James Levine spilled the beans on the 2009-10 Boston Symphony Orchestra season back in February and you read it here. His plans include a complete cycle of Beethoven's symphonies over four weeks in the fall and an opening night tribute to retiring longtime BSO harpist Ann Hobson Pilot, as well as our minimum daily requirement of Elliot Carter. The symphony announced full season details yesterday, embargoed for this morning, and the full release with all the dates and details and guests is after the jump. The biggest BSO news this week, though, was broken by Geoff over at The Exhibitionist: The orchestra has canceled its plans for a swing through Europe next year due to the economy and the "resulting uncertainty."
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ANNOUNCES 2009-10 SEASON
JAMES LEVINE LEADS 15
PROGRAMS, INCLUDING
THE COMPLETE BEETHOVEN
SYMPHONIES, MENDELSSOHN’S ELIJAH,
MAHLER’S FOURTH AND SEVENTH SYMPHONIES, MOZART’S REQUIEM, STRAUSS’ FOUR LAST
SONGS WITH RENÉE FLEMING, AND PREMIERES
BY CARTER, HARBISON, LIEBERSON, AND JOHN WILLIAMS
TWO BSO CO-COMMISSIONS
RECEIVE AMERICAN PREMIERES:
JAMES MACMILLAN’S ST. JOHN PASSION AND
AUGUSTA READ THOMAS’ HELIOS CHOROS II (SUN GOD DANCERS)
IMPRESSIVE
ROSTER OF GUEST CONDUCTORS INCLUDES BSO CONDUCTOR EMERITUS BERNARD HAITINK
LEADING THREE WEEKS OF CONCERTS, AND RETURN APPEARANCES BY SIR ANDREW DAVIS,
SIR
COLIN DAVIS, CHRISTOPH VON DOHNÁNYI,
RAFAEL
FRÜHBECK DE BURGOS, AND DANIELE GATTI
EMERGING
VOCAL TALENTS MAKE BSO DEBUTS; VIOLIN SERIES FOCUSES ON STARS OF THE YOUNG AND
MIDDLE GENERATIONS
THE
2009-10 SEASON IS SPONSORED BY UBS
The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s 2009-10 season at
Symphony Hall is highlighted by fifteen programs under the leadership of Music
Director James Levine, reflecting a
major presence with the orchestra in a wide range of repertoire, from treasured
classics to world premieres. The season begins September 23 with a gala Opening Night at Symphony featuring the
world premiere of John Williams’ On Willows and Birches for harp and
orchestra, written for and performed by BSO principal harpist Ann Hobson Pilot, Debussy’s shimmering La Mer, and Chopin’s Piano Concerto No.
2, with Evgeny Kissin as soloist.
Other highlights of Maestro Levine’s work with the orchestra in this his sixth
season include the complete cycle of Beethoven’s nine symphonies in
back-to-back concerts -- a subscription-series first for the BSO, as well as
Maestro Levine’s first-ever complete Beethoven symphony cycle -- Mahler’s
Symphony No. 4 and Strauss’ Four Last Songs with Renée Fleming, and some of the great works for chorus and
orchestra, including Stravinsky’s Symphony
of Psalms, Mozart’s Requiem, and Mendelssohn’s oratorio Elijah, which hasn’t been performed by
the BSO since 1980. Longtime collaborator Lynn
Harrell, cello, and BSO principal violist Steven Ansell join Levine and the orchestra for a performance of Richard
Strauss’ colorful tone poem Don Quixote,
on a special Pension Fund concert also featuring a selection of waltzes,
marches, and polkas from the great Strauss dynasty. In keeping with the
orchestra’s historic reputation for performances of the great French orchestral
repertoire, Levine and the orchestra also perform masterpieces by Ravel,
Berlioz, and Debussy throughout the season.
