Southwest Symphony Society To Present Texas Electric String Group

The Southwest Symphony Society will present the Texas Electric String Group at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 21, at the Seward County Community College Area Technical School Showcase Theater. The quartet, featuring electric violins, viola and cello, will perform both classical and popular music selections. Admission is a free-will donation and refreshments will be served.

“We think this will be an exciting concert, featuring music from Bach to Gershwin to Ozzy Osbourne. This is also the first concert we’ve ever brought into town using electric violins,” said Kay Burtzloff, president of the Southwest Symphony Society. In addition to their public performance on Monday night, the quartet also will perform at 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 22, at Liberal Springs whose residents will be joined by residents from Wheatridge Park Care Center and Good Samaritan Center. They also will work with local musicians in a master class on Tuesday night.

Joining the quartet on drums at the concert on Monday night, will be Grant Mathews, the Southwest Symphony Society’s conductor. “Most of our audiences are used to seeing Grant conducting our local orchestra, so now they’ll have a chance to see his talents as a musician,” Burtzloff said. Members of the quartet include Shelly Duell, violin; Cortland Mahoney, violin; Melanie Mann, viola; and Sheri Greening, cello.

The Southwest Symphony Society is a Liberal non-profit organization dedicated to promoting classical and contemporary music in the community utilizing the talents of local and professional musicians. This program is presented in part by the Kansas Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. For more information about the concert or the Southwest Symphony Society, contact Nancy Schwartz at 626-4545.