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Archived NewsNMSO POPS CELEBRATES ST. PATRICK’S DAY WITH CELTIC VIOLINIST IVERS MARCH 15 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops season takes a trip to the Emerald Isle with Celtic violinist Eileen Ivers at a one-night-only St. Patrick’s weekend performace. Conducted by Carl Topilow, the concert will take place at 8 p.m., March 15, at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. Called “the Jimi Hendrix of the violin” by the New York Times, Ivers is a nine-time All-Ireland Fiddle Champion, and has performed with the London Symphony Orchestra, the National Symphony at the Kennedy Center, Boston Pops, The Chieftains, Hall and Oates, Afrocelts, Patti Smith, Paula Cole and Al Di Meola, among many others. She was a longtime member of the Irish music group Cherish the Ladies, gained fame as part of the Riverdance dance troupe show and also performed on Howard Shore’s score for the film Gangs of New York. The program for these concerts will feature the NMSO Pops performing a mix of Ivers’ own material, as well as Irish favorites. These include “Danny Boy,” music from Riverdance, John Williams’ suite from the film Far and Away, “Blizzard Train,” “Rights of Man” and much more. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets cost $18-$54. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. NMSO Spring Tour brings the Symphony to Gallup and Shiprock The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra is pleased to announce a spring tour with stops in Gallup on March 6, and Shiprock on March 7. The program for both performances, conducted by NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa, opens with senior members of the NMSO - principal flute Valerie Potter, associate principal oboe Melissa Peña, acting principal trumpet John Marchiando and concertmaster Krzysztof Zimowski - as soloists in J. S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 2. Then, guest violinist Carmelo de los Santos takes center stage with the orchestra, performing Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5. And finally, the orchestra performs Stravinsky’s Suite from Pulcinella. The Gallup performance will take place at 7 p.m., March 6, at Gallup High School, 1055 Rico St. Admission is free, and no tickets are required. The Shiprock performance will take place at 7 p.m., March 7, at the Phil L. Thomas Performing Arts Center, located on Highway 64 next to Shiprock High School. Tickets are available at the Phil L. Thomas Performing Arts Center, Shiprock Quick Stop and City Market in Shiprock, and at Hastings in Farmington. Advance sale tickets are $15, $20 and $25. All ticket prices will increase by $5 the week of the show. As part of its education efforts, the NMSO has toured New Mexico extensively over its 75-year history, demonstrating a strong commitment to provide the diverse population of the state with the highest quality live performances of symphonic music. Many NMSO members are music educators themselves, including Potter, Marchiando and de los Santos who are all members of the University of New Mexico music faculty. During this tour, the NMSO will also present several music education events, including one at the Church Rock Academy on the Navajo Nation, a woodwind quintet performance at Gallup’s Roosevelt Elementary School and a concert for Shiprock students at the Phil L. Thomas Performing Arts Center. These events are not open to the public. This will be the NMSO’s second tour of the 2007-08 season. Earlier this season, the NMSO performed in Socorro and Ruidoso. Beginning as the Albuquerque Civic Symphony in November 1932, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra is the state’s official orchestra and has taken its place among our great cultural institutions. In addition to Classics, Pops, Matinee and Symphony Under the Stars series-which enrich the lives of over 130,000 people each year-the NMSO is the largest non-governmental provider of music education in New Mexico and performs many NMSO Family Concerts with no admission charge. The NMSO has also been recognized by the Mellon Foundation for its innovative community engagement efforts. The NMSO is under the baton of Guillermo Figueroa, the symphony’s tenth music director, Resident Conductor and Choral Director Roger Melone, and Principal Pops Conductor Michael Krajewski. For more information on the NMSO, visit our website at www.nmso.org. Pianist Jeffrey Biegel headlines NMSO Feb. 29-March 2 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s 75th anniversary season continues with the New Mexico premiere of Lowell Liebermann’s Concerto No. 3 for Piano and Orchestra featuring pianist Jeffrey Biegel, as well as the NMSO Chorus performing Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloe, Suite No. 2. All three performances of this program will be conducted by NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa, Feb. 29, March 1 and March 2. The program also features Debussy’s Nocturnes and Wagner’s overture to The Flying Dutchman. The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. The Sunday performance at the National Hispanic Cultural Center begins at 2 p.m. Biegel was the man behind the massive, 18-orchestra commissioning of the Liebermann concerto, which had its world premiere in Milwaukee in 2006. Biegel is one of today's most respected artists and has created a multi-faceted career as a pianist, composer and arranger. His electrifying technique and mesmerizing touch has won critical acclaim and garners praise throughout the world. Biegel recently combined his performing and arranging gifts in the new Symphonic Fantasies for Piano and Orchestra based on four of Billy Joel's classical compositions from Fantasies and Delusions. In 1985, Leonard Bernstein said of Biegel: “He played fantastic Liszt. He is a splendid musician and a brilliant performer.” These comments helped to launch Biegel's 1986 New York recital debut, as the recipient of the coveted Juilliard William Petschek Piano Debut Award, in Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts' Alice Tully Hall. His career has been marked by bold, creative achievements and highlighted by a series of firsts: He envisioned and performed the first live internet recitals in New York and Amsterdam in 1997 and 1998, enabling him to be seen and heard by a global audience. In 1999, he assembled the largest consortium of orchestras (over 25), to celebrate the millennium with a new concerto composed for him by Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The Millennium Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra was premiered with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. In 1997, he performed the Boston premiere of the restored, original 1924 manuscript of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue with the Boston Pops. He transcribed the first edition of Balakirev's Islamey Fantasy for piano and orchestra, which he premiered with the American Symphony Orchestra in 2001. Charles Strouse composed a new work titled Concerto America for Mr. Biegel, premiered with the Boston Pops in 2002. The NMSO Chorus, led by Roger Melone, is getting set for its third annual appearance at the Bravo! Vail (Colo.) Valley Music Festival with the Philadelphia Orchestra in 2008. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $19-$60. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. Powwow Symphony and Marimba Concerto highlight NMSO salute to New Mexico The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s 75th anniversary season rolls on as the NMSO salutes the Land of Enchantment with a unique program featuring Brent Michael Davids’ Powwow Symphony: A Gathering of Nations, as well as NMSO Principal Percussionist Jeff Cornelius as soloist for a performance of Ney Rosauro’s Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra. All three performances of this program will be conducted by NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa, Feb. 15, 16 and 17 at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico’s main campus. Cornelius is the winner of the first-ever NMSO Concerto Competition, conceived of and instituted by Figueroa in 2007. Cornelius has played principal percussion with the NMSO since 1986. He studied at the Manhattan School of Music and the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. Prior to joining the NMSO, Cornelius played with numerous orchestras including the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Canton Symphony, the Colorado Philharmonic, the Toledo Symphony and an assortment of other summer festivals and ensembles. Since joining the NMSO, he has also performed with the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra and the Santa Fe Symphony as well as several chamber venues including Taos Chamber Music Festival, Music at Angel Fire and Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival where he appears on Stereophile's recording of Darius Milhaud's La création du monde. Davids’ Powwow, co-commissioned and premiered by the NMSO and premiered in 1999, is the world’s first symphonic powwow: a rich mixture of European symphonic tradition and Native American life, introducing the joys of the powwow to audiences familiar with orchestral repertoire. The symphony is structured like an actual powwow, complete with a grand entry and multiple dances. Also, there will be a group of Native American dancers performing with the NMSO at these concerts. Davids will perform as soloist in Powwow on a unique crystal flute. A member of the Mohican Nation, is an active participant with the First Nations Composer Initiative and has served as Composer-in-Residence with the Native American Composers Apprenticeship Project. Just as a master of ceremonies directs, explains, announces and entertains during a real powwow, his voice is heard throughout the symphony. Acting in that role for the Powwow Symphony will be Sammy Tone-kei White, a noted national powwow emcee and representative of the National American Indian Hall of Fame in Anadarko, Okla. Additionally, White is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, and belongs to two Kiowa warrior clans: the Kiowa Gourd Clan and the prestigious Black Leggins Society. Each concert will also open with Richard Strauss’ classic, romantic tone poem, Don Juan. The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. and the Sunday performance beginning at 2 p.m. