Eric Mack On-Line

One of the personal projects that has taken quite a bit of my time lately has been helping our symphony orchestra prepare for their mid-winter family concert.

This year, the all of the music including the featured work, The Light Princess" was written by my daughter, Amy, who is a music composition major at The Master's College.

Amy has been working for years on the arrangements for this concert which is called "Tunes, Tales, and Truths." The concert will feature the World Premier of “The Light Princess,” an adaptation of George MacDonald's beloved fairy-tale into orchestral music and narration.

The concert will also include a sweeping suite of original music: pirate legends, great awakenings, swinging jazz, and powerful tales of redemption and new life.



See that painting above? That's an original painting -- one of 10 -- that Amy commissioned for the concert. Working with the artist, Jay Wegter, Amy designed the theme and sketch for each piece of art which Jay then masterfully painted. These will be presented on giant screens during the concert. After the concert, the original score and the 10 paintings will be available in the lobby for closer inspection.

I've watched this concert come together for the past three years and it's for for me to believe that it's now just a few days away. I'm very proud of Amy and her focus and determination to make her vision of adapting a classic story to music with narration and original art. I'm equally thankful for Amy's professors and others who have inspired and encouraged her along the way. It was our orchestra director, Lisa Hernacki, who suggested that this work could be the basis for a family concert and Lisa's determination and dedication brought the idea to reality. The orchestra is composed (see what I did there) up of some of the finest musicians and delightful people I know.

There's so much to tell about the concert and even about Amy's personal journey that I cannot do it justice in a single post. Fortunately, Amy's been blogging about the process of composing The Light Princess score and all of the myriad details that are involved as she journeys from concept to performance. I encourage you to check out her blog to learn more.

The Light Princess - not just for girls. Real men must see it, too.
In case you are unfamiliar with the story, this is the tale of a princess bewitched out of her gravity by her sorcerous aunt -- not only in body, but in mind. She can't take anything seriously or fall in love. The only place she can recover her gravity is in a magic lake, and that's the only place she finds any joy. A prince comes from afar to seek his bride and is taken with the princess. The witch is furious to hear that and takes further revenge by draining the lake — and, with it, draining the life of the princess. It's up to the prince to save the kingdom and his love.

George MacDonald, author of "The Light Princess," greatly influenced the writings of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. He said, “I write not for children, but for the child-like, whether they be five or fifty, or seventy-five.”  

If you are in Southern California this week, the concert will be in Santa Clarita on Friday, February 27th. Admission is free; however, we are expecting a large crowd so make plans to arrive early.

Concert details here and Google Map Directions here.

I hope to see you there!