Pianist Juliana Osinchuk to participate in world premiere of Alaskan composer's work (02/22/04)

Pianist Juliana Osinchuk to participate in world premiere of Alaskan composer's work

by Kristin Cosgrove

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - On March 6 in the Atwood Concert Hall, the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra will present the world premiere of a work as extraordinary as the voyage that inspired it. The presentation of the piece, Piano Concerto, Op. 72, is a collaboration between Alaskan composer Phil Munger, the Anchorage Symphony, pianist Juliana Osinchuk and Musica Nova, ASO's first-ever commissioning club.

Nineteen members strong, Musica Nova is a new musical venture designed to advance and preserve a centuries-old art form right here in Anchorage, keeping symphonic music alive while promoting the vitality of the Anchorage arts community. Much of classical music's standard repertoire exists because patrons commissioned new works, which is still the case today.

Mr. Munger observed, "Classical music is like a well. If you have no source of fresh water, it becomes stagnant. New works keep classical music fresh."

ASO Music Director Randall Craig Fleischer agreed, adding, "We need to hear the artistic commentary of our own generation. For centuries, composers have been revealing life to us through music. The struggles and triumphs of their own time relate to the struggles and triumphs of our time as well. It is essential to have that 'mirror' held up to our modern lives through music."

Like Mr. Munger's four symphonies, Piano Concerto, Op. 72, is programmatic. "I have often written my music about the wonders of the sea or events I have experienced while afloat," he noted. "This concerto is the story of a tugboat trip between Kodiak and Seattle, during mid-summer 1999. The boat, the Ruby XIV, was a World War II army tugboat making her first ocean voyage in 30 years."

As written in program notes by Mr. Munger, "The three movements, in turn, depict the complex system of cantankerous anachronisms which surrounded us as we adjusted to the Ruby XIV, the emotions we seemed to share with a machine about where we were and, finally, the emotions we seemed to share by a combination of danger, turbulence and expectation."

Dr. Osinchuk says of the work, "It has a wonderful Alaskan theme that all Alaskans can relate to. The audience will undoubtedly be able to imagine the details of Phil's tugboat trip through the Inside Passage."

A world-renowned pianist, Dr. Osinchuk, herself an Alaskan though transplanted from New York, will take center stage to perform Mr. Munger's work along with the Anchorage Symphony. Dr. Osinchuk has worked numerous times with Mr. Munger, performing most of his piano works.

Mr. Munger said he enjoys working with Dr. Osinchuk, noting "As good as she is, she never talks down to anybody."

"Juliana is an internationally renowned soloist and we're very lucky she lives in Anchorage," said Maestro Fleischer. "I had been wanting to have her solo with the ASO, and when Phil came forward with his idea to write the piano concerto, I was thrilled."

During ASO's March Classic Concert, Dr. Osinchuk will also display her virtuosity as she performs Liszt's colorful Piano Concerto No. 1.

Closing the concert is a masterwork that, for its time, was very new in musical ideas. With unusual modulations, expanded orchestration and displaced accents, Beethoven's Symphony No. 3, "Eroica," was pivotal in musical history. Not only does it stand today as an audience favorite, it was Beethoven's personal favorite as well. Also included on the program is Liadov's "Enchanted Lake."

Tickets for ASO's March Classic Concert may be purchased at CarrsTix locations, by calling 1-800-478-7328, online at www.tickets.com, or by visiting the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts Box Office. Tickets range in price from $19 to $40.

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