PREMIERES
An ardent champion of the music of our time, Maestro
Levine and the orchestra offer first performances of works by four of America’s
most influential composers representing greatly divergent contemporary styles: the world premiere of John Williams’ On Willows and
Birches with BSO harpist Ann Hobson
Pilot; the American premiere of Elliott
Carter’s Flute Concerto, a BSO co-commission, with BSO principal flute Elizabeth Rowe; the world premiere of a
BSO commission by Peter Lieberson,
his Farewell Songs, featuring the
acclaimed Canadian bass-baritone Gerald
Finley; and the world premiere of John
Harbison’s BSO-commissioned Double Concerto for violin and cello, featuring
Mira Wang and Jan Vogler. In
addition, two other BSO co-commissions will be given American premieres during
the season.
Sir
Colin Davis leads the American premiere
of James MacMillan’s St. John Passion, a BSO co-commission written at the conductor’s own request to
mark Sir Colin’s 80th birthday, and Ludovic Morlot leads the American premiere of Augusta Read Thomas’ Helios Choros II (Sun God Dancers).
DISTINGUISHED GUESTS
The season features an unusually rich slate of some of
the most venerable guest conductors in the world. BSO Conductor Emeritus Bernard Haitink, whose roots with the
BSO extend to 1973, conducts three separate programs in his landmark 80th
birthday year, the first of which features Sir
James Galway, who celebrates his 70th birthday this year. Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, whose deep
relationship with the BSO goes back more than a decade, conducts two programs
featuring music especially close to his heart, including excerpts from Iberia by Albéniz, in honor of the 100th
anniversary of the great Spanish composer’s death, and Rossini’s most popular
concert work, the Stabat Mater. Christoph von Dohnányi conducts a
provocative program of music by Bartók, Martinů, and Dvořák that draws from
middle European folk influences. Sir
Colin Davis, one of the world’s great interpreters of the music of Elgar,
leads a concert featuring the composer’s grand Violin Concerto performed by the
young Danish violinist Nikolaj Znaider
in his BSO debut. Ton Koopman, one
of the leaders of the period instrument movement, leads a program of Haydn,
C.P.E. Bach, and Schubert featuring cellist Yo-Yo Ma in the Haydn Cello Concerto No. 1. Other outstanding guest
conductors include Sir Andrew Davis,
Daniele Gatti, BSO Assistant Conductor
Julian Kuerti, who collaborates with
fellow Canadian Marc-André Hamelin
in the Shostakovich Piano Concerto No. 1, and Italian conductor Fabio Luisi in his BSO debut, leading a
program that also features the BSO debut of the dynamic young French pianist Lisa de la Salle.
A rich array of vocal masterpieces showcases the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, John Oliver, conductor, and some of
the most acclaimed singers of our time, such as Renée Fleming, Stephanie
Blythe, Matthew Polenzani, and Christine Brewer. A
wealth of up-and-coming vocalists representing the best of the younger
generation make their BSO debuts, including sopranos Grazia Doronzio and Albina
Shagimuratova, mezzo-sopranos Alice
Coote and Anke Vondung, tenors Aleksandrs Antonenko and Michael Schade, and Chinese
bass-baritone Shenyang.
A series of concerts features some of the most sought
after violin virtuosi of the younger generation, including Mira Wang and Nikolaj
Znaider in their BSO debuts, as well as Joshua Bell, Hilary Hahn, Frank Peter Zimmermann, and Leonidas Kavakos. Guest
instrumentalists also include some of the world’s most distinctive pianists,
including Evgeny Kissin, Marc-André Hamelin, Peter
Serkin, Pierre-Laurent Aimard,
and Emanuel Ax.
Photos and full artist biographies are
available in the BSO’s online press kit at www.bso.org/presskit.
SEASON
DETAILS — JAMES LEVINE WITH THE BSO
Maestro Levine and the orchestra begin the season with a
gala Opening Night at Symphony Sept.
