Burton To Narrate Gustav Holst’s The Planets Concert
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The Next Generation‘s LeVar Burton has stepped in to replace George Takei to narrate Gustav Holst’s The Planets concert, which will take place in Fredericksburg, Virginia on Saturday evening.
Burton “joins Maestro Bartram at the helm in this intergalactic concert featuring Gustav Holst’s The Planets. The seven-movement orchestral masterpiece by English composer Holst was written more than one hundred years ago and features each of the then-known planets, along with their corresponding astrological character. Mr. Burton and the Philharmonic will boldly go where Fredericksburg has not gone before with this and other sci-fi classics, including John Williams‘ E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, and music from Star Trek.”
The first part of the evening will feature a Star Trek Through the Years medley, with “selections from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and a thrilling Dream Machine, composed by the modern mastermind Brian Balmages, who will conduct the piece.”
The second part of the evening is when The Planets will be performed. “The pieces truly take an audience on an emotional journey, evoking feelings of joy in some instances (Jupiter) and pure war in others (Mars). And, as you have read, Pluto isn’t getting any love during this show and didn’t get any love from Holst to begin with,” said Dr. Kevin Bartram, music director and conductor of the UMW Philharmonic.
“Holst didn’t have a Pluto, and, well, there technically is no Pluto the planet today either,” added Bartram.
“We were more than fortunate to land LeVar,” said Bartram after Takei was forced to withdraw from the concert due to a schedule conflict. “He is so well known for his narrations. In fact, he just narrated a movie with NASA imagery, In Saturn’s Rings. A lot of people know him one way or another. He is such a natural speaker, and we are grateful it worked out.”
For tickets, call 540-654-1324, or email them at philharmonic@uwm.edu.
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