Spring Classical Concert 
Transformation Oboe Concerto World Premiere
Sunday, March 13, 2022 at 3 pm
Shore Cultural Centre

Matthew Salvaggio, conductor
Joshua Lauretig, oboe
Tony Manfredonia, guest composer

DANYEW  Elegy for the End of Nature world premiere
TICHELI An American Elegy
​MANFREDONIA Transformation Oboe Concerto world premiere
         Joshua Lauretig, oboe

About Joshua Lauretig
Joshua Lauretig, hailed for his "considerable musicianship" and "beautiful rich sound" by coolcleveland.com, is the second oboist of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. He also serves as the second oboist of the Colorado Music Festival Orchestra and has previously served as second oboe and solo English Horn of Symphony in C (formerly the Haddonfield Symphony). He has performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Sarasota Orchestra and the Baltimore and Chautauqua Symphony Orchestras.

Joshua is a laureate of numerous international music competitions: he was awarded first prize in the International Double Reed Society's 2014 Young Artist Competition; received Honorable Mention in the 2019 Gillet-Fox Oboe Competition; received third prize in the 2020 Busan Maru International Music Festival Concerto Competition, of which he was the only American finalist; and received second prize in the 2020 Elizabeth Loker Concerto Competition. He has been invited to perform at the music festivals of Sarasota, Colorado, and Aspen, as well as the Moritzburg Festival Academy. He has been featured on recitals sponsored by the Interlochen Center for the Arts, the Montante Cultural Center’s “Informally Formal” recital series, the Ventfort Hall Summer Chamber Music Concert Series, and has performed on WHYY-TV Philadelphia's "On Stage at Curtis." He has given solo performances with the Ars Nova Chamber Orchestra, the Lakeland Civic Orchestra, the Mid-Atlantic Symphony, the Young Artist Debut Orchestra of Erie, PA, and the United States Navy Band.

An advocate for performing new music, Joshua is a member of the Liminal Space Ensemble, a group whose mission is dedicated to reflecting programming choices for diverse audiences, and showing that classical music is by and for everyone. During the 2021-22 season Joshua will be giving the world premiere of Tony Manfredonia’s new “Transformation Concerto” for oboe and orchestra, as well as a performance of Margi Griebling-Haigh’s “Sinfonia Concertante.”

A student of Richard Woodhams (former principal oboe, Philadelphia Orchestra), Joshua earned a Bachelor's Degree at the Curtis Institute of Music, where he was awarded the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Fellowship. Other teachers include Danna Sundet, Olav van Hezewijk, and Keisuke Wakao.

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About Tony Manfredonia
Tony is composer and orchestrator for concert music and video games living in Petoskey, MI. He provides a multi-layered and sensory experience through expressive, colorful orchestration and warm melodies. He adds sonic perspectives to stories, environments, and everything in between through massive orchestral productions, as well as intimate atmospheres.
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Tony's music has been played worldwide, with performances and readings from renowned ensembles such as Apollo Chamber Players,  the Washington Metropolitan Gamer Symphony Orchestra, the University of Cambridge Concert Band, and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. Much of his music is published through NewMusicShelf and MusicSpoke.
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Advocating to continually bring new music to his Northern Michigan home, Northern Symphonic Winds (NSW) of Charlevoix, MI, commissioned Tony to write a new piece for the ensemble, titled "On the Threshold of Spring," which premiered in May 2019. He is currently NSW's composer-in-residence. Since 2018, he has worked closely with the Bay View Music Festival in Petoskey, with premieres (WHOA!: for wind quintet), performances, and presentations for the summer students including commissioned art songs by Risa Renae Harman and Casey Robards.  In December 2019, he worked with The Accidentals​, a local folk band, orchestrating their music for performance with the Traverse Symphony Orchestra.

Living the life of a video game composer, Tony constructs sonic spaces and emotionally-driven tracks to enliven each game's world. His most recent, completed soundtracks are that for Kharon's Crypt and Call of Saregnar. Currently, he is working on the music for The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines, a twin-stick fantasy shooter centered around the ability to stop time. Bridging the gap between “game music” and “contemporary classical music,” he continually strives to have his soundtracks performed, drawing in new audiences to the world of classical music. One example is his Suite from Kharon's Crypt, an orchestral medley of tracks from the Kharon's Crypt soundtrack. He plans on creating a "Suite from The Ambassador," as well as a piano concerto of music from Kharon's Crypt, composed for Jeffrey Biegel.
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Continually branching out into various styles, many of his projects involve sacred music: the full, orchestral score for Saint Luke Productions' latest drama, "Tolton: From Slave to Priest," their upcoming film, "Faustina: Messenger of Divine Mercy," and a Concert Band piece commissioned by Holy Ghost Preparatory School in Bensalem PA, "Rejoice in the Holy Spirit." Most recently, the St. Francis High School students in Traverse City performed his "Ave Maria" for SATB Choir and Organ.
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Recent awards include Brazosport Symphony Orchestra's Composer Competition, the inaugural Texas A&M University’s Composition Competition and Symposium, Symphony Number One's Fourth Call for Scores as a semi-finalist, and a Merit Award in the Tribeca New Music Young Composer Competition.