Guest post by West Valley SymphonyWest-Valley-Symphony-on-stage   REALLY? CLASSICAL MUSIC?

Do you think you don’t know, or don’t like classical music? Well, actually maybe you do. Think of the fast paced theme from The Lone Ranger--hearing Gioachino Rossini’s William Tell Overture instantly brings an image of masked man on a galloping white horse to my mind.  How about the powerful music of Richard Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries that builds while helicopters swoop down in Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now? Remember the United Airlines theme song, Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin? It just soars, which I guess is why United Airlines chose it. And what about Walt Disney’s Fantasia and the scene with the dancing broomsticks? That was The Sorcerer’s Apprentice by Paul Dukas. Conductor-Cal-Stewart-photo-Robert-Strava Did you know there is a professional symphony orchestra here in the West Valley? Did you know many of our professional musicians also perform with Arizona Opera, MusicaNova, Symphony of the Southwest, Phoenix Opera and the Phoenix Symphony?  Did you also know Maestro Cal Stewart Kellogg has a very impressive resume? He has led the Baltimore Symphony, the Seattle Symphony, speaks fluent Italian and while living in Italy led the radio orchestras of Rome, Naples and Turin. And he knows opera too; he spent 16 years conducting Washington Opera at the Kennedy Center in NYC and was the principal conductor for Arizona Opera. While in Italy, he conducted operas at Teatro d’ Opera di Roma and Teatro de San Carlo in Naples. We are incredibly lucky to have him here, right in our own community. West-Valley-Symphony-Micah-Ramchandani I invite you to experience a West Valley Symphony performance; our first concert is a perfect program to explore the orchestra. It includes Benjamin Britten’s Young Persons Guide to the Orchestra, which takes the listener on a journey through the orchestra, highlighting the sound and tone of each instrument. Wagner’s Tannhauser Overture and the Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde. And don’t overlook Verdi’s Triumphal March and Ballet from Aïda which is also on the program. It is taking place right here in Glendale, on Saturday, November 2, 7:30pm at La Sala Ballroom at ASU-West. Tickets to the ASU West performance are available through ASU-West Events website or by phone - 602-543-2787. West-Valley-Symphony-Chelpka The Symphony’s regular home, Valley Vista Performing Arts Center in Surprise, will host a repeat of that concert on Sunday November 3rd at 3pm, as well as the rest of the season: Amahl and the Night Visitors in December; The Three B’s:  Bach, Beethoven and Brahms in January; Sounds of Scandinavia in February and in March, the season finale Americans: Here and Abroad features works by George Gershwin. (An American in Paris anyone?) We hope you will join us for a concert and experience the magic of a live performance of this marvelous music. You can reach us at 623-236-6781, visit our website, or send off an email at mmyhre at westvalleysymphony.org.