Max Richter’s “November” begins with two different stories. From silence, strings build an eerie and intriguing soundscape luring the listener to a single, expeditious violin solo leading to an exciting crescendo.

Concertmaster Er-Gene Kahng plays lead violin on Richter’s rarely heard composition to open the Fort Smith Symphony’s “Romantic Journeys” concert March 1.

“It’s a thrill to perform this work,” she says in an email interview. “Despite its fast rapid-fire texture, I find that Richter creates a soundscape that is distanced, quiet and, over time, meditative.”

Kahng hopes to convey the virtuosity and quietness of the piece from his 2002 album, “Memoryhouse,” which explores themes of memory, loss and reflection which relate to the “Romantic” themes of the concert.

“Richter hasn’t specifically shared the meaning of ‘November,’” she says, but “for me, the month of November embodies a romantic period of transition from autumn to winter and can be a beautiful, maybe slightly melancholic, reflective time.”

Kahng explains the romance in this concert refers to “letting ourselves live in the past” through nostalgia or by reminiscing while also looking to the future with excitement for what is yet to come.

A professor at the University of Arkansas who is renowned for her 2018 recordings of Florence Price’s Violin Concertos, she hopes those who do not know Richter’s work will want to hear more. And she hopes those familiar with “November” gain a fresh perspective on the piece while experiencing the immediacy of live performance.

She looks forward to the conversations the performance will inspire.

“For me, there is nothing like the pleasure of experiencing and [presenting] a live performance.”

TUBA TO THE FRONT

“Romantic Journeys” will center another rarity in the symphony world — a tuba solo.

“I thought it might be fun with this program to take a few moments to feature some solo instruments,” says John Jeter, music director and conductor of the orchestra. Concerto for Tuba and Orchestra by Ralph Vaughan Williams is the centerpiece of the concert.

“It’s a very cool piece, extremely beautiful and melodic and also just a little bit quirky in the very best sense,” he says. “People expecting the tuba to just play the baseline or fifths as in a marching band are going to be quite impressed at how beautiful this piece is.”

Principal soloist Ryan Robinson agrees.

“The tuba is usually thought of as the instrument in the back of the room that no one really notices. The ‘oom’ of the ‘oom pah’ you hear in marches, for example,” explains Robinson. “In reality, the tuba has the largest range, high to low, of any wind instrument in the modern orchestra or band.”

Jeter says the piece was the first concerto ever written for the tuba and orchestra. In comparison to the other instruments in the orchestra, Robinson says the tuba is young, which could be why it took so long for it to be featured.

“Williams was already a hugely popular composer, and when he decided to write a solo for the tuba in 1954, many critics thought it was a terrible idea,” he says. “Happily, they were wrong! It is an excellent piece of music.”

Nowadays, Robinson says, there are dozens of concerti for tuba and orchestra, but Williams’ piece remains a staple of the repertoire and is often required in professional auditions for tubists.

A instructor of tuba and euphonium at Oklahoma State University, he first picked up the tuba at age 16.

“I’ve been hooked ever since. I love the quality and quantity of sound the tuba produces,” he says. “It is the only instrument with only one person in the section, and that means every note is a solo.”

However, he says, the opportunity to perform as a soloist with an orchestra is exceptionally rare.

“This could be the only time in my career that I have this opportunity, and I plan to enjoy every minute!”

AN EPIC ENDING

After intermission, the Fort Smith Symphony will perform Jean Sibelius’ dramatic Symphony No. 2, which Jeter describes as an amazing example of musical development in four movements.

“The first opens with a melodic figure based on just three notes that provides the basis for the entire symphony. This idea comes back at the very beginning of the final movement, which builds heroically and dramatically to a wonderful coda. The very ending is one of the great triumphant moments in classical music.”

Symphony No. 2, he says, was the first major success for the composer and a hallmark of Scandinavian composition.

“His music is celebrated because he took the traditional musical language of the Romantic period and made it all his own in a very unique style that is unmistakably his. His music is lyrical, beautiful, emotional, dramatic, and quite glorious.”

Jeter adds this is the final concert in the Classix 2024-25 season for which tickets are available. The last concert of the season, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: In Concert” on April 26 is sold out.

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FAQ

Fort Smith Symphony:

‘Romantic Journeys’

WHEN — 7 p.m. March 1 with afterparty at 8:30 p.m. at the Bakery Distict

WHERE — ArcBest Performing Arts Center in Fort Smith

COST – $25 students, $50-$55 adults

INFO — fortsmithsymphony.org/concerts

NEXT UP — The Fort Smith Symphony presents a free outdoor concert at 5 p.m. April 5 in front of the UAFS clock tower, featuring music from “The Magnificent Seven,” “Harry Potter,” “Yellowstone,” “Star Wars,” “Pirates of the Caribbean” and more. Lawn chairs and picnics welcome.

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FYI

Additional Accolades

Conductor John Jeter and the Fort Smith Symphony were recently awarded 2025 Best Classical Performance by the World Entertainment Awards for the recording of “The Four Moons: VII. The Cherokee Variation” on Naxos Records.

“It is a terrific honor and a great recognition for the dedicated work of our orchestra and supportive community,” Jeter says.