Hartford Symphony Orchestra

Downtown Concert Features Shawnn Monteiro Singing Gershwin Song Book

HARTFORD, February 24, 2010 – To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Grammy award winning album Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra Jazz and Strings ensemble will perform Ella & Gershwin on Friday, April 9, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. at Immanuel Congregational Church. Conceived and directed by HSO percussionist Gene Bozzi, this program will feature vocalist Shawnn Monteiro performing such classics as “Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off,” “I’ve Got a Crush on You,” and “I Got Rhythm” to the accompaniment of an all-star line-up of HSO musicians, including Gene Bozzi, drums; Rick Rozie, bass; Walter Gwardyak, piano; John Mastroianni and Bobbie DePalma, saxophone; and members of the HSO strings and brass sections.

Shawnn Monteiro has delighted audiences from the USA to Europe with her highly popular jazz repertoire laced with blues-oriented improvisations and the American Songbook. Ms. Monteiro has shared the stage with a prestigious list of notables jazz names, including Clark Terry, Red Holloway, Ray Brown, Lionel Hampton, Frank Foster and the Basie Band, Nat Adderly, Kenny Barron, Hank Jones, Bobby Durham, James Williams, Jimmy Cobb, Keter Betts, Stanley Jordan, Ed Thigpen, Johnny Griffin, Benny Golson, and more. Ms. Monteiro is an adjunct Professor in Jazz Vocals at both Rhode Island College and The Hartt School.

Initiated in March 2009, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra Jazz and Strings Project is an ongoing effort led by HSO principal timpanist Eugene “Gene” Bozzi to bring collaborative performances of Jazz and Classical music to downtown Hartford. Performances to date have included the music of Charlie Parker and Stan Getz, and have featured performances by such notable jazz musicians as Kris Allen, Joel Frahm, and Shawnn Monteiro. “We have found a real opportunity for a new type of music series in Hartford, says Gene Bozzi. “The fusion of stringed instruments and a rhythm section gives listeners a special treat, appealing to Classical and Jazz lovers alike.”
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CALENDAR LISTING:
HSO Jazz and Strings: ELLA & GERSHWIN
Hartford Symphony Orchestra featuring: Shawnn Monteiro, vocals; Gene Bozzi, drums; Rick Rozie, bass; Walter Gwardyak, piano; John Mastroianni and Bobbie DePalma, saxophone; members of the HSO string and brass sections
Friday, April 9, 2010 │ 7:30 p.m. │Immanuel Congregational Church
Ticket Prices: $20 in advance; $25 at the door
Program: S’Wonderful, Fascinating Rhythm, Someone to Watch over Me, Nice Work if You Can Get It, Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off, I’ve got a Crush on You, The Man I Love, They Can’t Take That Away From Me, A Foggy Day, I Got Rhythm

The Hartford Symphony Orchestra receives major support from the Greater Hartford Arts Council, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

SIMSBURY, CT- February 19, 2010– The Hartford Symphony Orchestra announces the 2010 Talcott Mountain Music Festival, featuring Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, an American celebration, Motown’s greatest hits, a rock n’ roll retrospective, and a tribute to the Beatles.  Concert-goers can bring a picnic and grab a table seat or find a place on the lawn as they sit back to enjoy the Sounds of SummerSM June 25- July 16, 2010 under the stars at The Performing Arts Center at Simsbury Meadows.

“They say that time flies when you’re having fun…and it’s hard to believe that this year will be the 15th year of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra’s Talcott Mountain Music Festival,” says HSO Executive Director Kristen Phillips.  “From its relatively modest start on the grounds of The Hartford Life Insurance Company to the performances today at the Performing Arts Center at Simsbury Meadows, certain aspects have remained constant – the experience of the sounds of summer under the stars, the enjoyment of picnics with family and friends, and the magnificent music of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra.  Our program this year offers something for everyone…and is guaranteed to get folks out of their seats and dancing to the music!”

