CU-Bloomsburg Orchestra Concert to Feature Cellist Anita Graef
Bloomsburg, PA (11/05/2026) — The Commonwealth University-Bloomsburg Community Orchestra will continue its America 250 celebration on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 7:30 p.m. in Pettit Center for the Arts, Mitrani Hall.
Directed by Dr. David Tedford, the orchestra will showcase America's musical heritage and feature acclaimed Chicago-based American cellist Anita Graef.
Praised by Pasadena Now for her "superb artistry" and WQXR for her "high energy and polish," Graef has performed extensively across North America and Europe. Her credits include appearances at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall, the Library of Congress, and with orchestras such as the Louisville Orchestra and Arkansas Philharmonic. Beyond performing, she serves as Artistic Director for the Tallgrass Chamber Music Festival and the Juliani Ensemble. Winner of the 2022 Gheens Young Artist Award and the 2021 American Prize, she is recognized for both her artistry and her reputation as a musician equally at home exploring traditional and contemporary works. Along with a deep commitment to service, outreach, and education, she holds faculty positions at Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts.
Concert Program
- Benjamin Horne - Prelude for Orchestra: The concert opens with a work by the award-winning living composer and Visiting Assistant Director of Bands at the University of Florida.
- Eric Whitacre - October: An orchestral depiction of crisp autumn air and the subtle change in light. Simple pastoral melodies and harmonies, inspired by the great English Romantics, capture the natural and pastoral soul of the season.
- Robert Schumann - Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 129: Featuring guest soloist Anita Graef on cello. Schumann's Cello Concerto was composed in two weeks in October of 1850. Though it was never performed during Schubert's lifetime, the premiere took place on June 9, 1860, posthumously marking the composer's 50th birthday. It has become one of the most popular works for cello.
- Aaron Copland - Four Dance Episodes from Rodeo: The celebration concludes with Copland's iconic Americana suite, featuring the energetic Buckaroo Holiday, Corral Nocturne, Saturday Night Waltz, and the famously raucous Hoedown.
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