At 8 pm on Wednesday, April 6, the Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis will present a Classics Concert featuring musicians of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) performing Felix Mendelssohn’sOctet, Richard Strauss’ Sonata for Violin and Piano, and The Sun Spins Out of Place to Warm You, a new work for violin and piano by Mizzou composition student Emily Shaw.
Shaw’s composition is part of an ongoing initiative supported by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation and the Mizzou New Music Initiative (MNMI) to introduce new and emerging composers from Mizzou to St. Louis/Sheldon audiences. Performed variously by members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Mizzou faculty or fellow students, these commissions are intended to offer emerging composers the opportunity to premiere their works in a professional setting and offer audiences the chance to experience adventurous new music.
Emily Shaw
Shaw won the High School Orchestral Composition category in the 2016 Missouri Composers Project(MOCOP) competition while a sophomore at Gloria Deo Academy in Springfield, Missouri. In 2018 she began her studies at the University School of Music, and is now a senior, studying composition with Dr. Stefan Freund, Artistic Director of the MNMI. During Shaw’s studies at Mizzou, her compositions have been performed by ensembles such as Khemia Ensemble, Quatuor Diotima, the Tesla Quartet, and the Mizzou New Music Ensemble.
Symphony concertmaster and violinist David Halen will lead fellow SLSO musicians Wen Shen, piano; Celeste Golden, Xiaoxiao Qiang, and Hannah Ji, violins; Chris Tantillo and Xi Zhang, violas; Bjorn Ranheim, cello, and Erik Harris, contrabass in the April 6 concert.
“Our classical subscribers have loved seeing these young composers and hearing their works performed by world class musicians on our stage,” states Chris Piemann, Director of Advancement, Sheldon Concert Hall and Art Galleries. “It’s always a highlight of the series!”
Tickets for the performance are available through MetroTix, and at the Sheldon box office the night of the event.