The Thousand and One Nights, also called The Arabian Nights, are a collection of Persian stories of uncertain date and authorship whose tales of Aladdin, Ali Baba, and Sinbad the Sailor have almost become part of Western folklore. Legend has it that a beautiful storyteller, Scheherezade, told one of the stories each night to a bygone Persian king in the hope that he would spare her life.
The Space Coast Symphony Orchestra will play the symphonic suite by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov when they present Scheherezade at 7 p.pm. on Friday 21 at Scott Center for Performing Arts and at 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 22 at the Vero Beach High School Performing Arts Center.
Led by Conductor and Artistic Director, Aaron T. Collins, the SCSO will perform the popular work inspired by the exotic nightly tales of shipwrecks, thieves and royals, in a concert that also includes the sweeping Fantasy Overture, "Romeo and Juliet." The passionate orchestral work composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is based on the story of the star-crossed young lovers in Shakespeare's play of the same name. Collins considers Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherezade a glittering showpiece.
"Rimsky-Korsakov and Tchaikovsky were both master storytellers," said Collins. "The color and intensity of the works by these Russian composers makes the whole concert a thrilling musical adventure. We are also beyond excited to be working with trumpet player Luis Araya for the premiere of a new piece by the very talented Christopher Marshall."
Prize-winning trumpet player and University of Central Florida professor, Dr. Luis Miguel Araya joins the orchestra to present the world premiere of Marshall's haunting Transcending for trumpet and strings.
Advance tickets are $20 for adults, through the orchestra website http://www.SpaceCoastSyphony.org or at the beachside and mainland branches of Marine Bank & Trust. Tickets at the door are $25. Scheherezade is free for those aged 18 and under or with a student ID. For more information, call toll free to 855-252-7276 or visit http://www.SpaceCoastSymphony.org.