Welcome to the 2008 LSCO Season!

Summer is the time for many wonderful things in Duluth: gardens, golf, the Lakewalk. A highlight of every summer for more than twenty years is the concert season of the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra. Founded by Warren Friesen, honored by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) with awards for Adventurous Programming, and well-settled-in to its new home at UMD's Weber Music Hall, the LSCO will once again play five concerts on Wednesday evenings, offering a tantalizing mix of familiar classics, overlooked gems and new works.

Among this season's highlights are violinist Andy Stein, a member of the "house band" on Garrison Keillor's A Prairie Home Companion broadcasts. Andy, although classically trained, plays just about every style of violin and fiddle music there is. He will be the featured soloist on the June 18 season opening concert. You don't want to miss it!

The June 25 concert will feature Tyrannosaurus Sue: A Cretaceous Concerto by Bruce Adolphe. Originally written for the unveiling of the dinosaur skeleton at Chicago's Field Museum, this piece will include a guest narrator, Duluth Mayor Don Ness, telling the story of the dinosaurs. Bring the whole family to this fun and informative concert.

Duo pianists Joseph Zins and Jo Anne Link will be featured on July 9, performing the Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra by one of the wittiest of all composers, Francis Poulenc.

The mighty Beethoven wrote only one concerto for more than one solo instrument. This major and exciting display piece, the Triple Concerto, will be performed by three of our area's favorite artists, cellist Betsy Husby, violinist Steve Highland and pianist Alexander Chernyshev.

The LSCO continues to sponsor the Quartet Project, where many of our area's finest young string players join LSCO professionals for an intensive week-long workshop experience. The week includes the opportunity to join the orchestra on stage during one of the season's performances.

Major news for this season is a change in options for purchasing tickets. Look for the details of our new, more convenient system and watch your mail in May for our brochure with concert details and specifics about purchasing tickets.

Summer will be here sooner than we think. Plan to enjoy great music with the LSCO and join us for cookies and lemonade after every concert. See you at Weber!