Despite the hardships of COVID-19 this past season, Pasquale Valerio, the founder and conductor of the Villages Philharmonic Orchestra, is hopeful. He has a lot to look forward to in the orchestra’s next season, which will take place in the Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center until May 2022.
“I think all orchestras in the world faced challenges… (but) here we stand. It was very challenging, but we are ready to start the new season with a lot of positivity, great energy and great music selections for each individual concert,” Valerio said.
The season will include an Italian American Music Concert in October, a Messiah Concert in November, a Holiday Celebration in December, Classical Concerts in January, March and April, an American Pops Celebration in February, and an Opera Gala in May.
Alfreda Gerald, a vocal powerhouse, will perform with the Philharmonic’s permanent singers at the Labor Day Pops concert, which will feature Broadway, popular and patriotic music in honor of the occasion.
“It’ll be amazing to host VPO’s supportive subscribers again while welcoming new guests to the theater to enjoy classical music,” said Elizabeth Constant, the venue’s booking coordinator. “It’ll be nice to have a safe, happy and full house again.”
In conjunction with Messiah Part One, VPO lead trumpeter John DePaola will perform a composition for trumpet and orchestra in November. The orchestra will present Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5 and Schubert’s Symphony No. 5 in January, and American and Latin American composers’ work in February.
The orchestra will conduct Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 and Symph. No. 8 in March, completing a Beethoven cycle that will take a few years to accomplish. The entire Piano Concerto D Major by Johann Joseph Rosler will be premiered in April. With performances by worldwide and American opera stars, the season will come to a close with a bang.
“We have a beautiful season, a little bit of everything for people who have different tastes in music,” Valerio said.
The orchestra’s number of players onstage was lowered from 45-60 to 25-34 last season.
It also put the chorale on hold until the 2022-23 season, when it will return. The chorale’s audition dates will be announced soon. Updates can be found at thevillagesphilharmonic.org.
“I think we did a very good job to survive. The most important key was that the management here at The Sharon supports the arts, and together we decided to continue to have the (last) season in a different format,” Valerio said. “The supporters were very generous with the Philharmonic because a lot of people did not ask for their money back for tickets, and they donated it back to the Philharmonic.”
This year, customers can view the concerts via live stream by purchasing a season subscription or individual tickets. Live streaming of the concerts will be available at thevillagesphilharmonic.org and on Facebook.
Tickets for the VPO’s 2021-22 season can be purchased at thevillagesentertainment.com or any Villages Box Office location.
“We worked all summer to create all logistics and scheduling for the season’s music selections,” Valerio said. “We are thrilled to start this season, everyone on the team.”