23 featuring the world premiere of John
Williams’ On Willows and Birches
for harp and orchestra. The piece was written for and will be performed by BSO
principal harpist Ann Hobson Pilot,
who retires from the BSO at the end of the 2009 Tanglewood season. The concert
also includes Berlioz’ festive Roman
Carnival Overture, Debussy’s shimmering La
Mer, and Chopin’s Piano Concerto No.
2, with Evgeny Kissin as soloist.
The season continues Sept. 26 and 29 with two choral
masterpieces, Stravinsky’s Symphony of
Psalms and Mozart’s Requiem, both featuring the Tanglewood Festival Chorus,
John Oliver, conductor. Soloists for the evening are bass Eric Owens and three up-and-coming young singers making their BSO
debuts — soprano Grazia Doronzio,
mezzo-soprano Anke Vondung, and tenor
Michael Schade.
Harpist Ann Hobson
Pilot is the special guest soloist Oct. 3 for a wide-ranging evening of
music for orchestra and harp, reprising Williams’
On Willows and Birches, and including
Elliott Carter’s Mosaic, for harp and ensemble and
Debussy’s Danses sacrée et profane,
for harp and orchestra. The concert also features Ravel’s La Valse and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4, which Maestro Levine
conducts for the first time in his career.
Oct. 22, Maestro Levine and the orchestra embark on a
history-making endeavor performing a concentrated cycle of the complete
symphonies of Beethoven. This marks the first time either Levine or the
orchestra has attempted such a project in back-to-back subscription programs
and offers Boston audiences a rare opportunity to experience the composer’s
symphonic development. Program 1 of Beethoven:
The Complete Symphonies Oct. 22, 23, and 24 features Beethoven’s first
symphonic efforts, Symphonies Nos. 1 and 2, along with the ever-popular
Symphony No. 5. Program 2 Oct. 27 and 29
pairs the composer’s Symphony No. 3,
Eroica, and Symphony No. 4. Program 3 Oct. 30 and 31 offers Symphonies Nos.
6, Pastoral, and 7, and Program 4
Nov. 5, 6, and 7 completes the cycle with Symphony No. 8 and the titanic
Symphony No. 9, featuring the Tanglewood
Festival Chorus and soloists Christine
Brewer, Meredith Arwady, Matthew Polenzani, and Eike Wilm Schulte. In February, Levine
and the BSO reprise two of these programs: Symphonies 6 and 7 on Feb. 18,
Symphonies 3 and 4 on February 19 and 20.
Reflecting the orchestra’s long affinity for music from
the great French tradition, the program Jan. 28-30 features Berlioz’ charmingly
programmatic Harold in Italy, with
BSO principal violist Steven Ansell as
soloist, and two works by Ravel, his Daphnis
et Chloé, Suite No. 2, and the Piano Concerto for the left hand, with
acclaimed French pianist Pierre-Laurent
Aimard, soloist. Aimard also performs Elliott
Carter’s Dialogues, for piano and
orchestra.
Feb. 4, 5, and 6, Maestro Levine and the orchestra offer
the American premiere of another Carter
work, his Flute Concerto, a BSO co-commission performed by BSO principal
flutist Elizabeth Rowe. Schubert’s Rosamunde Overture and Entr’actes and
Brahms’ stirring Symphony No. 4 complete the program.
Celebrated soprano Renée
Fleming joins Maestro Levine and the orchestra for the Feb. 11, 12 and 13
program featuring Strauss’ luminous Four Last Songs. This highly anticipated
program also includes Berg’s Three Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6, and Mahler’s
Symphony No. 4, also featuring Ms. Fleming. The performances of Mahler’s
Symphony No. 4 continue Maestro Levine’s ongoing survey of the great Mahler
masterpieces.
The orchestra’s March 24-30 program marks the world
premiere of another BSO commission, Peter
Lieberson’s Farewell Songs, for
baritone and orchestra, with bass-baritone Gerald
Finley. Framing this new work are Debussy’s playful Jeux and Schubert’s Symphony in C, The Great.
