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Philharmonia to present April 29 concert as part of Christopher W. Thomforde inauguration

mjc
April 19, 2001

NORTHFIELD, Minn. ? The St. Olaf College Philharmonia will present its "home" concert following its spring tour Sunday, April 29, as part of the inauguration of St. Olaf President Christopher Meredith Thomforde.

The concert, free and open to the public, will be at 7:30 p.m. in Boe Memorial Chapel. The St. Olaf Philharmonia is conducted by St. Olaf music faculty member Jo Ann Polley.

The program will open with Tschaikovsky?s "Polonaise" from the opera Eugen Onegin, and continues with "Solitude on the Mountain" from Sterjentens Sñtag by Ole Bull for string orchestra. The bass aria "Now Heaven in Fullest Glory" from the Creation by Franz Joseph Haydn will be sung by St. Olaf senior Paul Pearson. Other pieces to be performed include Edward Elgar?s "Nimrod" from the Enigma Variations for orchestra; "Voices of Spring" by Johann Strauss Jr.; Howard Hanson?s "Romantic Symphony"; and a Duke Ellington medley.

Vocal soloist Pearson is a mathematics major who plays the cello in the Philharmonia and sings in the St. Olaf Choir. Pearson, of Northfield, Minn., is president of the Philharmonia.

The St. Olaf Philharmonia performs music from all periods, including repertoire for string orchestra, chamber orchestra and symphony orchestra. It rehearses twice weekly, and membership consists of first-year through senior students at St. Olaf College. Virtually every academic major offered on campus is pursued by one of more students in the Philharmonia.

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Conductor Jo Ann Polley earned a bachelor?s degree in instrumental music education from St. Olaf, a master of music in clarinet performance from Northwestern University, and a Ph.D. in performance, music theory and music literature from Michigan State University. In addition to her formal conducting training, she has participated in numerous conducting symposia throughout the region. She performs frequently in solo and chamber music recitals on clarinet and bass clarinet, and is in demand as a clinician.

She is a founder and member of WindWorks, a professional woodwind quintet. As an orchestral musician, she has performed with many orchestras in the area. Currently she is north central chair of the International Clarinet Association. At St. Olaf she teaches clarinet and chamber music in addition to conducting the St. Olaf Philharmonia.

The April 29 concert is one of many festive events that are part of the Christopher Thomforde inauguration. Four other concerts, two worship services, two performances of a Roman comedy, an art exhibit, a dance festival/concert, a new historical exhibit and a gala fireworks display also will be part of the inaugural festivities Thursday through Sunday, April 26-29.

The official inauguration will take place at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 29, in Skoglund Center Auditorium with Librarian of Congress James Billington, a personal friend of Thomforde?s, delivering the main address. Inauguration Day also will include a tree-planting ceremony, a worship service, a reception and an orchestra concert.

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 complement of approximately 300. 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.