Sodelo, the Southern Delaware Orchestra, takes the stage next weekend for a pair of performances in Rehoboth Beach and Lewes.
Titled “Old World/New World,” the performances feature music by Mozart, representing the old world, and Antonin Dvořák representing the new.
Joining the orchestra to perform arias and duets by Mozart are opera singers Joseph and Ellen Turi. The couple is local to southern Delaware, and this is their second appearance with Sodelo.
Ellen, a soprano, has sung a number of Mozart’s roles over her career. She says singing his work is refreshing for singers.
“It always feels like a voice lesson when you're singing Mozart, because it's almost like a cleansing from some of the more difficult composers that really didn't understand the voice,” she says.
Joseph Turi, a bass/baritone who also has a lot of experience with Mozart, explains that the composer was a virtuoso at writing for voice.
“He was a master at writing for the singers,” Turi says. “He knew the voice, he worked with singers his whole life.”
Sodelo’s conductor and music director says working with the Turis has been a special experience.
“There's something really organic about working with singers because we all carry this instrument inside of us,” he says. “Working with the tourists has been remarkable.”
The second half of the concert turns to the New World, specifically the “New World” Symphony by Antonin Dvořák. Born in what is now Czechia, Dvořák was one of the first European composers to spend significant time in America, working in New York in the 1890s. While there, he penned the symphony, which was influenced by American folk music, especially Black spirituals. It would go on to become one of Dvořák’s most famous works.
Anderson says the two halves of the performance are linked by more than geography.
“I think this program is a journey through the human heart,” he says. “We start with Mozart's witty, very flirtatious operas about the games we play in love, and we end with Dvorak's epic New World Symphony, a masterpiece about longing, discovery, and a search for home.”
Ellen Turi adds the concert is an especially accessible one for first-time concertgoers and kids.
“We have two beautiful daughters, they're inviting their friends. I've told all my friends to bring their kids because I do think Mozart is such a great first experience,” she says. “I think it's just a great starting point for any young person that wants to listen to an opera. I feel like it's just a great kind of jumping off point, and I think that the kids will really enjoy it.”
Anderson encourages people to come out and support local musicians, like the Turis and the members of Sodelo.
“In Sodelo, we believe great music belongs to everyone,” he says. “This concert isn't just a performance, it's our neighbors and local professionals coming together to share the greatest art ever created. It's high-caliber music with a community soul.”
Sodelo performs on March 28 at 3 p.m. at Rehoboth Beach’s Epworth UMC and March 29 at 3 p.m. at Cape Henlopen High School in Lewes.
Delaware Public Media's arts coverage is made possible, in part, by support from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency dedicated to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts.