This summer marks Music Director Edward Cumming’s grand finale season at the Talcott Mountain Music Festival.  “To perform Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture at Celebrate America, and Motown hits with Spectrum will be a triple thrill for me,” says Maestro Cumming.

VIVALDI’S FOUR SEASONS – plus Pachelbel’s Canon
with Fireworks!
Friday, June 25, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.
Edward Cumming, conductor
Leonid Sigal, violin

The 2010 Talcott Mountain Music Festival will begin Friday, June 25, 2010 with an enchanting evening of orchestral favorites under that stars, including such beloved works as Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, Pachelbel’s Canon, and Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks (followed by REAL fireworks!).

CELEBRATE AMERICA! – The Annual Red, White & Blue Tradition
with Fireworks!
Friday, July 2, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.
Edward Cumming, conductor

The HSO will Celebrate America on Friday, July 2, 2010 with a red-white-and blue line-up featuring toe-tapping show tunes, thundering marches, patriotic tunes, and FIREWORKS! as led by Maestro Edward Cumming in his grand finale July 4th performance at Talcott Mountain.

SPECTRUM – A Tribute to Motown and R&B
Friday, July 9, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.
Edward Cumming, conductor

After playing to nearly sold-out crowds at the 2008 Talcott Mountain Music Festival, vocal quartet Spectrum will return to the play a night of Motown and R&B hits with the HSO on Friday, July 9, 2010.  This show will combine the chart-topping hits of the Temptations, the Four Tops, the Drifters, and, new this year, a tribute to Michael Jackson.

TIME TO ROCK – from Doo Wop to Hip Hop!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.
Victor Vanacore, guest conductor

It will be Time to Rock at the Talcott Mountain Music Festival on Wednesday, July 14, 2010 when guest conductor Victor Vanacore leads the HSO in a live concert of Rock & Roll’s greatest hits, including songs by the Beach Boys, Gloria Estefan, Earth, Wind and Fire, the BeeGees, and more.

CLASSICAL MYSTERY TOUR- A Tribute to The Beatles
Friday, July 16, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.
Leonid Sigal, conductor

Back by popular demand in a new show, the “fab four” singers of the original Broadway production of Beatlemania will return to the Talcott Mountain Music Festival for Classical Mystery Tour on Friday, July 16, 2010. This groovy night will feature The Beatles’ greatest hits, including “Hello Goodbye,” “Hard Day’s Night,” “A Day in the Life,” “Yellow Submarine,” and much more!

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Gates open at 6:00 p.m. for all Talcott Mountain Music Festival concerts. The festival site is located on Iron Horse Boulevard, parallel to Hopmeadow Street (Rt. 10/202), in downtown Simsbury. In the case of severe weather, rain dates for each concert will be the night after the scheduled concert at the same time.

The Hartford Symphony Education Tent, open to all ticket holders, is open from 6:00 p.m. to 7:15 pm. Children can enjoy free activities such as face-painting, crafts, games and the “Instrument Zoo.”

Five-Concert subscriptions for single table seats are $190 per seat.  Five-Concert subscriptions for full eight-seat tables are $1,420 per table.  Adult Grass Passes (10 lawn tickets to be used in combination with any of the five concerts) are $180 and Grass Passes for kids 12 and under are $50.  A family pack of 12 lawn tickets – 6 kids and 6 adults – is $140. Grass Pass and Family Packs will increase in price after May 6, 2010.  Single Tickets for both lawn and table seats will be available for purchase beginning Monday, May 17, 2010.  Prices include a $2 per adult ticket and 50¢ per child ticket facility fee paid to the Performing Arts Center at Simsbury Meadows.

Subscriptions and tickets are available in person Monday through Friday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. at Hartford Symphony Orchestra Ticket Services, 99 Pratt Street, Suite 500 in Hartford, or by calling (860) 244-2999.  Single tickets will be available online 24/7 at www.hartfordsymphony.org beginning May 17, 2010.

