The Heartland Symphony Orchestra will be finishing up its 46th season by performing their Spring Concert Series titled “The Youth Concerto Competition Returns.” The program will highlight both winners of the 2023 Echo Kowalzek Youth Concerto Competition, Abigail Benson and Arriana Schwab. The Saturday, April 1st performance in Little Falls will be at Charles D. Martin Auditorium at 7:30 pm. The Sunday, April 2nd performance in Brainerd will be at Gichi-ziibi Center for the Arts at 2:30 pm.
Benson, a senior at Brainerd High School, will perform Weber’s Concertino for Clarinet and Orchestra. As a homeschool graduate from Royalton, Schwab, will perform the first movement of Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 in G Major. Other selections performed by the HSO will include music by Franz Schubert, Ingrid Stölzel, and Jacob Shay.
Conductor, Ryan Webber, will host “Conductor Chats” 45-minutes prior to each concert. For many, these informational programs make listening to classical music a much more enjoyable experience.
These concerts are made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Five Wings Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund. In Little Falls, the Laura Jane Musser fund provides additional support. The Echo Kowalzek Youth Concerto Competition is funded in part by a grant from Crow Wing Power Community Trust.
HSO concerts are welcome to all ages, free of charge, no tickets necessary. Donations will be accepted at the door or online.
Arriana Schwab
Abigail Benson