Elgin Symphony Orchestra to showcase guest guitarist

Internationally performing guitarist Ana Vidovic will join the Elgin Symphony Orchestra for concerts Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 5 and 6, at The Hemmens Cultural Center in Elgin.

Vidovic, who hails from the small town of Karlovac near Zagreb in Croatia, will perform Joaquín Rodrigo’s “Concierto de Aranjuzo.”

Composed in Paris in 1939, the piece established Rodrigo as one of the 20th century’s most significant Spanish composers, and remains his best-known work.

John Devlin will be guest conductor for the concert, which also features Mendelssohn’s “The Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave),” contemporary composer Clarice Assad’s “Impressions” and Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet Overture – Fantasy.” Currently in his third season as the music director of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra, Devlin is one of the youngest music directors to lead a professional orchestra. He is a finalist in the ESO’s music director search.

Tickets start at $20 for adults, and cost $10 for students. Admission is free for youth age 17 and younger with a paying adult. Tickets can be purchased at www.elginsymphony.org or by phone at 847-888-4000. Free parking is available for The Hemmens at 45 Symphony Way.

The ESO has been named Orchestra of the Year four times by the Illinois Council of Orchestras, most recently in 2016.