By Paul Holladay | Reporter
The Waco Symphony Orchestra, accompanied by Christina and Michelle Naughton and a special guest, Baylor men’s basketball head coach Scott Drew, will be performing at Vive la France at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday in Waco Hall.
The twin sisters will perform Poulenc’s “Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra” along with Saint-Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals” for the Waco Symphony Orchestra’s season opener, narrated by Drew. Vive la France will be the first concert since January 2020 due to the pandemic.
“What I can’t wait to experience is how they play melodies and harmonies in perfect tandem and pass musical phrases back and forth to one another,” Carolyn Bess, executive director of the Waco Symphony Association, said.
The twins have been performing together from a young age and have become two of the most popular pianists in the country, Bess said.
The twins recently played at the Boston Symphony, one of the best in the country. They now come to the Waco community to share their talents.
“We wanted an iconic figure from the Baylor community to be featured in this season opener, and coach Scott Drew certainly fits the bill,” Bess said.
Along with Drew, there will also be 20 Baylor students playing in the orchestra. Stephen Heyde, who is a conductor-in-residence at Baylor, will be conducting this ensemble.
“After such a long pause during COVID-19, I think the experience of audiences hearing live classical music together in Waco Hall will be a memorable and meaningful one,” Heyde said.