The 2010 Talcott Mountain Music Festival is made possible with support from Richard P. Garmany Fund at Hartford Foundation for Public Giving; The Hartford, Chubb; Bloomfield Public Schools; Hartford Hospital’s Helen and Harry Gray Cancer Center, Avon; Seabury/Seabury at Home; Bank of America; CIGNA, Federman, Lally & Remis; Robert Hensley & Associates; Simsbury Bank, and the Town of Simsbury.  The Hartford Symphony Orchestra receives major support from the Greater Hartford Arts Council, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts. Sponsors listed as of February 19, 2010.

Concerts Feature Violinist Jinjoo Cho Playing Beethoven’s Violin Concerto

HARTFORD, February 16, 2010 – Led by guest conductor and Music Director candidate Tania Miller, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra will explore Dvořák’s Ode to America, his “New World Symphony,” on Thursday, March 18 – Saturday, March 20, 2010 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, March 21, 2010 at 3:00 p.m. in the Belding Theater at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts.  In addition to the “New World Symphony, this program will feature violinist Jinjoo Cho performing Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and Canadian composer Rodney Sharman’s musical homage to the music of Scarlatti, in Scarlattiana.

Sharman’s Scarlattiana is a stunning arrangement of 17th century composer Domenico Scarlatti’s keyboard Sonata in F-sharp minor for the instruments of the orchestra.  Mr. Sharman is the composer in residence for the Victoria Symphony Orchestra, where Tania Miller holds the position of Music Director.  Following Scarlattiana, Jinjoo Cho will join the HSO for Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D Major.  Originally written in 1794 for the Austrian violin prodigy Franz Clement, this concerto will highlight Ms. Cho’s youthful virtuosity with delicate cadenzas and singing melodies.

The second half of the program will feature Antonín Dvořák’s musical tribute to America: his Ninth Symphony, nicknamed “From the New World.”  Dvořák traveled to the United States in 1892, and completely fell in love with the African-American and Native American music he found here.  His “New World” Symphony drew its inspiration from the hymns, folk-songs, and tonal palate of these rich musical traditions as well as from Dvořák’s native Bohemian culture.  The result is a symphony of cross-cultural music that perfectly expresses America’s rich diversity.

Guest Conductor Tania Miller says, “Dvořák’s New World Symphony is a wonderful sentimental journey of optimism and hope.  From the beginning you get the impression of drama – the noble melody in the horns and the thundering timpani drums brings the sense of new beginning.  But the sentimentality and emotion of the symphony brings its music close to people.  No melody is perhaps as sweet as the English horn melody, Goin’ Home, in the second movement.”

The 2009-10 season will mark Tania Miller’s seventh as Music Director of the Victoria Symphony Orchestra, deeming her as the first Canadian woman to be appointed to such a significant position in Canada.  Her new programming innovations include the New Currents Festival of New Music, the contemporary Odyssey series of collaborative arts and genres, and the Victoria Mozart Festival.  Prior to her appointment in Victoria, Ms. Miller was Assistant and then Associate conductor of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Assistant Conductor of the Carmel Bach Festival, Assistant conductor of the Banff Festival of the Arts, and a frequent guest conductor with the Toronto contemporary ensemble ERGO.

The search for a new music director for Hartford Symphony Orchestra will take place during the next two seasons, 2009-10 and 2010-11, and will include seven guest conductor appearances. Four candidates will guest conduct in the 2009-2010 season, and three candidates will conduct in the 2010-11 season. HSO Music Director Edward Cumming will continue to lead the orchestra through the conclusion of the 2010-11 season in May of 2011.  His successor is expected to be announced by January 2011.

