The SSO’s last concert of its subscription season is entitled “American Remembrance”.   This is our annual side-by-side concert at which talented local youth from the All-County Orchestra join the ranks of the orchestra for the concert. The concert will open with  Sheldon Bair’s own “This We’ll Defend”, based on popular Army tunes and written for the 100^th anniversary of Aberdeen Proving Ground, will be performed once again.  “This We’ll Defend” was well received at the SSO’s June 2017 outdoor concert! This will be followed by two works, which commemorate the 50^thanniversary of the assassinations of Marin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy.  Local composer and jazz artist Benny Russell is composing a work for the SSO entitled “Steal Away”, based on the spiritual.  This will be followed by Raymond Horton’s “Make Gentle the Life of this World” which uses the audio from the actual speech Bobby Kennedy gave in Indianapolis on the evening of the assassination of MLK, Jr.  The SSO performed this work several years ago and the audience was quite moved by the experience.

After intermission, Connecticut composer, and SSO favorite, Gwyneth Walker has orchestrated and arranged a suite of four spirituals entitled “The Promised Land” for soprano and orchestra.  Long time SSO soloist and friend-of-the-orchestra Carolyn Black-Sotir will join us for this performance, which is sure to be a crowd-pleaser! This will be followed by a work from another female composer, Nancy Bloomer Deussen, entitled “Regalos” or “The Gifts”. “Regalos” is a short work that is crammed full of fun Hispanic tunes and rhythms. The May concert will end with a rousing and fun-filled performance of Duke Ellington’s “Caravan”, filled with hope and goodwill!