Kansas University Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Timothy Hankewich, debuts its fall season with a concert at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Lied Center. Hankewich is associate conductor of the Kansas City Symphony and interim director of orchestral studies at KU.

The program begins with “Egmont: Overture, Op. 84” by Ludwig van Beethoven. Written in 1810 as the overture and accompaniment to Goethe’s play by the same name, the historical drama tells the story of a Flemish aristocrat, Egmont, who defied Phillip of Spain and was subsequently beheaded in 1567. It also is possible that Beethoven had a more personal interest in the story Beethoven’s grandfather was also Flemish.

The second piece is Peter Tchaikovsky’s “Francesca da Rimini, Op. 92,” also a dramatic piece, this time in the form of a “symphonic poem” inspired by the fifth canto of Dante’s “Inferno.”

The concert concludes with “Symphony No. 1, Op. 39” by Jean Sibelius. The four movements illustrate how the composer is able to seemingly suspend sound while generating musical momentum.

Hankewich is beginning his fourth season with the Kansas City Symphony. He formerly was on the conducting staffs of the Evansville Philharmonic in Illinois and the Oregon Symphony. He has made guest appearances with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Vermont Symphony, the Tulsa Philharmonic and the Chinese Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra in Beijing.

This past year, Hankewich made his debut with the Cleveland Chamber Symphony as the recipient of the 2001-2002 Geraldine C. and Emory Ford Foundation’s Immersion in New American Music for Professional American Conductors Award.

Admission is $7 for the general public and $5 for students and seniors. Tickets are available at the Lied Center Box Office, 864-ARTS; Murphy Hall Box Office, 864-3982; and Student Union Activities Box Office, 864-3477.