A native of Seoul, South Korea, violinist Jinjoo Cho is the First Grand Prize and People’s Choice Award winner of the 2006 Montreal International Musical Competition and the gold medalist of the 2005 Stulberg International String Competition. She has appeared as soloist with the symphony orchestras of Cleveland, Montreal, Quebec, Seoul, Winnepeg, Victoria, Kalamazoo, and Louisville, among others.  She performed at Carnegie Hall as a concertmaster in the 2009 and 2010 New York String Orchestra Seminar, where the New York Times reviewed her as “finely polished and focused.”
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CALENDAR LISTING:
Beethoven Violin Concerto & Dvořák New World Symphony
Hartford Symphony Orchestra with Tania Miller, guest conductor; Jinjoo Cho, violin
Thursday, March 18, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Friday, March 19, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 20, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 21, 2010 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Guest Conductor Tania Miller will lead a pre-concert chat one hour before each performance.  Composer Rodney Sharman will join her for two of the chats; dates TBD.
Program: Antonín Dvořák: Symphony No. 9, “From the New World;” Ludwig Van Beethoven: Violin Concerto; Rodney Sharman: Scarlattiana
Ticket Prices: $30 – $70; $10 with a student I.D. Ticket prices do not include applicable fees.
Tickets are available in person Monday through Friday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. at Hartford Symphony Orchestra Ticket Services, 99 Pratt Street, Suite 500 in Hartford, by calling (860) 244-2999, or online 24/7 at www.hartfordsymphony.org.

The Hartford Symphony Orchestra participates in the Greater Hartford Arts Council’s Let*s GO Arts! program that offers 2-for-1 tickets to arts and entertainment events, and discounts at restaurants and clubs. Let*s GO Arts! members can receive 2-for-1 full price tickets to HSO Masterworks and POPS! concerts.

These concerts are sponsored by The Katherine K. McLane and Henry R. McLane Charitable Trust. The Masterworks Series is presented by MetLife Foundation with additional support from The Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts Foundation and the Maximilian E. & Marion O. Hoffman Foundation, Inc. The Hartford Symphony Orchestra receives major support from the Greater Hartford Arts Council, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Led by renowned POPS! guest conductor and arranger Jeff Tyzik, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra will invite audiences to tour the world of Gilbert & Sullivan, Irving Berlin, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Andrew Lloyd Weber and more at Hartford Symphony POPS! Century of Broadway this Saturday. This one night excursion through the history of Broadway will star two of the “Great White Way’s” biggest names: soprano Christiane Noll, lead actress from Jekyll & Hyde, and tenor Doug LaBrecque, best known for his leading roles in Phantom of the Opera. Alongside the HSO, these two vocal knockouts will perform showstoppers from Broadway’s greatest shows, including songs from Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd, Jesus Christ Superstar, Chicago, Godspell, West Side Story, Showboat, and My Fair Lady.

When/Where: Saturday, February 20, 2010, 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall, The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts

The Hartford Symphony Orchestra will present “Reunited Masterpieces,” the second concert of the 2009-2010 Sunday Serenades Chamber Music series this Sunday at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art.  This program is inspired by the Wadsworth’s latest exhibition, “Reunited Masterpieces: From Adam and Eve to George and Martha,” and will feature modern interpretations of standard works by Handel and Bach.  Sunday Serenades Artistic Director and HSO Concertmaster (principal violinist) Leonid Sigal will join HSO violist Patricia Daly Vance and HSO cellist Peter Zay for this intimate chamber music program. The program will include performances of: J.S. Bach (arr. D. Sitkovetsky): Goldberg Variations; George Frederic Handel (arr. Halvorsen): Passacaglia, Duo for Violin & Cello; and Hanns Eisler: Prelude and Fugue on B-A-C-H, Op. 46.

When/Where:Sunday, February 21, 2009 at 2:00 p.m.
Morgan Great Hall at Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art

Ticket Information: SATURDAY: Tickets to this performance range in price from $30-$62, or $10 with a student I.D.  Ticket prices do not include applicable fees.
SUNDAY: Single tickets to this performance are $30; $25 for Atheneum Members, HSO Subscribers, or GHAC members. Ticket price includes general admission to the Wadsworth Atheneum on the days of the concerts.

Tickets are available in person on location immediately preceding the performance or Monday through Friday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. at Hartford Symphony Orchestra Ticket Services, 99 Pratt Street, Suite 500 in Hartford; by calling (860) 244-2999; or online 24/7 at www.hartfordsymphony.org.

