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MU Symphony Orchestra places in American Prize competition

The American Prize is a set of annual nonprofit national competitions in the performing arts which recognizes and rewards performances of classical music in the United States based on submitted applications.

Miami University Symphony Orchestra placed as one of eight finalists for the coveted award. Ricardo Averbach, Director of Orchestral Studies at Miami and conductor of Miami's orchestra, was the winner of the American Prize in 2010 and received the 2nd prize this year in the category of best college/university orchestra conductor. 

The award, announced this year, refers to a special season for the Miami Orchestra, as the ensemble celebrated its centennial during the 2016-17 academic year — their first concert being performed on December 15, 2016.  

This past year's centennial celebration brought to campus a sophisticated array of performances including:

  • Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, Eroica; considered the greatest symphony of all times by 151 of the world’s top conductors according to survey results published in a recent issue of BBC Music magazine.
  • The American premiere of Chimera, a concerto grosso for brass quintet and orchestra by Anthony DiLorenzo, featuring members of the Cincinnati Pops Brass Quintet as soloists.
  • The American premiere of the Cantata Dreams and Alas (a Malala), compositions by Arturo Márquez, the most prominent living composer from Mexico.
  • The world premiere of Arcade Variations, an original composition based on a compilation of themes from video games by Per Bloland, assistant professor of music at Miami. 

Throughout the 2016-17 season, Miami University Symphony Orchestra featured numerous guest artists who celebrated music with our students. Artists included composers Samuel Adler, Anthony DiLorenzo, Arturo Márquez and Per Bloland; guest conductors Eduardo García Barrios and Steve Lytle; as well as guest soloists Ronald Crutcher, Michael Preacely, Allison Acord, Esther Claros and the Cincinnati Pops Brass Quintet.

The symphony's first performance of the 2017-18 academic year is Friday, October 6 at 7:30 p.m. in Hall Auditorium. The orchestra will perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 and Joachim Raff’s Cello Concerto No. 1, featuring Cole Tutino, instructor of cello at Miami in his first performance as soloist with Miami's orchestra.

The concert is free and open to the public and tickets are not required.