The event, 7:30 p.m. Friday, opens with a reception at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $40 in advance and $50 at the door.
Originally set for last February to coincide with the SMOA’s celebrated “Black Life as Subject Matter II” exhibition, the event still ties in with another prominent Black exhibition, “Really Free: The Radical Art of Nellie Mae Rowe.”
The series takes its name from Mozart being the focus of the first such concert there, but there won’t be any of the composer’s music. Instead, the focus will be on notable Black composers including Scott Joplin, Jessie Montgomery, Florence Price, Zenobia Powell Perry, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and William Grant Still, as selected by SSO music director and conductor Peter Stafford Wilson.
“It’s a different selection of music,” said Lou Ross, SSO executive director. “It’s a really neat atmosphere to have this among the exhibition. The acoustics there are wonderful, the sound carries really well.”
The “Really Free” exhibition features the work of Rowe, a self-taught Black folk artist who used art as self-expression, beginning her artistic pursuits after she reached retirement age.
The exhibition includes a variety of Rowe’s art including 2-D drawings, cloth art dolls, photos and sculptures depicting animals and other fantasy-like images. Springfield is the exhibition’s first stop on a national tour.
Admission price includes refreshments during the reception time.
Ross said the partnership between the SSO and SMOA on this series has always been strong and the two hope to offer more Mozart at the Museum offerings. They will also team up in August on the annual Lunch on the Lawn series of Friday midday outdoor concerts.
Advance tickets can be purchased at the SSO’s web page, www.springfieldsym.org.
HOW TO GO
What: Mozart at the Museum
Where: Springfield Museum of Art, 107 Cliff Park Rd., Springfield
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday
Admission: $40 advance; $50 at door
More info: 937-325-8100 or go to www.springfieldsym.org/
About the Author