Brazil's Orquestra de São Paulo will provide students a chance to expand their horizons with its diverse group of musicians and song selection.

"This is a great opportunity to broaden the audience simply because of the nature of the program," Center for the Performing Arts Director George Trudeau said. "The overall diversity that can be seen and heard onstage is amazing."

Orquestra de São Paulo, one of Brazil's celebrated classical music ensembles, is making its Penn State premiere Friday at Eisenhower Auditorium. The performance will feature Kazem Abdullah, a young American conductor, and Dame Evelyn Glennie, a world-renowned solo percussionist. The show will run about an hour and a half, Trudeau said.

"It's very exciting to have one of the top orchestras in Brazil come perform at Penn State," he said. "It really will be a stunning concert. It's a traditional performance, but with some new and exciting elements."

The program includes two works by Brazilian composers, highlighting pieces such as Alberto Nepomuceno's "O Garatuja" and Heitor Villa-Lobos' "Bachianas Brasileiras No. 4." The program will also incorporate James MacMillan's "Veni, Veni Emmanuel" and Béla Bartók's "The Miraculous Mandarin: Suite," according to the CPA Web site.

Orquestra de São Paulo has been booked at Eisenhower for a year, and there anticipation for the performance, Center for Performing Arts Marketing and Communications Director Laura Sullivan said. State College will be the second-to-last stop of Orquestra de São Paulo's tour, Abdullah said.

"I am looking forward to performing for students at a college campus," he said. "It will be a great opportunity for students to see a world-class orchestra in their own community."

Students should expect an "incredibly moving" and diverse performance, Abdullah said. Many expect Dame Evelyn Glennie will add a lot to the performance with her engaging and dynamic style.

"Glennie is a deaf musician, which will be very interesting to watch," Sullivan said. "I am looking forward for her to join the orchestra."

The Scottish percussionist, who first performed at Eisenhower Auditorium in 1995, gives more than 100 performances a year with select conductors, orchestras and artists. She performs as a soloist for the MacMillan concerto, which she first performed in 1992 and later recorded, according to the CPA Web site.

Abdullah hopes the student body will come out to the performance and show support for the orchestra.

"There is such a wide-ranging repertoire that there is something for everyone," Abdullah said. "It gives the audience a chance to discover new pieces that they never knew before."

The orchestra will end the program with Abdullah's favorite piece of the program, Bartók's "The Miraculous Mandarin: Suite."

Sullivan hopes there may be a more adventuresome audience who wants to hear different pieces alongside the diehards, she said. Having students at the show gives off a completely new energy and add to the experience, he said.

Trudeau promises a wonderful program, and encourages students to come out for the performance.

"Our performance is unlike any other. Every member is committed, and it looks like every person on the stage is having fun and the audience responds to this and enjoys the performance much more," Abdullah said.