January 26, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 26, 2015
For more information, contact:
Rachel Dellinger, KSO Director of Communications
Direct: 865-521-2317 Cell: 865-660-3037
[email protected]
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra has announced the 2015-2016 Moxley Carmichael Masterworks Series and the Chamber Classics Series in addition to the launch of its Music Director search. Six candidates will visit and perform in Knoxville during the season as guest conductors with the KSO on the Moxley Carmichael Masterworks series, one of whom will be named as the 8th Music Director of the KSO. 2015-16 marks the KSO’s 80th season.
All eight Masterworks programs will be held at the Tennessee Theatre on Thursday and Friday evenings at 7:30 p.m. All five Chamber Classics concerts will take place on Sunday afternoons at 2:30 p.m. at the Bijou Theatre.
Subscriptions to both series are now on sale by contacting the KSO box office; single tickets will go on sale in August 2015. Subscriptions to the Masterworks Series start at just $94!
2015-2016 Moxley Carmichael Masterworks Season
Subscriptions to the 2015-2016 Moxley Carmichael Masterworks Series start at just $94 and are on sale to the general public beginning Monday, January 26. Subscriptions can be purchased through the KSO Box Office by calling 865-291-3310. All eight Masterworks programs will be held at the Tennessee Theatre on Thursday and Friday evenings at 7:30 p.m. Guest conductors who are music director candidates are indicated with an asterisk (*) below.
Opening Night: September 17 & 18, 2015
AMERICAN MASTERS: GERSHWIN & BERNSTEIN
7:30 p.m.
James Fellenbaum, conductor
Sean Chen, piano
The KSO will open its 80th season with music by American Masters George Gershwin and Leonard Bernstein. KSO Resident Conductor James Fellenbaum conducts the KSO in Chadwick’s Jubilee from Symphonic Sketches, Barber’s Adagio for Strings and Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. Van Cliburn Competition Crystal Medalist Sean Chen joins the Orchestra for Gershwin’s Concerto in F.
Sean Chen, 26-year‐old American pianist ,is the first American to earn a Cliburn award since 1997. He took home third prize just months after being named the 2013 Christel DeHaan Classical Fellow of the American Pianists Association. He has appeared with orchestras throughout the US and frequently performs in recital and chamber music concerts.
October 22 & 23, 2015
PINES OF ROME
7:30 P.M.
Marcelo Lehninger*, conductor
Gabriel Lefkowitz, violin
The October Masterworks concert, conducted by Marcelo Lehninger, will open with Shostakovich’s famous Symphony No. 1 followed by Ravel’s Tzigane, which features KSO Concertmaster Gabriel Lefkowitz. Also on the program is an orchestration of Debussy’s Two Preludes and Respighi’s Pines of Rome.
Marcelo Lehninger (Mar-SEL-oh LEN-in-gherr) is a Brazilian-born conductor currently serving as Associate Conductor for the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He also holds the music directorship for the New West Symphony in Los Angeles. He received his Master’s degree from the Conductors Institute at New York’s Bard College, and was recently recognized by the League of American Orchestras with the 2014 Helen Thompson award for his outstanding work with orchestras.
November 19 & 20, 2015
TCHAIKOVSKY PIANO CONCERTO NO. 1
7:30 PM
Shizuo Kuwahara*, conductor
Stewart Goodyear, piano
November’s concert opens with a satirical folk song, Concerto for Orchestra No. 1 by Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin, known as “Naughty Limericks”. Guest conductor Shizuo Kuwahara will conduct the orchestra in Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, featuring pianist Stewart Goodyear. Concluding the program is Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 3.
Canadian pianist Stewart Goodyear received a bachelor’s degree from the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and completed a Master’s Degree at The Juilliard School of Music in New York. He has performed with the major orchestras of the world including the New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, among many.
Shizuo Kuwahara (Shiz-oo-woh Koo-wah-HARR-ah) is the music director of Symphony Orchestra Augusta. Japanese born, he studied conducting at Yale University, where he was awarded the Charles Ives Scholarship and won the Eleazar de Carvalho Prize, and at the Eastman School of Music, where he was awarded the George Eastman Scholarship, Performer’s Certificate and Arts Leadership Program Certificate. He is a first prize winner of the prestigious Georg Solti International Conductors’ Competition in Germany, and was a League of American Orchestras Conducting Fellow with The Philadelphia Orchestra, where he served as apprentice to Music Director Christoph Eschenbach, covering and leading numerous concerts. Mr. Kuwahara has also served as an associate conductor of the Virginia Symphony.
January 21 & 22, 2016
BEETHOVEN & BRUCH
7:30 PM
Aram Demirjian*, conductor
Philippe Quint, violin
January’s concerts will be conducted by Aram Demirjian with special guest artist Philippe Quint, violin. This concert opens with Adams’ Lollapalooza, followed by Ligeti’s Romanian Concerto. The Orchestra will be joined by Philippe Quint for Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 and the program will conclude with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7.
