HERMISTON, IRRIGON — Inland Northwest Musicians’s Willow Creek Symphony two performances in the coming week.

First, the group will play on Tuesday, April 1, at Hermiston Community Center, 415 S. Highway 395. This is the annual Young People’s Concert presented for local students. There will be two performances: 9:15 a.m. and 10:15 a.m.

The symphony’s second concert is Saturday, April 5, 4 p.m. at the Irrigon Jr/Sr. High School, 315 SE Wyoming Ave. A reception will follow.

The concerts are free of charge, but donations are appreciated.

The Willow Creek Symphony will present five unique pieces for the concerts. One piece featured in these concerts is “Bohemian Dance” by Friedrich Smetana with dynamic changes and inspiration from Czech music. Another feature is the “Cavalier Overture” by Merle J. Isaac.

Another piece is “Appalachian Morning” by Robert Sheldon, which focuses on Scottish and Irish pioneers and their experience traveling through the Appalachian Mountains to settle on the other side with a focus on their culture.

The performance ends with Berceuse and Finale from “The Firebird Suite” by Igor Stravisnsky, recognizable from Disney’s “Fantasia 2000,” and “American Folk Rhapsody” by Clare E. Grundman featuring four American folk songs —  “My Little Mohee,” “Shantyman’s Life,” “Sourwood Mountain” and “Sweet Betsy From Pike.”

Willow Creek Symphony is a preparatory symphony of volunteer musicians who are returning to, or first learning their instruments. Members come from all over the region to play with Willow Creek Symphony and put on the Young People’s Concert to bring live orchestral music and culture to youths of the area.

R. Lee Friese, the musical director of INWM since 1999, will direct this concert.

The Inland Northwest Musicians include the Willow Creek Symphony, Inland Northwest Orchestra and Inland Northwest Chorale. All members are volunteers and many, especially in the orchestra, travel from as far away as Enterprise, the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla.

The concerts are supported by Amazon Web Services, Blue Mountain Community Foundation, James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation, Kiwanis Club of Hermiston, Morrow County Cultural Coalition, Oregon Arts Commission, Pacific Power Foundation, The Oregon Community Foundation, Umatilla County Cultural Coalition and US Bank. Morrow County Unified Recreation District is funding the Willow Creek Symphony concerts.

Anyone interested in joining the Willow Creek Symphony or the other ensembles can visit inlandnorthwestmusicians.com for more information.