Join us at 3pm on Sunday, October 8th, 2023 for the Season Opener of our celebrated Masterworks Concert Series!

We kick off our 2023-2024 Season with an eclectic selection of programming – from Scott Joplin to Haydn, and even two local Colorado composers, there’s something for everyone in this concert.

Scott Joplin, known as the “King of Ragtime”, composed more than forty ragtime pieces, as well as a ragtime ballet and opera. Joplin took the rag – then known primarily as “lowly saloon music played by wandering honky-tonk pianists” – and elevated it to the level of classical art music meant for the concert hall. He essentially created the “classic rag”, blending Afro-American syncopation with classical romantic form and melodies. ECO will perform two of his best-known works – the “Maple Leaf Rag” and “The Entertainer”.

ECO cellist James Todd has served as principal cellist with the Arapahoe Philharmonic in Denver, Colorado, and has performed with many area music ensembles including the Colorado Symphony, Colorado Ballet, Boulder Philharmonic, Colorado Chamber Players. He has performed as a guest solo artist with the Arapahoe Philharmonic, the Denver Symphony, the MSU Symphony Orchestra, the Aurora Symphony, the Jefferson Symphony Orchestra and the Evergreen Chamber Orchestra. Mr. Todd has recently produced and released his widely acclaimed album of original music for cello and piano, “Quiet Beauty”, marking his foray in composing, arranging and performing his own music. ECO is proud to be performing his composition “New Day” for our 2023-2024 Season Opener!

Colorado composer Cindi Hsu’s music is noted for its richness in color, expressive melodic lines and open sincerity. Her music aspires to capture the essence of true human emotions and feelings, expressing wit and a sparkling sense of humor, as well as the capacity for expressions of deep pathos. Her “storytelling” composition style was instilled in her early childhood, as she loved the spur of the moment bedtime stories that her father made up and told her each night. ECO will be performing her work “Once Upon a Time” for our 2023-2024 Season Opener – a continuation of our collaborations over the past several seasons!

Antonio Vivaldi is one of the greatest Baroque-era composers alongside J.S. Bach and G.F. Handel. A virtuoso violinist and prolific composer, Vivaldi practically brought the burgeoning concerto genre into mainstream use. Vivaldi’s best-known work is the “Four Seasons” – a set of violin concertos that are performed extremely frequently. Longtime ECO cellist Mike Marecak has arranged one of Vivaldi’s Concertos for Four Violins into a Concerto for Four Cellos – we hope you enjoy the fruits of his labor as much as we have! This performance will feature ECO’s unique all-principal cello section – Mike Marecak, Shirley Marecak, James Todd, and Marilyn Hof.

Franz Joseph Haydn is one of the three masters of the classical era alongside Mozart and Beethoven. Affectionately known as “Papa Haydn”, his music is filled with humor, practical jokes, and creative uses of the classical sonata form. The “Drum Roll” Symphony No. 103, H. 103, was one of the later of the twelve “London Symphonies” Haydn composed between 1791 and 1795. Nicknamed for the long timpani roll that begins the symphony, this is one of Haydn’s most popular and widely-performed works.