They are laboratory scientists, health care professionals, students and office adminstrators by day, but one night a week they blend their other special talents -- as violinists, flutists, percussionists and more -- to compose the UCSF Orchestra.

In a venue designed to show off their impressive sound, the group will present a benefit concert this Sunday, May 4, 1997 at 7:30 p.m. at Calvary Presbyterian Church, 2515 Fillmore Street (at Jackson).

Word on the street among professional musicians is that the 60-member ensemble is the best volunteer orchestra in the city, according to Karen Attix, manager of the UCSF Arts and Performance Office, which is coproducing the concert with the UCSF Women's Resource Center. Founded in 1989, the orchestra is made up of accomplished student, faculty, staff and community musicians. Conductor Jeremy Swerling, formerly of the Sacramento symphony, has led the group for the past three years.

The group rehearses for two-and-a-half hours every Tuesday evening-- very little considering the ambitious orchestral repertoire they tackle--and presents three concerts each year. Most often the group performs in Millberry Gym, which is convenient for the campus community but leaves much to be desired in terms of acoustics. "Calvary Presbyterian is a wonderful place to hear this orchestra," says Attix.

The May 4th program includes Mahler's Symphony No. 4 in G major, with soprano soloist Ellen McLain. "This piece is very accessible in its melody and a good introduction to Mahler," says Attix. She also notes that at 50 minutes it is among the shortest of the composer's major works. Also on the program is the Bach-Stokowski Toccata and Fugue in D minor, and the premier of a contemporary orchestral piece by John Lowrie, Conversations with Piltdown Man and In a Strange Land.

"The orchestra plays with a remarkably high degree of professionalism and quality, given the many demands on its members' time and limited rehearsal schedule," says trombonist Scott Friedman, MD. A professor of medicine at SFGH, Friedman is a six-year veteran of the UCSF Orchestra. The demands of career and small children had caused him to let his musical interest fall by the wayside until he heard about the orchestra. "It was a golden opportunity to reignite my interest in music," says Friedman.

The beneficiary of the concert, Women in Life Sciences, is a registered campus organization composed of female graduate students and post-docs. Proceeds will support the group's volunteer activities, which include bringing to campus speakers on issues of interest to women scientists, a mentoring program, and hosting social hours for the campus community.

Concert tickets are priced at $10 general admission, and $6 for students. Tickets can be purchased at the door from 6:30 p.m.

By Leslie Lingaas

1st appeared 5/1/97