SEISO presents concerts this weekend

The Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra (SEISO) will present its Iowa Roots concerts Oct. 16-17 at three cities in Southeast Iowa.

The orchestra will perform on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 7:30 at Burlington’s Capitol Theater; Sunday, Oct. 17 at 2 p.m. at Ottumwa’s Bridge View Center; and later that day at 6:30 p.m. at Iowa Wesleyan’s Chapel Auditorium in Mt. Pleasant.

These concerts include a world premiere of a flute concerto by Iowa composer Linda Robbins Coleman, who is celebrating her 30th year as an orchestral composer. Principal Flute of SEISO Victoria Rose Bishop is the soloist in the culmination of her residency as SEISO Artist-in-Residence.

Rose is visiting schools and presenting public recitals in all three communities.

Czech Composer Antonin Dvorak’s Iowa inspired masterpiece, New World Symphony, opens the concert. The second half of the concert is all female composers and includes a work by St. Louis composer Stephanie Berg with her Arabian street festival inspired Ravish and Mayhem.

Ms. Bishop is featured as soloist on Concertino by Cecile Chaminade. The concert ends with the World Premiere, SEISO commissioned, Diversions by Linda Robbins Coleman. This work features Ms. Bishop in the highly unusual format of the flautist soloing on Alto, C Flute and Piccolo in consecutive movements. This appears to be the only the second work of this kind written for flute and orchestra.

This concert continues the SEISO theme of honoring the anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment allowing women the right to vote by featuring female composers and soloists.

Admission to the Masterworks Series concerts in Burlington, Ottumwa and Mt. Pleasant is by season ticket or by single-concert tickets which may be purchased at the door or on the group’s website at www.seiso.us. There is no reserved seating.

Guests are invited to make the most of their concert experience by attending the “Prelude.” Music Director Robert McConnell will be on hand 45 minutes before each performance to talk about the programmed music in depth. “Prelude” is supported through a grant from the Charles W. Rand Memorial Lecture Fund in Burlington and is offered free of charge to all audience members.

If you have questions, contact the SEISO Office at seiso@iw.edu. More information is available on the SEISO website at www.seiso.us.