Bates College orchestra to perform

In a program of French Music for the Dance and Beethoven’s Triple Concerto, the Bates College Orchestra, under the direction of William Matthews, the Alice Swanson Esty Professor of Music, will perform at 8 p.m. Feb. 6 in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall. The public is invited to attend free of charge.

The first half of the program features music inspired by dance and includes works from a variety of periods. The orchestra will play a suite of Franco American fiddle tunes by Greg Boardman, “Bon Temps Chez Nous,” commissioned by the orchestra with the Alice Swanson Esty Endowment; Baroque ballet music from the early 18th-century composer Jean-Philipe Rameau from his opera Dardanus; Ravel’s impressionistic “Pavane pour une infante defunte (Renaissance dance for a dead princess)”; and Darius Milhaud’s 1923 jazz-flavored ballet score, “La creation du monde (the creation of the world)” with saxophone and drum.

The second half of the program features Beethoven’s Triple Concerto played by the St. Cecilia Trio as special guest soloists. The trio is composed of pianist Duncan Cumming ’93; violinist Scott Esty ’92; and cellist Sölen Dikener.

For additional information, call the Olin Arts Center at 207-786-6135.