Lakes Region Symphony Orchestra kicks off 44th season

MEREDITH — The Lakes Region Symphony Orchestra is about to open its 44th season, and conductor Ben Greene has been there for close to half of them. The 2019-2020 season kicks off on Nov. 2, with one of Greene’s favorite concerts, the performance that features the winner of the orchestra’s Concerto Competition.

The featured soloist for the Nov. 2 concert, taking place at the Inter-Lakes Community Auditorium in Meredith, will be Brigham Parker, a home-schooled student who lives in Merrimack, whose passion for piano has developed over nine years of playing.

This wasn’t Parker’s first go at the LRSO competition; he finished third in last year’s contest.

The Concerto Competition is open to students in grades 8 through 11 who play an orchestral instrument. The first round includes the submission of a recording, application and resume. From those applicants, a candidate will be asked to perform in an in-person round of auditions in March, and a handful of them will participate in final auditions in May.

Greene said Parker is well deserving of the opportunity to solo with the LRSO.

“All I can tell you is he’s amazing. When he played for us, I couldn’t believe I was listening to someone this young,” said Greene.

Parker epitomizes why LRSO has such a program, Greene added. “It’s a lot of fun for us to do. It’s also an honor to have someone like this play for us.”

Parker will be performing Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto No. 1 in Bb minor, Op. 23.” It’s a piece that many will recognize, though they may not think of it when they think of Tchaikovsky.

“As soon as they hear the themes, they’ll say, ‘Oh, I know this piece; I didn’t know it was Tchaikovsky,’” Greene said. “Audience-wise, it’s going to be a crowd-pleaser. Technically, for the pianist especially, it’s very challenging.”

The musicians of the LRSO come from all walks of life, united by their appreciation of classical music. They include professional musicians, students and life-long amateurs, Greene said. They travel from more than 30 communities to gather for rehearsals and performances. More musicians are welcomed, especially those who play trumpet or trombone.

“The fact that we can have this collection of people from all different backgrounds just because they love orchestra … The group itself is a community and we feel that way. I really like that.”

Following the Nov. 2 performance, the LRSO will present its “Holiday Pops” show, featuring vocalist Michael Gallaghan, on Dec. 14 and 15. Guitarist David Newsam will be the featured soloist for the Saturday, March 28, performance, titled “Nature’s Splendor.”

The season will close with the May 16 and 17 show, “Broadway-Then and Now” featuring vocalist Ashley Whalley.

For ticket information, call 800-838-2006 or visit lrso.org.

“The Lakes Region Symphony Orchestra is, I think, one of the jewels of the Lakes Region that many people don’t know about. We present really good concerts from November to May in a really nice facility for an affordable ticket price. I sometimes refer to the LRSO as the best-kept secret in the Lakes Region,” Greene said.