Award-winning violinist Philippe Quint is a multifaceted artist who has achieved several Grammy nominations for his albums, and performed with major orchestras throughout the world. Quint studied at Moscow’s Special Music School for the Gifted with the famed Russian violinist Andrei Korsakov, and made his orchestral debut at the age of nine, performing Wieniawski’s Concerto No. 2. After moving to the United States, he earned both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from The Juilliard School.
Aram Demirjian (Air-um Deh-MUR-jun) is currently the Associate Conductor of the Kansas City Symphony. The Armenian-born conductor holds the distinction of being one of only two conductors selected for the inaugural class of the Orchestral Conducting program at New England Conservatory, where he studied with Hugh Wolff and earned his Master of Music. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in music and government from Harvard University, where his conducting career began with a two-year appointment as music director of the Harvard Bach Society Orchestra. In addition to programming and conducting the Kansas City education concerts and working with the Youth Symphony, Demirjian established two new concert series with the KCS: Classics Uncorked (intimate concert setting with wine and a new take on classics) and Screenland at the Symphony (cinematic works presented with the score performed live).
February 18 & 19, 2016
MOZART PIANO CONCERTO NO. 20
7:30 PM
Eckart Preu*, conductor
Alon Goldstein, piano
In February, the Orchestra will be led by conductor Eckart Preu and joined by pianist Alon Goldstein for Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20. Other pieces include Richard Strauss’ Don Juan, Jennifer Higdon’s Blue Cathedral, and selections from Sergei Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet.
Alon Goldstein returns to Knoxville after having performed with the KSO in 2011. He has won several piano competitions, among them the Arianne Katcz Piano Competition in Tel Aviv, the Nena Wideman Competition in the US and the Francois Shapira competition in Israel. He is also the recipient of the 2004 Salon di Virtuosi Career Grant and the America Israel Cultural Foundation Scholarships. Mr. Goldstein graduated from the Peabody Conservatory where he studied with Leon Fleisher and served as his assistant.
Eckart Preu (Eck-art Proy) is currently music director of the Spokane Symphony (WA) and the Stamford Symphony (CT). East German born, he earned a Master’s Degree in Conducting from the Hochschule für Musik in Weimar and studied at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris in France. Previous positions include Associate Conductor of the Richmond Symphony (2001-2004), Resident Conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra (1997-2004) and of the American Russian Young Artists Orchestra (1999-2004). In Europe, Mr. Preu served as Music Director of the Orchestre International de Paris (1993-1995).
March 17 & 18, 2016
PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION
7:30 PM
Jacomo Rafael Bairos*, conductor
Elena Urioste, violin
March presents a dance-like and whimsical program beginning with John Adams’ The Chairman Dances or “Foxtrot for Orchestra.” The program also includes Barber’s Violin Concerto, Op. 14 featuring a return performance by Elena Urioste and concludes with Maurice Ravel’s arrangement of Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, a suite in 10 parts composed in memory of Mussorgsky’s friend and fellow artist Viktor Hartmann.
Violinist Elena Urioste first appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age thirteen, and since then has made acclaimed debuts with major orchestras throughout the United States and Europe. She was featured in the Emmy award-winning documentary Breaking the Sound Barrier, and in numerous magazines including Symphony, The Strad, Strings, Philadelphia Music Makers, and has several CDs released on the White Pine label. As first-place laureate in both the Junior and Senior divisions of the Sphinx Competition, Elena debuted at Carnegie Hall’s Isaac Stern Auditorium in 2004 and has returned annually as soloist.
Jacomo Rafael Bairos (JOCK-uh-moh RAHF-ah-yel BYE-rohs) is Music Director of the Amarillo Symphony and recently served as the Associate Conductor for the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra from 2010-2013. Portugese-American born Bairos has performed, toured, and recorded with the New York Philharmonic and the symphony orchestras of Chicago, Cincinnati, and Seattle. He has held principal posts with orchestras in America, Spain, and China. His most recent work as a tubist was from 2004 to 2007 as principal for the Singapore Symphony Orchestra.
April 14 & 15, 2016
DVORAK CELLO CONCERTO
7:30 PM
Steven Jarvi*, conductor
Susie Yang, cello
In April the KSO welcomes guest conductor Steven Jarvi to conduct Adam Schoenberg’s Finding Rothko, followed by Dvorak’s Concerto for Cello and Orchestra featuring cellist Susie Yang. The program concludes with English composer Edward Elgar’s well-known Enigma Variations.
Susie Yang is the Associate Principal Cellist for the Kansas City Symphony. Yang made her solo debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the age of 11. Susie has performed as a soloist, orchestral, and chamber musician at many music festivals, including Sarasota, Schleswig-Holstein, Music Academy of the West, Spoleto Italy and USA, Taos, Yellow Barn, and Festival Mozaic. Originally from the northwest suburbs of Chicago, Susie holds degrees and numerous scholarship awards from The Juilliard School and New England Conservatory of Music.
