Bates College Orchestra performs Brahms and Debussy

Conducted by Hiroya Miura of the Bates faculty, the Bates College Orchestra performs Brahms’ Symphony No. 3 and Debussy’s “Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 10.

The concert will take place in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St., and is open to the public at no cost. However, because of limited seating, tickets are required. For tickets and more information, please contact 207-786-6135 or olinarts@bates.edu.

“At first, Brahms and Debussy seem to be at aesthetic opposites,” says Miura. “Brahms is the height of the 19th-century German ‘absolute music’ — music that is about only itself, with no external references. And Debussy was self-consciously trying to redefine French music.

“These two pieces, however, were written only 10 years apart, and in spite of the difference in their harmonic language, I am struck by their similarly organic treatment of the rhythm. The composers were both masters of form and the organization of musical motifs.”

The 27 students in the orchestra (the other 18 players are musicians from the community) will find “both pieces challenging for various reasons: rhythm, orchestral balance, expression, etc.,” Miura adds. “However, I find both pieces are absolutely worth the effort for their sublime musical quality.”