A magical symphony concert will end the year for the Rhapsody Orchestra, with the music of Leroy Anderson and Ludwig van Beethoven.
“A Festive Symphony”, marks the grand finale of the orchestra’s 2024 season. Conducted by Heinrich Lategan, this concert will showcase Beethoven’s 2nd Symphony and “A Christmas Festival,” by Anderson.
Beethoven wrote his Symphony No. 2 in D Major between 1801 and 1802, during one of the most depressed periods of his life. His deafness was becoming more pronounced, and he began to realise that it might be incurable. At the same time, Europe was standing on the precipice of war with France and Napoleon Bonaparte. Despite this, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2 generates and maintains a cheerful enthusiasm. According to Berlioz, Beethoven may have sought refuge in musical ‘comedy’ at a time of personal tragedy. Therefore, perhaps Beethoven attempted to find a harbour for himself in his own art. Symphony No. 2, in particular, embodies the philosophical concepts of triumph over adversity.
The Symphony is preceded by Leroy Anderson’s “A Christmas Festival”. In 1950, working as the arranger and orchestrator for the Boston Pops, Anderson was asked to do a concert piece for a special Christmas recording. He selected eight of the most popular Christmas carols and songs and ‘built’ a concert overture titled Christmas Festival using those themes. The overture consists of seven famous carols, including works by Handel and Mendelssohn.
The Rhapsody Orchestra is a community orchestra and non-profit organisation founded in 2020 by Heinrich Lategan and a group of like-minded Bloemfontein musicians with a shared passion for orchestral music and the joy that playing together as a community brings. The orchestra is made up of a diverse mix of amateur, student, and professional musicians, all united by a love for music.
It is for precisely this reason that the orchestra has also made the dress rehearsal available to, amongst others, children from Engo, Eduplus, and Bloemfontein’s homeschooling community, as they want to give youth the opportunity to experience and develop a love for classical music.
The consert will take place on Saturday, 23 November at 19:00 in the Odeion on the main campus of the University of the Free State.
