Friday, March 16, 2012

HSO Announces Programs for Talcott, Pops!, Masterworks


Carolyn Kuan. Photo: Charlie Schuck
Highlights of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra's 2012-2013 Season (full schedule follows):
•    Bringing multiple cultures and generations together, the season will open on October 11-14, 2012 with Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Xian’s Yellow River Cantata performed by the HSO, Hartford Chorale, Kang Hua Singers of Greater Hartford, Farmington High School Choir, and Chinese guest soloists.
•    Carolyn Kuan will conduct the HSO in Life- A Journey Through Time, a special, one-time multi-media event on Saturday, April 27, 2013.  A dynamic fusion of photography, music and scientific discovery, this event will feature music by Philip Glass and images by famed National Geographic photographer Frans Lanting.
•    In addition to world class guest artists including violinist Alexander Kerr, the Anderson & Roe Piano Duo, cellist Clancy Newman, and Van Cliburn International Piano Competition Gold Medalist Alexander Kobrin, the Masterworks Series also will turn the spotlight to several HSO Principal musicians, including clarinetist Curt Blood, violist Michael Wheeler, and concertmaster Leonid Sigal.
•    The 2012-2013 Pops! Series will feature a unique Holiday Cirque Spectacular on December 22, 2012.
•    The HSO Pops! Series will present a special event celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Goodspeed Musicals with a night of Broadway hits on February 23, 2013.
•    Playing with Food! on May 18, 2013 will pair live orchestral music with dishes prepared by the finest chefs from around Greater Hartford.
•    Handel’s Messiah is back on December 14 and 15 in special performances at Asylum Hill Congregational Church.

HSO’S 2012 TALCOTT MOUNTAIN MUSIC FESTIVAL:FOUR SEASONS – Vivaldi & Piazzolla
Summer Begins with Carolyn Kuan
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Leonid Sigal, violin; Sirena Huang, violin
Friday, June 22, 2012, 7:30pm
Fireworks after the concert
Rain date: Saturday, June 23
Vivaldi Four Seasons will be presented in combination with Piazzolla Quattro Estaciones (Four Seasons of Buenos Aires) for a concert of the sounds of winter, spring, summer and fall from two of the most creative composers in classical music.

CELEBRATE AMERICA! - The Annual Red, White & Blue Tradition
Oscar Bustillo, conductor
Friday, June 29, 7:30pm
Fireworks after the concert
Rain date: Saturday, June 30
Bring your picnic and wave your flag the HSO performs American classics and thundering marches with fantastic fireworks.   

DANCING UNDER THE STARS – Put On Your Dancing Shoes!
Carolyn Kuan, conductor
Friday, July 6, 7:30pm
Rain date: Saturday, July 7
Bring your dance partner, your kids and all your best moves for a non-stop medley of waltz, swing, and big band tunes – from Johann Strauss to Glenn Miller – starring Carolyn Kuan and the HSO.

ROCKET MAN - The Music of Elton John
Friday, July 13, 7:30pm
Rain date: Saturday, July 14
Playing all of Sir Elton’s greatest hits, this tribute from the HSO will feature the exceptional vocals of Jean Meilleur and the amazing piano work of John Regan.

BIG COUNTRY- Nashville Meets Simsbury
Music City Hitmakers, guest artists
Friday, July 20, 7:30pm
Rain date: Saturday, July 21
The HSO will perform the chart-topping hits of today’s hottest country music stars – scored for symphony orchestra. Nashville singer-songwriters Hillary Lindsey, Brett James, Gordie Sampson and their band have worked with such luminaries as Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill and Martina McBride.
HSO’S 2012-2013 MASTERWORKS SERIES:
BEETHOVEN’S NINTH
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Hartford Chorale, Richard Coffey, music director; Kang Hua Singers of Greater Hartford, Chai-lun Yueh, artistic director; Farmington High School Choir, Leslie Imse, director; Soloists to be announced
Thursday, October 11, 2012, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, October 12 & 13, 2012, 8pm
Sunday, October 14, 2012, 3pm
Belding Theater
Xian Yellow River Cantata
Beethoven Symphony No. 9
The HSO begins its 69th season with two choral masterpieces: Symphony No. 9 is Beethoven at his most revolutionary and philosophical – including its exuberant finale, the “Ode to Joy” chorus. Xian’s Yellow River Cantata is one of China's best known and unique choral works, with its vivid descriptions of battling wind and waves and its inventive pairing of Chinese and Western instruments.

