Hiroya Miura conducts the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Orchestra.

Conducted by Hiroya Miura of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty, the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Orchestra performs Brahms’ Symphony No. 3 and Debussy’s “Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 10.

The concert will take place in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St., and is open to the public at no cost. However, because of limited seating, tickets are required. For tickets and more information, please contact 207-786-6135 or olinarts@bates.edu.

“At first, Brahms and Debussy seem to be at aesthetic opposites,” says Miura. “Brahms is the height of the 19th-century German ‘absolute music’ — music that is about only itself, with no external references. And Debussy was self-consciously trying to redefine French music.

“These two pieces, however, were written only 10 years apart, and in spite of the difference in their harmonic language, I am struck by their similarly organic treatment of the rhythm. The composers were both masters of form and the organization of musical motifs.”

The 27 students in the orchestra (the other 18 players are musicians from the community) will find “both pieces challenging for various reasons: rhythm, orchestral balance, expression, etc.,” Miura adds. “However, I find both pieces are absolutely worth the effort for their sublime musical quality.”

Pianist Duncan Cumming ’93 returns to his alma mater with violinist Hilary Cumming, his wife, to perform works of Schubert, Brahms and Dvorák at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

The program also includes Duo, a composition by William Matthews, Alice Swanson Esty Professor of Music at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½. Admission is free, but tickets are required. For ticket reservations or more information, please contact 207-786-6135 or this olinarts@bates.edu.

Cumming is a Maine native, born in Presque Isle and raised in Wiscasset. He graduated with highest honors from ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ in 1993. His playing has been described by the Portland Press Herald as “technically flawless, thoughtful, deliberate and balanced.” Cumming has performed in some of the most prestigious concert halls in the United States and Europe including the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; Merkin Hall and Carnegie Recital Hall in New York City; and the Wallenstein Palace in Prague, Czech Republic. In 2009, he received a grant to record music of Mozart and Weber on Weber’s own 1812 Brodmann fortepiano.

Also this year, Cumming’s book, The Fountain of Youth: The Artistry of Frank Glazer (Tower Books) was published. This book is a portrait of the , an internationally renowned pianist, who taught Cumming.

Cumming received a master’s degree in 1996 from the New England Conservatory, and in 2003 earned a doctorate from Boston University. He is a member of the faculties of Boston University’s Tanglewood Institute and the University at Albany.

Hilary Cumming studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Copenhagen, Denmark, and has performed around the world. An adjunct professor of violin at the University at Albany, her most recent CD recording was made in August 2008 with the Musicians of the Old Post Road and is available from Meridien Records.

Along with the cellist Sölen Dikener, the Cummings constitute the Capital Piano Trio, the ensemble in residence at the University at Albany. The Cummings have two daughters and a son.

He also continues to perform in England where he has given recitals annually since 1992. He is currently on faculty at Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass., and a member of the Cecelia Trio. Cumming was born in Aroostook County and grew up in Wiscassett.

The program will include excerpts from Fantasie in D minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sonata in C major, Op. 1, by Johannes Brahms, and Sports et Divertissements by Erik Satie, as well as works by Debussy and Chopin.

For more information, call the Olin Arts Center at 207-786-6135.