For the Texarkana Symphony Orchestra’s season opener at 7:30 p.m., on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at the Perot Theatre, it’s an evening to honor music exploring the wide-open vistas and unique beauty and culture of the American West.

With a lineup that includes such classics as William Grant Still’s “Old California,” John Williams’ “Cowboys Overture” and Gioachino Rossini’s “Overture to William Tell,” TSO will perform some classic compositions that have helped define the Western spirit and ethos.

The concert is also a family-friendly opener for TSO’s third season.

“We like to open the symphony season with a program that the whole family can enjoy. We had ‘A Night at the Movies’ a few years ago and similar programs ... (concertgoers will) be introduced to some great Western music and classical music that we associate with the American West,” said Marc-André Bougie, TSO’s musical director and conductor.

In addition, music such as Ennio Morricone’s spaghetti western cowboy movie music from “Once Upon a Time in the West” will also give the feel and flavor of the American West.

That Italian composer really captured the sound of the American spirit in the West, said Bougie.

“It’s hard to describe, but music can convey the impression,” he said, noting composers like Aaron Copland and Still could successfully create the sound through the simple chord structures, allowing indigenous scales to influence the melodies, and transparent orchestration.

“You hear the music and you can picture those scenes,” said Bougie.

Copland is recognized as the first to develop the American West sound in his compositions.

TSO’s concert will create “the atmosphere of the old West in a classical fashion,” said Bougie.

He believes themes of the American West involve humanity confronting nature, the open frontier and the infinity of the universe—themes both American and human and rooted in a need to reach beyond ourselves.

“The American West is the original American final frontier,” said Bougie.

Other composers on tap for the evening include Leroy Anderson, Elmer Bernstein and Stan Jones.

And for this concert, the spoken word will also adopt a prominent role with actor Frank Oden reciting western poems and songs during the second half of the concert.

An actor from Denver, Oden developed his poetry program “Cowboy Jamboree,” performing it with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Symphony Orchestra and at the Vail Valley Music Festival.

Oden’s poems will serve as interludes between the music performances.

“It is the family show of the year,” said Bougie.

A concert preview presented by the conductor will begin at 6:45 p.m.



(Tickets: $36, $29, $22, $15, $5. Ticket info: 903-792-4992 or www.texarkanasymphony.org.)