The Camellia Symphony Orchestra opens its 47th season with "Prodigies from St. Petersburg" at the Memorial Auditorium on Saturday. 

The concert will feature the music of three composers from that city: Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev.

“Everything ends on a high note in all three of the pieces and the sounds that the audience members are going to hear are just breathtaking,” said Allan Pollack, music director and conductor. “I think it was a great way to start off the season.”

The performance also will feature local cellist Burke Schuchmann, who will perform during Shostakovich's “Cello Concerto No. 1.”

Schuchmann said he was excited to work with such a talented group of musicians and was particularly impressed with the string section.

“The strings sound very nice; the cellos, the violins, absolutely gorgeous playing and just a beautiful section.” he said. “And it’s a hard thing to build an orchestra with a good string section.”

“Prodigies from St. Petersburg” will begin at 8 p.m., but doors will open at 6 p.m. for wine tasting, a silent auction, the Camellia Juniors Orchestra mini-concert and a preconcert talk with Pollack.

The orchestra provides different activities in order to appeal to a broader audience, said Executive Director Roberta McClellan.

“We really want to give people a full experience,” she said. “ And we also like to feature local wineries if we can and any other kind of local business.”

McClellan said the orchestra, which has not raised ticket prices for five years,  offers family concert packages.  She said the symphony tries to make the performances accessible to all. 

For more information, visit www.camelliasymphony.org.