The Maestro
‘FAREWELL, MAESTRO’
8 p.m., Robinson Center Music Hall. $35-$58.
Little Rock is soon to lose a major strand of the town’s artistic fabric. After 17 years as music director and conductor of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, David Itkin will step down, but not without a bang. This weekend will see Maestro Itkin conducting Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 (“Resurrection”), a symphony that calls for, in layman’s terms, as many strings as you can humanly wrangle. Philip Mann, assistant conductor of the San Diego Symphony, will replace Itkin, who leaves for Denton, Texas, to continue his position as director of Orchestral Studies at the University of North Texas. The ASO will present an afternoon performance of the Mahler symphony at 3 p.m. Sunday, as well. Tickets are flying fast, so order soon