The 2009-2010 POPS! Series is presented by United Technologies Corporation. Century of Broadway is sponsored by Aetna.  The 2009-2010 POPS! Series receives additional concert support from Bank of America. The 2009-2010 Sunday Serenades Series is sponsored in part by the Helen M. Saunders Charitable Foundation and the Music Endowment at the Wadsworth Atheneum. The Hartford Symphony Orchestra receives major support from the Greater Hartford Arts Council, the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS:

• Edward Cumming’s Grand Finale & The Inaugural Concert  of the HSO’s New Music Director

• Romanticism Prevails in Masterworks Series with Performances of Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Sibelius, Beethoven & Rimsky-Korsakov

• POPS! Series Dazzles with Sights and Sounds of Vegas, Big Band, A Richard Rodgers Revue, Nat King Cole & a Holiday POPS! Spectacular

• Hallelujah! HSO & The Hartford Chorale Bring Handel’s Messiah to the Belding Theater

• HSO Premieres Gryc’s Harmonia Mundi Violin Concerto & Montague’s Requiem

HARTFORD, February 5, 2010– Hartford Symphony Orchestra Music Director Edward Cumming and Executive Director Kristen Phillips proudly announce the Hartford Symphony’s 2010-2011 Masterworks Series of nine concerts and POPS! Series of six concerts that will be performed at The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford between October 2010 and June 2011.

The 2010-2011 Season reflects upon many of Music Director Edward Cumming’s favorite performances with the Hartford Symphony.  Says Cumming of his programming choices, “In addition to revisiting the music of Sibelius (Symphony no. 1), Tchaikovsky (Symphony no. 4), Haydn (“Surprise” Symphony), and yet another wonderful new solo work by Stephen Gryc (A Violin Concerto written for Leonid Sigal), I am delighted to be performing major works throughout the season with The Hartford Chorale including Handel’s Messiah, Montague’s Requiem (a U.S premiere), and Berlioz’s Te Deum.”

“Our upcoming Masterworks series will be one extraordinary season.  It’s a rare opportunity to find a Music Director’s finale, new Music Director’s inaugural concert, and world and U.S. premieres alongside the monumental masterworks in one season.  And yet, this is the experience that the Hartford Symphony Orchestra is offering our community,” says Kristen Phillips, the HSO’s Executive Director.  “Our POPS! series builds on this theme by not only celebrating Maestro Cumming’s triumphant final year, but also bringing talented guest conductors with a wide variety of programs that will be the hottest ticket in town.  There’s never been a better time for our community to experience the truly transformative and uplifting powers of the live concert hall experience.”

2010-2011 MASTERWORKS SERIES

Hartford Symphony Orchestra
Edward Cumming, Music Director

BEETHOVEN’S EMPEROR!
Thursday, October 14, 2010 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, October 15, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 16, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 17, 2010 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Kevin Rhodes, guest conductor and music director candidate
Jeffrey Biegel, piano
Brahms Academic Festival Overture
Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5

SCHEHERAZADE!
Thursday, November 4, 2010 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, November 5, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, November 6, 2010│ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, November 7, 2010 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Marcelo Lehninger, guest conductor and music director candidate
Christina Pier, mezzo-soprano
Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet
Ravel Shéhérazade
Rimsky-Korsakov Scheherazade

TCHAIKOVSKY’S PASSIONATE PIANO CONCERTO
Thursday, December 2, 2010 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, December 3, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 4, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, December 5, 2010 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Carolyn Kuan, guest conductor and music director candidate
Alexander Beyer, piano
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1
Remainder of the program to be selected by Maestra Kuan

MENDELSSOHN VIOLIN CONCERTO
Thursday, January 6, 2011 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, January 7, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, January 8, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, January 9, 2011 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
Sirena Huang, violin
Bartók Divertimento for Strings
Mendelssohn Violin Concerto
Haydn Symphony No. 94, “Surprise”

VALENTINE’S ROMANCE!
Thursday, February 10, 2011 │7:30 p.m.
Friday, February 11, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 12, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, February 13, 2011 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
Wendy Warner, cello
Britten Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes
Elgar Cello Concerto
Sibelius Symphony No. 1

