Guest conductor Jonathan Govias solicited a special composition from Canadian composer Christine Donkin to showcase the Prince George Symphony Orchestra's talent as part of Govias's on-the-job interview.
And on Saturday, he gets to show his stuff.
When the call for a conductor was answered by 40 people, the administration chose seven candidates to guest conduct throughout the season. Each short-listed candidate performs one piece of Canadian music and speaks to the community before the show.
Govias asked Christine Donkin, a composer from Grand Prairie, to create his showcase piece.
Three Autumn Scenes is performed during Simply Classical on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Vanier Hall. Along with the piece, the symphony performs Mozart's work, the Sinfonia Concertante for winds and The Italian, Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4.
Govias said the music performed during Simply Classic is challenging for the musicians and highly entertaining for the audience.
"I am very happy to be here and I thank the PGSO for inviting me," said Govias.
Govias addresses the community Friday at 11 a.m. at Exploration Place, 333 Becott Place. And he's sure to elaborate on his admiration for the city's love of music.
"The fact that there is an orchestra here, in a place that is geographically isolated, says a great deal about the values and aspirations of the town," said Govias. "That speaks volumes to me."
The model for a traditional orchestra does not work any more, he said. People started asking what value an orchestra brings to a community.
"Is this just an activity for just the older, wealthier part of the population or are they engaging with young people? The orchestra would say they were engaging with young people but that generally means they would go show up at the school once a year, play a concert and then never see them again for another 365 days when they come back and do another 30-minute show," Govias said. "That's what constitutes engagement under the current model."
Orchestras need to find new ways to be socially relevant in their communities, Govias proposes.
Govias is an advocate for el Sistema where orchestras are centre pieces of rich, vibrant and active musical communities, he said. Youth are committed to instruction in an orchestral environment.
Through the education of youth blooms a society of adults with musical backgrounds who either continue their education and career in music or become audience members appreciating the symphony in later years, said Govias. Studies show those who played an instrument in youth are those who see the value in professional orchestras in adulthood, he added. Musical education in youth is key.
Recipient of the Priddy Fellowship in Arts Leadership, the Reinhard Mohn Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurship, and recently named to the inaugural class of Abreu Fellows at the New England Conservatory, Govias is highly accomplished on the podium and beyond. Appointed music director of a professional orchestra at the age of 22, he has since earned a doctorate in orchestral conducting and performed with orchestras on four continents, including a June 2009 debut with Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra.
This performance was part of a remarkable summer in which he was the only individual selected out of some combined 250 applicants to attend the three most selective workshops in North America, to work with conductors Kurt Masur, Kenneth Kiesler, Gustav Meier and Marin Alsop.
