SDSU Symphony Orchestra and Alexandra Burch Perform in Concerto Competition Concert
San Diego State University's School of Music and Dance will present the annual Concerto Competition Concert on Sunday, April 21 at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. at Montezuma Hall.
The competition winner, Alexandra Burch, will have the rare opportunity to solo with the SDSU Symphony Orchestra. Burch was selected from among many musicians who auditioned before a panel of judges earlier this semester.
“There were several performances that the judges thought were worthy of hearing with the full Symphony Orchestra, and Alexandra was just a standout,” said SDSU Director of Orchestras Michael Gerdes.
The concert’s highlight musical selection will be Saint Saëns Piano Concerto No.s in G minor, the same piece Alexandra performed for the audition.
While trying out for a coveted solo performance can be tense, Gerdes admires how the program handles competition internally.
“The students are responsible for keeping the competition healthy,” Gerdes said. “The most reliable audience during the competition are actually all of these students’ classmates.”
“When Alexandra was competing, the rest of the piano studio was there cheering her on, even the folks who were preparing their own pieces… She's in the audience cheering for them. It is difficult because, like any competition, there's only one winner” said Gerdes.
For the Symphony Orchestra, which will accompany Burch this weekend, this will be another marquee performance in their busy Spring Semester. They returned from touring in Las Vegas after Spring Break and premiered a Jocelyn Hagen work at the Balboa Theatre last week.
“As the orchestra improves and plays more and more, we add more performances to the calendar,” Gerdes said. “Our students are able to keep acquiring repertoire, and they're ready to perform whenever we get into a hall. In a way, it mimics how it's done at a professional level.”
Gerdes believes that in a perfect world, every student would have the opportunity to solo with the orchestra at a marquee event. But, he recognizes that is not possible.
“This is a way for us to showcase at least one student a year in that kind of performance,” he said. “It's an honor for them to win. For many of these students, it's the first competition they've won. For some students, it's the first competition they've ever done. But, it's usually a great first experience.”
The School of Music and Dance invites you to the performance on Sunday, April 21 at Montezuma Hall at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. The performances are free and open to the public.
