ARCO 2nd Thursday Finale

Hugh Hodgson was a very important Georgian, because he believed in the citizens of this state - and the importance of educating them. He was a very significant faculty member at the University of Georgia because he believed in the power of music as a civilising force, a non-negotiable element of an educated citizenry.

His Second Thursday music nights have a lofty pedigree and we're glad that they remain a means to bring great music to our campus. This year's roster has been a great one with many highlights, and the series concludes this week on Thursday April 12 with the ARCO Chamber Orchestra, Levon Ambartsumian, artistic director.

The ARCO Chamber Orchestra will present the final 2nd Thursday concert of the academic year April 12 at 8 p.m. in Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall. Tickets are $18, $5 for UGA students with ID.

Directed by Franklin Professor of Violin Levon Ambartsumian, ARCO’s performance highlights two works by Russian composer Efrem Podgaits, the spring semester’s visiting artist at the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts. ARCO will give the American premiere of Podgaits’ Cras Ignotum (Unknown Tomorrow) concerto for violin, strings, piano and percussion, featuring Ambartsumian, with pianist Anatoly Shelyudakov and percussionist Kevin Burk. 

Ambartsumian also will be featured in another work by Podgaits, Kol Nidrei (All Vows) for violin and orchestra. Rounding out the concert is Franz Schubert’s Sonata for Violin and Orchestra, also featuring Ambartsumian, and Bach’s Concerto for Oboe, Violin and Orchestra featuring oboist Reid Messich and violinist Ruth Monson, a part-time instructor in the School of Music.

A huge fan of ARCO, I became enamored of the orchestra during the trip I took with them to Venice earlier this year, when they were invited to perform at a concert sponsored by UNESCO, and I was invited to tag along and film a documentary about the experience. They are an amazing ensemble of Hodgson School faculty and student musicians who perform at a professional level. Ambartsumian is highly accomplished soloist and conductor who hand-picks his players and knows exactly what he wants from them. This concert is especially noteworthy as it features an American permiere of work by the visiting artist Efrem Podgaits.

The documentary ARCO in Venice, will be broadcast on WUGA-TV later this summer.