New Philharmonic Presents SLAVIC STRINGS With Special Guest Cellist Joshua Roman

New Philharmonic and Music Director/Conductor Kirk Muspratt present Slavic Strings at 8 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9 and Saturday, Oct. 10 with special guest appearance by nationally-acclaimed cellist Joshua Roman, at the McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage, located at 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn, IL.

Named 2009 Professional Orchestra of the Year by the Illinois Council of Orchestras, New Philharmonic begins its concert season with Slavic Strings. Muspratt will lead the orchestra in Borodin's overture Prince Igor and Polovetsian Dances, one of the best known works in the classical repertoire. Roman will showcase his breathtaking cello virtuosity in Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 1. Muspratt will conclude the evening with Stravinsky's masterpiece, L'Oiseau de feu (Firebird Suite).

Continuing New Philharmonic's tradition of engaging audience members, musicians will visit with the patrons in the lobby during intermission, offering insight into the evening's concert selections. The New Philharmonic also distributes "Just Ask Kirk" cards to the audience for a post-concert question-and-answer session. Following the performance, audience and orchestra members join Muspratt for "Cookies with Kirk," giving the audience an opportunity to meet and interact with the conductor.

Dubbed by the Seattle Times as a "classical rock star," and having played sold-out solo and chamber performances throughout the city, 25-year old Roman joined the Seattle Symphony Orchestra at age 22 as the youngest principal player in the symphony's history. Roman was the principal cellist of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra from 2006 until 2008. In addition to his orchestra work, Roman often plays at clubs, showcasing a vast repertoire, ranging from jazz and rock to classical sonatas and chamber music. Roman also serves as the artistic director of the innovative chamber music series TownMusic at Seattle's Town Hall. Most recently, MusicalAmerica featured Roman as the August 2009 Artist of the Month.

Roman appeared with the YouTube Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in March 2009 and was selected as the only musician to deliver a solo performance for the evening, which has been viewed more than 1.5 million times on YouTube. Roman's solo moment playing Bach Cello Suite at the sold-out event was preceded by a video introduction by one of his mentors, Yo-Yo Ma: "Occasionally I get to meet an extraordinary young musician. Such is the case with Joshua Roman. To me, Joshua is one of the great exemplars of the ideal 21st-century musician. He's deeply grounded in a classical tradition and he is a fearless explorer of our world."

As a concerto soloist, Roman has performed with Spokane Symphony, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, Wyoming Symphony, Edmonton Symphony, Quad City Symphony and Stamford Symphony. He played the world premiere of David Stock's Cello Concerto with the Seattle Symphony in July 2009.

Ticket Price Range:
$25 to $35

Ticket Web site:
http://purchase.tickets.com/buy/TicketPurchase?organ_val=3754&schedule=list

Event / Venue Web site:
www.AtTheMAC.org

McAninch Arts Center at the College of DuPage
425 Fawell Blvd.
Glen Ellyn, Ill. 60137

Ticket Phone Number:
(630) 942-4000

Performance Schedule:
Friday, Oct. 9 and Saturday, Oct. 10 at 8 p.m.