Guest pianist Jürgen Holleck will perform Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the Yuba Sutter Symphony during its Fall Classics concerts Oct. 17-18 in Yuba City. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Symphony

YUBA CITY, CA (MPG) - The Yuba Sutter Symphony will present Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 during its Fall Classics concerts Oct. 17-18 at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Yuba City.

Guest pianist Jürgen Holleck will perform the concerto under the direction of conductor Corey Kersting. The symphony will present concerts Saturday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 18 at 2 p.m. at the church, 1390 Franklin Road.

Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto ranks among the most technically demanding works in classical music. Pianist Vladimir Horowitz helped popularize the composition through recordings in the 1930s. Pianist Van Cliburn later brought additional attention to the work through his performances.

“We have the rare opportunity to hear this famous and moving piano concerto in our own community played by a very talented pianist,” Kersting said. “This is a treat that I am sure music lovers will not want to miss.”

Holleck, who works as a hospitalist physician at a Veterans Affairs hospital in Connecticut, also teaches medical students at Yale School of Medicine. Despite his career in medicine, he has maintained an interest in music and piano performance.

The Yuba Sutter Symphony, under the direction of conductor Corey Kersting, will present its Fall Classics concerts Oct. 17-18 at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Yuba City. Both performances are free. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Symphony

Performing Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto with the Yuba Sutter Symphony will fulfill a lifelong ambition for Holleck.

He studied at Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music, where his teachers included A. Ramon Rivera and the late Joseph Schwartz. In 1989, Holleck performed the first movement of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Portland Symphony Orchestra in Maine.

In addition to Rachmaninoff’s concerto, the Fall Classics program will feature Edward Elgar’s “Enigma Variations” and “Autumnal Escapade,” a composition by the late Dean Estabrook, a former member of the Yuba Sutter Symphony.

“Elgar’s Enigma Variations is a fun piece filled with personality, humor, beauty, and power,” Kersting said. “Also in the concert it will be an honor for us to perform the Autumnal Escapade composed by our friend and former Symphony member, the late Dean Estabrook.”

The concerts will also include the presentation of the annual Jane Sarah Roberts Award, which recognizes lifetime contributions to music.

The Yuba Sutter Oratorio Society will announce this year's recipient during the concert.

The award honors Jane Roberts, who helped establish and develop the Yuba Sutter Oratorio Society. Roberts also served as concertmaster of the Yuba Sutter Symphony Orchestra for 40 years and contributed to music education and performance throughout her adult life.

Both performances are free and open to the public. The symphony will accept donations.