Flippin | Sparr | Guitars
Thomas Flippin, Guitar
Friday, Apr 11, 2025
7:30 pm
Greensboro Symphony Orchestra
Thomas Flippin, Classical Guitar
D. J. Sparr, Blues Guitar
Robert Moody, Guest Conductor
Montgomery Strum
Brubeck Double Guitar Concerto
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5
Sponsored by Pennybyrn
This performance is expected to last approximately two hours and ten minutes with one twenty-minute intermission.
Refreshments and restrooms are located in the orchestra, mezzanine, and balcony-level lobbies.
Jessie Montgomery’s Strum is renowned for its accessibility and depth, appealing to both seasoned classical music enthusiasts and newcomers alike…its blend of traditional orchestral techniques with contemporary influences reflects Montgomery’s commitment to pushing boundaries and exploring new musical territories.
The Chris Brubeck Double Guitar Concerto will feature guitar soloists Thomas Flippin and D. J. Sparr, who engage in dynamic interplay throughout the piece. Their performances will provide a rich backdrop of harmonies, rhythms, and textures!
The evening will end with Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5. Join us for an unforgettable performance of this timeless masterpiece, and experience the emotional power and beauty of Tchaikovsky!
Friday, Apr 11, 2025
7:30 pm
Additional Purchase Options
- In person // Greensboro Symphony Box Office (Weekdays from 10am – 4:30pm). The Greensboro Symphony’s box office is located in the Greensboro Cultural Center at 200 N. Davie Street, Suite 301.
- In person // Tanger Center Ticket Office (Tu-Sa, Noon-5pm). The Tanger Center’s ticket office is located at One Abe Brenner Pl., between Elm and Davie Streets.
- By phone // Weekdays from 10am – 4:30pm at (336) 335.5456, ext.224
Venue
STEVEN TANGER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
300 N. Elm Street at Abe Brenner Place
Greensboro, NC 27401
Parking
VIP Parking, purchasable with a series subscription, is available in the large surface lot directly behind the Tanger Center with access from Lindsay Street. The Bellemeade Street parking deck, accessed from Elm Street or Greene Street, is the nearest city deck; Church Street and Davie Street decks are other nearby options. Street parking is also available, free after 6pm.
Musicology Mixology
The Greensboro Symphony’s pre-concert talks, Musicology Mixology, share insights into the Masterworks program. The conductor and the guest artists frequently join in at the beginning of each presentation.
Musicology Mixology is held in the Koury Room on the third floor of the Tanger Center on the evening of each Masterworks concert. Doors will open at 6:15 p.m. with the lecture component beginning at 6:30 p.m., prior to the 7:30 p.m. concert. A specialty cocktail tied to the concert program is available for purchase for each concert, and audience members can enjoy the concert even more by learning unique details about the works to be performed.
Frequent guest musicologists include Dr. Gregory Carroll, Dr. David Nelson, Dr. Joan Titus and Dr. Lorena Guillen of UNCG, and Dr. Wendy Looker of Guilford College.
Thomas Flippin, Guitar
THOMAS FLIPPIN is an original and versatile voice in the world of contemporary music. Whether premiering new works with his pioneering classical guitar ensemble, Duo Noire; performing avant-garde art songs on the theorbo as part of Alicia Hall Moran’s Motown Project; playing otherworldly electric guitar in Heartbeat Opera’s The Extinctionist; or plucking the banjo in the American Repertory Theater’s The Black Clown, Flippin’s playing has been hailed as “lovely” (New York Times), and “spectacularly precise” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch).
Recent concert highlights include: premiering a new double concerto for classical and blues guitars by Chris Brubeck with the Memphis Symphony, performances at Carnegie Hall with Alicia Hall Moran and Jason Moran, Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival with the American Repertory Theater, the 2022 Guitar Foundation of America Convention, National Sawdust, The Metropolitan Museum, The Cleveland Orchestra, Beijing’s Peking University, the Art Institute of Chicago, and Duo Noire premiering Held Together by GRAMMY-nominated composer Nathalie Joachim. Learn More >
D. J. Sparr
Composer & Electric guitarist D. J. Sparr, whom Gramophone recently hailed as “exemplary,” is one of America’s preeminent composer-performers. He has caught the attention of critics with his eclectic style, described as
“pop-Romantic…iridescent and wondrous” (The Mercury News) and “suits the boundary erasing spirit of today’s new-music world” (The New York Times). The Los Angeles Times praises him as “an excellent soloist,” and the Santa Cruz Sentinel says that he “wowed an enthusiastic audience…Sparr’s guitar sang in a near-human voice.”
He was the electric guitar concerto soloist on the 2018 GRAMMY®-Award winning album with JoAnn Falletta and the London Symphony Orchestra. In 2011, Sparr was named one of NPR listener’s favorite 100 composers under the age 40. He has composed for and performed with renowned ensembles such as the Houston Grand Opera, Cabrillo Festival, New World Symphony, Washington National Opera, and Eighth Blackbird. His music has received awards from BMI, New Music USA, and the League of Composers/ISCM. Sparr is a faculty member at the famed Walden School’s Creative Musicians Retreat in Dublin, New Hampshire. His works and guitar performances appear on Naxos, Innova Recordings, & Centaur Records.
D. J. lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with his wife Kimberly, son Harris, Nannette the hound dog, and Bundini the boxer. D. J. Sparr’s music is published by Bill Holab Music. Learn More >
