UVA Wise Professors To Perform at Independence Celebration

Two UVA Wise professors will perform at Pro-Art’s 2nd annual Independence Celebration concert with Symphony of the Mountains including one of their own original compositions.

The concert on Sunday, June 25 at 7 p.m. at Leeman Field in Pennington Gap is free and open to the public. Bring a blanket or lawn chairs, your friends and family, and settle in for an evening of fresh air and magnificent music in honor of America’s birthday.

Symphony of the Mountains will take the audience on a journey through a diverse selection of musical pieces, spanning classical compositions to arrangements of popular and patriotic works. From a powerful rendition of the "National Anthem" to the grand finale of "Stars and Stripes Forever," the concert aims to capture the spirit of the nation. Comprised of a variety of musical styles, the program includes energetic overtures, lively dances like the famous "Can Can," and emotive arrangements from beloved musicals. The concert is packed with moments of reflection and introspection with poignant melodies and a solo from violinist Kelsey Philbrick in "Amazing Grace.”

UVA Wise Associate Professor of Music Donald Sorah and Nancy Schneeloch-Bingham, a newly minted UVA Wise adjunct professor of flute, will play in the Symphony of the Mountains orchestra. They will also play three additional concerts as part of the series in Virginia and North Carolina.

The program also features an original composition from local composers including Sorah and Roy Crawford, who is a familiar collaborator and performer at UVA Wise.

“When you compose a work on the computer using music notation software you can hear a mock up of the piece and it’s fairly close but you don’t really know how it will come across with live musicians until it is performed in real life,”Sorah said. “It’s really exciting to play the trumpet for it. I thought I’d hear it from the audience, but I will get to hear it from the stage.”

The composition entitled “The Trestle Tree,” is inspired by a real-life “Charlie Brown” type Christmas tree. In 2021 in Whitesburg, Ky., Crawford became intrigued with the mystery of a pine tree growing out of the wood tresses on an abandoned railroad track where a tree shouldn’t be able to grow yet did. People decorated it for the holidays with ornaments, Sorah said.

People at the walking trail began decorating the tree at different holidays throughout the year and the display of affection grew in popularity, even inspiring Kyle McQueen to paint a watercolor that now hangs at the local city hall. Despite the changing weather and ornaments hung on the tree, it continued to survive. That story inspired Crawford to start working on a song and he reached out to Sorah to collaborate.

The instrumental musical piece goes along a journey of the seasons, depicting the challenges the tree goes through during the year.

After the devastating 2022 Kentucky floods, Sorah and Crawford offered the song as a fundraiser. Concert bands could make a donation to buy the piece to perform and raised more than $5,000. The proceeds were provided to high schools that lost or needed to repair musical equipment and pay for additional overall recovery efforts.

“It’s a piece about perseverance overcoming adversity and flourishing and the spirit of the people of Whitesburg, Ky.,” Sorah said.

The song which debuted in spring 2022 as part of a winds ensemble will have its premiere as a string orchestral performance at the June 25 concert, said Sorah.

“It is really meaningful because I have played with the Symphony of the Mountains for a long time and to hear the composition as a group and fellow musician and share that with them is amazing,” he said.

Sorah and Schneeloch-Bingham will also perform at the upcoming 11th annual Symphony of the Mountains concert at UVA Wise, which takes place on Saturday, July 22 on the Lawn by the Lake.