival concert.

The Orchestra has performed with conductors Robert Shaw and Sir David Willcocks as well as pianists Leon Fleisher and Victor Borge.

The Orchestra was founded at St. Olaf College in 1906. It has toured annually since 1949, traveling throughout the United States, Scandinavia and central and eastern Europe. It has performed in some of Europe?s finest concert halls, with some of the world?s most noted conductors and artists, attracting sellout crowds and standing ovations. In 1998 it earned widespread acclaim and rave reviews for performances in the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary and Slovakia. Last year it received standing ovations in Chicago and Minneapolis for stellar performances during the college?s 125th Anniversary "Showcase" concerts.

Since 1981 the Orchestra has been conducted by Amundson, who teaches conducting, music theory and instrumentation and is an active composer. A 1977 graduate of Luther College, Amundson earned a master of music degree in orchestral conducting and music theory from Northwestern University, and completed further studies at the University of Virginia, the Aspen Music School and the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. In 1992 the Minnesota Music Educators Association named him "Minnesota Orchestra Educator of the Year."

St. Olaf College prepares students to become responsible citizens of the world, fostering development of mind, body and spirit. A four-year, coeducational liberal arts college of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), St. Olaf has a student enrollment of 2,950 and a full-time faculty of approximately 250. It is one of Money Guide?s top 100 "elite values in college education today," and it leads the nation?s colleges in percentage of students who study abroad.

Contact Michael Cooper at 507-786-3315 or cooperm@stolaf.edu.