Violinist McDuffie Gives Concert at Mercer on March 11 
The free concert is part of the Spring String Series of the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer University.

Macon, Ga. (February 28, 2008) - Internationally renowned violinist Robert McDuffie will give a free concert on Tuesday, March 11, as part of the Spring String Series of the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer University. The performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. in Neva Langley Fickling Hall of the McCorkle Music Building, 1329 Adams Street, on Mercer's Macon campus.

   The program will include a variety of music styles and periods and will showcase several of the Center's outstanding string students.
McDuffie will perform "Winter" from Antonio Vivaldi's best-known work, "Four Seasons," with the McDuffie Center String Orchestra of Mercer University. The orchestra is composed of nine string students, along with critically acclaimed violinist Amy Schwartz Moretti, who serves as director of the McDuffie Center, as the concertmaster. He will also play Maurice Ravel's "Sonata for Violin and Cello" with freshman cellist Lavena Johanson of Seattle, Washington. He will complete the concert with some Viennese pieces, accompanied by award-winning pianist Elizabeth Pridgen of New York.

   The free concert is open to the public. Seating is limited, so tickets are required for admission. The free tickets are available through Mercer Ticket Sales at (478) 301-5470 after Feb. 29.

   McDuffie has appeared with most of the major orchestras of the world.This season he returns to Europe for performances of the Bruch G minor Concerto at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and in Utrecht, with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as performances of the Rózsa Violin Concerto in Bordeaux. He also returns to Korea for performances of the Barber Violin Concerto with the KBS Symphony in Seoul. To further celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Miklós Rózsa's birth, he will perform the Rózsa Violin Concerto with the Dallas Symphony as well as with the Utah Symphony.

   He will give recitals with pianist Christopher Taylor, including Washington, D.C., at the Kennedy Center and at the National Academy of Sciences. Future engagements include a U.S. tour with the Jerusalem Symphony and performances of the Tchaikovsky Concerto with the Atlanta Symphony. He will premiere "The American Four Seasons," a new work by Philip Glass, and will tour Europe and the United States, pairing it with the Vivaldi "Four Seasons."

   McDuffie is a Distinguished University Professor of Music at Mercer.
The Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer University had its official opening at the beginning of the 2007-2008 academic year. He is the co-founder and artistic director of The Rome Chamber Music Festival. The mayor of Rome, Italy, recently awarded Robert McDuffie the prestigious Premio Simpatia in honor of his contribution to the cultural life of that city.