ORCHESTRA NORTHERN ARIZONA
Flagstaff's Community Orchestra
October 21 Season Premiere
Alexander Burdiss has been delivering exciting musical performances across the nation since 2011. An avid academic and performer, he strives to learn every possible facet of playing the Trombone and deliver professional quality material everywhere he plays. A few of his current expeditions include lively jazz gigs, extensive solo work, and regular orchestral performances. Fluent in both the classical and jazz idioms, he has had the chance to study with people such as Ralph Sauer, David Vining, Jacques Mauger, and Abbie Conant. He has performed in venues such as the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History, Gammage Theater at ASU, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland Ohio. Also an experienced educator, Alex strives to create custom lessons for his students, using innovative teaching techniques to deliver effective lessons. Alex currently studies Trombone at Northern Arizona University, and is grateful for the opportunity he has to devote his life to his music.
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A Note from Alex
My name is Alexander Burdiss, and I have played the trombone since I was 11, and have been playing solos since I was 15. I have devoted most of my life to learning the craft, and have loved every second of it. When I make music, I want my audiences to be able to connect with the music. I want to make complex musical pieces more accessible to all, and to bring live music back to everyday life, because I believe that live music, especially classical music, is a dying art. Seeing an art form that has been such a large part of human history begin to fall away concerns me for the future, and is one of my greatest motivations for performing. It is my aim to try to play music so full of energy and passion that it enhances the lives of every audience member I play for.
I believe that being honest in what I do as a musician is the most valuable asset that I can possess. Playing in a way that only I can play helps me to stand out from the crowd, and allows me to speak with my true voice. In my past, I have played too many shows where I am concentrated solely on the notes coming out, and I feel I have been unprepared in my earlier shows. The first time I actually felt prepared for a show was for a recital in college. I stepped out onstage with my music memorized (I felt over-prepared at the time) and I just tried to play something the audience would enjoy instead of trying to play all the notes right. By doing so I have found a way to play more expressively, be more true to myself, and ultimately play better than I ever have before.
December 9 Candy Cane Concert
Anderson's A Christmas Festival
'Joy to the World', 'Jingle Bells' and 'O, Come All Ye Faithful,' 'Deck the Halls', 'Good King Wenceslas', 'God Rest You Merry Gentlemen', 'Hark the Herald Angels Sing', 'The First Nowell' and 'Silent Night' woven into a wonderful orchestral tapestry. It is little surprise that this piece is a Christmas favorite!
Sullivan's Yeoman of the Guard
Many believe that the score is Sullivan's finest. Indeed, some enjoy Yeomen particularly because of its ever-changing emotional balance of joy and despair, love and sacrifice. The Overture, in particular, is vintage Sullivan at his finest.
Grieg's Pier Gynt, Suite #1
Pastoral melodies, string laments, intriguing dances, and dangerous trolls . . . join the adventures of Peer Gynt.
Berlioz' Shepherd's Farewell
L'enfance du Christ (English: The Childhood of Christ), Opus 25, is based on the Holy Family's flight into Egypt. Flagstaff Sings joins us for this moving, beautiful work for choir and orchestra.
Handel's Hallelujah Chorus
After an initially modest public reception, Handel's Messiah has become one of the best-known and most frequently performed choral works in Western music. Flagstaff Sings and members of the Coconino High School Concert Choir join us for the ever-joyous Hallelujah Chorus.
Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers
Johann Strauss may well be dubbed “The Waltz King, but Tchaikovsky certainly runs a very close second, and this famous example shows why: we feel it is a fitting way for all of us at ONA to wish everyone A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Carol Sing-Along
Your chance to shine! Sing along with orchestra and chorus and raise the roof!
Also from Flagstaff Sings: Vince Guaraldi's Christmas Time is Here from A Charlie Brown Christmas and Hertz Weber's Hanukkah Song.
February 24 Masterful Mixup
Join us the evening of February 24 for a special concert, as the members of Youth Orchestra Northern Arizona join ONA for its annual Masterful Mixup.
The program will comprise some of the greatest classical orchestral music, and will be introduced and presented informally by our artistic director and conductor, David Cripps – with the help of assistant conductor, Jeff Good. Composers represented throughout the evening range from the early classical period of Josef Haydn, right through to the late romantic era of Gustav Mahler.
The second half of our concert will be a “symphony” of four movements, each drawn from the output of four different, yet equally great, composers: Sibelius, Schubert, Mahler and Brahms.
Beethoven's Egmont Overture
Haydn's Suprise (2nd mov.)
Angerer: Toy Symphony
Rimsky-Korsakov's Dance of the Tumblers
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Plus our mixed up symphony
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Sibelius Symphony #2 (1st mov.)
Schubert Symphony #5 (2nd mov.)
​​Mahler: Symphony #5, Adagietto
Brahms Symphony #2, 2nd mov.)
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