Salina Journal

After six years conducting the Salina Symphony, Ken Hakoda believes his current crop of musicians may be the best yet.

"We've got 18 violins, 11 viola players, 10 cellos and 6 basses -- that's a huge increase for us," said Hakoda, who also is a professor of music and choir director at Kansas Wesleyan University. "About 40 to 50 percent of the players are coming from out of town, so we're becoming more of a full-sized regional orchestra."

Hakoda also is excited about the upcoming Salina Symphony season, "Music Through the Ages," which highlights works by master composers throughout history.

The symphony's opening concert, "Classics & Beyond" will feature works by Felix Mendelssohn, Hector Berlioz, Jacques Ibert and Heitor Villa-Lobos.

There also will be guest performances by Charlie Fiorillo, a saxophonist and 2009 Youth Symphony Concerto Competition winner, and Leslie Mangrum, assistant professor of music at Kansas Wesleyan University.

The concert begins at 4 p.m. Sunday at the Stiefel Theatre for the Performing Arts, 151 S. Santa Fe.

Fiorillo, a senior at Salina South High School, will perform the famous saxophone concerto "Concertino De Camera," by Ibert with the symphony.

"We don't usually feature students in our opening concert, but Charlie is something else," Hakoda said.

The Ibert concerto is a very difficult French work that makes great demands on the saxophone soloist, Hakoda said.

"It's usually played by graduate students, but Charlie plays better than a lot of college graduates," he said.

'Such a great singer'

Mangrum, who was hired this fall by KWU as a full-time vocal instructor, will be the soprano soloist on Villa-Lobos' "Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5," a piece that features 10 cellos backing the singer.

"It's written for a cello choir, and I wanted to do something this year to feature our cellists," Hakoda said. "They're playing so well now, and (Mangrum) is such a great singer."

Also featured during the concert will be Berlioz's "Roman Carnival Overture" and Mendelssohn's "Symphony No. 5 (Reformation)."

The Mendelssohn symphony, written in 1832 in honor of the 300th anniversary of Martin Luther's doctrines of Lutheranism, is rarely performed today, Hakoda said.

"It includes the hymn 'A Mighty Fortress is Our God,' which is a very glorious piece," he said. "If you're Lutheran, you really have to come to this concert."

Hakoda believes this season's opening concert will demonstrate to the public just how far the Salina Symphony has grown as an orchestra.

"I feel like we're hitting a new level in performance," he said.

nReporter Gary Demuth can be reached at 822-1405 or by e-mail at gdemuth@salina.com.

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