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60. NMSO Pops welcomes clarinet great Eddie Daniels in salute to Benny Goodman, jazz The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops season continues with the return of virtuoso clarinetist Eddie Daniels in a program honoring the all-time king of the clarinet, Benny Goodman. The concert will take place Jan. 26, 8 p.m., at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. In this one-night-only performance conducted by Bernard Rubenstein, the NMSO Pops will perform many popular songs by Goodman, Dizzy Gillespie, Leonard Bernstein, Antonio Carlos Jobim and others. Eddie Daniels is that rarest of rare musicians who is not only equally at home in both jazz and classical music, but excels at both with breathtaking virtuosity. He first came to the attention of the jazz audience as a tenor saxophonist with the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra. When Jones and Lewis first organized their band in 1966 to play Monday nights at the Village Vanguard in New York, Daniels was one of the first musicians they called. Later that year, Daniels entered the International Competition for Modern Jazz in Vienna where he won first prize on saxophone. A single clarinet solo recorded with the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra’s garnered sufficient attention for him to win Downbeat magazine’s International Critics New Star on Clarinet Award. This conversion to clarinet was not new, as Daniels began clarinet at age 13 and received his Masters in Clarinet from Juilliard. Winning numerous Grammy awards and nominations, Daniels revolutionized the blend of jazz and classical. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets cost $18-$54. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. World Premiere concerto highlights NMSO salute to founder The second half of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s 75th anniversary season begins with the world premiere of Miguel del Aguila’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, featuring NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa on violin. All three performances of this program will be conducted by former Kansas City Symphony music director Anne Manson Jan. 7, 8 and 9. These performances, titled “Guillermo and Grace,” are also a tribute to the NMSO’s founding conductor, Grace Thompson Edmister. Edmister assembled the members of the then-Albuquerque Civic Symphony in 1932 for their first concert. A tuberculosis survivor from Ohio, she was the head of the University of New Mexico music department at the time, and was the first choice of community leaders to bring symphonic music to what was then a small but growing railroad town on the banks of the Rio Grande. She conducted the orchestra until 1941, and came back to the NMSO stage many times, including as guest conductor in 1982 to celebrate the NMSO’s 50th anniversary. She died two years later at age 93, the only woman founder of a professional symphony in American history. The new concerto was commissioned by the NMSO specifically for its 75th anniversary. Uruguyan composer Miguel del Aguila has written for the NMSO previously as its composer-in-residence in 2005-2006, as he lived in Albuquerque during the creation Time and Again Barelas, an opera written for the Albuquerque Tricentennial celebration and co-commissioned by the NMSO. The composer personalized the soloist in a unique way for this concerto. Over the course of five movements, “the violin soloist is turned here into a traveler who becomes the protagonist of the story,” del Aguila says. “The orchestra often represents the outside world as he sees it. As the work progresses, the actual trip becomes a symbol of a more existential journey: LIFE.” Both a renowned conductor and violinist, Figueroa is a founding member of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. With this group he has been concertmaster and soloist in performances throughout the United States, Europe and Asia and made over fifty recordings for Deutsche Grammophon. In 1995, he gave the world premiere of Concertino for Violin and Orchestra by Mario Davidovsky, at Carnegie Hall, written for him and Orpheus. In 2007, he played the premiere of the Double Concerto written for him by Harold Farberman, with the American Symphony at New York’s Avery Fisher Hall. For ten years he was concertmaster of the New York City Ballet, appearing in over a hundred performances of violin concerti by Barber, Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Berg and Adams. He has appeared at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Music in the Vineyards in California, Music from Angel Fire and the El Paso Pro Musica Chamber Festival. Figueroa has recorded the Three Violin Sonatas by Bartok for the Eroica Classical label, with pianist Robert Koenig, and an album of virtuoso violin music by Wieniawski, Sarasate and Kreisler for the NMSO label, with pianist Ivonne Figueroa. In addition to the new concerto, the program for these concerts opens with Jennifer Higdon’s Fanfare Ritmico, and finishes with Schubert’s Symphony No. 9. The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. The Sunday performance begins at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Albuquerque Journal Theatre. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $19-$60. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. NMSO joins Romero Guitar Quartet December 14, 15 and 16 For the first time in many years, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra will bring the magic of the classical guitar to center stage as they join the world-renowned Romero Guitar Quartet for three performances, Dec. 14, 15 and 16. Conducted by NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa, all three programs will also feature the return of former composer-in-residence Miguel del Aguila. The program for these performances features Ernesto Cordero’s Concierto Festival for Guitar and String Orchestra, de Falla’s Three-Cornered Hat, Suite No. 2, Joaquín Rodrigo’s Concierto Andaluz for 4 Guitars and Orchestra, and del Aguila’s “Conga.” A veritable institution in the world of classical music, the Romero Guitar Quartet has dazzled countless audiences and won the raves of reviewers worldwide. The legendary Celedonio Romero, with his sons Celin, Pepé and Angel, founded the internationally renowned ensemble known to millions as “The Royal Family of the Guitar.” With the introduction of Celin’s son, Celino, into the quartet in 1990, and Angel’s son Lito joining in 1996, The Romeros encompass three generations of concert artists. Celebrated worldwide for his dazzling virtuosity, compelling interpretations, and flawless technique, guitarist Pepé Romero is constantly in demand for his solo recitals, performances with orchestras, as well as with the world-famous Romero Quartet. Although best known for his classical performances, Pepé’s passion for the traditional flamenco of his native Andalucia has never wavered. His first recording, Flamenco Fenómeno!, for Contemporary Records, was made when he was only fifteen. Since then, Pepé has made more than fifty recordings, among which are over twenty concertos with the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields conducted by Sir Neville Marriner and Iona Brown, as well as collaborations with artists such as the renowned ensemble I Musici, flamenco singer Chano Lobato, and dancers Paco Romero and María Magdalena. Romero’s contributions in the field of classical guitar have inspired a number of distinguished composers to write works specifically for him, including Joaquín Rodrigo, Federico Moreno Torroba, Lorenzo Palomo, Rev. Francisco de Madina and Celedonio Romero. Miguel del Aguila will perform as pianist for “Conga.” He served as the NMSO’s composer-in-residence in 2005-2006 while working on Time and Again Barelas, an opera co-commissioned by the NMSO in celebration of Albuquerque’s tricentennial. del Aguila’s work will also take center stage next month as Figueroa and the orchestra will premiere his new violin concerto. Composer Ernesto Cordero, though not performing, will also be in attendance for these three performances. The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. The Sunday performance begins at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Albuquerque Journal Theatre. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $19-$60. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. NMSO Pops performs Holiday favorites at Very Merry Pops The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops season continues with what has become an all-time great Albuquerque Holiday tradition: The Very Merry Pops. Two performances conducted by Roger Melone take place at UNM’s Popejoy Hall Dec. 21 and 22. This year’s program, which also features choruses from Albuquerque Academy, Manzano Day School and Cibola High School performing alongside the Symphony, includes classics like “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Three Hannukah Songs,” “The Christmas Song” and medleys of well-known Christmas carols. The Dec. 21 performance begins at 8 p.m., while the Dec. 22 concert begins at 2 p.m. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets cost $18-$54. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. NMSO and NMBC present the authentic Nutcracker The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra and the New Mexico Ballet Company are joining forces again this holiday season to present Tchaikovsky’s holiday favorite, Nutcracker, in five performances Dec. 1, 2, 8 and 9 at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. Aside from being one of Albuquerque’s great holiday family traditions over the years, these Nutcracker performances are of impeccable quality: They are the only traditional Nutcracker presentations with both a live professional orchestra and live professional dancers in New Mexico. All performances are choreographed by NMBC artistic director Patricia Dickinson Wells. The orchestra will be conducted by NMSO associate concertmaster David Felberg. Nutcracker is based on a story by E.T.A. Hoffman with music by Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The story follows young Clara Stahlbaum as she dreams of toys coming to life on Christmas Eve, and is taken on an enchanted journey by a Nutcracker come to life. Showtimes are at 2 p.m. Dec. 1, 2 p.m. Dec. 2, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Dec. 8, and 2 p.m. Dec. 9. Tickets, priced at $11 to $37, may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. VIOLINIST JOSHUA BELL TO PERFORM WITH NMSO NOV. 27 Grammy and Avery Fisher Prize winning violinist Joshua Bell will join Maestro Guillermo Figueroa and the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra for a special performance at UNM’s Popejoy Hall Nov. 27 at 7:30 p.m. The program will feature Bell performing Bruch’s Concerto No. 1 for Violin. The NMSO will also perform Mozart’s Symphony No. 41, as well as his Ballet Music from Idonmeneo. For over two decades, Bell has been captivating audiences worldwide with his poetic musicality. He came to national attention at the age of 14 in a highly acclaimed orchestral debut with Riccardo Muti and the Philadelphia Orchestra. A Carnegie Hall debut, the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant and a recording contract further confirmed his unique presence in the music world. Now in his thirties, Bell’s career is exceptionally varied. He is equally at home as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestra leader, and his restless curiosity and multifaceted musical interests have taken him in exciting new directions, forging a unique career that has earned him the rare title of “classical music superstar.” In addition to his concert career, Bell enjoys chamber music collaborations with artists such as Pamela Frank, Steven Isserlis and Edgar Meyer as well as occasional collaborations with artists outside the classical arena, having shared the stage with Josh Groban, Bobby McFerrin, Chick Corea, James Taylor and Sting. Bell made his first recording at the age of 18, and he has an extensive catalogue of classical recordings resulting in a distinctive and wide-ranging body of work. Bell and his two sisters grew up on a farm in Bloomington, Indiana. As a child, he indulged in many passions outside of music, becoming an avid computer game player and a competitive athlete. He placed fourth in a national tennis tournament at age 10 and still keeps his racquet close by. Bell received his first violin at age four after his parents, both psychologists by profession, noticed him plucking tunes with rubber bands he had stretched around the handles of his dresser drawers. By 12 he was serious about the instrument, thanks in large part to the inspiration of renowned violinist and pedagogue Josef Gingold, who had become his beloved teacher and mentor. From the classical repertoire, Bell has made critically acclaimed recordings for Sony Classical of the concertos of Beethoven and Mendelssohn (both featuring his own cadenzas), and Sibelius and Goldmark, as well as the Grammy Award winning Nicholas Maw concerto. His Grammy-nominated recording Gershwin Fantasy premiered a new work for violin and orchestra based on themes from Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess. Its success led to an all-Bernstein recording (also a Grammy nominee) that included the premiere of the West Side Story Suite as well as a new recording of the composer’s Serenade. With the composer and double bass virtuoso Edgar Meyer, Bell appears on the Grammy-nominated crossover recording Short Trip Home and a disc of concert works by Meyer and the 19th-century composer Giovanni Bottesini. Bell also collaborated with Wynton Marsalis on the Grammy-winning spoken word children’s album, Listen to the Storyteller and Bela Fleck’s Grammy Award winning Perpetual Motiom. He has twice performed on the Grammy Awards telecast in recent years, performing music from Short Trip Home and West Side Story Suite. For three years, Bell was deeply involved in the creation of John Corigliano’s Academy Award-winning score for the 1999 film The Red Violin, released on Sony Classical. Bell performed the virtuosic solos on the soundtrack, served as an advisor and even as a stand-in in for the film. In his Oscar acceptance speech, a jubilant Corigliano proclaimed, “Joshua plays like a God.” Bell collaborated with Marin Alsop and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra on the world premiere in 2003 of Corigliano’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (“The Red Violin”), a concert work drawn from the film score. In June 2006, Bell, Alsop and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra recorded this concerto for Sony Classical and just released this year. In addition to Grammy Awards, Bell has won the Avery Fisher Prize, the Mercury Music Prize for the Maw concerto recording with Sir Roger Norrington and the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and Germany’s Echo Klassik for Sibelius/Goldmark concerto recording with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the performance cost $35-$150. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. Beginning as the Albuquerque Civic Symphony in November 1932, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra is now the official orchestra of the State of New Mexico and has taken its place among the great cultural institutions of our state. In addition to our Classics, Pops, Matinee and Symphony Under the Stars series—which enrich the lives of over 130,000 people each year—the NMSO is the largest non-governmental provider of music education in New Mexico and performs many NMSO Family Concerts with no admission charge. The NMSO has also been recognized by the Mellon Foundation for its innovative community engagement efforts. The NMSO is currently under the baton of Guillermo Figueroa, the symphony’s tenth music director, Resident Conductor and Choral Director Roger Melone, and Principal Pops Conductor Michael Krajewski. For more information on the NMSO, visit our website at www.nmso.org. NMSO, CHORUS PRESENT A MUSICAL FEAST WITH RACHEL BARTON PINE A superb choral work and a special 75th anniversary treat lead the way as the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s Classics and Matinee series continue with violinist Rachel Barton Pine and the nationally acclaimed NMSO Chorus in three performances conducted by NMSO music director Guillermo Figueroa, Nov. 16, 17 and 18. A 75th birthday cake decorating event will take place in the lobby at each performance, complete with complimentary birthday cake directly following each concert. The NMSO Chorus, led by Roger Melone, is coming off its triumphant performances of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at both the Bravo! Vail (Colo.) Valley Music Festival with the Philadelphia Orchestra in July, as well as at the NMSO’s season-opening performances in September. Last summer was the second straight in which the NMSO Chorus was invited to the Vail festival – in which Philadelphia, the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic and the New York Philharmonic are the resident orchestras – to perform with recognition of their status as one of the finest symphony choruses in the country. The Chorus has been invited to take part in the 2008 Vail festival, performing Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Philadelphia Orchestra. American violinist Rachel Barton Pine has appeared as soloist with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, including the Chicago, Atlanta, St. Louis, Dallas, Baltimore, Montreal, Vienna, New Zealand and Iceland Symphonies, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, working with conductors including Charles Dutoit, Zubin Mehta, Erich Leinsdorf, Marin Alsop, Neeme Järvi and Placido Domingo. Acclaimed collaborations include Daniel Barenboim, Christoph Eschenbach, William Warfield, Christopher O’Riley and Mark O’Connor. Her festival appearances include Ravinia, Marlboro, and Salzburg. Pine has been featured on St. Paul Sunday, Performance Today, From the Top, CBS Sunday Morning, and NBC’s Today. Her critically acclaimed albums for the Cedille, Dorian, and Cacophony labels include Brahms and Joachim Violin Concertos with Carlos Kalmar and the Chicago Symphony, and Scottish Fantasies with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. She holds top prizes from the J.S. Bach (gold medal), Queen Elisabeth, Paganini, Kreisler, Szigeti and Montreal international competitions, and has twice been honored as a Chicagoan of the Year. Her charitable activities include serving as a trustee of the Music Institute of Chicago and president of the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation. She plays the Joseph Guarnerius del Gesu (Cremona 1742), known as the “ex-Soldat,” on generous loan from her patron. Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast, first performed on Oct. 8, 1931, is derived from the fifth chapter of the Biblical Book of Daniel and Psalms 137 and 81. It is the story of King Belshazzar, who is holding the enslaved Jews captive in Babylon. The king holds a great feast at which he commits sacrilege by profaning sacred vessels taken from the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem by his predecessor Nebuchadnezzar. A mysterious hand appears writing the Aramaic words “mene, mene, tekel, upharsin” (“you are counted, counted, weighed, divided”) on the wall. The prophet Daniel interprets this as a Divine judgement foretelling the destruction of Babylon, and that very night, according to the story, Belshazzar is slain by the invading Persians whose leader Darius becomes King. The oratorio begins, after a short recited introduction, with a passionate setting of Psalm 137. The Jews lament the loss of their homeland and sing bitterly of their anger at their captors. After the solo Baritone sets the scene, the feast begins: a brilliant feat of sumptuous orchestration and powerful choral writing enlivened with just a rhythmic hint of jazz. The ominous appearance of the handwriting on the wall is eerily depicted with clattering castagnettes and muttering tuba. Brutal drumbeats and choral shouts announce the death of Belshazzar, and, with a grandly exultant hymn, the Jews celebrate the downfall of their oppressors. There is a sober moment of regret for the destruction of a great city, then the oratorio ends with a jubilant Alleluia. Pine will be performing Saint-Saëns’ Violin Concerto No. 3, which premiered in 1880 in Paris. He wrote the concerto for the reigning king of the violin, the Spanish virtuoso Pablo Sarasate. The first movement is intensely passionate, rising from the dark-hued opening theme in the violin's lower register to a spectacular ending at the upper limits of the instrument's range. The second movement is a gently swaying barcarole in which the solo violin spins out a sweetly refined melodic line. Near the end, Saint-Saëns creates a beautifully ethereal effect by having the solo violin play glistening arpeggios in harmonics doubled by a clarinet two octaves lower while the oboe sings the opening melody of the movement. The finale is a virtuoso showpiece that exploits the contrast between its stormy, gypsy-style opening theme and lyrical, chorale-like second theme. As these performances are the closest in this 75th season to the NMSO’s actual “birthday” – the first concert took place Nov. 13, 1932 – the NMSO Guild is sponsoring the Diamond Anniversary Cake Decorating Contest during this concert weekend. Members of the International Cake Exploration Societie plus local chefs, bakers, and caterers will display their cakes before the concert and during intermissions. Cake will also be served to the audience after the concerts. Three judges will select a winner on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and the grand winner Sunday afternoon. The NMSO Guild thanks the Albuquerque Publishing Company for supporting this event. Finally, each of the three performances will begin with Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture (Fingals' Cave). The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. The Sunday performance begins at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Albuquerque Journal Theatre. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $19-$60. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. CLASSICAL MYSTERY TOUR AND NMSO POPS TAKE US BACK TO BEATLES HEYDAY The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops season continues into classic territory when the Pops join forces with the Beatles performing group Classical Mystery Tour to present a night of Beatles classics performed with a live symphony. This is a one-night-only performance Nov. 10, 8 p.m., at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, conducted by NMSO Pops principal conductor Michael Krajewski. The four musicians in Classical Mystery Tour look and sound just like The Beatles, but Classical Mystery Tour is more than just a rock concert, and in the words of the Los Angeles Times, “more than just an incredible [Beatles] simulation...the crowd stood and bellowed for more.” Classical Mystery Tour features Jim Owen (John Lennon) on rhythm guitar, piano, and vocals; Tony Kishman (Paul McCartney) on bass guitar, piano, and vocals; Tom Teeley (George Harrison) on lead guitar and vocals; and Chris Camilleri (Ringo Starr) on drums and vocals. “We really make an effort to sound exactly like the originals,” explains Owen, who admits that he and the other three Classical Mystery Tour members are big Beatles fans. “The orchestra score is exact, right down to every note and instrument that was on the original recording. On ‘Got to Get You Into My Life,’ we have two tenor saxes and three trumpets. That’s what it was written for, and that’s what we use. And on ‘A Day in the Life,’ can you imagine that big orchestra crescendo happening live?” The tentative set list for their performance with the NMSO Pops also includes “Yesterday,” “Hey Jude,” “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” “The Long and Winding Road” and much more. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets cost $18-$54. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. For more on Classical Mystery Tour, visit their website at classicalmysterytour.com. NMSO POPS BRINGS CIRQUE TO POPEJOY The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops season kicks off with one of the most unique presentations in our 75-year history: Cirque de la Symphonie, where cirque nouveau-style acrobatics and artistry meet the full power of a symphony orchestra. This is a one-night-only performance Oct. 20 at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, conducted by NMSO Pops principal conductor Michael Krajewski. Cirque de la Symphonie is a new production intended to bring the magic of cirque to the music hall. It is an exciting adaptation of artistic performances widely seen in theaters and arenas everywhere, an organization of many of the best cirque artists in the world, including aerial flyers, acrobats, contortionists, dancers, jugglers, balancers, and strongmen. Performers include many amazing veterans of the famous Cirque du Soleil and other exceptional programs throughout the world. These artists are among the best, and they include world record holders and gold-medal winners of international competitions. Their performances are uniquely adapted to stage accommodations shared by symphonies, and each artist’s performance is choreographed to the music arrangement provided by the conductor. Their feats will all be performed to a wide array of orchestral selections, including Ravel’s “Bolero,” Khachaturian’s “Sabre Dance,” John Williams’ “Across the Stars” love theme from Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, Healey’s “Celebration Fanfare” and much more. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets cost $18-$54. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. NMSO CHORUS TO PERFORM WITH PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA IN 2008 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Roger Melone, director, has been invited to perform for a second straight year with the world-famous Philadelphia Orchestra at the Bravo Vail Valley Music Festival in Vail, Colo., performing Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana. The performance will take place July 14. It will be the Chorus’ third year performing at the Vail festival. Each time the NMSO performs a choral work, they join forces with the nationally acclaimed NMSO Chorus. Though a volunteer organization, all members of the Chorus are accomplished musicians. Among their over ninety volunteer singers, many are professional musicians working in music-related fields, hold degrees in music or teach music privately. A majority have studied voice, and many also have had instrumental training. They are also bound by a common passion for music, and some travel weekly from Edgewood, Santa Fe and Socorro and other New Mexico communities to sing in the Chorus. The Chorus performed works by Mozart at the 2006 Vail festival with the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic and their music director, Christopher Seaman. After garnering rave reviews, they were invited back to perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with Rossen Milanov and the Philadelphia Orchestra in July 2007. The Chorus was founded in 1972, and is celebrating its 35th anniversary during the NMSO’s 75th anniversary season in 2007-2008. For the past 25 years, Melone has led the Chorus, having developed the chorus and given it its present outstanding reputation. NMSO NAMES ERIC G. MEYER AS NEW PRESIDENT The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra Board of Trustees named Eric Meyer as the institution’s new president at a meeting Sept. 25 in Albuquerque. Meyer succeeds Kenneth Hopper, who will continue serving the organization as its head of operations. Meyer served as director of development for the San Diego Symphony for the past three years. There, he helped maintain balanced budgets for an orchestra whose annual expenses grew over 75% in three years, and raising over $7 million from over 1,700 donors. Prior to that, Meyer served many years as the executive director of the Tucson (Ariz.) Symphony Orchestra, overseeing unprecedented expansion which included the annual operating budget growing from $300,000 to $2.5 million. He has also held development-related positions with the symphonies of Pittsburgh and Milwaukee. “I am honored to have been chosen to help guide the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra,” Meyer said. “Symphonic music has been my passion and I am pleased to be moving into a community that shares this passion. I look forward to building stronger organization, both artistic and financial.” Hopper joined the NMSO as general manager in February 2006, coming here from the Thousand Oaks, Calf.-based New West Symphony, where he had served as executive director for three years. Previous positions he has held include a music professorship at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, ten years as freelance pianist in New York and in other capacities as an arts organization executive. NMSO PERFORMS THE FAMOUS ADAGIO OF BARBER The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s Classics and Matinee series continue as the NMSO pays tribute its long association with the University of New Mexico in a program featuring Barber’s well-known and beloved Adagio for Strings, Dvorák’s Symphony No. 7, Shostakovich’s Festive Overture and former UNM dean John Donald Robb’s Dances from Taxco. Three performances conducted by NMSO music director Guillermo Figueroa will take place Oct. 5, 6 and 7. The NMSO’s first-ever performance took place at UNM’s Carlisle Gymnasium in November 1932. Concerts by the then-Albuquerque Civic Symphony continued at Carlisle Gym for many years. UNM’s Popejoy Hall has been the orchestra’s primary performance venue since it opened in 1967. The orchestra’s founding conductor, Grace Thompson Edmister, was head of the university’s music department at the time of the orchestra’s genesis. Edmister’s immediate successors, William Kunkel and Kurt Frederick, were also professors in the department. Over the years, many UNM graduates have played in the orchestra. And onto the present day, many UNM music faculty also perform as NMSO members (a list which currently includes musician-professors oboe Kevin Vigneau, violist Kimberly Fredenburgh, bassist Mark Tatum among others). Barber’s Adagio for Strings was originally composed as the slow movement of a String Quartet, and is Barber's most popular work. A prime example of his lyrical neo-romantic style, it works its way inexorably from a subdued, almost chant-like opening to a climax of great emotional intensity, after which it returns to the medieval Phrygian-mode style of the beginning. The Adagio is well deserving of its familiarity as one of the most popular compositions by an American composer, and has been used in numerous motion picture soundtracks, most notably in the movie Platoon. The nationally acclaimed UNM Wind Symphony – performing with the NMSO on the Shostakovich piece – is comprised of the 50 most talented wind, brass and percussion students at the University of New Mexico and its purpose is to prepare musicians and music educators for the rigors of a professional life in music. Under the direction of Eric Rombach-Kendall, the Wind Symphony has performed at the regional and national conferences of the College Band Directors National Association. The UNM Wind Symphony can be heard on three recordings on Summit Records. John Donald Robb (1892-1989) was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minn., and led a rich and varied life as an attorney, composer, arts administrator and ethnomusicologist. He first worked as an international lawyer in New York. Then in 1941, at the age of 49 and after having studied under several composers, Robb decided to leave his law career to become head of the music department at the University of New Mexico. He served as dean of the College of Fine Arts from 1942-1957 and was responsible for starting the UNM Symphony, as well as many other educational initiatives. Robb’s orchestral works have been played by many major orchestras in the United States and abroad and under noted conductors, such as the NMSO’s Hans Lange, Yoshimi Takeda and Maurice Bonney, as well as Maurice Abravenel, Leonard Slatkin, Gilberto Orellana, Guy Frazer Harison, Victor Alexander, Eleazar de Carvalho, Souza Lima and Ricardo del Carmen. The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. The Sunday performance begins at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Albuquerque Journal Theatre. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $19-$60. