<p>See the Columbia River Symphony perform Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 16 and 17.</p>

ASTORIA and ILWACO, Wash. While visiting national parks in Utah this summer, Columbia River Symphony conductor Cory Pederson conceived the idea for a concert celebrating the majestic landscapes of the American West. The result will be presented at two concerts.

The 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16 concert will take place at Seaport Lodge No. 7, the Astoria Masonic Lodge located at 16th Street and Franklin Avenue. The 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 17 concert will be at the Hilltop School Auditorium, located at 442 Brumbach Ave. N.E in Ilwaco, Wash. Both concerts are free to the public, and families with children are welcome.

Mountains figure prominently in these two concerts. Like catching moisture-laden winds and gathering them into visible clouds, mountains capture our highest imaginations and reflect our noblest spirit, says John Davis, a professor at Naropa University in Boulder, Colo. They have been the home of gods and goddesses, the physical embodiment of unchanging truth and stability, the very essence of majesty and awe.

The original idea for the concerts expanded beyond the American West to include the wilds of Scotland and the mountain peaks of the Himalayas. By Loch and Mountain by composer Robert W. Smith evokes the lakes and mountains of Scotland by weaving together beautiful Scottish melodies, while Rossano Galantes Mt. Everest takes a different approach by portraying the majesty of the worlds highest mountain in loud thundering clashes and soaring melodic passages. Closer to home, other pieces on the program celebrate the Rocky Mountains, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and the prairies of the Midwest. Even waterfalls find their way into the program with Shannon Falls by Ralph Ford, and not to be outdone by beautiful landscapes, the remaining pieces on the program, In the Shining of the Stars by Robert Sheldon and Dusk by Steven Bryant, evoke the vastness of the universe and of time itself.

The Columbia River Symphony has existed for several years and recently became an Oregon and federal nonprofit organization. The still-growing orchestra includes string, percussion and wind instrument players and is comprised of adults and school-age youth in about equal numbers. Led by Pederson and assisted by Angela Pederson-Calvin, the Columbia River Symphony is a community-based, all-volunteer performing arts group. The symphony welcomes new members and is open to anyone who plays a stringed instrument, wind instrument or percussion.

For further information, visit the orchestras website at www.columbiariversymphony.org or call 503-836-2198.