Chamber Orchestra with Thomas Kluge, conductor
and soloist Heather Baxter, oboe
Thursday, February 5 @ 7 P.M.
Mozart Masterpieces
Enjoy an evening of all Mozart performed by some of Omaha’s best musicians. Among the evening’s repertoire is Mozart’s famed Oboe Concerto in C major. Featured oboist is Heather Baxter, Assistant Principal of the Omaha Symphony. Thomas Kluge, Principal Viola of the Omaha Symphony, will conduct the chamber orchestra.
Thomas Kluge is the principal viola of the Omaha Symphony, an active chamber musician, recitalist, and soloist. Prior to moving to Omaha, Thomas was a freelance musician in New York City. He performed with the New York Philharmonic, orchestras in Connecticut, and a number of chamber orchestras. Thomas was educated in New York at the Manhattan School of Music, where his teacher was New York Philharmonic Principal Violist Leonard Davis. In addition to his master of music degree in viola performance, he holds a diploma in violin pedagogy and viola performance and pedagogy from the Bern Conservatory of Music and Theater. Thomas teaches viola and is the orchestra director at Creighton University. He has been on the faculties of the University of Nebraska at Omaha, Brevard Music Center in Brevard, North Carolina, and Omaha Conservatory of Music. Thomas also maintains a private violin and viola studio and was a founding member of the Omaha Chamber Music Society, where he served as artistic director for several years.
Heather Baxter joined the Omaha Symphony in 2015 as Assistant Principal/Second Oboe and English Horn. Prior to her move to Omaha, Heather performed with several orchestras throughout Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky, including the Richmond Symphony, Evansville and Lexington Philharmonics, Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestra Kentucky of Bowling Green, among others, while completing her doctorate in oboe performance at the College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) of the University of Cincinnati. Heather has had the privilege of studying with some of the country’s top teaching and performers, including Mark Ostoich at CCM, Sally Banham of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, and Ann Homann Mottl at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville while completing her bachelor of music degree.
“Orchestral music has been such a big part of my life and I love coming to concerts to hear new pieces and interpretations of the mainstays of concert repertoire! In addition to the marvelous music and entertainment, is also important to keep alive the social impacts that the Omaha Symphony has, both in the promotion of music and education in our community. Music is an important part of history and the Omaha Symphony makes that history come alive for each performance. Beyond the pure joy of music I experience with the Omaha Symphony, I continue to subscribe to do my little part in helping keep that history stay alive for others!”
View the musicians’ social media platforms and websites below!
