It’s fairly rare for a symphony orchestra to feature a concert of all-American music or two living composers on the same program. Fans of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra (QCSO) hit the jackpot with exactly this all for two performances of “For America,” Saturday at the Adler Theatre. But even if you weren’t among the 344 lucky people to attend the concerts in person (the 2,321-seat Adler has allowed 25-percent capacity), anyone can purchase digital access (for $40) to watch the supremely talented musicians in the delightfully varied program – online through May 11. Plus, unlike the in-person... Read More

In this bitterly cold winter of our discontent, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra transports us to warm, bright musical landscapes in its latest digital concert. In a program literally focused on youth, the concert (recorded without an audience at Davenport’s Adler Theatre) features Felix Mendelssohn’s musical exploration of Italy’s culture and countryside in his joyful and energetic “Italian” Symphony. 2019 Quad City Symphony Youth Ensembles Concerto Competition winner Linda Phan (who’s in sixth grade) joins the QCSO for the first movement of Wolfgang A. Mozart’s effervescent, charming Third... Read More

Pianist Marian Lee – head of the keyboard area at St. Ambrose University, Davenport – has found silver linings in the dark cloud of Covid. For just the second time since she’s been in the Quad-Cities, over the past eight years, Lee will be featured soloist with the Quad City Symphony Orchestra this weekend, performing J.S. Bach’s Keyboard Concerto No. 5 in F Minor (BWV 1056). That wasn’t the original plan. “Because of Covid, I lucked out. The original pianist who was scheduled to perform was a Chinese pianist from Curtis and she was still unable to get back into the United States from... Read More

What a difference an audience makes. Any performer – especially in this dizzying, chaotic age of Covid-19 – knows this. And when Mark Russell Smith, starting his 12th season as music director and conductor of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra, took to the Adler Theatre stage Oct. 3 for the first time in seven months – he knew it for sure. “It was moving, very powerful,” he said Thursday of leading a smaller, socially-distanced ensemble, as he wore a face mask. “Even before we played a note, the audience greeted us with a standing ovation. I came out like normal, the orchestra stood up... Read More