The Fort Collins Symphony (FCS), under the baton of Maestro Wes Kenney, invites you to “Tales of Star-Crossed Lovers” the final Signature Concert of its 101st season. This in-person and live-streamed event will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 3, 2025, at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center. From composers Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, and Florence Price to Zhou Long, Gao Hong, and Johannes Brahms, the evening will transport you across cultures through musical tales.
Composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, known for expressing himself in the emotional depth of his chosen stories, drew from personal experiences of unrequited love and struggles while composing his Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy. This sweeping love theme has become iconic to audiences around the world.
Indigenous tales deeply influenced composer Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s work Chokfi’: Sarcasm for Strings and Percussion. As a member of the Chickasaw Nation, he brings this rich heritage to life through the dynamic use of rhythms and percussive techniques that vividly portray Chokfi’, the trickster rabbit from Chickasaw folklore.
The prolific 20th-century American composer Florence Price showcases the rich storytelling traditions of the Black experience in her Colonial Dance. As a classically-trained musician, she frequently blended traditional music with original works. This piece reflects the era of America’s birth, hinting at the complex history of the time when enslaved people often provided music for the dances of their owners.
The evening’s guest artist and composer Gao Hong will showcase the pipa, a traditional Chinese plucked string instrument. Her concerto, Flying Dragon, explores her nomadic lifestyle, the emotions tied to it, and mirrors her experiences of constant movement and uncertainty in China’s Cultural Revolution. In addition, she will present composer Zhou Long’s Beijing Drum, which blends traditional Chinese storytelling with Western orchestration and uses the pipa as a central narrator. His work skillfully employs the pipa’s rich tonal range to connect Eastern and Western musical traditions. As Gao Hong aptly puts it, “Chinese music is always telling stories.“
The Tragic Overture by composer Johannes Brahms may have been inspired by Goethe’s Faust or Nietzsche’s writings on tragedy. In this work, he explored deep themes of tragedy and solitude, creating a powerful and evocative reflection on human emotion.
Featured Artist
Pipa virtuoso Gao Hong is a graduate of Beijing’s Central Conservatory of Music and an internationally celebrated performer and composer. She has appeared at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and festivals across Europe, Australia, and the U.S., and has soloed with major orchestras including the Minnesota Orchestra and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. Gao is the first Chinese musician to perform the U.S. National Anthem at an NBA game and the only musician of any genre to receive five McKnight Artist Fellowships. Her compositions have been commissioned by ensembles such as the Minnesota Orchestra and The President’s Own Marine Band, and her solo work Flying Dragon earned a Global Music Award. She also authored the first English-language pipa method book and was honored with “Gao Hong Day” in St. Paul, Minnesota in 2022.
Tickets/Details
- When: Saturday, May 3, 2025, 7:30 p.m. Mountain Time
- Where: The Fort Collins Lincoln Center: 417 West Magnolia Street, Fort Collins, CO 80521,
- How: In-person and via live-stream
- Cost: Adult: $28-73, Student/Child: $11.50, Livestream: $28 per device.
- Tickets and more information: FCSymphony.org/Discovery or by calling the Lincoln Center Box Office at 970.221.6730 (1 p.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday – Saturday) or LCTix.com.
Week-of-Concert Events
Composer Talk: Join CSU professor Dr. K. Dawn Grapes for an informative and entertaining lecture about the concert’s featured composers. Sponsored by the Friends of the Symphony. Light refreshments provided.
- Date: Wednesday, April 30, 2025
- Time: 12 – 1 p.m.
- Venue: Old Town Library, 201 Peterson St, Fort Collins, CO 80524
- Admission: Free
Open Rehearsal: Learn firsthand what it takes for an orchestra to bring live music to the stage.
- Date: Thursday, May 1, 2025
- Time: 7 – 8:15 p.m.
- Venue: Lincoln Center, 417 W Magnolia St, Fort Collins, CO 80521
- Admission: Free
Maestro’s Musings Pre-Concert Lecture: Ticket holders (in-person and via livestream) are invited to join Maestro Wes Kenney for a pre-concert lecture in the concert hall.
- Date: Saturday, May 3, 2025
- Time: 6:30 – 7 p.m.
- Venue: Lincoln Center, 417 W. Magnolia St, Fort Collins, CO 80521
- Admission: Included with ticket purchase
