Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana” is among the most popular pieces for classical music concert-goers. The opening movement, “O Fortuna,” is immediately recognizable as the backdrop to many scenes in movies, television and commercials, invoking drama unparalleled by other musical numbers.
Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 26 and Saturday, April 27, at the Fresno State Concert Hall. Tickets are $50 for special seating, $20 for general admission, $15 for military/veterans, seniors, Fresno State employees and non-Fresno State students and free for Fresno State students. Proceeds from the concert benefit the Music Student Scholarship fund.
The concerts are part of the Art and Humanities Showcase Week that kicks off with Arts in Motion, our celebration of students, at 4 p.m. on Friday, April 19, in the Concert Hall and culminates with the “Carmina Burana” performances.
First performed in 1937 in Germany, “Carmina Burana” is based on 24 medieval poems in Latin that date back to the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries. The work is divided into three main sections: “In Spring,” “In the Tavern” and “Court of Love” — bookended by “O Fortuna” as opening and closing pieces. The structure is based on the “wheel of fortune” which represents the highs and lows of the human condition as the movements progress, covering the topics of awakening, drunkenness, love and lust.
“It is a mega piece that is recognized around the globe, and audiences truly love listening to it,” said Dr. Thomas Loewenheim, professor of cello and director of the symphony orchestra. “To make it happen, one needs a very large orchestra and choir, percussion sections, pianists, soloists and more. So it truly takes our entire department to make this concert come together.”
Student ensembles include the Fresno State Symphony Orchestra, Concert Choir, Chamber Singers and Masterworks Chorus, Grand Chorus and the Clovis North Soprano Alto Choir. In addition, nearly all of the Fresno State instrumental faculty will be performing, including Dr. Peter Klimo and Dr. Michael Krikorian, on two grand pianos.
Soloists include guest artist Anton Belov, an internationally recognized baritone and soprano Dr. Maria Okunev-Briggs, Fresno State associate professor of voice
The sheer number of people required for the live performance adds spectacle to the musical dramaturgy, especially when executed in an intimate venue such as the current Fresno State Concert Hall.
“As we are trying to advocate and build a new concert hall on the Fresno State Campus for our community, performing ‘Carmina Burana’ in our concert will showcase the true and dire need for a new, larger and acoustically immaculate concert hall on our campus, that will serve music and our community and will bring high-quality music and concerts to Fresno,” said Loewenheim.
Plans for a new concert hall at Fresno State were first seen publicly in the Fall 2023 campus project update, which stated the new 1,000-seat venue will be located where the Lab School currently sits, across from the Old Music building.
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The College of Arts and Humanities at Fresno State 