MUSIC DIRECTOR INAUGURAL
Thursday, March 17, 2011 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, March 18, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 19, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, March 20, 2011 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Works to be selected by the Music Director-Designate

BEETHOVEN & BRAHMS
Thursday, April 14, 2011 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, April 15, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 16, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, April 17, 2011 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
Matei Varga, piano
Hindemith Konzertmusik for Strings and Brass
Beethoven Leonore Overture No. 3
Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1

TCHAIKOVSKY’S FOURTH
Thursday, May 19, 2011 │ 7:30 p.m.
Friday, May 20, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, May 21, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, May 22, 2011 │ 3:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
Leonid Sigal, violin
Debussy Prélude à l’apres-midi d’un faune
Gryc Harmonia Mundi (World Premiere)
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4

EDWARD CUMMING’S FINALE
Saturday, June 4, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
The Hartford Chorale
Richard Coffey, music director
Connecticut Children’s Chorus
Stuart Younse, director
Montague Requiem: The trumpets sounded calling them to the other side (U.S. Premiere)
Berlioz Te Deum

SPECIAL PROGRAM:

HANDEL’S MESSIAH
Friday, December 10, 2010 │8:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 11, 2010 │8:00 p.m.
The Belding Theater │The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
The Hartford Chorale
Richard Coffey, music director

2010-2011 POPS! SERIES

Hartford Symphony Orchestra
Edward Cumming, Music Director

POPS! GOES VEGAS
Saturday, November 13, 2010 │ 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Steven Reineke, guest conductor

HOLIDAY POPS! SPECTACULAR
Saturday, December 18, 2010 │ 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
The Hartford Chorale
Richard Coffey, music director
Connecticut Children’s Chorus
Stuart Younse, director

IRISH POPS! featuring ROBERT WHITE
Saturday, March 5, 2011 │ 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
Robert White, tenor

A Tribute to NAT KING COLE
Saturday, March 26, 2011│ 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Jeff Tyzik, guest conductor
Keith David, vocalist

RICHARD RODGERS REVUE featuring the THE HARTT SCHOOL
Saturday, May 14, 2011│ 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Edward Cumming, conductor
Singer and Actors from The Hartt School’s Theatre Department

SWING, SWING, SWING!
Saturday, June 11, 2011│ 8:00 p.m.
Mortensen Hall │ The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts
Victor Vanacore, guest conductor

EDWARD CUMMING’S GRAND FINALE

The 2010-2011 Season marks the final year of Music Director Edward Cumming’s nine year tenure with the HSO.  During his tenure, Cumming has introduced several initiatives to embrace the musical traditions of Hartford’s diverse populations and attract new audiences to classical music. To celebrate Maestro Cumming’s triumphant tenure, the HSO will present one epic performance of Berlioz’s mammoth masterpiece – Te Deum – featuring chorus, organ, and more in Mortensen Hall on June 4, 2011.

Edward Cumming says, “Given my great fondness for Richard Coffey’s splendid singers in The Hartford Chorale, and for the music of Stephen Montague (whose music I’ve done more than any other living composer), it seems particularly fitting to be concluding the season – and my tenure – with these two great works for chorus and orchestra.”

MUSIC DIRECTOR CANDIDATES

The Hartford Symphony’s search for a new music director, which brought four candidates to Hartford in the 2009-2010 season, will feature the final three conductors in the fall of 2010.  Kevin Rhodes, the current Music Director of the Springfield Symphony, will join the HSO in October for a program of Brahms’ Academic Festival Overture, Beethoven’s Emperor Piano Concerto, and Shostakovich’s Symphony no. 5.  Currently the associate conductor of the Minas Gerais Philharmonic Orchestra, chief conductor of the Dell’Arte Sinfonieta, and former cover conductor for the National Symphony Orchestra’s subscription concerts, Marcelo Lehninger will lead the HSO in Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, and Ravel and Rimsky-Korsakov’s versions of Scheherazade in November.  In December, former Associate Conductor of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra Carolyn Kuan will lead the HSO in Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto, among other works.

