The UGA Performing Arts Center will present Georgia's own Robert McDuffie and the Venice Baroque Orchestra in the world premiere tour of "The Seasons Project" at 8 p.m. Thursday in Hodgson Concert Hall.

"The Seasons Project" opens with Vivaldi's beloved "The Four Seasons" and concludes with Philip Glass' new "American Four Seasons Violin Concerto" inspired by Vivaldi's masterpiece.

Glass, hailed by The New Yorker as "America's most famous living composer of classical music," wrote his piece for McDuffie. It premiered last December with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, leading the The Toronto Star to write: "The American Four Seasons was so spectacularly played by the new piece's muse, Robert McDuffie ... that the event turned into one of the most exciting musical evenings of the year."

McDuffie, a Grammy-nominated violinist, has appeared as soloist with most of the major orchestras of the world.

He is founder of the Rome Chamber Music Festival, and recently received the prestigious Premio Simpatia from the mayor of Rome recognizing his contribution to the city's cultural life.

McDuffie holds the Genelle and Mansfield Jennings Distinguished University Professor Chair at Mercer University in his hometown of Macon. This season, the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings at Mercer will celebrate its fourth academic year with concerts conducted by Robert Spano.

McDuffie plays a 1735 Guarneri del Gesu violin, known as the "Ladenburg."

The Performing Arts Center will offer "A Conversation with ..." Adrian P. Childs, chairman of the Music Theory-Composition Area at UGA, 45 minutes prior to the concert.