The Tanglewood
Festival Chorus and vocalists Christine
Brewer and Stephanie Blythe join
Maestro Levine and the orchestra for performances April 1, 2, and 3 of
Mendelssohn’s powerful oratorio Elijah.
The composer’s largest work and considered by many to be his greatest
masterpiece, the oratorio is rarely performed because of its huge forces.
Latvian tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko
and Cardiff Singer of the World Competition winner, Chinese bass-baritone Shenyang, make their BSO debuts.
April 9,
10, and 11 mark the world premiere of the season’s last BSO commission, John Harbison’s Double Concerto for
violin and cello, featuring violinist Mira
Wang and cellist Jan Vogler. The
program, Maestro Levine’s final program of the season with the orchestra,
concludes with Mahler’s colorful Symphony No. 7.
SEASON DETAILS — GUEST
CONDUCTORS
In his third visit to the BSO Oct.
8, 9, 10, and 13, Daniele Gatti, one
of today’s leading Italian conductors, brings his renowned passion and
intensity to Brahms’ Symphony No. 3, Strauss’ Suite from Der Rosenkavalier, and Hindemith’s Konzertmusik for Brass and Strings, a BSO commission premiered by
the orchestra in 1931.
Ludovic
Morlot, a BSO assistant conductor during Levine’s first three seasons and
who has since embarked on a major international career, leads the American
premiere of Augusta Read Thomas’ boldly rhythmic Helios Choros II (Sun God Dancers)
Oct. 15, 16, 17, and 20. The program also includes pianist Peter Serkin as the soloist in
Stravinsky’s Capriccio for piano and
orchestra, as well as Tchaikovsky’s Francesca
da Rimini and The Frescoes of Piero
della Francesca by Bohuslav
Martinů, one of two works this season commemorating
the 50th anniversary of the great Czech composer’s death.
Fabio
Luisi, chief conductor
of the Vienna Symphony and Staatskapelle Dresden, makes his highly anticipated
BSO debut Nov. 12 and 14 in the first of three programs showcasing the BSO’s
long tradition with the great music from the French repertoire. The concert
features the BSO debut of 21-year-old French pianist Lisa de la Salle performing the Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 2
and includes the Pastorale d’été of
Honegger and Stravinsky’s landmark Petrushka
(1947 version).
In his 80th birthday year, Bernard Haitink leads the first of
three BSO programs this season Nov. 19,
20, and 21, an elegant pairing of French music with Brahms’ Symphony No. 1. The
program’s first half is Debussy’s Nocturnes,
featuring the Women of the Tanglewood
Festival Chorus[,] John Oliver, conductor, and the Ibert Flute Concerto,
with soloist Sir James Galway, who
celebrates his 70th birthday this year.
Debussy’s
luminous Prelude to The Afternoon of a
Faun opens concerts Nov. 24, 27, 28, and Dec. 1 led by the distinguished
English conductor Sir Andrew Davis.
The program also includes Stravinsky’s Symphony in Three Movements and the
Brahms Violin Concerto performed by the ever-popular Joshua Bell.
Christoph
von Dohnányi conducts concerts Dec. 2, 3, 4, and 5 devoted to music drawing
from middle European folk traditions. In addition to Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8
and Bartók’s Divertimento for String Orchestra, the program features the Violin
Concerto No. 2 of Bohuslav Martinů, one of seven works by the composer commissioned and premiered
over the years by the BSO. Outstanding German violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann, the work’s leading contemporary champion,
is the featured soloist.
Dutch conductor Ton Koopman, a pioneer in the world of historically informed
performance, brings his scholarship and
insight to a program Jan. 6, 7, 8, 9, and 12 of Baroque and Classical gems,
including Schubert’s Symphony in B minor, Unfinished,
the Symphony in G of C.P.E. Bach, and Haydn’s witty Symphony No. 98, which Koopman leads from the
keyboard. Close collaborator Yo-Yo Ma
joins Koopman and the orchestra for Haydn’s popular Cello Concerto No. 1 in C.
