WSO starts season with ‘Fall Kickoff’
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The Washington Symphony Orchestra will open its 2015-2016 season with “Fall Kickoff” at 8 p.m. Saturday at Trinity High School.
This is not the first time at the WSO has “played football.” In 2012, a crew from ESPN filmed the WSO playing the opening theme for Monday Night Football. That theme, “Heavy Action,” will be dusted off for Saturday’s concert.
The WSO also will play “Sabers and Six Guns” from NFL Films Music, and the Trinity High School marching band will join the orchestra for “Mister Touchdown USA.”
On the classical side, the orchestra will play the violin concerto “L’Autumno” from Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. Edvard Grieg’s “Im Herbst” (In Autumn) and Johannes Brahms’ “Academic Festival Overture” also are on the program.
Keeping with the football theme, there will be a silent auction of signed football cards and photographs from more than 35 retired NFL players, including Pittsburgh Steelers and Hall of Famers. All ticket holders can participate in the silent auction.
“It was really encouraging how these famous players like Joe Green and Earl Campbell signed items for us despite not having heard of us before,” said Adam Shaffer, WSO general manager. “Sometimes we sent one card to be signed, and we got two or three back. Larry Csonka sent us a full color 8-by-10 autographed photo.”
Bidding on most cards will start at $5, with bidding open until the end of intermission.
In addition, sports historian Jim O’Brien will sign copies of some of the 23 books in his “Pittsburgh Proud” series. O’Brien is the author of the football-themed books “Golden Arms: Six Hall of Fame Quarterbacks from Western Pennsylvania, Lambert and Steeler Stuff.”
Tickets start at $17 and can be purchased online at washsym.org, by calling 888-71-TICKETS or at the following locations: Washington Financial branches, Citizens Library and Peters Township Public Library. For more information, visit www.washsym.org or connect with the WSO on Facebook (facebook.com/washsymphony) and Twitter (twitter.com/washsymphony).