Adé Williams Makes York Symphony Debut With BEETHOVEN & DRACULA

The York Symphony Orchestra (YSO) will welcome violin soloist Adé Williams to South Central Pennsylvania as she makes her debut performance with the ensemble, now in its 94th season.

Williams, originally from the south side of Chicago, has been praised for her vibrant playing and her ability to connect with audiences since making her debut on the concert stage at the age of six. She will perform Beethoven's Concerto for Violin and Orchestra at the Appell Center on Saturday, October 24th, on a program that also features American composer Philip Glass's Suite from Dracula in a nod to the spooky season.

YSO Music Director Lawrence Golan commented on the concert: 'The Beethoven Violin Concerto is one of the most challenging and beautiful in the classical repertoire, but also a piece that is deeply personal to me as well. I can't wait to hear Ms. Williams bring this gorgeous music to life alongside the excellent musicians of the YSO.'

In addition to the concert on the 24th, Williams will be investing significant time in the community while in the area. In collaboration with the YSO, the Matinee Music Club will present Williams in an intimate recital together with pianist Yebin Kor on Wednesday, October 21st at St. Paul's Lutheran Church. The recital features works by Beethoven and Bartok among others and is free to attend.

Williams will also accompany Lawrence Golan to the Lifelong Learning Initiative at York College on Friday, October 23rd, where they are expected to discuss the music of Beethoven, whom the YSO is celebrating all season long.

About Beethoven & Dracula Concert

The York Symphony Orchestra presents the Beethoven & Dracula concert at the Appell Center's Strand Theatre on Saturday, October 24 at 7:30pm. Tickets start at $13.

Considered audacious at the time, Beethoven's Violin Concerto masterfully blends virtuosic passages with Romantic themes. Award-winning violinist Adé Williams makes her York Symphony debut in this technically challenging and thrilling Concerto for Violin and Orchestra. Philip Glass' Dracula Suite masterfully captures the seductive allure and mysterious essence of the romantic era's most famous vampire. Finally, American composer Jessie Montgomery's 'Starburst' explores a shifting musical kaleidoscope showcasing a contrasting soundscape.

Program

JESSIE MONTGOMERY Starburst

Philip Glass Suite from Dracula

Ludwig van Beethoven Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major

Event Details

Date: Saturday, October 24, 7:30pm

Venue: Appell Center's Strand Theatre

Tickets start at $13 and can be purchased online or through the Appell Center Box Office. The box office can be reached at 717-846-1111 and is open Monday–Friday from 11am–4pm and two hours before a performance.

Tickets: https://tickets.appellcenter.org/overview/10404

More information: https://yorksymphony.org/event/beethoven-dracula/

About York Symphony Orchestra

The York Symphony Orchestra (YSO) has been a cornerstone of cultural enrichment in the greater York area since its founding in 1933. Under the artistic guidance of Music Director Lawrence Golan, the ensemble of professional musicians performs for audiences of all ages. Each concert presents a dynamic mix of classical masterpieces and contemporary compositions at the Appell Center for the Performing Arts.

The YSO is committed to fostering a deep appreciation for the arts through its music education initiatives and aims to make its concerts and educational offerings accessible to everyone. More information about the concert schedule, educational programs, and special events is available at YorkSymphony.org. The YSO can also be followed on and Instagram.

About Adé Williams

Praised by the New York Times as 'stunning,' Adé is a renowned, award-winning, concert violinist, known for her vibrance and special connection to audiences. A 2023 Stradivari Society recipient, she is a highly sought-after soloist and collaborator in the US and abroad.

At age six, Adé made her solo debut with the Chicago Sinfonietta, which launched a career of performances with the world's finest orchestras, including the Philadelphia and Cleveland Orchestras; the Detroit, Pittsburgh, New World, Indianapolis, Hartford, and Nashville Symphonies; and the Buffalo and KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) Philharmonics. By age 17 she had won 17 competitions, and by 18 she had made her White House and Kennedy Center debuts as well as her Carnegie Hall debut where she has since returned five times.

Adé continues to perform in the world's best concert halls, including Symphony Center in Chicago, Severance Hall in Cleveland, Merkin Hall in New York, and Southbank Centre's Queen Elizabeth Hall in London. In the 2024/25 season, she made solo recital debuts on The Phillips Collection and Capital Classical Records series. She also made her first appearances with the Richmond, Charlotte, and Tuscaloosa Symphonies, and returned to the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra.

While concerto performances are at the heart of her career, Adé is also a passionate chamber musician who performs with ensembles of all forms. Most recently, she has collaborated with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Parlando Chamber Orchestra, and Sphinx Virtuosi. This season, she joins the Nexus Chamber Group, presenting music by Shostakovich, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Kurtag, and Ran. In 2017, she premiered Guardian of the Horizon: Concerto Grosso for Violin, Cello, and Strings by Jimmy Lopez, a work commissioned by Carnegie Hall and New World Symphony. The New York Concert Review praised her as 'an absolute winning champion of the work.'

Adé engages in a wide range of special projects like Rachel Barton Pine's Music by Black Composers project as a recording artist; the Milken Institute's 'Why Wait? Young People Blazing Trails' program as a panelist; and the University of Michigan as a guest lecturer. In 2012, she produced her first Adé & Friends benefit concert in support of a new school on Chicago's south side where she was born and raised. Between concerts, Adé continues her work with young students in schools across the US and her private studio. Her students have been accepted into some of the best schools, including the New England Conservatory in Boston. In the 2023-24 season, she gave her first collegiate masterclass at University of Hartford's Hartt School of Music.

Adé began playing violin at age three. She has studied with Rachel Barton Pine, Marko Dreher, and Almita and Roland Vamos at the Music Institute of Chicago. She graduated with honors from the Curtis Institute of Music where she studied with Ida Kavafian and served as concertmaster of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra in the 2018-2019 season. Adé performs on the 'Dancla' G.B. Rogeri violin, from Brescia, circa 1700, on extended loan through the generosity and efforts of the Stradivari Society.

More information: https://www.adewilliamsviolin.com/

About Matinee Music Club

In 1913, eight women met in the parlor of a home and determined to create a club 'to appeal to serious musicians,' according to a history of the Matinee Musical Club, and 'to encourage and develop musical talent and culture.' That first year, four more women joined the organization. By 1917, the group outgrew the parlors in which they were meeting, became an official organization, and began meeting in the auditorium of the Woman's Club of York (now named the Hugh McCall Mansion) at 228 E. Market St. Many members performed at the Wednesday afternoon (matinee) meetings. By 1924, student members appeared in programs. When the York Symphony Orchestra was founded, Matinee Musical Club members played active roles in the formation of that music organization. A member of the group founded the York Symphony Chorus. Thanks to a generous bequest from late member Susan Dorogi Miller, the MMC supports an annual scholarship awarded to qualified student-member musicians.

More information: https://yorksymphony.org/spotlight-series/

About Lifelong Learning Initiative at York College

Lawrence Golan, Music Director of the York Symphony Orchestra, will be offering six 90 minute discussion lectures at York College featuring an in-depth presentation and discussion of the music that he will conduct at the symphony.

York College's Lifelong Learning Initiative provides accessible, intergenerational, educational, and social experiences for mature adults. These experiences enrich members' intellectual, cultural, and social lives in a community-focused, member-driven environment.

York College's new effort is made possible through support and partnership from the York County Community Foundation's Embracing Aging Initiative.