APPALACHIAN SPRING
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Tony Spada, electric guitar
Thursday, November 8, 2012, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, November 9 & 10, 2012, 8pm
Sunday, November 11, 2012, 3pm
Belding Theater
Copland Appalachian Spring (Original Orchestration)
Daugherty Gee’s Bend
Dvořák Symphony No. 8
Appalachian Spring has endured as one of America’s most beloved orchestral suites, with its memorable conclusion based on the Shaker hymn, “Simple Gifts.” Carolyn Kuan will conduct the beautiful original orchestration, along with Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8, drawn from Bohemian folk music, and Daugherty’s
Gee’s Bend, which takes its bluesy inspiration from the spirituals, quilts and quilters of Gee’s Bend, Alabama.

PACHELBEL AND TCHAIKOVSKY
Joel Smirnoff, conductor; Michael Wheeler, viola
Thursday, November 29, 2012, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, November 30 & December 1, 2012, 8pm
Sunday, December 2, 2012, 3pm
Belding Theater
Pachelbel Canon in D Major
Telemann Concerto for Viola
Vaughan Williams Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 1, “Winter Daydreams”
Eminent Julliard String Quartet violinist and conductor Joel Smirnoff will make his HSO debut leading some of the most memorable string compositions in the world as well as Tchaikovsky’s rich and evocative Symphony No. 1, “Winter Daydreams.”

SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Alexander Kerr, violin
Thursday, January 10, 2013, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, January 11 & 12, 2013, 8pm
Sunday, January 13, 2013, 3pm
Belding Theater
Rachmaninoff Vocalise
Barber Concerto for Violin
Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique
Symphonie Fantastique changed the musical world and will take audiences to a place just as vivid, obsessive and passionate as it was in Berlioz’s day. This adventurous program also will feature Rachmaninoff ’s Vocalise and Barber’s Violin Concerto as performed by world-renowned violinist Alexander Kerr.

LOVE IS IN THE AIR
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Alexander Kobrin, piano
Thursday, February 14, 2013, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, February 15 & 16, 2013, 8pm
Sunday, February 17, 2013, 3pm
Belding Theater
Mahler Adagietto from Symphony No. 5
Falla Three Cornered Hat Suite No. 1
Bizet Carmen Suite
Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3
This second program of romantic themes will feature Mahler’s tender musical love letter to his beloved Alma, alongside the seductress Carmen’s warning of the perils of romance and Rachmaninoff’s compelling and complex Piano Concerto No. 3 featuring Russian pianist Alexander Kobrin, gold medalist of the 2005 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.

THE GENIUS OF MOZART
Leonid Sigal, conductor and violin; Curt Blood, clarinet
Thursday, March 14, 2013, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, March 15 & 16, 2013, 8pm
Sunday, March 17, 2013, 3pm
Belding Theater
Mozart Symphony No. 1
Mozart Concerto for Violin No. 3
Mozart Concerto for Clarinet
Mozart Symphony No. 41, “Jupiter”
This concert will explore the genius of Mozart – from his very first symphony written at the age of eight – to his last, composed at 32, along with concerti performed by HSO Principal musicians.

ROMAN HOLIDAY
Rossen Milanov, conductor; Clancy Newman, cello
Thursday, April 18, 2013, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, April 19 & 20, 2013, 8pm
Sunday, April 21, 2013, 3pm
Belding Theater
Rossini Overture to Semiramide
Elgar Concerto for Violincello
Mendelssohn Symphony No. 4, “Italian”
German composer Felix Mendelssohn wrote to his parents while on European tour, “This is Italy! And now has begun what I have always thought to be the supreme joy in life.” This inspired and tantalizing musical feast will feature guest conductor Rossen Milanov, recognized for his “strong interpretive concept” by the Philadelphia Inquirer.

RHAPSODY IN BLUE
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Anderson & Roe Piano Duo - Greg Anderson and Elizabeth Joy Roe
Thursday, May 9, 2013, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, May 10 & 11, 2013, 8pm
Sunday, May 12, 2013, 3pm
Belding Theater
Vaughan Williams Symphony No. 6
Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue (Roe)
Gershwin I’ve Got Rhythm Variations (Anderson)
Four-hand piano encores from Anderson & Roe Piano Duo
The dynamic Anderson & Roe Piano Duo will join the HSO in a Gershwin revue that also will feature the duo’s original arrangement of Piazzolla’s Libertango and other four-hand piano encores. Other concert highlights will include the HSO premiere of Vaughan Williams’ Sixth Symphony.