The Hartford Symphony will announce the new Music Director by January 2011.  The chosen conductor will conduct a concert in March 2011 and assume his or her new post starting in the 2011-2012 season.

ROMANTICISM PREVAILS

The luscious music of the Romantic Era abounds in 2010-2011 Masterworks Series; audiences will experience an array of passionate performances by both the HSO and guest artists.  Highlights include:

• Guest pianist Jeffrey Biegel in a performance of Beethoven’s “Emperor” Piano Concerto (October 14-17, 2010)
• Rimsky-Korsakov’s spectacular showpiece, Scheherazade (November 4-7, 2010)
• Tchaikovsky’s Passionate Piano Concerto No. 1 as played by the 2009 Young Artists Competition winner, Alexander Beyer (December 2-5, 2010)
• A Valentine’s Romance of heartwarming classics, including Elgar’s Cello Concerto and Sibelius’ First Symphony (February 10-13, 2011)
• Brahms’ powerful First Piano Concerto (April 14-17, 2011)
• Tchaikovsky’s heart-rending Fourth Symphony and Debussy’s enchanting Prélude à l’apres-midi d’un faune (May 19-22, 2011)

The 2010-2011 Masterworks Series also features a new Thursday night start time of 7:30 p.m.

POPS! SERIES DAZZLES

The hottest show in town – the Hartford Symphony POPS! – will bring the palpable excitement of a live symphony orchestra and the biggest names in the music industry together for six sizzling nights at The Bushnell:

• POPS! Goes Vegas November 13, 2010, complete with visits from Sinatra, Liberace, and Elvis
• Edward Cumming conducts his farewell Holiday POPS! Spectacular December 18, 2010
• Be there for the wearin’ of the green on March 5, 2011 with America’s Irish tenor, Robert White at Irish POPS!
• Jeff Tyzik leads an “unforgettable” Tribute to Nat King Cole on March 26, 2011
• The energetic young students of Hartford’s own Hartt School sing a night of Broadway showstoppers at a Richard Rodgers Revue May 14, 2011
• Led by Victor Vanacore, the biggest Big Band hits will put audiences “In the Mood” at Swing, Swing, Swing! on June 11, 2011

RISING STARS and LEGENDARY ENTERTAINERS

In keeping with the HSO’s rich legacy of knock-out guest artists, the Hartford Symphony’s 2010-2011 Season features soloists that are both household names as well as up-and-coming talent.  This season’s all-star line-up includes: Pianist Jeffrey Biegel in a performance of Beethoven’s “Emperor” Concerto October 14-17, 2010; Three young music director candidates- Kevin Rhodes, Marcelo Lehinger, and Carolyn Kuan; Mezzo-soprano Christina Pier sings Ravel’s Shéhérazade November 4-7, 2010; The winner of the HSO’s 2009 Young Artists Competition, Fairfield, CT high school student Alexander Beyer, playing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 December 2-5, 2010; Fifteen year old Sirena Huang, winner of the 2009 Tchaikovsky competition who last performed with the HSO in April 2009, in a performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto January 6-9, 2011; Cellist Wendy Warner in a performance of Elgar’s Cello Concerto February 10-13, 2011; Irish Tenor Robert White in “Irish POPS!” March 5, 2011; Guest POPS! conductor Jeff Tyzik and vocalist Keith David in a “Tribute to Nat King Cole” March 26, 2011; Pianist Matei Varga playing Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 1 April 14-17, 2011; the fresh young voices of The Hartt School in a “Richard Rodgers Revue” May 14, 2011; HSO Concertmaster Leonid Sigal in a world premiere performance of Gryc’s new violin concerto May 19-22, 2011; and Seasoned POPS! conductor Victor Vanacore leading a night of Big Band hits June 11, 2011.

