Symphony to ‘stun’ goers in candlelight

     (NWPR-OH) – The musicians of the Lima Symphony Orchestra will presform Mozart by Candlelight with his music as it was written, surrounded by the warm glow of hundreds of glistening candles in two stunning sacred spaces. 

     The Mozart by Candlelight performances will begin on Saturday, January 21 at 7:30 pm at Trinity United Methodist Church in Lima and conclude on Sunday, January 22 at 4:00 pm at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Defiance. 

     The program will include several of Mozart’s most beautiful and well-known arias performed by vocal soloist Julia Szabo, the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra No. 4 performed by violin soloist Mary Kettering, and one of Mozart’s final symphonies, the intense and moody Symphony No. 40.

About

     Julia Szabo was a professional singer in New York City for 25 years leading to numerous solo concert appearances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall.  She has performed opera roles with several distinguished opera companies, such as Washington National Opera, Tulsa Opera and Sarasota Opera. For five years, Ms. Szabo performed in abridged operas for school audiences under the education departments of the Metropolitan Opera and New York City Opera. Her work with early music specialists led to her European debut at the Teatro Poleteamo Garibaldi in Palermo, Sicily, singing the lead role in Alessandro Scarlatti’s opera Gli Equivoci nel Sembiante. As a former member of the New York Choral Artists – the professional chorus for the New York Philharmonic — she has sung under the baton of Sir Colin Davis, Ricardo Chailly, Zubin Mehta, Eza-Pekka Salonen and Kurt Masur.  Her work in various vocal ensembles led to a spot backing up Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli on “The Late Show with David Letterman.” 

     Mary Kettering grew up in Granville, Ohio and began playing the violin in her school orchestra at age 10.  At the age of 15, she auditioned and was accepted into the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestra.  She is the principal second violin in both the Ashland and Lima Symphonies, and she plays fiddle and sings with the bluegrass band Kentucky Border.  She was a member of the Ashland-based Faces Made for Radio bluegrass band, has toured with the Celtic rock group Ceili (Kay-lee) Rain, and performed onstage for Ashland University’s production of The Spitfire Grill.