This Saturday, Nov. 17, marks the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra’s (SLSO) fall student night of their 2018-19 concert season. In addition to selling student tickets for $10, SLSO will be hosting various activities for students, including a prize wheel with the chance to win tickets to future SLSO productions.

The program will open with Samuel Barber’s “Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance.” These piece is drawn from Barber’s ballet, “Medea.” “Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance” begins with an eerie back and forth of flutes and strings. This, the meditation, builds upon itself and becomes more and more lively and chaotic until it crescendos into the dance of vengeance, a more intense section of the piece.

“Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance” cycles between soft and loud, calm and aggressive and light and heavy. The piece’s back and forth seems to simulate the rocky relationship between Medea and Jason—the love and jealousy, the intimacy and betrayal.

The piece de resistance of the performance is sure to be the premiere of Christopher Rouse’s Bassoon Concerto. Rouse was commissioned by SLSO along with the New Jersey Symphony and Sydney Symphony to write the concerto. This concerto will feature Andrew Cuneo as the bassoon soloist in addition to two bassoons in the orchestra. The union of these three bassoons is said to create a “mega bassoon” effect.

The night will close with a performance of Aaron Copland’s third symphony. Copland is known for his Americana style of composition, and his third symphony can be considered the epitome of that style. The music is bold, upbeat and deliberate. The symphony, written by an American Jew right after World War II, feels triumphant and optimistic. The performance ends with “Fanfare for the Common Man,” one of Copland’s most famous works.

The night promises to be filled with excellent music and excellent performances. For those unable to attend the concert in person, it will be broadcasted on St. Louis Public Radio.