Guest Conductor Loh Will Lead Youngstown Symphony

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Lawrence Loh will lead the Youngstown Symphony Orchestra for the second time this season at Sunday’s “Masterworks” concert.

The director of Symphoria in Syracuse, New York, and assistant conductor for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra was the guest conductor of the YSO’s season opening “Thorgy Thor and the Thorchestra” concert in September. That program featured the flamboyant drag queen and musician Thorgy Thor playing pop tunes.

For Sunday’s performance, which starts at 2:30 p.m. at Stambaugh Auditorium, he will shift into classical mode.

“I’m really excited to return to Youngstown to conduct the YSO in a program that spans three centuries of music,” Loh said.

The evening will begin with Quinn Mason’s “Toast of the Town Overture” (2016). Loh described it as “a joyous curtain raiser with a modern flair.”

Guest artist William Hagen, an American violinist, will then perform Beethoven’s Violin Concerto (1806). Loh said the piece “is considered by many to be the pinnacle of the violin concerto repertoire, and I know our Youngstown audience will love Will’s playing.”

The second half of the concert will feature Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “The Symphonic Dances” (1940), which Loh describes as a  “festive and colorful” orchestral showpiece. “It happens to be Rachmaninoff’s final orchestral work and one of my absolute favorites,” Loh said.

A frequent guest conductor of orchestras across the country, Loh has led the San Francisco Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Atlanta Symphony and many others.

A fan of film score music, Loh became known for his concerts that pay tribute to “Star Wars” composer John Williams.

For tickets to Sunday’s concert in Youngstown, call the box office at 330 259 9651 or click HERE.

Pictured at top: Lawrence Loh, director of Symphoria in Syracuse, New York, and assistant conductor for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.