Sir Colin Davis, one of the world’s
great champions of the music of Elgar, kicks off the first of two weeks with
the orchestra with concerts Jan. 14, 15, 16, and 19 featuring the composer’s
formidable Violin Concerto, one of the grandest in the entire Romantic
repertoire. The dynamic young Danish
virtuoso Nikolaj Znaider makes his
BSO debut with these concerts, which also include Mozart’s elegant Symphony No.
38, Prague.
To commemorate his landmark 80th
birthday, Sir Colin requested a new work from one of his favorite composers, James MacMillan. In concerts Jan. 21,
22, and 23, Davis leads the BSO in the American premiere of the Scottish
composer’s St. John Passion, a
large-scale setting of the biblical text for orchestra, solo baritone, chamber
choir, and full chorus. A BSO co-commission, the work is MacMillan’s largest,
most personal to date and features performances by the Tanglewood Festival Chorus and the exciting young British baritone
who premiered and recently recorded the work in London, Christopher Maltman.
Rafael Frühbeck de
Burgos, one of the BSO’s most
esteemed, longtime colleagues, brings his distinctive authority to two programs
featuring music for which he has a special affinity. March 10, 11, 12, 13, and
16, he leads Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade
and Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 1, with the multifaceted young violinist Hilary Hahn. A great champion of
repertoire from his native Spain, Frühbeck de Burgos also conducts excerpts
from Iberia by Albéniz, in
honor of the 100th anniversary of the great Spanish composer’s death.
For concerts March 18, 19, and 20, Frühbeck de Burgos leads the orchestra, the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, and a multinational cast of young
singers renowned in the music of Rossini in the composer’s most popular concert
work, the Stabat Mater. Georgian-born
soprano Albina Shagimuratova and
English mezzo-soprano Alice Coote
make their BSO debuts. Soloists also include tenor Eric Cutler and Alfred
Walker. The program opens with the Overture and Incidental Music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Mendelssohn.
In his third and final season as a BSO assistant
conductor, Julian Kuerti helms a
thoughtfully conceived program April 13, 15, 16, and 17 pairing young
performers with works by master composers written early in their careers. The
Canadian conductor, who has established a dynamic presence on the Boston music
scene since stepping in as a last-minute replacement for James Levine at Tanglewood
last summer, welcomes fellow Canadian Marc-André
Hamelin as the soloist in Shostakovich’s playful Piano Concerto No. 1 for
piano, trumpet, and strings. Ligeti’s folk inspired Concert Românesc and Tchaikovsky’s early Symphony No. 2, Little Russian, round out the program.
The honor of the 2009-10 season’s final two concerts
falls to BSO Conductor Emeritus Bernard
Haitink, whose relationship with the orchestra dates back more than 35
years. In an intimate program for smaller forces April 22, 23, 24, and 27, Haitink welcomes back the highly acclaimed
Greek violinist Leonidas Kavakos to
play the Mozart Violin Concert[o]
No. 5 in A, on a program with Mozart’s Symphony No. 35, Haffner, and Strauss’ evocative Suite from Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme.
For the season finale April 29, 30 and May 1,
Haitink conducts a blockbuster
program of Beethoven and Bartók, beginning with Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 2. Close
collaborator Emanuel Ax performs
Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4, and the program ends with one of the most
famous works ever premiered by the BSO, Bartók’s brilliant symphonic showcase,
the Concerto for Orchestra, commissioned by legendary BSO conductor Serge
Koussevitzky and premiered by him and the BSO in 1944.
TICKET
INFORMATION
Single
tickets will go on sale to the general public on September 8. There will be no
increase in ticket prices for the 2009-10 BSO season. Tickets for the
regular-season Boston Symphony Orchestra concerts on Tuesday and Thursday
evenings, as well as Friday afternoons, are priced from $29 to $105; concerts
on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoons are priced from $30 to
$115. Open rehearsal tickets are priced at $19 each (general admission).
