DePauw Orchestra and guest Seth Tsui kick off ArtsFest with Sunday concert

The musicians of the DePauw University Orchestra will swap their tuxedos and black concert dresses for blue jeans and T-shirts as they kick off DePauw's 12th annual ArtsFest this Sunday, Nov. 3.

The 3 p.m. concert will be staged in Kresge Auditorium, located within the Green Center for the Performing Arts.

Director Orcenith Smith has drawn on this year's ArtsFest theme of "Art and the Quest" to provide the student ensemble with an opportunity to perform a number of works that encapsulate and celebrate various journeys or transformations found within the orchestral tradition.

Many of these notorious musical narratives have come about through prominent film scores, and Sunday's concert will feature selections from one of the most celebrated successes in cinema history -- Sergei Prokofiev's score for the 1934 Soviet film "Lieutenant Kijé" that the composer later compiled into a five-movement suite. The ensemble will perform the version written for full orchestra and baritone voice, with School of Music faculty soloist Valentin Lanzrein.

Also featured is the award-winning composition of 2011 DePauw alumnus Seth Tsui whose quest as a composer led to his score for "Virtus Vitae," earning him first place in the inaugural CINE Film Scoring Competition for Emerging Composers.

The animated film, created by Laszlo L. Ujvari, will be screened in Kresge Auditorium, along with the live performance of Tsui's score by the DePauw Orchestra and senior vocalist Emily Barnash.

Rossini's famous "William Tell Overture," unmistakably identified with the popular radio and TV hero The Lone Ranger, is included on Sunday's ArtsFest concert, in addition to a sneak peak of what the orchestra will be playing during this spring's Music of the 21st Century festival (Feb. 10-14), which features the works of Academy Award-winning composer John Corigliano.

General admission tickets for DePauw Orchestra concerts are $3. Tickets for all students, seniors and children are free thanks to season sponsors, Judson and Joyce Green. To ensure that anyone wishing to attend a performance is able to do so, a pay-what-you-can option is available, online and on request.

For assistance with obtaining tickets, visit depauw.edu/music/tickets or stop by or call the Green Center box office, 658-4827.