Program At Lake Benson Park Includes Works by Williams, Sousa, Tchaikovsky, Plus Fireworks
The North Carolina Symphony will celebrate America’s 239th birthday with a free concert of patriotic favorites and high-spirited classics in its traditional Independence Day concert, with fireworks afterward, at Garner’s Lake Benson Park, Friday, July 3, at 8:30 p.m.
Lake Benson Park gates open at 5 p.m., and children’s inflatable games will be available from 5-8:30 p.m. Local nonprofit groups will sell food and other refreshments, with performances by the band Soulplay. The evening concludes with a spectacular fireworks show following the North Carolina Symphony’s performance. Shuttles are available from Bryan Farm (1832 New Bethel Church Road) beginning at 5 p.m. Handicap-accessible parking is located at Lake Benson Park, which is located at 921 Buffaloe Road in Garner.
The program, which will be conducted by Symphony Associate Conductor David Glover, will include “Servicemen on Parade,” “The Star-Spangled Banner,” “Casey at the Bat,” “Colonel Bogey March,” and John Williams’ “Liberty Fanfare.” The concert also includes John Philip Sousa’s “Semper Fidelis,” Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture,” and much more. Tenor Scott MacLeod will sing, and will also serve as narrator
Scott MacLeod has appeared in a variety of venues nationally and abroad, including Opera North, Utah Festival Opera, Opera Omaha, Central City Opera, Mobile Opera, Des Moines Metro Opera, Greensboro Opera, Opera on the James, Eastern Music Festival, the Tucson Symphony, the North Carolina Symphony, the National Symphony of Costa Rica and Carnegie Hall.
His performances have spanned classical and musical theater genres. Notable roles include the title characters in Don Giovanni and Gianni Schicchi, Count Almaviva in The Marriage of Figaro, Gaylord Ravenal in Show Boat and Fred/Petruchio in Kiss Me, Kate. Concert work includes Requiem by Mozart, Brahms and Fauré; Handel’s Messiah; Orff’s Carmina Burana; Saint-Saëns’ Christmas Oratorio; and Vaughan Williams’ Dona Nobis Pacem and Five Mystical Songs. Recent performances include “Broadway Romance” with the North Carolina Symphony, Rusalka with the North Carolina Opera, Jiri Kaderábek’s Kafka’s Women with the NYC Center for Contemporary Opera and Daughter of the Regiment with Greensboro Opera.
The performance, presented by the Town of Garner, is part of the Symphony’s summer “Concerts in Your Community,” free concerts performed throughout the state.
Complete information on the performance is available at www.ncsymphony.org or by calling the Symphony Box Office at 919.733.2750 or toll free 877.627.6724.