Posted by Mary Wimberley on 2008-02-29

Four of Samford University's top student musicians will perform in the school's annual Concerto-Aria concert Tuesday, March 11 at 7:30 p.m. in Wright Center Concert Hall.

The Samford School of Performing Arts students were selected for the honor during competitive auditions held among the school's music majors earlier this year.

Winners are pianists Diana Preoteasa and Amanda Tapley, violinist Rachael Emery and soprano Haley Longino.

Preoteasa, a sophomore from Braila, Romania, will play Rachmaninoff's "Allegro scherzando," from Piano Concerto No. 2, opus 18.

Tapley, a sophomore from Birmingham, will pay Tchaikovsky's "Andantino semplice-Prestissimo" and "Allegro con fuoco" from Piano Concerto No. 1, opus 23.

Emery, a junior from Kingsport, Tenn., will play Saint-Saens' "Introduction et rondo capriccioso."

Longino, a junior from Jacksonville, Fla., will sing a recitative, "Quel guardo, il cavaliere" and an aria, "So anch'io la virtu magica" from Donizetti's Don Pasquale.

The performers will be accompanied by the Samford Orchestra, conducted by Les Fillmer.

The 52-piece orchestra will also perform Verdi's "Giovanna d'Arco" and Mussorgsky's "Night on Bald Mountain."

The public is invited free of charge.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.