Georgia Symphony Orchestra Archives

Submitted information: Maria Valdes, Georgia Symphony Orchestra

Georgia Symphony Music Director and Conductor Timothy Verville leads the orchestra as it opens its 71st concert season on Sept. 25, 2021, with Mahler, smahler, a reduced orchestration of Gustav Mahler’s Fourth Symphony.

Acclaimed soprano and Marietta native Maria Valdes will be the featured soloist at the performance, which will be held at the Marietta Performing Arts Center.

This special chamber version of the Fourth Symphony was arranged by Yoon Jae Lee, founder and artistic director of Ensemble 212, located in New York City, and curator of the Mahler Chamber Project.

“Mahler’s Fourth Symphony often is referred to as the most ‘chamber-like,’ due to the exquisite intricacies and interplay between instrumental sections,” said Verville. “The GSO’s chamber version of this work contains all the sublime melodies and progressive harmonies that have led to Mahler’s popularity as a composer.”

Mahler, smahler is the first of three performances in the GSO’s Classics Series. The GSO’s 2021-2022 season performance schedule also includes its Holiday Pops, Sensory Friendly, GSO Chorus and GSO Jazz! concerts.

To ensure the health, safety and comfort of its patrons, musicians and staff, the GSO is offering socially distanced matinee and evening shows of this performance at reduced seating capacity. The GSO also will require all patrons to be fully vaccinated, show proof upon entry and be masked for the duration of the concert. Season subscriptions and individual tickets can be purchased online at georgiasymphony.org/events.

It’s to be cold all day and all evening, led off by the 31st annual Polar Bear Run at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church (955 Johnson Ferry Road), which starts around 8 a.m. and raises funds for the church’s music mission trip. The race is one of the first local qualifiers for the Peachtree Road Race, but there are shorter races for kids, including a “Cub Run” for those ages 4-5;

Doing some winter reorganizing and cleaning out? Haul unwanted items over to Pope High School (3001 Hembree Road) between 9-4 for the Pope Band Recycling Day. The cost is $10 a car and additional charges apply for electronics and paint;

Professional organizer Linda Diamond offers tips on Decluttering Your Home from 11-12 Saturday at the East Cobb Library (4880 Lower Roswell Road);

The sun’s supposed to come out, warming things up enough for some youth sports activity. The Sandy Plains Softball Fun Day takes place from 12-2 at the organization’s fields at 2977 Gordy Parkway, and they’ll have food, fun, prizes and walk-up registration for the spring season.

Not far way, Sandy Plains Baseball is holding Instructional Clinics at Harrison Park (2653 Shallowford Road) from 11-1 for ages 9-12, and at Sweat Mountain Park (4346 Steinhauer Road) from 2:30 p.m. for ages 5-8. All participants should bring a glove, bat and helmet and arrive at least 20 minutes beforehand;

The arts take center stage Saturday night (and indoors too!). The Walton Chorus Fashion Show is themed “Reaching for the Stars,” and it’s a fundraiser that costs $18 at the door. Showtime Saturday is 6 p.m. at the Walton auditorium (1590 Bill Murdock Road);

The Georgia Symphony Orchestra will performs a “Musical Mirrors Concert” at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Lassiter Concert Hall (2601 Shallowford Road, photo above). Works by Franz Schubert are featured, and the ticket prices range from $10-$25.

Check our full calendar listings for more things to do in East Cobb this weekend, and beyond.

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Whatever you’re doing this weekend, make it a great one! Enjoy!

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