The American Prize-winning Valdosta Symphony Orchestra will celebrate the end of its 26th season with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Overture to Don Giovanni, K. 527 and Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 at 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 30, in Whitehead Auditorium. Tickets are on sale now.   
 
The highlight of the evening will be the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra’s performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, which Dr. Howard Hsu, VSO music director and conductor, described as “a masterpiece for the orchestra that engages both the performers and the audience emotionally and intellectually. The lush and breathtaking Adagietto movement found mainstream popularity from its usage in the film A Death in Venice.
 
“At times savage, bitter, furious, ironic, romantic, joyous, playful, and victorious, Mahler's Fifth is a rollercoaster of a work that will demonstrate what an excellent orchestra the VSO has become.  I've been listening to and studying this symphony for decades, but only now do I feel ready to perform it.”
 
Kellen Gray, VSO assistant conductor, will kick off the evening by leading the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra through Mozart’s Overture to Don Giovanni, K. 527.  
 
Tickets for Saturday’s performance, which is sponsored by Valdosta Family Medicine Associates P.C., are $27 for adults and $10 for students. Senior, military, and VSU faculty and staff discounts are available.
 
Whitehead Auditorium is located on the first floor of Valdosta State University’s Fine Arts Building, at the intersection of Brookwood Drive and Oak Street.