Over the years, the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra has made beautiful music in our community. On Feb. 12, that tradition will continue with Mostly Mozart.

Music has long been an integral part of our lives. It is entertaining, thought provoking and often provides a glimpse into our collective past. It also reflects truths about the human condition. Some composers are more able to provide this glimpse than others — and the truly great create music that is timeless. Mozart was one of them.

Mostly Mozart will provide the community with the opportunity to explore the powerful music of one of the world’s greatest composers.

Many concerts consist of the works of a mixture of composers. Mozart’s work often makes appearances in concerts of all manners, but generally nestled amongst other great composers. Concerts sometimes follow a typical theme, but it is less common to have a concert focused on a single composer.

“It isn’t always that typical, though it depends on the orchestra. Some orchestras will categorize concerts into themes, and sometimes those themes happen to be by one composer. For this concert we decided on a Mozart-themed concert, as he is one of the well-known composers of our society,” said Julia Atkins, the marketing manager for the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra.

Another exciting aspect of this performance is the location. Locations of concerts help to create certain atmospheres for both the audience and the performers.

“While we were thinking of what we could perform in St. John’s Episcopal Church, we figured the music of Mozart would fit extremely well for that setting. During Mozart’s time, he would perform his works in smaller, intimate settings, sometimes a church, sometimes in someone’s home as entertainment. So this fits well with what he used to do during his time, while also bringing in the more well-known classical music to this community,” explained Atkins.

It can be easy to be intimidated by classical music and incredible composers. It may seem too complicated or overwhelming. Odds are with Mozart, that you have probably heard it before, perhaps without even realizing it.

“We welcome anyone to our concerts, whether they are educated in the orchestral world or not. This one is especially a great concert to come to whether you are an avid classical music listener or not as it incorporates music that we have all heard at some point in our lives, whether it’s in a TV show, commercial, movie, on the radio, etc., so anyone new or experienced will be comfortable attending this concert,” explained Atkins. “If someone new would like to learn more about the performance, there are program notes listed on our website at www.fayettevillesymphony.org. There they can read the history of each piece being performed that evening. The best thing to get the most out of this performance is to just come out and make an evening of it!”

Though dominated by familiar Mozart works, the concert is not comprised completely of a single composer, Atkins explained.

“The Bizet Symphony in C is a similar feeling as Mozart’s Symphony in G,” continued Atkins. “By feeling I mean that it sets the same mood. The two Mozart pieces have a lighter, mellow, classical feeling, and Bizet’s Symphony in C brings in the same thing. It is why the concert is titled Mostly Mozart as the entire program isn’t all completely dominated by Mozart pieces.”

Mostly Mozart is at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 302 Green St. on Feb. 12, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. For more information call 910-433-4690 or visit www.fayettevillesymphony.org.

Photo: The FSO brings Mostly Mozart to St. John’s Episcopal Church.