Festa Italiana – Santa Barbara Symphony

The Santa Barbara Symphony opens its 66th season with a burst of energy courtesy of the great Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi. The overture to his mid-career masterpiece La Forza del Destino covers a range of emotion, but is ultimately propulsive and exhilarating. Critically acclaimed violinist Francesca Dego next performs Niccolò Paganini’s demanding Violin Concerto No. 1. Written during a three-month sojourn in Rome in 1880, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s fantasy Capriccio Italien offers a richly descriptive portrait of Italy. This delightful Italian-themed program concludes with Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, which radiates irresistible joy and affection.