Founded in 1865 by two charitable women caring for the sick, St. Barnabas was willed funds by patient Elizabeth Ann Titus to continue their mission. It became the first NJ hospital authorized by the Legislature, and moved from Newark to its current Livingston location in 1964. Today, St. Barnabas Medical Center has over 3000 employees and 1000 doctors on staff, and is noted nation- wide for its Burn Center, NICU, and pre-eminence in kidney transplantation. The Livingston Symphony Orchestra is proud to acknowledge this health care leader in their June 13 season-ending concert.
To honor St. Barnabas, Diane Wittry (left)has programmed a magical evening of musical celebration which begins with the exuberant curtain raiser, Shostakovich’s “Festive Overture.” From there, you will enter the realm of Shakespearean tragedy, as the feuding tension of the Montagues and Capulets and an achingly beautiful love theme contrast in Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture.” Metropolitan Opera Mezzo Soprano Sarah Nordin’s luscious vocals are next featured in selections from Bizet’s beloved “Carmen”, the story of a fatal love between and a gypsy and a renegade soldier. To complete the evening, the musical picture is of an otherworldly folk tale casted by an ogre, entrapped princesses, stone turned knights, a crown prince and a magical bird in Stravinsky’s 1919 “Firebird Suite.”
Tickets for this June 13 Livingston Symphony Orchestra Concert “Famous Love Melodies”, honoring St. Barnabas’ 150th birthday, are available at the door or by calling (973)980-1809. For more information on the orchestra or the concert, please visit www.lsonj.org.