Tickets may be purchased by phone through SymphonyCharge
(617-266-1200 or 888-266-1200), online
through the BSO’s website (www.bso.org),
or in person at the Symphony Hall Box
Office (301 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston). There is a $5.50 service fee for
each ticket purchased online or by phone through SymphonyCharge.
American
Express, MasterCard, Visa, Diners Club, and Discover, as well as personal
checks (in person or by mail) and cash (in person only) are all accepted at the
Symphony Hall Box Office. A limited number of rush tickets for Boston Symphony
Orchestra subscription concerts on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Friday
afternoons are set aside to be sold on the day of a performance. These tickets
are sold at $9 each, one to a customer, at the Symphony Hall Box Office on
Fridays beginning at 10 a.m. and Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning at 5 p.m.
Gift certificates are available in any amount and may be used toward the
purchase of tickets (subject to availability) to any Boston Symphony Orchestra
or Boston Pops performance at Symphony Hall or Tanglewood. Gift certificates
may also be used at the Symphony Shop to purchase merchandise.
Patrons
with disabilities can access Symphony Hall through the Massachusetts Avenue
lobby or the Cohen Wing on Huntington Avenue. An access service center,
accessible restrooms, and elevators are available inside the Cohen Wing
entrance. For ticket information, call the Disability Services Information Line
at 617-638-9431 or TDD/TTY 617-638-9289.
Subscription Packages
Subscriptions are available in various packages that
offer Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evening performances and Friday
afternoon performances. Subscriptions range in price from $84 for 3 Tuesday
evening concerts to $2725 for 25 Saturday evening concerts. Subscriptions are also available for themed
series, such as Great Vocal and Choral performances, Today’s Composers, and a
Violin Series. These range in price from $85 to $509. A Choose Your Own
subscription is also available, which requires a minimum of 4 performances, and
prices are based on dates selected.
For information on subscriptions for the 2009-10 Boston
Symphony Orchestra season, please call 617-266-7575 or 888-266-7575, or visit
the BSO’s website, www.bso.org.
Brochures with complete program and ticket information for the BSO’s
2009-10 subscription season will be available in April, at which time
subscribers will receive their renewal information in the mail. Others may request a brochure by calling
617-266-1492 or by visiting www.bso.org.
All programs and artists are subject to change.
SPONSORSHIPS
UBS will continue its
partnership with the Boston Symphony Orchestra as its exclusive season sponsor,
building on the mutually successful partnership that began in 2003.
“We're proud of our ongoing
relationship with the BSO and are excited to continue our partnership with this
world-class organization,” said Stephen Brown, Northeast Region Managing Director,
UBS Wealth Management Americas. “The BSO symbolizes excellence in orchestral
music, achieved through collaboration at its highest level. At UBS, we are committed to working closely
with our clients to help them pursue their goals.”
In addition to the Boston
Symphony Orchestra, UBS is the lead sponsor of the Ravinia Festival and a
number of leading orchestras across the United States and internationally.
Headquartered in Zurich Basel ,
Switzerland Switzerland
UBS is present in all major financial centers worldwide.
It has offices in over 50 countries, with about 38% of its employees working in
the Americas Switzerland Europe
EMC Corporation is the
supporting partner of the 2009-10 BSO season. Pre-concert talks and the
Symphony Café are supported by New England Coffee, the Official Coffee of the
Boston Symphony Orchestra. The Fairmont Copley Plaza Boston, together with
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, is the Official Hotel of the BSO. Commonwealth
Worldwide Chauffeured Transportation is the Official Chauffeured Transportation
Provider of the BSO.
All
programs and artists are subject to change. For current program information,
dial
617-CONCERT (617-266-2378). For further information, call the Boston Symphony
Orchestra at 617-266-1492. The Boston Symphony Orchestra is online at www.bso.org.
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