Joseph Nigro will make his directorial debut with the Sweet Briar Chamber Orchestra when the group strikes up the music at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30 in Memorial Chapel. The concert is free and open to the public.

Area listeners might know Nigro from his performances as a violist with the Roanoke Symphony, the James String Quartet and the Wintergreen Music Festival. He joined Sweet Briar’s faculty this year as director of the chamber orchestra, which includes SBC students, students from area studios and professional musicians, including SBC faculty.

Nigro, who also has a private studio for viola and violin, has selected a challenging repertoire, including Bach’s third “Brandenburg Concerto” and “The Serenade for Strings” by Edward Elgar.

Nigro is a graduate of Manhattan School of Music. He has played with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, American Symphony and the New Jersey Symphony, and at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the White House.

Jana Ross also will give a solo violin performance of “Autumn” from Antonio Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons.” Ross teaches applied violin and viola at Sweet Briar. She has studied and worked with noted violinists including Sergiu Luca and Midori. She plays with the Roanoke Symphony and is a member of the James String Quartet.

For more information, e-mail jnigro@sbc.edu.