Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra Performs 'Signs Of Life' at Second Church In Newton

Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra will welcome conductor Paul Polivnick to lead a concert titled Signs of Life on Sunday, April 12 at Second Church in Newton, MA.  

Maestro Polivnick, who led Pro Arte for concerts in 2019 and 2022, has curated Signs of Life, a powerful program of four compositions for string orchestra. Antonín Dvořák transformed an early Andante religioso for string quartet into the luminous Notturno for Strings, Op. 40. Dimitri Shostakovich's Chamber Symphony Op.110a. was also originally scored for string quartet, but its later orchestration conveys the composer's personal anguish with even greater intensity.

Inspired by Latin liturgical texts, Adolphus Hailstork's Sonata da Chiesa is a contemporary American take on the 17th-century church sonata. Edward Elgar fashioned his rich Introduction and Allegro after another Baroque form, the concerto grosso, which assigns a solo role to a group of players—in this case, a string quartet.

A prominent figure on the world stage, Polivnick maintains an active international conducting schedule. His appearances abroad have included the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, L'Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Vienna Radio Orchestra, the China National Symphony Orchestra, and many others. In addition, he has conducted over forty orchestras in the United States.