On Saturday, Oct. 29, Brooklyn’s Metro Chamber Orchestra will premiere a composition specially commissioned in honor of Ronald Cross, the Kurt and Auguste Riemann professor of music at Wagner College.
“Time is on My Side” was composed by Israeli-born conductor Jay Vilnai. Described as “a piece with a Balkan flair on the Dracula theme,” the title is a quote from Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel, “Dracula.”
Vilnai’s composition honors the annual Halloween concerts, “Music from the Court of Vlad the Impaler (Prince Dracula),” staged in the 1980s by the Collegium Musicum Wagneriensis, directed by Ronald Cross.
“Throughout my travels, Wagner has never been far from my mind, since I have stayed friends with and have been encouraged by Ron Cross,” said Phil Nuzzo’79, artistic director of the Metro Chamber Orchestra, in announcing the premiere honoring Professor Cross. “I cannot tell you the innumerable times I called with a question or for encouragement to Dr. Cross since I graduated. It is now time for me to say thank you.”
Ronald Cross, an Associate of the American Guild of Organists, is former dean of AGO’s Staten Island chapter. He earned his M.A. and Ph.D. from New York University. He directs the Wagner College Young Musicians Competition.
To listen to a selection of works performed by Professor Cross on the organ at St. Paul’s/St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Port Richmond, Staten Island, visit the Wagner College website.