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. NMSO OPENS 75TH SEASON WITH BEETHOVEN’S GREATEST WORK: THE NINTH SYMPHONY The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s gala 75th anniversary season begins with arguably the finest choral symphonic work ever conceived: the ninth symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven, performed by the NMSO and the NMSO Chorus. The three performances led by NMSO music director Guillermo Figueroa will take place Sept. 14, 15 and 16. The NMSO Chorus, led by Roger Melone, is coming off its triumphant performance of Beethoven’s Ninth at the Bravo! Vail (Colo.) Valley Music Festival with the Philadelphia Orchestra. This summer was the second straight in which the NMSO Chorus was invited to the festival – in which Philadelphia, the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic and the New York Philharmonic are the resident orchestras – to perform with recognition of their status as one of the finest symphony choruses in the country. All three performances will also feature violist Paul Neubauer performing Bartók’s Viola Concerto with the NMSO. Neubauer’s exceptional musicality and effortless playing distinguish him as one of this generation’s quintessential artists. Balancing a solo career with performances as an artist member of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Neubauer at age 21 was the youngest principal string player in the New York Philharmonic’s history. He has appeared with over 100 orchestras throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. Among Neubauer’s numerous awards are First Prize in the Mae M. Whitaker International Competition, the D’Angelo International Competition, and the Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition. He has been the recipient of a Solo Recitalist’s Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts and a special prize from the Naumburg Foundation which awarded him an Alice Tully Hall recital debut. Moreover, he has been sponsored by the Epstein Young Artists Program and in 1989 became the first violist chosen to receive an Avery Fisher Career Grant. In a strange historical twist, Neubauer actually premiered this version of Bartók’s Viola Concerto in 1995, which he helped to revise along with Bartók’s son, Peter, and composer Nelson Dellamaggiore. The original version, premiered in 1945, was written by Bartók as he suffered from leukemia, and he never completed all four movements of the work. For Beethoven, his ninth and final symphony was the culmination of a lifelong quest to bring words and music together to create a transcendent experience. Since his youth he had been enthralled by the poetry of Friedrich Schiller. He felt a deep affinity with the idealism of Schiller’s poetic world, and expressed a determination as early as 1793 to set Schiller’s Ode to Joy to music. The famous, gigantic finale in the symphony’s fourth movement begins with a wordless recitative for cellos and basses in which the themes of the preceding movements are recalled, examined and rejected in turn. Cellos and basses then begin to hum a new melody---the tune of the Ode to Joy. The rest of the orchestra joins in gradually until the entire band is joyfully shouting it out. The featured soloists for the Beethoven performances will be soprano Korliss Uecker, mezzo Kathleen Clawson, tenor Karl Dent and baritone Zheng Zhou. Each performance of this program also includes the premiere of Daniel Stevens Crafts’ Celebratory Fanfare: Red or Green?, written specifically for the NMSO’s 75th anniversary. The Friday performance will begin at 8 p.m. at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, also the site of the Saturday performance starting at 6 p.m. The Sunday performance begins at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Albuquerque Journal Theatre. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $12-$60, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $19-$60. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. Beginning as the Albuquerque Civic Symphony in November 1932, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra is now the official orchestra of the State of New Mexico and has taken its place among the great cultural institutions of our state. In addition to our Classics, Pops, Matinee and Symphony Under the Stars series—which enrich the lives of over 130,000 people each year—the NMSO is the largest non-governmental provider of music education in New Mexico and performs many NMSO Family Concerts with no admission charge. The NMSO has also been recognized by the Mellon Foundation for its innovative community engagement efforts. The NMSO is currently under the baton of Guillermo Figueroa, the symphony’s tenth music director, Resident Conductor and Choral Director Roger Melone, and Principal Pops Conductor Michael Krajewski. For more information on the NMSO, visit our website at www.nmso.org. MOTOWN BROUGHT TO LIFE AT THE NMSO POPS’ ‘MARVELOUS MOTOWN’ MAY 5 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops, principal Pops conductor Michael Krajewski and the singing group SPECTRUM will take the audience back to the heyday of the classic Motown sound in a one-night-only performance, 8 p.m., May 5 at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. The program features a variety of Motown and R&B favorites, including “My Girl,” “Can’t Help Myself,” “Under the Boardwalk,” “The Way You Do the Things You Do,” “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and many more. Combining top-notch songwriting with punchy, energetic musical arrangements and performances, the classic “Motown Sound” was the soundtrack of a generation, and best known in the recordings of headliners such as Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, the Four Tops, the Supremes and the Jackson 5, among many others. SPECTRUM, which draws upon the talent of four radiant voices and diverse personalities – Darryl Grant, Pierre Jovan, David Prescott and Cushney Roberts – to form a first class vocal quartet. After spending six stellar years recreating the sound and style of the Four Tops in Las Vegas' multi-million dollar production shows American Superstars and Legends in Concert, the group has developed the versatility to credibly cover the music of groups from The Platters to The Temptations to Boyz 2 Men. Tickets can be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets are priced $16-$52. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. NMSO’S ‘SYMPHONY UNDER THE STARS’ AT THE RIO GRANDE ZOO MAY 17, 19 & 26 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s Symphony Under the Stars concert series will return the Rio Grande Zoo for 2007 on May 17, 19 and 24, with three unique programs for the whole family. On May 17 at 7:30 p.m., conductor Roger Melone will lead the NMSO in a program of patriotic favorites entitled “Stars and Stripes.” The following Saturday, May 19 at 8 p.m., conductor David Felberg and the NMSO will take a musical journey down Route 66 – titled “Classical Route 66” – in a program featuring Miss New Mexico, Christina Hall, singing “The Star Spangled Banner.” The program also includes excerpts from Rogers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma, DeSylva’s California “Here I Come,” and Grofe’s “On the Trail” from the Grand Canyon Suite, among others. The series will conclude on May 26 at 8 p.m., with a program titled “Hollywood Dance and Romance,” as Melone leads the NMSO in a program featuring dance music from favorite Hollywood classics: Mancini’s Moon River, Singin’ in the Rain, My Fair Lady, Wizard of Oz, The Pink Panther, Casablanca and Pirates of the Caribbean. For the past two years, the concerts have won the “Best Place to hear Classical Music” award by Albuquerque: The Magazine’s “Best of the City” issue. The series is Albuquerque’s premier annual outdoor music event for music lovers of all ages. The Rio Grande Zoo serves as a unique setting, combining the sounds of family-friendly entertainment and superb musical artistry with the calls of the animal kingdom. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets start at $13 for lawn general admission, $19 for reserve lawn admission nearer the stage, $28 for chair seating and $50 for exclusive table seating. Children age 5 and under are free, and ages 6 to 17 are half price. Picnic baskets can be pre-ordered through the NMSO box office or patrons may bring in picnic dinners. Wine and beer may be purchased at the zoo vending services. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the NMSO’s ticket table, located at the entrance of the Zoo on the days of the concerts. PNM customers are eligible for a discount on tickets to the Symphony Under the Stars performances. Check your PNM April bill or visit NMSO.org for more details. PIANIST OLGA KERN RETURNS TO PERFORM WITH NMSO IN 3 CONCERTS, APRIL 27-28-29 Acclaimed pianist Olga Kern, who the Albuquerque Journal’s D.S. Crafts called “a ferocious whirlwind… with verve and panache,” for her 2005 performances with the NMSO, returns as featured soloist in the upcoming “Russian Rendezvous” performances on April 27, 28 and 29. In lieu of the usual pre-concert discussion one hour prior to the concert, Maestro Figueroa and Kern will perform a pre-concert recital: three suites from Grieg’s Violin Sonata No. 3 in C minor. This opportunity to hear Maestro Figueroa on violin with one of the world’s great pianists is open to any ticket holder for that day’s concert. Pushkin Gallery of Santa Fe will be providing images of art by Russian masters for the pre-concert video presentation. Conducted by NMSO music director Guillermo Figueroa, the April 27 performance will take place at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus at 8 p.m. The April 28 concert, also at Popejoy, will start at 6 p.m. And, the April 29 performance will start at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Journal Theatre. The program features Glinka’s overture from Ruslan and Ludmilla, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 6 and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3. Kern was born into a family of musicians with direct links to Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff, and began studying piano at the age of five. Winner of the first Rachmaninoff International Piano Competition when she was 17, she is a laureate of eleven international competitions and has toured throughout her native Russia, Europe and the United States, as well as in Japan, South Africa and South Korea. Kern’s career took off in 2001 when she was awarded the Gold Medal at the Eleventh Van Cliburn International Piano Competition – the first woman to have achieved this distinction in more then 30 years. Since then, she has toured the United States captivating fans and critics alike with her passionately confident musicianship and vivid stage presence. Internationally, Kern has toured throughout Europe and Russia, and made an extensive tour of South Africa in June of 2002, where she returned to tour again in February of 2005, performing all four Rachmaninoff piano concertos and Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini, with her brother, Vladimir Kern, conducting, three times over a span of six days, an unprecedented feat undertaken especially for the South African audience. She has been a recent guest artist at several international music festivals, including the Klavier Ruhr and Kissinger Sommer festivals in Germany, the Radio-France Montpellier and Casadesus festivals in France, the Ohrid Festival in Macedonia, and the Busoni Festival in Italy. Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto, premiered in New York in November 1909, was intended for Rachmaninoff himself to perform as soloist during a tour of the United States, and it marks the apex of Rachmaninoff’s piano writing. The solo part is highly original and inventive, and only a phenomenal pianist could have conceived the special effects and figurations that make this work so transcendentally difficult. Tickets may be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $17-$59. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. HORVATH, LABRECQUE AND THE NMSO POPS’ ‘SHOWSTOPPERS!’ TO BRING THE HOUSE DOWN APRIL 21 Broadway veterans Jan Horvath and Doug LaBrecque will return to the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops for a program titled Showstoppers!, featuring a mix of Broadway, Top 40 and film favorites. Conducted by NMSO principal Pops conductor Michael Krajewski, the April 21 performance will take place at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus at 8 p.m. Selections on the program include several songs by Irving Berlin, the Beatles “Let it Be,” “Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz, the theme from New York, New York, selections by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and much more. Jan Horvath was a member of the original Broadway company of The Phantom of the Opera, where she performed the roles of Christine and Carlotta. Other Broadway credits include The Threepenny Opera starring Sting, Sweet Charity starring Debbie Allen, Stardust and Oliver! Horvath sang the leading role of Grizabella in the National Touring Company of Cats. Her off-Broadway credits include the Mother in Yoko Ono’s New York Rock, Svetlana in the revised version of Chess, and Jacques Brel. She also starred as Queen Isabella in the world premiere of Encounter 500 at La Sistina in Rome, Italy. Doug LaBrecque thrilled theatre audiences as The Phantom and Raoul in the Harold Prince production of The Phantom of the Opera. In addition, LaBrecque has starred on Broadway as Ravenal in the Hal Prince revival of Showboat, a role he also performed in Canada and Chicago. He was featured in Oscar Hammerstein’s 100th Birthday Celebration on Broadway at The Gershwin Theatre, and toured nationally with Les Miserables. Regionally, LaBrecque has performed leading roles in Candide, A Chorus Line, Man of La Mancha among many others. A graduate of University of Michigan he was also featured in the world premiere of A Wonderful Life, written by Sheldon Harnick and Joe Raposo, and starred in the premiere revival of Kurt Weill and Alan Jay Lerner’s Love Life. Tickets can be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets are priced $16-$52. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. Broadway veterans Jan Horvath and Doug LaBrecque will return to the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops for a program titled Showstoppers!, featuring a mix of Broadway, Top 40 and film favorites. Conducted by NMSO principal Pops conductor Michael Krajewski, the April 21 performance will take place at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus at 8 p.m. Selections on the program include several songs by Irving Berlin, the Beatles “Let it Be,” “Over the Rainbow” from The Wizard of Oz, the theme from New York, New York, selections by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and much more. Jan Horvath was a member of the original Broadway company of The Phantom of the Opera, where she performed the roles of Christine and Carlotta. Other Broadway credits include The Threepenny Opera starring Sting, Sweet Charity starring Debbie Allen, Stardust and Oliver! Horvath sang the leading role of Grizabella in the National Touring Company of Cats. Her off-Broadway credits include the Mother in Yoko Ono’s New York Rock, Svetlana in the revised version of Chess, and Jacques Brel. She also starred as Queen Isabella in the world premiere of Encounter 500 at La Sistina in Rome, Italy. Doug LaBrecque thrilled theatre audiences as The Phantom and Raoul in the Harold Prince production of The Phantom of the Opera. In addition, LaBrecque has starred on Broadway as Ravenal in the Hal Prince revival of Showboat, a role he also performed in Canada and Chicago. He was featured in Oscar Hammerstein’s 100th Birthday Celebration on Broadway at The Gershwin Theatre, and toured nationally with Les Miserables. Regionally, LaBrecque has performed leading roles in Candide, A Chorus Line, Man of La Mancha among many others. A graduate of University of Michigan he was also featured in the world premiere of A Wonderful Life, written by Sheldon Harnick and Joe Raposo, and starred in the premiere revival of Kurt Weill and Alan Jay Lerner’s Love Life. Tickets can be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets are priced $16-$52. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. EMERSON STRING QUARTET JOINS FORCES WITH NMSO IN 3 PERFORMANCES APRIL 13-14-15 The acclaimed Emerson String Quartet will be the featured soloists in the next round of New Mexico Symphony Orchestra Classics and Matinee concerts, April 13, 14 and 15, in a program featuring Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for violin, viola and orchestra, Brahms’ Double Concerto for violin, cello and orchestra, as well as Santa Fe composer Marc Neikrug’s Concerto for sting quartet and orchestra. Conducted by NMSO music director Guillermo Figueroa, the April 13 performance will take place at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus at 8 p.m. The April 14 concert, also at Popejoy, will start at 6 p.m. And, the April 15 performance will start at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Journal Theatre. The program also features Strauss’ Till Eulenspiegel. The Emerson String Quartet -- violinist Eugene Drucker, violist Lawrence Dutton, cellist David Finckel and violinist Philip Setzer -- has garnered an international reputation for groundbreaking chamber music projects and correlated recordings for Deutsche Grammophon. In 1988, the quartet attracted national attention with the presentation of the six Bartók quartets in a single evening for its Carnegie Hall debut. The quartet’s subsequent release of the cycle received the 1989 Grammy Awards for Best Classical Album and Best Chamber Music Performance and Gramophone Magazine’s 1989 Record of the Year Award, the first time in the history of each award that a chamber music ensemble had ever received the top prize. The quartet is celebrating its 30th anniversary this season, and in those three decades the group has collaborated with such artists as Emanuel Ax, Misha Dichter, Leon Fleisher, the Guarneri String Quartet, Thomas Hampson, Lynn Harrell, Barbara Bonney, Barbara Hendricks, the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, Paul McCartney, Menahem Pressler, Mstislav Rostropovich, David Shifrin, Richard Stoltzman, Isaac Stern and Oscar Shumsky. The Emerson String Quartet holds a residency at the Smithsonian Institution. The quartet is also quartet-in-residence at Stony Brook University, where they give coaching in chamber music, teach master classes, provide instrumental instruction and conduct a chamber music festival. Both a composer and pianist, Neikrug is a unique and multifaceted artist. His compositions have been commissioned and performed by major festivals, orchestras and opera houses world wide. Works have been performed by the New York, Buffalo and Los Angeles Philharmonics, as well as the Symphonies of Cleveland, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Dallas, Houston, Minnesota and Phoenix. Performers of Neikrug’s works have included Pinchas Zukerman, James Galway, Christoph Eschenbach, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Loren Maazel and Zubin Mehta, among others. Of particular note are two works for the theatre, Through Roses and Los Alamos. Through Roses has been produced in eleven languages in fifteen countries and heard close to five hundred times. It was produced as a CD for Deutsche Gramaphon and has been made into two films. His Los Alamos was the first opera commissioned by an American composer by the Deutsche Oper Berlin. As a pianist, Neikrug has performed world wide for over thirty years. He has performed with Zukerman in recitals since 1975. They have appeared together regularly at the major Festivals and concert halls in North and South America, eastern and Western Europe and Asia. Since 1998, Neikrug has been artistic director of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival One hour prior to each performance, a pre-concert discussion about the works in the program is open to any ticketholder for that day’s concert. Tickets can be reserved by calling (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $17-$59. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 90 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. THE BEST OF GERSHWIN & MORE COME TO THE NMSO POPS, MARCH 17-18 Pianist Hyperion Knight and conductor Don Pippin will join the NMSO Pops for two performances featuring the music of George Gershwin. Performances will be held March 17, 8 p.m., at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, and March 18, 2 p.m., at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Journal Theatre. The program will include Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, the overture to Girl Crazy and his Concerto in F. Other selections honor some of the great American composers, including Grofe’s On the Trail, The Duke Ellington Suite, the Jerome Kern Fantasy, and Rodgers’ Slaughter on Tenth Avenue. Hyperion Knight is a soloist and recording artist whose performances are known for both their artistic breadth and personal flair. A graduate of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and Cleveland Institute of Music, he is also appearing this season in a recital at New York City’s historic St. Bartholomew’s Church and a recital tour of Japan, performing in Tokyo, Nagoya and Sapporo. Knight is acclaimed for the diversity of his repertoire and recordings, ranging from Beethoven to Stravinsky and Gershwin to the Beatles. Stereophile magazine called his Gershwin by Knight album “a recording that could almost serve as a primer for the qualities of rhythmic and dynamic grace,” while his recording of romantic piano transcriptions, The Magnificent Steinway, was welcomed as “one of the most enjoyable CD’s of recent years” by CD Review. Having served for 14 years as musical director of New York’s famed Radio City Music Hall, Donald Pippin is one of Broadway’s most honored conductors. Pippin’s distinguished career on Broadway includes La Cage Aux Folles, Cabaret, Mack and Mabel, Seesaw, Applause, Mame, Oliver and A Chorus Line. On television, he was musical director for An Evening with Alan Jay Lerner, seen on “Live from Lincoln Center,” as part of PBS’ “Great Performance” series. He is the recipient of the Tony Award for Oliver, the Emmy Award for Broadway Sings Jule Styne, the Drama Desk Award for “consistently outstanding musical direction and commitment to the theatre” and a gold record award for the original cast album of A Chorus Line. Tickets for the Gershwin’s Greatest performances are priced at $16-$52 for the Popejoy performance and $15-40 for the NHCC performance. