N.C. - A group of young violinists from the R.N. Harris elementary school in Durham will open for the Duke Symphony Orchestra in Baldwin Auditorium on Duke University's East Campus at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 28. The children of the R.N. Harris Suzuki Violin Players will perform three pieces under the direction of Ann Bauer, an instructor at the school. The school's Suzuki program was founded in 1996 with a federal grant and donations of time, expertise and money from local residents and organizations. About 260 students in kindergarten through fifth grade at R.N. Harris receive the violin training. It is required for all children K-3 and optional for those in fourth and fifth grade.
Some students also have tutors or private teachers.
The upcoming concert will be the first time the Suzuki Violin Players perform with the Duke Symphony Orchestra. Following the children's presentation, the orchestra begins the first of two concerts featuring Duke student concerto competition winners as soloists. The performance by the R.N. Harris students, as well as the orchestra concert, is free and open to the public. Organized by the university's Department of Music and held each fall, the concerto competition invites undergraduates to vie for the chance to perform with the orchestra under the leadership of Harry Davidson. Only three or four winners are selected each year.