Steven Jarvi (STEE-ven JAR-vi) serves as Resident Conductor of the St. Louis Symphony and leads a wide range of events including the Live at Powell Hall concert series, family and educational concerts and other selected classical events. Steven has held conducting positions with the New World Symphony, Kansas City Symphony, Washington National Opera, New York City Opera, Baltimore Lyric Opera, Opera Company of Brooklyn and Dell’Arte Opera Ensemble. He won the Bruno Walter Memorial Foundation Award in 2009 while the Associate Conductor of the Kansas City Symphony. Steven holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Theory from the University of Michigan and a Master’s in Orchestral Conducting from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, where he studied with the legendary conducting pedagogue, Gustav Meier.
May 12 & 13, 2016
RIDE OF THE VALKYRIES
7:30 PM
James Fellenbaum, conductor
The KSO’s 80th season concludes with Resident Conductor James Fellenbaum conducting the orchestra in Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 3, followed by the Tennessee premiere of a newly commissioned work by Christopher Theofandis. The KSO has joined the New Music for America consortium of American orchestras in commissioning this work. The program concludes with highlights from Wagner’s The Ring.
2015-2016 KSO Chamber Classics Season
Subscriptions to the 2015-2016 Chamber Classics series are available beginning Monday, January 26. Subscriptions start at just $97.50 and can be purchased through the KSO Box Office by calling 865-291-3310. All five Chamber Classics concerts will take place on Sunday afternoons at 2:30 PM at the Bijou Theatre.
September 27, 2015
CHAVEZ & SCHUBERT
2:30 PM
James Fellenbaum, conductor
Victor Chavez, clarinet
Led by Resident Conductor James Fellenbaum, the Chamber Orchestra will perform Mendelssohn’s Overture to the Hebrides and Weber’s Concerto No. 2 in E-flat Major, featuring Victor Chavez, who is an Assistant Professor of Clarinet at the University of Tennessee. The program will conclude with Schubert’s Symphony No. 2.
November 1, 2015
MOZART & MORE
2:30 PM
James Fellenbaum, conductor
The Chamber Orchestra will perform Mozart’s Serenade K. 525, known as “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.” The program continues with Wagner’s Seigfried Idyll and will conclude with two Mozart pieces, Serenade No. 12 and Symphony No. 35, “Haffner.”
November 29, 2015
CLASSICAL CHRISTMAS
2:30 PM
James Fellenbaum, conductor
Knoxville Chamber Chorale
This festive Chamber concert includes holiday highlights such as Mozart’s arrangement of Sleigh Ride, Greensleeves, It Came Upon a Midnight Clear, Bach’s Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring and many recognizable carols. This concert will feature the Chamber Orchestra and Knoxville Chamber Chorale, conducted by KSO Resident conductor James Fellenbaum.
January 10, 2016
PRINCIPAL QUARTET
2:30 PM
The KSO Principal Quartet will perform the following musical selections: Schubert’s Quartettsatz in C minor; Prokofiev’s String Quartet No. 2 in F; and Brahms’ String Quartet No. 3 in B-flat. Principal Quartet members include: Gordon Tsai, violin; Edward Pulgar, violin; Kathryn Gawne, viola; and Andy Bryenton, cello.
APRIL 24, 2016
LEFKOWITZ PLAYS MOZART
2:30 PM
James Fellenbaum, conductor
Gabriel Lefkowitz, violin
April’s Chamber Classics concert includes Benjamin Britten’s Simple Symphony and Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 in G Major featuring KSO Concertmaster Gabriel Lefkowitz. The program concludes with Dvořák’s Serenade in E Major, a piece that evokes the old-world atmosphere of the musical performances on the castles of the late Baroque period.
About the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra has contributed to the cultural life in East Tennessee since 1935. The KSO is part of the Knoxville Symphony Society which includes the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, Knoxville Symphony Pops Orchestra, Knoxville Symphony Chamber Orchestra, five orchestras of the Knoxville Symphony Youth Orchestra Association and several smaller performing ensembles. The orchestra consists of more than 80 professional musicians and performs more than 250 programs throughout East Tennessee each season. Performing in traditional venues such as the Tennessee Theatre, Bijou Theatre and the Civic Auditorium, and in non-traditional places like hospitals, school classrooms, nursing homes, city parks and churches, the KSO reaches more than 200,000 people throughout the region each year. For more information about the KSO’s 2015-2016 season, log on to www.knoxvillesymphony.com. Subscriptions to both series are on sale to the general public and may be purchased through the KSO Box Office by calling (865) 291-3310 or in person at the Emporium Building, 100 S. Gay. St.