MESSIAH RETURNS TO THE HSO

For the first time since 2007, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and The Hartford Chorale will perform Handel’s great oratorio, The Messiah, on December 10 and 11, 2010 in The Belding Theater.  Joined by The Hartford Chorale and guest soloists (to be announced), these two monumental concerts by the HSO will feature the beloved solo and choral movements that characterize the holiday season.  Highlights will include He Shall Feed His Flock, Comfort Ye, For Unto Us a Child is Born, and (of course!) the Hallelujah Chorus.

PREMIERES

Adding to the excitement of the 2010-2011 season are two works that have never been heard by Hartford audiences before.  On May 19-22, 2011, HSO Concertmaster (first violin) Leonid Sigal will play the world premiere of Stephen Gryc’s Harmonia Mundi: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra.  The HSO premiered Dr. Gryc’s Trombone Concerto, “Passaggi” in 2007 with New York Philharmonic Principal Trombonist Joseph Alessi.  Dr. Gryc’s instrumental expertise has brought him commissions from a diverse group of the world’s leading soloists including oboist Bert Lucarelli, flutist John Wion, and trumpeter Philip Smith. Among his many awards are the 1986 Rudolf Nissim Prize for orchestral music and the James and Frances Bent Award for Artistic Achievement from the University of Hartford. He holds the position of Professor of Music Composition and Theory at the Hartt School of the University of Hartford, and lives in Avon, CT.

As part of his grand finale, Edward Cumming has programmed the United States premiere of Steven Montague’s Requiem: The trumpets sounded calling them to the other side. Montague’s music has been performed at numerous international festivals, including the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Warsaw Autumn festival, the Paris Festival d’Automne and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.  During Maestro Cumming’s tenure with the HSO, the orchestra has performed three works by Montague: Behold a Pale Horse in April 2008, At the White Edge of Phrygia in June 2005, and “Piano Concerto” in February 2003.

SUBSCRIPTIONS:

Nine-Concert Subscriptions to the 2010-2011 Masterworks Series range in price from $243 to $520; subscribers get all nine concerts for the price of eight.   Current subscribers to the Masterworks Series can renew their subscriptions from February 8 – April 2, 2010, after which seats will be released for sale to the general public.  Single tickets for the 2010-2011 Masterworks Series will go on sale in August. Tickets to The Messiah December 10 & 11, 2010 can be added onto Masterworks subscriptions, with single tickets going on sale in August.  Seating to Edward Cumming’s Finale is available first-come, first-serve.

Six-Concert Subscriptions to the 2010-2011 POPS! Series range in price from $150 to $310; subscribers get all six concerts for the price of five.  Current subscribers to the POPS! Series can renew their subscriptions from February 15 – April 17, 2010, after which seats will be released for sale to the general public.  Single tickets for the 2010-2011 POPS! Series will go on sale in August.

Subscriptions and tickets are available in person Monday through Friday between the hours of 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. at Hartford Symphony Orchestra Ticket Services, 99 Pratt Street, Suite 500 in Hartford, or by calling (860) 244-2999.  Single tickets are available online 24/7 at www.hartfordsymphony.org.

The Hartford Symphony Orchestra participates in the Greater Hartford Arts Council’s Let*s GO Arts! program that offers 2-for-1 tickets to selected arts and entertainment events, and discounts at restaurants and clubs. Let*s GO Arts! members can receive 2-for-1 full price tickets to selected HSO Masterworks and POPS! concerts.

Marking its 67th season in 2010-2011, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra is Connecticut’s premier musical organization. The Hartford Symphony is the second largest orchestra in New England and is widely recognized as one of America’s leading regional orchestras. Dedicated to the performance of live symphonic music and the presentation of quality education and community programs, each season the Hartford Symphony plays to audiences numbering approximately 125,000 and reaches thousands statewide through its broadcast concerts on WNPR Connecticut Public Radio.  Supported by more than 4,500 subscribers and 2,000 donors, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra’s extensive array of Musical Pathways educational activities serves more than 64,000 individuals in Hartford and surrounding communities annually. For more information about the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, please visit www.hartfordsymphony.org.

The Hartford Symphony Orchestra receives major support from the Greater Hartford Arts Council, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts. Sponsors listed as of February 8, 2010.