UNEXPECTED SOUNDS
Carolyn Kuan, conductor
Thursday, May 30, 2013, 7:30pm
Friday & Saturday, May 31 & June 1, 2013, 8pm
Sunday, June 2, 2013, 3pm
Belding Theater
Williams Suite from Harry Potter
Huang The Color Yellow Concerto for Sheng
Stravinsky The Rite of Spring
For the season finale, the HSO will perform music of composers who dismissed convention to create vivid new sounds colors. Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring – which will be performed exactly 100 years after the premiere– caused riots, John Williams’ film scores for Harry Potter brought to life the awe-inspiring story that nurtured an entire new generation of readers, and contemporary composer Huang Ruo created a new concerto for Sheng, an ancient Chinese mouth organ known for its exotic sound.

SPECIAL EVENTS:

HANDEL’S MESSIAH
Richard Coffey, conductor; CONCORA, Richard Coffey artistic director
December 14 & 15, 2012, 7:30pm
Asylum Hill Congregational Church
The HSO and CONCORA come together in an intimate and inspirational setting to perform Handel’s holiday classic, including the Hallelujah Chorus in the beautiful acoustics of Asylum Hill Congregational Church.

LIFE – A JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Frans Lanting, photography
Saturday, April 27, 2013, 7:30pm
7:30pm Performance followed by Panel Discussion
Mortensen Hall

LIFE – A Journey Through Time bridges the gap between art and nature through a dynamic fusion of photography, music and scientific discovery. Carolyn Kuan will conduct the HSO in this special, one-time multi-media event featuring music by Philip Glass and images by famed National Geographic photographer Frans Lanting. This concert is the encore of an evening which also includes an onstage conversation about new research into the origins and future of life on Earth.
HSO’S 2012-2013 POPS! SERIES:

THE GRAND ILLUSION – MAGIC AT THE SYMPHONY
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Lyn Dillies, illusionist
Saturday, October 20, 2012, 7:30pm
Mortensen Hall
The HSO brings out all its musical tricks in this magical evening of Halloween family fun.  Magic at the Symphony will meld the majesty of symphonic music with the mystery and grace of master illusionist Lyn Dillies to create a truly unique entertainment experience. 

KING OF SWING
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, guest artists
Saturday, November 17, 2012, 7:30pm
Mortensen Hall
Grab your “King of Swing” and “Go Daddy O” to see the HSO and guest artists Big Bad Voodoo Daddy take a New Orleans-style twist on the legendary big bands and swing orchestras.

HOLIDAY CIRQUE SPECTACULAR
Carolyn Kuan, conductor; Cirque de la Symphonie, guest artists
Saturday, December 22, 2012, 3pm and 7:30pm
Mortensen Hall
Seasonal favorites accompany spectacular aerialist and acrobatic artists performing on the same stage as the HSO for a program that will rediscover the magic and music of the season.

THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM: 50 Years of Goodspeed Musicals
Michael O’Flaherty, conductor; Special guest artists to be announced
Saturday, February 23, 2013, 7:30pm
Mortensen Hall
The HSO and Goodspeed Musicals join to celebrate the golden anniversary of the home of the American Musical.  This special collaboration features selections from Goodspeed originals that moved to Broadway including Annie and Man of La Mancha, plus audience favorites from dozens of shows like 1776, Show Boat, and Brigadoon.

TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME
Robert Thompson, conductor
Saturday, April 6, 2013 at 7:30pm
Mortensen Hall
It’s opening day and a great way to treat the family to a baseball-inspired musical match-up. This World Series symphonic event will include more than 2,000 archival images and video from the National Baseball Hall of Fame, all synchronized to the greatest music about the greatest sport.

PLAYING WITH FOOD! -- An HSO Musical Menu featuring Greater Hartford’s Fine Restaurants
Carolyn Kuan, conductor
Saturday, May 18, 2013, 7:30pm
Mortensen Hall
Chefs of Greater Hartford to be announced
Fine music and fantastic cuisine connect to create a satisfying symphony of flavor in this special event.  Several of Greater Hartford’s great chefs will prepare and show you their unique dishes.  Then, Carolyn Kuan will interpret each one with a musical selection. 

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Lauren Yarger with playwright Alfred Uhry at the Mark Twain House. Photo: Jacques Lamarre)
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