ROGER KALIA, CONDUCTOR
Dvořák Carnival Overture
Paul Dooley Northern Nights
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
The EPO concludes their Classics season with a program of triumph and celebration, featuring works by Dvořák, Paul Dooley, and Shostakovich. Dvořák’s Carnival Overture is a virtuosic and celebratory work followed by Paul Dooley’s ambitious electro acoustic percussion concerto Northern Nights. A festival of electronic dance music amid the California redwoods inspired the concerto, and there is a wonderful electronic and symphonic fusion in this engrossing 20-minute work. The EPO concludes the program with Shostakovich’s iconic Fifth Symphony. Shostakovich called the piece “a response to my critics,” as the symphony sprang forth during a time of tremendous oppression and conflict, leaving listeners to wonder whether the piece is a triumphant work of patriotism or a hidden note of subversion.