Cameron Civic Symphony to perform as chamber ensemble

The Cameron University Civic Symphony will perform as a small chamber ensemble at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the McCutcheon Recital Hall.

The concert will begin with “Playful Pizzicato,” the second movement from Benjamin Britten’s “Simple Symphony.” This upbeat and lighthearted movement is played with plucked strings, giving it a unique musical texture. It was featured in the 2012 film “Moonrise Kingdom.”

That will be followed by “Andante Cantabile,” the melancholic second movement from Tchaikovsky’s String Quartet No. 1 in D major, Op. 11, composed in 1871. Tchaikovsky based it on a folk song he heard being whistled by a house painter.

Mendelssohn’s “Italian Elegy” from his Symphony No. 4 “Italian” will follow. Composed in 1833 and revised by Mendelssohn a year later, the piece has been described as challenging in its simplicity and style with a hauntingly beautiful melody.

The concert will conclude with the first movement from “St. Paul’s Suite” by Gustav Holst, composed in 1912-13 and dedicated to the orchestra at St. Paul’s Girls School in London.

“These late 19th and early 20th century pieces provide unique challenges that differ from Classical era music,” says Angela Ruiz, conductor. “This concert will encapsulate the chamber music style in that I will be conducting the ensemble from the first violin section. There is an air of whimsical and dancelike themes with the Barber and Holst pieces, contrasted by the somber and ethereal elements of the Tchaikovsky and Mendelssohn.”

Performing with the CU Civic Symphony are students Verina Ware, Rush Springs, and Russell Simington, Kaitlan Kaulaity, Tessah Caddo, and Hypatia Recklein, all of Lawton. Joining them are community members Susan Diekman and Dolores Anderson.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for senior citizens, military members and non-CU students. Cameron students, faculty, and staff are admitted at no charge with a valid CU ID. To reserve tickets, please call 580-581-2346 or visit https://www.cameron.edu/art-music-and-theatre/events/buy-tickets.