Admirers of science fiction and fantasy movies whose favorite part is the music are in for a treat. The Saratoga Orchestra will be playing a selection of iconic and immediately recognizable film scores May 17 in Oak Harbor and May 18 in Langley.
Whether it’s “Harry Potter,” “Lord of the Rings” or “Star Wars,” just about every major franchise is represented in this unique two-night concert, which is titled “Reel Music from Stage to Screen.”
And Studio Ghibli fans, listen up.
“This year we thought it would be fun to do some of Joe Hisaishi’s music from ‘Spirited Away,’ because it’s such a beautiful score,” Anna Edwards, conductor of the Saratoga Orchestra, said.
The suite from the award-winning Japanese animated film is lush and enthralling, perfectly capturing the different characters in its score, Edwards noted.
A lesser known but equally dazzling piece, the concert will include the overture to “The Boatswain’s Mate,” a one-act opera written and composed by British suffragette Ethel Smyth in the early 1900s. The opera tells the story of the heroine, a widower who outsmarts all her suitors. Edwards described it as a “swashbuckling” kind of composition.
Larry Heidel, the orchestra’s executive director, said Island Shakespeare Festival actors will be presenting interstitials between musical pieces to show a correlation of how the Bard’s storytelling transcends from his stage plays to the modern medium of film.
“I’m hoping it’s going to be a popular concert,” Edwards said.
Karen Heather, a board member for Saratoga Orchestra, said it’s amazing what the organization can accomplish with a small budget and without its own venue.
“It’s a real challenge, I think, for an orchestra this size and on an island that has such diverse demographics to really get the audiences that I think this orchestra deserves,” she said.
Catch “Reel Music” 7 p.m. on Saturday, May 17 at Oak Harbor High School or 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 18 at South Whidbey High School. Tickets cost $30 for adults and $25 for seniors and military. Students age 17 and under can attend for free. Purchase tickets from Click Music in Oak Harbor, bayleaf in Coupeville, Biercuterie in Freeland, Moonraker Books in Langley or online at sowhidbey.com.
