In this season's final concert by the Arcadia Players Orchestra and Chorus, Artistic Director Ian Watson leads the ensemble in three major works by Franz Joseph Haydn: Symphony No. 49, one of the "Sturm und Drang" symphonies; the delightful Keyboard Concerto in D major, which Haydn - who described himself as "no mean keyboard player" - first performed himself; and one of the great Mass settings of his late years, the Missa in Angustiis, or "Mass in Time of Tribulation," later known as the "Lord Nelson" Mass.

Haydn was a celebrated composer in his own lifetime. His music appealed to the same wide range of listeners who enjoy it today. He was appreciated by his employer, Prince Nikolaus Esterhazy, whose love for music is evident from the sizeable orchestra he supported and from his own devotion to the sophisticated aristocrat's instrument of the time, the many-stringed baryton. Haydn in his later years was also lionized by both connoisseurs and enthusiasts in London, where people flocked to public concerts to hear the works we now know as the "London Symphonies" - some savoring their compositional mastery and others simply enjoying their tunefulness.

Monica Jakuc Leverett, fortepiano soloist in the Concerto in D major, is Professor of Music at Smith College. Inspired by Malcolm Bilson, she began over twenty years ago to perform on early pianos and has presented music of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert and their less-known contemporaries on the instruments for which they composed. She organized and performed at the International HaydnFest, held at Smith College in 1990. Her most recent recording, Fantasies for Fortepiano, includes works of Mozart, C.P.E. Bach, and Haydn, and Beethoven's Sonata quasi una Fantasia known as the "Moonlight Sonata." Monica Jakuc Leverett is a frequent guest performer with Arcadia Players.

Public Television for Western New England  is the sponsor of Arcadia Players’ 2007–2008 season.