Events

[CLASSICAL] A conductor putting together an orchestral program of music by John Williams has his work cut out for him. Easily the best-known composer of music for the movies, Williams has literally hundreds of scores to his credit, many of them for the most popular films of the last fifty years. John Morris Russell, the new principal pops conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, was drawn to a Williams program not simply for its mass appeal: “We wanted a great orchestral showpiece that features the virtuosity of the orchestra. There’s no better way to do that than with the music of John Williams. It’s going to be a resplendent performance of great orchestral music.” The program will include what is apparently only the second live performance of music from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, along with selections from Fiddler on the Roof and Schindler’s List featuring Dennis Kim as solo violinist, and a few numbers featuring the Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus. The BPO will open the Pops season with John Williams’ Movie Masterworks on Sunday, September 24 at Kleinhans Music Hall.