Robert McDuffie, dubbed “one of the finest violinists of our age,” takes the stage in Missoula Symphony season opener.
The Missoula Symphony’s 2022-2023 season opener, “Brothers and Sisters,” brings internationally renowned violinist, Robert McDuffie, and his sister, pianist Margery McDuffie Whatley, to the UM Dennison Theatre Sept. 17-18.
Robert McDuffie’s guest performance is a highly anticipated event in Missoula’s arts and culture community, as concertgoers get ready to experience a violinist described by the San Francisco Chronicle as, “… a treasure. A musician of probing intelligence, a violinist of authority, and force of great vitality.” Similarly, The Buffalo News dubbed him “one of the finest violinists of our age,” while the Los Angeles Times praised his performance for “emotional spontaneity, imperturbable virtuosity and an ever-sweet tone.”
McDuffie’s Grammy Award-winning career finds him performing alongside major symphonies of the world, leading his Rome Chamber Music Festival and playing major compositions by Philip Glass.
McDuffie Whatley is a member of the piano faculty at the University of Montana and performs from coast to coast as piano soloist and as chamber musician. Her four CDs, Piano Reflections – Encore Favorites, Margery McDuffie Whatley plays Bach, Haydn, Brahms and Ravel, From Mozart to Gershwin, and Piano Gems have received rave reviews from Fanfare Magazine and American Record Guide.
The talented brother and sister duo will play Felix Mendelssohn’s Concerto for violin and piano. The concert also features the Overture in C written by Felix’ equally prodigious sister, Fanny Mendelssohn, and finishes with Symphony No. 3 by another incredible female composer of 19th century France, Louise Farrenc.
The Saturday performance will be at 7:30 p.m. and the Sunday matinee will be at 3 p.m.
For tickets for this concert and the remainder of the 2022-20223 season visit missoulasymphony.org.