St. Olaf Orchestra to present a family friendly concert for all ages
The St. Olaf Orchestra, conducted by Steven Amundson, will present its annual Family Concert on Sunday, November 7, at 3:30 p.m. in Skoglund Auditorium.
The free, family friendly concert is a heartwarming tradition that attracts families from Northfield and beyond, and it’s back after a year without on-campus audiences. Music featured in the program will educate children about classical music, get families dancing, and take audiences to a galaxy far, far away. A favorite highlight of the concert will also return: children up to age 13 can enter a contest to conduct the award-winning St. Olaf Orchestra all by themselves.
Families will be able to socially distance throughout Skoglund Center’s entire seating space. All visitors to campus must wear a mask at all times, and throughout the duration of the concert.
This year the St. Olaf Orchestra will be joined by St. Olaf College faculty artists Christopher Atzinger, who will be featured on the finale of Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto in G minor, and Emery Stephens, who will narrate Benjamin Britten’s classic Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra.
The Northfield duo Louis and Dan and the Invisible Band (led by Louis Epstein, associate professor of music at St. Olaf College, and Daniel Groll, associate professor of philosophy at Carleton College), whose witty musical offerings delight curious kids and their discerning parents, will make a return appearance following up on their 2019 performance.
Founded in 1906, the 92-member St. Olaf Orchestra has been heralded as one of the finest collegiate orchestras in the country. In 2019 the ensemble made its Carnegie Hall debut, performing the Sibelius Violin Concerto with renowned violinist Sarah Chang. Later that year, the ensemble won The American Prize in Orchestra Performance and toured Norway with the St. Olaf Choir.
If you aren’t available to attend in person, the concert will be streamed live and archived online: