Category: Featured & Guest Artists

MYSO at Pepsi Pops
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The youthful spirit of Pepsi Pops is a tradition and a mainstay

Pepsi Pops, on May 10 at Old Trace Park on the Barnett Reservoir, delivers its usual infectious mix of marvelous melodies by the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra and a charming outdoor setting to enjoy them. This year, as the captivating tradition reaches its 43rd year, the concert also brings a prime chance to recognize the 75th season of the Mississippi Youth Symphony Orchestra – MSO’s educational arm and a vital stake in our community’s music for the future.

Pianist Steven Sachs
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Soloist Sachs, ensembles shine in Woodworth’s ‘Vibrant’ concert

“Vibrant Echoes,” Mississippi Symphony Orchestra’s final chamber concert of the season, April 27 at Tougaloo College’s Woodworth Chapel, celebrates the rhythmic thread of Black musical traditions and influences in America, from the late 19th century clear through to contemporary times. Its relevant setting, at the historically Black college that played a key role in America’s civil rights struggle, enhances the resonance.

MSO logo with colored bar stating for immediate release in lower third.
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MSO’s ‘Vibrant Echoes’ resonates at Tougaloo

MSO’s ‘Vibrant Echoes’ resonates at Tougaloo Heritage of Black music is foundation of Woodworth Chapel concert Jackson, Mississippi — Mississippi Symphony Orchestra’s “Vibrant Echoes” presents a concert ode to the legacy and enduring spirit of African American music, in an acoustically rich, historical setting where it feels right at home – Tougaloo College’s Woodworth Chapel, 7:30...

Mississippi Valley State University Choir
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MSVU Choir, ‘Seven Last Words’ mark spring Cade Chapel matinee

Joel Thompson’s Seven Last Words of the Unarmed is a searing reach into the human heart and a powerful cry for social justice. The Atlanta-based composer’s choral work is the centerpiece for MSO’s “Symphony in the Community” spring concert, 3 p.m. Sunday, April 21, at Cade Chapel M.B. Church in Jackson. Giving it voice is the 55-member-strong Mississippi Valley State University Choir, led by MVSU Director of Choral Activities Brandon Cash.

Project Fusion Saxophone Quartet
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Embracing the fun and freedom of the sax, in ‘Ultimate Fusion’ and beyond

Dannel Espinoza was just a tyke when he started the path that would become his forte. His parents offered the option of karate, baseball or piano when he was 3 1/2 or 4. “I decided to take up piano,” he said. The instrument became a staple of his south Florida childhood, until he reached school band age, took after his older brother, and took up the saxophone.

Emilio Villacis of Ecuador is the winner of the 2024 MSO International Composition Competition.
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MSO’s second annual International Composition Competition participation blooms

MSO’s second annual International Composition Competition participation blooms Mar. 27, 2024 – JACKSON, Miss. – Mississippi Symphony Orchestra announces the winner of its second annual International Composition Competition and celebrates the participation bloom. The winning music piece is composed by Emilio Villacis of Ecuador and will debut in June’s culmination of MSO’s 2024 Premier Orchestral...

Photo of Bud Bertold from above him behind the tympani.
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‘Striking Surprises’ is MSO’s late winter delight

‘Striking Surprises’ is MSO’s late winter delight Bud Berthold in a rare timpani concerto, plus Haydn’s Surprise Symphony Jackson, Mississippi — Mississippi Symphony Orchestra’s “Striking Surprises” concert, 7:30 p.m. February 24 at St. James’ Episcopal Church, warms to classical music with a hint of the unexpected, in a concert that showcases MSO Principal Timpanist Bud Berthold...