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 30 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. TCHAIKOVSKY’S FAMOUS CONCERTO, PIANIST VON OEYEN WITH NMSO MARCH 2-3-4 An all-time audience favorite will take center stage at the next round of New Mexico Symphony Orchestra Classics performances as guest pianist Andrew von Oeyen joins the NMSO and music director Maestro Guillermo Figueroa to perform Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, March 2 and 3 at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, and March 4 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center. The March 2 performance begins at 8 p.m., March 3 at 6 p.m. and March 4 at 2 p.m. The first performance of Tchaikovksy’s concerto took place in Boston on Oct. 25, 1875, and with its memorable opening lush melody and crashing chords, the concerto became an instant classic. The program for these concerts also features Rachmanninoff’s The Bells, performed by the NMSO and the nationally recognized NMSO Chorus, under the direction of Roger Melone. Winner of the prestigious Gilmore Young Artist Award in 1999, Andrew von Oeyen has already established himself as one of the most captivating pianists of his generation. Since his debut at age 17 with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen, von Oeyen has performed to critical acclaim in recital and orchestral appearances around the world. Von Oeyen began his piano studies at age 5 and made his solo orchestral debut at age ten. A recent graduate of the Juilliard School, where his principal teachers were Herbert Stessin and Jerome Lowenthal, he has also worked with Alfred Brendel and Leon Fleisher. Von Oeyen`s performances have been broadcast on National Public Radio and he has been a featured guest on NPR’s Performance Today. Premiered in 1913 and opulently scored for soprano, tenor and baritone soloists, chorus and orchestra, Rachmannioff’s The Bells can be thought of as a metaphorical “Four Seasons.” The four tableaux that form the work depict the “seasons of life,” a birth-to-death picture of the human condition reflected in the sounds of bells. It is also based on the 1849 Edgar Allen Poe poem of the same name. The featured soloists for The Bells will be soprano Yali-Marie Williams, tenor Karl Dent and baritone Ricardo Lugo. The NMSO Chorus, directed by Melone, was given standing ovations at their performances of Carmina Burana in February, and at their triumphant performance with the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic at the Bravo Vail Valley (Colo.) Music Festival last summer. Chosen for that performance by Rochester Music Director Christopher Seaman due to the NMSO Chorus’ reputation as one of the finest symphony choruses in the country, their stunning performance led to their being invited back to Vail next summer to perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with the Philadelphia Orchestra. The NMSO Chorus will also take center stage in the opening program of the NMSO’s 75th season this September, also performing Beethoven’s Ninth. To reserve your seats, call (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $17-$59. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 30 minutes prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall and NHCC box offices, respectively. MAGIC OF ‘SYMPHONIC HARRY POTTER’ TO TAKE THE NMSO STAGE FEB. 24-25 The magic of the Harry Potter books and films will come to the Kiva Auditorium of the Albuquerque Convention Center, Feb. 24 and 25, as the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra presents two performances titled Symphonic Harry Potter. The concerts will be conducted by David Felberg, and both start at 2 p.m. Serving as master of ceremonies for these performances is Toledo (Ohio) Symphony principal second violinist – and avid Harry Potter fan – Merwin Siu. The program will consist primarily of John Williams’ score from the Harry Potter films, with Siu (in a non-musical role) thrilling the audience between musical selections, performing as Harry Potter himself in a variety of sketches familiar to fans of the Potter books and films. The story in those books and films follow the orphan boy wizard Potter, his trials at Hogwarts’ School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, and his struggles against the evil Lord Voldemort, murderer of his parents and bane of the wizard world. The Harry Potter franchise, both in J.K. Rowling’s novels and their film adaptations, have been praised for both their storytelling power as well as spurring renewed interest in children’s literature. These concerts take place in a year which will also see the release of the seventh and final Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and the film adaptation of the fifth Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Aside from the Potter films music, other musical selections in the concert include Dukas’ The Sorcerers Apprentice, Cowen’s Dance of the Witches, Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain and Grieg’s Hall of the Mountain King, among others. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the performances cost $15-$55. A limited number of student rush tickets will be available 30 minutes prior to showtime only at the Kiva Auditorium box office, limted to two tickets per student with valid student ID at a cost of $8 per ticket. These concerts are the final performances of the 2006-07 First Community Bank NMSO Fantasy Series, following last October’s performances of The Lord of the Rings Symphony and November’s Star Trek concert. MAMBO KINGS TO PERFORM WITH NMSO POPS AT POPEJOY FEB. 17, ONE NIGHT ONLY The Mambo Kings bring their fusion of Afro-Cuban rhythm and contemporary jazz to Popejoy Hall and the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s NMSO Pops February 17, 8 p.m., in a one-night-only event conducted by Jeff Tyzik. Percussionists David Antonetti and Freddy Colon, bassist Hector Diaz, founder and pianist Richard Delaney and saxophonist John Viavattine have garnered raves from all over the country. Michael P. Gladstone of AllAboutJazz.com writes, “. . .this Latin jazz combo really nails the genre. This is vital Latin jazz that is cooking.” And Peg Goldberg Longstreth of the Bonita (Fla.) Daily News writes, “If major-league arrangments of high-voltage Latin music is your forte, you’ll definitely enjoy [the Mambo Kings].” The program includes Latin favorites by Bizet, de Falla, Ginastera and Piazzola performed by the orchestra in the first half, as well as selections by Dave Brubek, Tito Puente and Delaney, among others, for the second-half combined set with the Mambo Kings and the NMSO Pops. The concert marks the return of Jeff Tyzik to the Popejoy stage, having conducted the December 2005 Very Merry Pops program with the NMSO Pops. A friend with Delaney for over 30 years, Tyzik has worked extensively with the Mambo Kings in pops orchestra performances all over the country. Tickets for the Mambo Kings performance are priced at $16-$52. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. A limited quantity of student rush tickets will be available, limited to two tickets per student with valid ID priced at $8 each for student rush, and only available 1 ½ hours prior to showtime exclusively available at the Popejoy Hall box office. To learn more about the Mambo Kings, visit their website at mambokingdom.com. NMSO TO PERFORM ALL-TIME POPULAR CLASSIC ‘CARMINA BURANA’ FEB. 2-3-4 One of the most recognizable symphonic choral works ever conceived will take center stage at the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s concerts Feb. 2, 3 and 4 as the orchestra and the NMSO Chorus perform Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, conducted by NMSO resident conductor and choral director Roger Melone. The concerts will take place 8 p.m., Feb. 2 at Popejoy Hall on the UNM campus, Feb. 3 at 6 p.m. at Popejoy and Feb. 4 at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center. Aside from its high stature in the symphonic repertoire, Carmina has entered the common lexicon over the years, due in great part to its being prominently featured in many films (Excalibur, The Doors, Natural Born Killers, Glory), television commercials (Capital One’s barbarian commercials) and even sporting events (football’s New England Patriots and baseball’s Florida Marlins among many). Premiered in 1936, Orff subtitled the work “Profane songs for singers and chorus to be sung to the accompaniment of instruments and magical images.” The “profane songs” Orff set to music in Carmina is based upon the Songs of Beuren, a collection of 200 secular thirteenth-century poems written in Latin, old high German, and old French. The poems were by a group of medieval poets nicknamed the “Golliards,” a disapproving reference both to their vulgarity and their inclination to consume mass quantities of fermented grapes and grains. The Golliards were young renegades: students, monks and priests who left their libraries, monasteries and churches, living as thieves, beggars and wandering musicians, occasionally landing work in the royal courts of Europe. This concert will be the second major outing this season for the musicians of the NMSO Chorus, directed by Melone, and their second since the triumphant performance with the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic at the Bravo Vail Valley (Colo.) Music Festival last summer. Chosen for that performance by Rochester Music Director Christopher Seaman due to the NMSO Chorus’ reputation as one of the finest symphony choruses in the country, it led to their being invited back to Vail next summer to perform with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Melone describes the piece as, “contagiously passionate, powerful and rhythmically riveting. The program will also feature Haydn’s Symphony No. 96, better known as the Miracle symphony. One hour prior to each performance, a pre-concert discussion about the works in