- Orchestra Iowa presents “American Gothic"
- Cedar Rapids: Saturday (5/4), 7:30 p.m., Paramount Theatre, 123 Third Ave. SE; Insight program, 6:45 p.m., Encore Lounge
- Iowa City: Sunday (5/5), 2:30 p.m., West High School, 2901 Melrose Ave.; Insight program, 1:30 p.m., auditorium
- Tickets: $20 to $50, Orchestra Iowa Ticket Office, (319) 366-8203 or Orchestraiowa.org
- Ottumwa: May 12, 3 p.m., Bridge View Center, 102 Church St., no tickets required
- Program: Sergei Rachmaninoff, “The Rock”; Michael Daugherty, “American Gothic” world premiere; Antonin Dvorak, Symphony No. 7 in D minor
Orchestra Iowa premieres 'American Gothic'
Test one-

Composer Michael Daugherty and violinist Luke Witchger rip through the virtuoso orchestral bluegrass of "Pitchfork," the final movement of "American Gothic," during an Art Bites preview at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art at noon Wednesday (5/1/13). Orchestra Iowa commissioned Daugherty's 20-minute sonic homage to Grant Wood and Eastern Iowa, and will stage the work's world premiere Saturday in Cedar Rapids and Sunday in Iowa City.
CEDAR RAPIDS -- Orchestra Iowa's homecoming season comes full circle this weekend, with the return of Grammy-winning composer Michael Daugherty.
The Cedar Rapids native will be in the audience Saturday night (5/4/13) when Orchestra Iowa unveils his "American Gothic." The commissioned work is a 20-minute homage to Eastern Iowa's most famous artist, Grant Wood.
"The whole point of this concert is to bring back one of Cedar Rapids' most cherished musicians and to create a work of art that would be particularly meaningful to Iowans," says Maestro Timothy Hankewich, the orchestra's music director.
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