MIDDLEBURY — The Middlebury College Performing Arts Series will present the Vermont premiere of Legends of Kintamani, a new cello concerto by Middlebury Professor of Music Su Lian Tan, on Saturday, Oct. 8, at 8 p.m. at the Mahaney Center for the Arts. A free  pre-concert panel with the artists will take place at 7 p.m. in room 125.
The music, inspired by travels to Southeast Asia and specifically Bali, will be accompanied by large animated murals produced by Middlebury students in the Digital Liberal Arts Initiative’s Animation Studio. The five-movement story depicts a return to a more innocent time, where mythology and reality combine in fairy tales.
The concert is the result of a unique collaboration between Middlebury College’s Digital Liberal Arts (DLA) Initiative, the distinguished cellist Darrett Adkins and the Burlington Chamber Orchestra (BCO), with guest conductor Evan Bennett. Audiences can learn more when the artists discuss their shared process in a free pre-concert panel.
The Middlebury College students who created animations specifically for this project include seniors Hosain Ghassemi and Coumba Winfield; graduates Ruben Gilbert, James Graham and Sofy Maia; as well as Middlebury Union High School student Justin Holmes, with guidance from Arts Technology Specialist and graduate Daniel Houghton. Their work will be projected on a large screen during the concert, creating a multimedia performance for the eyes as well as the ears.
To round out the evening, the BCO will also perform Bela Bartók’s “Romanian Folk Dances” and César Franck’s “Quatre Pieces Brèves” under the baton of orchestra director Yutaka Kono.
The Mahaney Center is located on the campus of Middlebury College, at 72 Porter Field Road, just off Route 30 south/S. Main Street. Free parking is available curbside on Route 30 or in the Center for the Arts parking lot, in rows marked faculty/staff/visitors.
Tickets are $20 for the general public; $15 for Middlebury College faculty, staff, alumni, emeriti and other ID card holders; and $6 for Middlebury College students. For more information, or to purchase tickets, call 443-6433 or go to http://www.middlebury.edu/arts.