The UT Symphony Orchestra gave their final performance of the semester Sunday at the Cox Auditorium in the Alumni Memorial Building on campus. The students and special guest performers played with enthusiasm, beautifully showcasing selected music of Great Britain's composers.

Some audience members said that they were somehow expecting music with a creepy scary theme for this performance since it was scheduled for the day after Halloween. This turned out to not be the case as the music selections were far from disappointing.

The first two selections of the concert were pieces written by the late British composer Malcolm Arnold (1921-2006). The third and final selection was a particularly long piece, made up of 15 separate movements, composed by the late Edward Elgar (1857-1934), also of Great Britain.

"We are very lucky to welcome these guest musicians today, and also guest faculty. They have been a pleasure to work with and great inspirations to all of the students."James Fellenbaum, conductor of the UT Symphony OrchestraArnold composed Four Scottish Dances, the first piece of Sunday's concert, in 1957 for the BBC Light Music Festival. It includes four movements, each with a distinctly humorous quality, lasting a total of about nine minutes.

The second movement of Four Scottish Dances, entitled "Vivace," was a particular favorite for the performers and the audience alike. It featured a wonderful solo on the Bassoon, played by student Emily Wuchner, which clearly depicted a drunken person staggering clumsily down the street.

Arnold also composed the second selection for Sunday's concert, entitled Concerto for Two Violins and Strings, which lasted for about 20 minutes. The piece was composed in memory of Arnold's two brothers who passed away in 1961. The piece first premiered in 1962 at a Bach music festival, which is appropriate considering the strong similarities between this piece and J.S. Bach's Double Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor.

For this second piece, only the string instruments remained on stage, and they were joined by two very special guest violinists, Mark Zelmanovich and Miroslav Hristov.

Born in Russia and studying music since the age of seven, Professor Zelmanovich has been concert master for the Knoxville Symphony and Chamber Orchestras since 1986. He is well known as an experienced and dedicated teacher whom students around the world seek out each year in the hopes of becoming one of his lucky students.

Hristov is currently the First Violinist of the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, and he has led a very successful career playing with numerous professional orchestras around the world. He has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, and he has taught, performed and conducted throughout the United States, Mexico and Europe.

The third and final piece in Sunday's concert was entitled Enigma Variations, composed by Edward Elgar. This piece contained 15 movements and lasted for about 30 minutes in all. Each movement was designed to capture the essence of Elgar's closest friends and loved ones through variations on a theme. It took him nearly three years to finish it before it finally premiered in London in 1899.

This astoundingly touching piece of music was nothing short of impressive at Sunday's performance. Each of Elgar's movements were delivered with contrasting tones and dynamics, and the ending finale certainly deserved the standing ovation it received from the audience.

Sadly, the UT Symphony Orchestra will disband until their Valentine's Day performance in February 2010. However, the UT School of Music is very excited to present the UT Opera Theatre this Nov. 13-15 at the Bijou Theatre in downtown Knoxville. Directed by Carroll Freeman, members of the UT Symphony Orchestra will be performing Robert Ward's The Crucible, based on the play by Arthur Miller. To buy tickets visit www.knoxtickets.com.