The Aiken Symphony invites you to explore “Dvořák’s Serenades,” featuring the talents of the orchestra’s strings and winds sections, on Sunday, March 23 at 3 p.m. at the Amentum Center for
the Performing Arts in downtown Aiken.

Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904) is well known for incorporating folk music from his homeland of Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic, into his compositions. He was a key figure in further developing the Czech nationalist movement initiated by his elder contemporary, Bedřich Smetana. Dvořák’s music subsequently introduced a refreshing vitality and lightness to the world of romantic nineteenth-century music.

The Serenade for Strings in E Major was a product of an exciting and productive time in the composer’s life, as he began to receive recognition outside of his home country in 1875. Having just won the Austrian State Prize, Dvořák gained greater financial stability, which allowed him to support his growing family and devote more time to composing. The Serenade for Strings, written in just twelve days, reflects feelings of optimism and elation, embedded within masterful lyrical writing. In a review of the premiere, Ludevít Procházka remarked that the individual movements “are all so interesting in overall thought conception and in thematic work, and also clear in their overall design, that they will surely be received as favourably everywhere as each of them was on this occasion.”

Three years later, Dvořák attended a Vienna Philharmonic performance of Mozart’s Serenade in B flat major for wind instruments, also known as Gran Partita, which captivated him so deeply that he returned to his home in Prague and proceeded to write his Serenade for Winds in D Minor, completing it in just fourteen days. Like Mozart’s, Dvořák’s Serenade includes a cello and double bass within the instrumentation to provide greater support in the lower register. This work evokes the tradition of music-making in Czech palaces, where patrons of the arts hosted musical ensembles, such as wind bands known as harmoniemusik, that would perform at outdoor events. This Serenade was also successfully premiered, garnering high praise from Brahms: “The Serenade is probably the best work by Dvořák that I know.”

The full lineup for the Aiken Symphony’s 2025-26 season will be announced at this performance.

Tickets: Single tickets are $45. Active military members can receive $10 off per ticket by calling the office. Tickets are available via the website (AikenSymphony.com) or by contacting the office at 803.295.0313 and can be printed at home, presented from a mobile device as an e-ticket, or picked up at the venue an hour and a half before the start of the concert.

Parking: Parking in Downtown Aiken can be limited. Please allow yourself extra time to find parking.

Pre-Concert Talk “Illuminations”: There will not be a pre-concert talk before this performance.

2024-25 MASTERWORKS SERIES
All Masterworks performances are held in the Etherredge Center at USC Aiken.

Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
THE PLANETS
Berlioz – Roman Carnival Overture
Holst – The Planets

Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, 7:30 p.m.
YING LI RETURNS!
Ying Li, pianist
Mozart – Divertimento, K. 136
Mozart – Symphony No. 39
Mozart – Piano Concerto No. 23

Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024, 3 p.m.
THE THREE B’s
Bach/Stokowski – Prelude in B Minor, BWV 869
Beethoven – Symphony No. 2
Brahms – Symphony No. 4

Saturday, May 10, 2025, 7:30 p.m.
CAPRICCIO ESPAGNOL
Mak Grgić, three-time Grammy-nominated
guitarist
Bizet – Selections from “Carmen”
Rodrigo – Concierto de Aranjuez
Turina – La Procesión del Rocío
Rimsky-Korsakov – Capriccio Espagnol

2024-25 CHAMBER SERIES
Friday, Oct. 11, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Aiken’s First Baptist Church
SYMPHONY IN BRASS
Music for brass and percussion by Giovanni
Gabrieli, Richard Strauss, Edvard Grieg and more.

Sunday, Mar. 23, 2025, 3 p.m.
Amentum Center for the Performing Arts
DVOŘÁK’S SERENADES
Dvořák – Serenade for Strings
Dvořák – Serenade for Winds

2024-25 POPS SERIES
All Pops Series performances are held in the Etherredge Center at USC Aiken.

Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024, 3 p.m.
HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Aiken Symphony Brass Quintet
Juanita Campbell, narrator
Holiday music from around the world featuring
the Aiken Symphony Brass Quintet.

Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025, 7:30 p.m.
ROMANCE AT THE
SYMPHONY
Ashley Emerson, soprano
Dominic Armstrong, tenor
Romantic favorites featuring husband and wife
vocalists Ashley Emerson and Dominic
Armstrong.