The Diablo Symphony Orchestra is featuring former local standout pianist Randall Benway performing Beethoven’s lyrical Fourth Piano Concerto in its upcoming concert that will also include Jean Sibelius’s orchestral tone poem “Finlandia” and Symphony No. 1.
Benway, a former longtime Lafayette resident who was an assistant director and accompanist of the Blackhawk Chorus for more than 12 years before moving to Olympia, Wash., has performed extensively in the United States, Europe and Asia.
Benway has collaborated with many Danville musicians and became a coveted teacher, coach and accompanist over the years. He has participated with many groups to support the Blackhawk Chorus Education Fund, which has contributed to raising funds for music programs in Danville schools.
“The concert brings Randall Benway back to the Danville area to perform a major piano work, a return that will certainly be welcome to the many Danville residents who have enjoyed musical associations with him, or have simply enjoyed hearing him perform,” Helen Duncan, vice president of the Diablo Symphony Association, told the Weekly. “His musical connections to the Danville community are deep and longstanding.”
The Diablo Symphony Orchestra, entering its 61st season, will feature Mads Tolling on the violin, Greg Brown with the saxophone, Susan Strauss as the storyteller and WomenSing, a Lafayette-based choir.
As for the program, a piano solo will open the concerto, a solitary clarinet and timpani passage will open the symphony, and the hymn-like melody of “Finlandia” is set to characterize a concert that brings innovation, compelling rhythms and melodies, according to organizers.
“The concert as a whole offers music that is both joyful and sobering, with diverse textures, melodies, and rhythms —produced by varying combinations of instruments— that create both complex, rousing moments of excitement and simple, lyrical moments of peaceful calm,” Duncan said.
The concert will be performed at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, a venue known for its symphonic works, acoustics and stage that’s designed to maximize the impact of live classical music. Some of the soloists and orchestra members reside in the Danville and San Ramon communities, which will give community members the chance to experience locally connected musicians performing in a theater setting.
“The concert, performed by highly skilled musicians under the direction of an exceptional conductor, will be joyful and inspirational, with music that is innovative, compelling, fun, and often simply beautiful,” Duncan said. “It will also provide an opportunity to hear works by two of Western music’s symphonic masters in a setting designed to maximize the enjoyment and impact of those works.”
“Beethoven with Benway” is scheduled to take place at the Lesher Center on Sept. 17 at 2 p.m. Tickets and more information are available at diablosymphony.org.
