Edwin Outwater and his student, Chih Yao Chang, lead the SFCM Orchestra, starting with two works evoking images of nature and ending with a symphonic masterpiece. Originally set for voice and piano and arranged for string orchestra, Grieg’s The Last Spring lyrically describes the beauty of spring’s awakening, …possibly seen for the last time. Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Reid gives the audience a spatial experience with Petrichor, spreading the musicians around the hall to create a sonic rain forest. This all leads to Bruckner’s monumental fourth symphony, a work that the composer revised several times in achieving his perfect symphony.  

Program

Edvard Grieg: Two Elegiac Melodies, Op. 34
     II. Våren (The Last Spring)

Ellen Reid: Petrichor

Anton Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 in E-flat Major, WAB 104, “Romantic”
     I. Bewegt, nicht zu schnell
     II. Andante, quasi allegretto
     III. Scherzo: Bewegt
     IV. Finale: Bewegt, doch nicht zu schnell

Artists

Edwin Outwater, conductor

Chih-Yao Chang, a native of Taoyuan, Taiwan, graduated from the National Taiwan Normal University with a master's degree in conducting from the Department of Music. He studied orchestral conducting under Professor Apo Chin-Shin Hsu and received guidance from masters such as Jun Märkl, Neal Stulberg, Jahja Lin, Shao-Chia Lü, Wen-pin Chien, Huichang Yan, and Anni Chung. He obtained his master's degree in 2020 and wrote an academic work entitled "Interpretation of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5"
     In 2017, he was selected as an official participant in the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Annual Conductor Training Program and the National Symphony Orchestra Conductor Camp. He also won the Best Popularity Award voted by the members at the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Conductor Workshop. In 2018, he became the youngest finalist in the Taiwan Chinese Orchestra Conductor Competition "Elite Conductor" and ultimately won the Best Popularity Award voted by the audience. In June 2019, he held his conducting master's degree concert titled "Drift" at the KHS Luzhou concert Hall. He also made it to the finals of the Taiwan Chinese Orchestra Conductor Competition "Elite Conductor" for the second time that year, and won the first prize and the Best Popularity Award voted by the audience. In 2019, he was also selected as a finalist in the "International Conducting Competition" in Hong Kong, with the final round scheduled for 2024. In recent years, he has actively participated in premieres and recordings of contemporary works, receiving critical acclaim at events such as the ISCM Taipei International Contemporary Music Festival.