Columbia Orchestra: Symphonic Pops
$24-$30 ($20-$26 ages 60 & over, $10-$12 student age 18 & under)
- D.J. Sparr, electric guitar
- Richard Scerbo, conductor
Mary Kouyoumdjian — Tagh [Diary] of an Immigrant
Modest Mussorgsky — Night on Bald Mountain
D.J. Sparr — Violet Bond: Concerto for electric guitar and orchestra
John Williams — Theme from Jurassic Park
Jacques Offenbach — Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld
Igor Stravinsky — "Finale" from The Firebird Suite
Camille Saint-Saëns — Danse macabre, Op. 40
Our Music Director Richard Scerbo teams up with electric guitarist and composer D.J. Sparr to create their playlist of favorite symphonic pieces—a modern-day mixtape of orchestral favorites that you'll want to play over and over again.
A Maryland native and alumnus of the Baltimore School for the Arts, Sparr joins the orchestra as soloist on his own composition Violet Bond—a work he describes as "an ode to my great-grandmother and an homage to anyone who supports and nurtures the endeavors of aspiring artists."
With works ranging from Bernstein's Candide Overture to Stravinsky's rousing finale to The Firebird, this high energy concert will have you wanting to hit play again and again.
About D.J. Sparr, electric guitar
Composer and electric guitarist D.J. Sparr, who Gramophone recently hailed as "exemplary," is one of America's preeminent composer-performers. He has caught the attention of critics with his eclectic style, described as "pop-Romantic…iridescent and wondrous" (The Mercury News) and "suits the boundary erasing spirit of today's new-music world" (The New York Times). The Los Angeles Times praises him as "an excellent soloist," and the Santa Cruz Sentinel says that he "wowed an enthusiastic audience…Sparr's guitar sang in a near-human voice."
He was the electric guitar concerto soloist on a 2018 Grammy Award-winning album with JoAnn Falletta and the London Symphony Orchestra. In 2011, Sparr was named one of NPR listener's favorite 100 composers under the age 40. He has composed for and performed with renowned ensembles such as the Houston Grand Opera, Cabrillo Festival, New World Symphony, Washington National Opera, and Eighth Blackbird. His music has received awards from BMI, New Music USA, and the League of Composers/ISCM. Sparr is a faculty member at the famed Walden School's Creative Musicians Retreat in Dublin, New Hampshire. His works and guitar performances appear on Naxos, Innova Recordings, and Centaur Records.
D. J. lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with his wife Kimberly, son Harris, Nannette the hound dog, and Bundini the boxer. D. J. Sparr's music is published by Bill Holab Music.
https://www.djsparr.com