The Federal Way Symphony will kick off the 2022-23 season with “Strings and …” at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 16. The concert features the symphony’s string section in collaboration with harpsichord, oboe, harp and vibraphone and timpani.

Tickets are available at fwpaec.org or (253) 835-7010.

“I’ve always been fascinated by artists who challenge themselves with an occasional self-imposed limitation, like Alfred Hitchcock shooting his film ‘Rope’ in long unedited takes, or John Gielgud staging ‘Hamlet’ with the actors in black rehearsal clothes and with minimal sets,” said Music Director Adam Stern.

“I thought, ‘What if we did a concert showing that the addition of a mere one or two instruments to a string ensemble yields a great deal of variety?’ By programming four works that call for very different added timbres, I believe the concert will prove to be a colorful one,’” Stern added.

The highlight of the concert is Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Concerto in A minor for Oboe and Strings in honor of the composer’s 150 birth anniversary. “This gorgeous and predominantly pastoral work is the perfect showcase for our wonderful soloist’s expressivity and dazzling technique,” Stern says.

Seattle Symphony principal oboist Mary Lynch VanderKolk will join the Federal Way Symphony in a performance that is almost 15 years in the making.

“I was scheduled to perform this concerto nearly 15 years ago,” VanderKolk says. “That concert was canceled three days before the first rehearsal so I’m excited to finally perform this beautiful work in front of an audience.”

The concert will also include performances of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 for strings and harpsichord, Morton Gould’s Harvest for strings, harp, and vibraphone, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Serenata Notturna for strings and timpani.

“This program, that spans more than two centuries of great music and features a perfect match of soloist to concerto, is one not to be missed,” said Stern.

Tickets for the concert are $35 adult, $25 senior/military and free for youth under 18.

“We are thrilled to be able to continue our policy of free tickets for children and youth,” says new Symphony President Brandan Jenkins-Moak. “It is one of our missions to nurture the next generation of symphony patrons and performers and we thank all of our donors for making these free tickets possible.”

All Federal Way Symphony concerts are at the Federal Way Performing Arts & Event Center, 31510 Pete von Reichbauer Way South, which offers convenient access to I-5 and ample free parking.

More information about the concert may be found at federalwaysymphony.org/strings-and-1.