Sarasota Concert Association presents
The Sarasota Mandolin Orchestra
In a Munchtime Musicales Performance
Wednesday, February 18 § David Cohen Hall
(Sarasota, Florida) The Sarasota Concert Association’s free Munchtime Musicales series continues its 2015 season with the Sarasota Mandolin Orchestra, Wednesday, February 18, noon, in David Cohen Hall at the Beatrice Friedman Symphony Center, 709 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. Paul Wolfe, co-founder of the Sarasota Music Festival and its artistic director for 42 years, conducts the orchestra, which was founded in 1998. The concert is free and open to the public. For more information about Munchtime Musicales, call 941-351-7467, or visit www.scasarasota.org.
The Sarasota Mandolin Orchestra was formed in 1998 by Lou and Ann Paige to reintroduce audiences to the unique sounds of the mandolin, especially in an orchestral setting. The orchestra performs a variety of music, including ethnic, swing, ragtime, classical, and popular. Long a mainstay of bluegrass music, the modern mandolin originated in Italy about 300 years ago and was a popular instrument in Europe during the baroque period, with many compositions written for it during that time. Mandolin orchestras flourished in the United States around the beginning of the 20th century and, in the 1940’s, virtuoso mandolinist Bill Monroe introduced a whole new sound with his bluegrass mandolin.
Paul Wolfe, co-founder of the Sarasota Music Festival and its artistic director for 42 years, currently conducts the Sarasota Mandolin Orchestra. From 1961 to 1996, Wolfe served as artistic director and conductor of Sarasota Orchestra. In 2002, Wolfe retired after 35 years as a violinist with the Florida String Quartet, one of the four chamber ensembles he established while with Sarasota Orchestra. In 2011, he was named “Citizen of the Year” for extraordinary service to the community over a lifetime by the city of Sarasota. Wolfe is a former board member and chairman of the Education Committee of Chamber Music America and received its “Citation for Excellence” in 1995.
“We’re delighted to have Paul Wolfe and the Sarasota Mandolin Orchestra as part of this season’s Munchtime Musicales lineup,” says Katherine Oarr, coordinator of the series. “This will be a wonderful opportunity for our audiences to experience a wide variety of music expressed through the lovely sounds of the mandolin.”
Munchtime Musicales is a series of free concerts featuring performances by high-caliber, area-based artists. The series is designed to offer a wide variety of musical genres, including classical, folk, and jazz, featuring both vocal and instrumental performers. The 2015 concert season continues with Studio Artists from the Sarasota Opera, Sarasota’s ambassadors of opera who bring this musical form to stages beyond the walls of the Sarasota Opera House (March 18, 2105); and the State College of Florida Chamber Choir, an 18-person vocal ensemble that performs repertoire spanning from Renaissance madrigals to contemporary jazz (April 8, 2015). All performances are at noon at the Beatrice Friedman Symphony Center, 709 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. The series is free and open to the public. Seating is open; no reservations taken. For more information about Munchtime Musicales, call 941-351-7467 or visit www.scasarasota.org.
Sarasota Concert Association’s 2015 Great Performers Series at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall continues with the Dresden Philharmonic, led by Michael Sanderling, with cellist Johannes Moser (March 1, 2015); the Takács Quartet with pianist Joyce Yang (March 17, 2015); and celebrated pianist Murray Perahia (March 25, 2015). In February, the organization celebrates its 70th season with a special concert featuring renowned pianist/composer Dick Hyman (February 11, 2015). Great Performers Series concerts are at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 North Tamiami Trail in Sarasota. Individual tickets range in price from $40 to $75. Tickets are available by calling 941-225-6500 or by visiting www.scasarasota.org.
About the Sarasota Concert Association
The Sarasota Concert Association (SCA) is a not-for-profit organization that seeks to foster an appreciation for the musical arts by sponsoring professional presentations not otherwise available in the community. The SCA endeavors to set ticket fees as reasonably as possible, in order to make the performances available to a wide audience. It provides outreach to all members of the regional community by offering a series of free concerts, Munchtime Musicales, held from November through April every year. For more information about SCA, visit www.scasarasota.org.
