Morgan Hunter
Staff Writer
This time of the year, love is unequivocally in the air. With all the pressures of being a student, who has time to worry about making that grand romantic gesture? Luckily for the campus community, the Wooster Symphony Orchestra (WSO) planned ahead and debuted their most recent repertoire with their concerts on Friday, Feb. 14 and Sunday, Feb. 16 at 7:30 p.m. and 3 p.m., respectively. Audiences have come to expect a grand show from Director Jeffrey Lindberg and the WSO, but this concert proved to be unlike any other. Unable to snag a ticket or looking to relive the magic? Here are some concert highlights:
For this program, the WSO played three pieces: Suite No.1 in E-Flat Major, Op. 28, No. 1, H. 105 (Gustav Holst), Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (Johannes Brahms) and Overture for Ruslán and Lyudmíla (Mikhail Ivanovich Glinka). The first of these, which included movements “Chaconne,” “Intermezzo” and “March,” was performed in memory of Nancy E. Ditmer, professor emerita of Music, who passed away in May 2024.
“[All] who knew her are well aware of her contributions to the College and the field of music education, not only in the state of Ohio but also nationally,” Lindberg said when asked about Ditmer’s memorial piece.
This sentiment was shared by friends and retired colleagues who were present for the performance, lingering afterward to let her memories fill the lobby. The department not only selected a piece Ditmer directed in her first three years, but they also took the time to reprint Ditmer’s exact program notes. While a loss of life can never be truly reconciled, the timelessness of the music often helps with the pain of grief.
The following selection, which included movements “Allegro non troppo,” “Adagio” and “Allegro giocoso, ma non troppo vivace,” featured guest violinist Jinjoo Cho playing alongside the WSO. Cho is a highly decorated and celebrated violinist and educator currently based in Chicago. As the featured soloist, Cho worked closely with the students of the WSO, arriving Thursday night to integrate her interpretations of the literature with the pieces that the musicians have been preparing this semester. According to the ensemble, it did not matter if Jinjoo was performing for the empty recital hall or the packed audience; she performed with the same levels of skill and passion.
“Jinjoo’s performance was a thorough exploration of the piece’s textural complexities, and she maintained an engaging sense of musicality and melodic expression, even in the piece’s most technically demanding passages,” violinist Jane Nolte ’26 said.
The audience was captivated watching Cho put her whole body behind each note at all tempos and dynamics. Hannah Reinicke ’26 explained after the show, “Jinjoo Cho and the orchestra had a back-and-forth that felt like a conversation all of us in the audience got to watch.” More information about Cho can be found on her website www.jinjoocho.com.
When a performance leaves audiences’ mouths agape and applause thunders through the building foundation, it is easy to understand why so many supporters keep returning. Everyone — from students of the College to community members to young children — found something to take away from the WSO concert. Lindberg is proud to hold his musicians to high standards, and it shows through the quality of performance.
“It was one of the strongest performances of the WSO during my time at Wooster!” Jacob Hankin ’26 said. Ethan Yoder ’25 also added that “the music was tight, together and energized in a way that surpassed what one may expect of a collegiate orchestra.”
With public reception like this, it is hard to imagine how the WSO could possibly top this performance. Interested parties will have to be the judges of that at their upcoming concert of the year on Sunday, May 4 at 3 p.m. in McGaw Chapel. The WSO will perform Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1, featuring music majors Ryan Yonek ’25 on trombone and Anna Puster ’25 on oboe.
For those wanting even more, auditions to join the WSO are held during the first week of classes each August. For more information, students should contact director Jeffrey Lindberg at jlindberg@wooster.edu. Thank you, WSO; we can’t wait to see what you do next!