the program is open to any ticketholder for that day’s concert. To reserve your seats, call (505) 881-8999, online at www.nmso.org, or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $17-$59. ‘TWO DONS’ MEET AS NMSO AND CELLIST RAFAEL FIGUERA PERFORM JAN. 19-20-21 One legendary cellist, Rafael Figueroa, and two legendary fictional “Dons” – Don Juan and Don Quixote – meet on the program of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra’s next Mercedes-Benz of Albuquerque/Sandia Resort and Casino Classics Series concerts, Jan. 19, 20 and 21. Conducted by NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa and featuring renowned cellist Rafael Figueroa, Guillermo’s cousin, performing Dmitri Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1, these concerts also feature the overture to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Richard Strauss’ Don Quixote. The Jan. 19 and 20 concerts take place at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico main campus, and the Jan. 21 performance takes place at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Journal Theatre. Rafael Figueroa is established as one of the most sought-after cellists of his generation, having appeared in numerous performances throughout the United States, Europe, Central and South America, Japan and his homeland of Puerto Rico. He occupies the prestigious position of principal cellist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra under James Levine in addition to his participation in many of the chamber music series in the New York area, including the Lyric Chamber Music Society of New York, The Met Chamber Ensemble with James Levine, The New Jersey Chamber Music Society, The Morgan Library Chamber Music Series and Bargemusic. His impressive list of prizes and awards include the first prize at the Gregor Piatigorsky Competition in Boston, The Bronze Medal at the International Pablo Casals Competition in Budapest, winner of the Jill Sackler Cello Competition at the Third American Cello Congress and winner of the Gina Bachauer Memorial Award. Rafael has appeared in recitals and concerts with an array of other great artists, and also collaborated with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, which his cousin Guillermo helped to found. Shostakovich premiered his first cello concerto – one of two he wrote for his friend cellist Mstislav Rostropovich – on Oct. 4, 1959. Rostropovich, who gained fame internationally following an easing of travel restrictions by the Soviet government in the early 1950s, commissioned his good friend Shostakovich to write this concerto to tour with. Shostakovich had a satiric sense of humor and loved to hide disguised musical puns and quotations in his music. This particular cello concerto begins with a direct quotation of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s favorite song, Suliko, in the first five notes of the opening theme. The Jan. 19 performance begins at 8 p.m., while the Jan. 20 concert stats at 6 p.m., both at Popejoy. The Jan. 21 NHCC performance begins at 2 p.m. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $17-$59. NMSO POPS’ ANNUAL ‘VERY MERRY POPS’ TO FEATURE ‘THE SNOWMAN’ Just before Christmas, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra will stage two performances of another great Albuquerque holiday tradition, the NMSO Pops’ Very Merry Pops concert, Dec. 22, 8 p.m., at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and Dec. 23, 6 p.m., at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. David Felberg will conduct a program of Christmas and Hanukkah favorites, including a “Songs of the Season” sing-a-long. The concert will include a screening, with live musical accompaniment by the NMSO, of the classic British animated film, The Snowman. The concert will also feature the Albuquerque Academy Chorus, directed by Marilyn Thomas Bernard, and the Manzano Day School Chorus, directed by Louise Loomis. Due to the success of the Very Merry Pops in past years, the NMSO has added a second performance at the NHCC this year. The Snowman follows the story of a boy named James, who awakes one night to find that a snowman he built has come to life. Adapted from the childrens book by Raymond Briggs, The Snowman began airing in England, the United States and other parts of the world in the early 1980s. It was nominated for an Academy Award in America, while in England it won a BAFTA award for best childrens drama. Tickets for the Very Merry Pops performances are priced at $16-$52 for the Popejoy performance and $15-40 for the NHCC performance. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. NMSO, N.M. BALLET CO. RE-TEAM TO PRESENT ALL-PROFESSIONAL ‘NUTCRACKER’ DEC. 8-9-10 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra and the New Mexico Ballet Company are joining forces again this holiday season to present Tchaikovsky’s holiday favorite, Nutcracker, in five performances Dec. 8, 9 and 10 at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. Aside from being one of Albuquerque’s great holiday family traditions, these Nutcracker performances are of impeccable quality: They are the only traditional Nutcracker presentations with both a live professional orchestra and live professional dancers in New Mexico. Show times are at 7 p.m. Dec. 8, and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on both Dec. 9 and 10. Tickets are available from $16 to $35 online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. NMSO BASSIST TAKES CENTER STAGE AT ‘TCHAIKOVSKY’S FOURTH’ DEC. 1-2-3 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra often features world-class soloists for Classics Series performances. The next such program will be no exception, but with a twist: NMSO principal bassist Jean-Luc Matton will perform the solo part of John Harbison’s Concerto for Bass Viol and Orchestra with the NMSO Dec. 1 and 2 at Popejoy Hall on the UNM campus, and Dec. 3 at the Simms Auditorium on the Albuquerque Academy campus. The program, titled Tchaikovsky’s Fourth and conducted by Louisiana Philharmonic Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto, also features Tchaikovsky’s 1878 masterpiece, his Symphony No. 4. A native of France, Matton studied in Paris at the Versailles Conservatory with Jacques Cazauran, principal bass for Orchestre de Paris. He graduated in 1980 and moved to Venezuela to play with the Caracas Philharmonic and the Merida Philharmonic. In 1985, Matton went to Boston University where he studied with Herny Portnoi, principal bassist for the Boston Symphony. In 1988, he received his master’s degree and joined the NMSO. He has held the chair of principal bass since 1989. His wife, Carol Swift-Matton, is assistant principal second violin in the NMSO. Harbison's music is distinguished by its exceptional resourcefulness and expressive range. Among his principal works are three string quartets, three symphonies and three operas including The Great Gatsby, commissioned by The Metropolitan Opera and premiered in December 1999. He was born into a musical family, improvising on the piano by age five and starting a jazz band at age 12. He did his undergraduate work at Harvard University and earned an MFA from Princeton University. Following completion of a junior fellowship at Harvard, Harbison joined the faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where, in 1984, he was named Class of 1949 Professor of Music and, in 1994, the Killian Award Lecturer in recognition of “extraordinary professional accomplishments.” He has also taught at CalArts and Boston University and is currently on the faculty of the Aspen Music Festival. In 1998, Harbison was named winner of the Heinz Award for the Arts and Humanities, and was also the winner of the Kennedy Center Friedheim First Prize of 1980 (for his Piano Concerto) and a MacArthur Fellowship in 1989. Harbison’s concerto, co-commissioned by the NMSO and the International Society of Bassists, “begins with an Introduction which reminds the listener that the bass viol is the oldest instrument in the modern orchestra, grand survivor from the medieval viol family,” Harbison said. Prieto, conductor of these programs, recently led his Louisiana Philharmonic in a triumphant return in their home city of New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent flooding and chaos, including the destruction of their primary venue and the scattering of their musicians to all corners of the country, hit just before the start of Prieto’s first season with the LPO. The LPO is now performing a full season slate at various venues in the New Orleans area. Prieto is also music director of Mexico's oldest orchestra, the Xalapa Symphony Orchestra, and music director of the Huntsville (Ala.) Symphony. The Dec. 1 performance begins at 8 p.m., Dec. 2 at 6 p.m. and Dec. 3 at 2 p.m. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the Simms Auditorium performance cost $17-$59. Due to scheduling conflicts, the Sunday performance had to be scheduled at Simms, rather than the NMSO’s regular Sunday venue at the National Hispanic Cultural Center. NMSO Board names Kenneth Hopper as executive director The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra Board of Trustees named Kenneth Hopper as the institution’s new executive director at a meeting Oct. 16 in Albuquerque. Hopper has served in the position on an interim basis since Sept. 1 following former executive director Kevin Hagen’s departure. Hopper joined the NMSO as general manager in February 2006, coming here from the Thousand Oaks, Calf.-based New West Symphony, where he had served as executive director for three years. Previous positions he has held include a music professorship at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, ten years as freelance pianist in New York and in other capacities as an arts organization executive. Hagen announced his resignation June 7. He held the executive director’s position since 1997. He cited a desire to “move on and explore other opportunities” as his reason for leaving the NMSO. NMSO’S ‘MOZART AND MASTERS’ EXPLORES GREAT WORKS NOV. 17-18-19 The New Mexico Symphony Orchestra is proud to present a the new Mozart festival, called Mozart and Masters, Nov 17, 18 and 19 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Journal Theatre. The Nov. 17 performance will feature Mozart’s Symphony No. 25, Bach’s Concerto for Violin and Oboe—with David Felberg on violin and Melissa Peña on oboe) and Schubert’s Symphony No. 5. The Nov. 18 program will present Haydn’s Symphony No. 31, Bach’s Brandenberg Concerto No. 2—with Valerie Potter on flute, Kevin Vigneau on oboe and Krzysztof Zimowski on violin) and Mozart’s Symphony No. 36. The Nov. 19 program, a chamber music concert, will feature Mozart’s Piano Quartet in G minor, Beethoven’s Septet in E-flat Major, featuring Guillermo Figueroa on violin, Kimberly Fredenburgh on viola, Carol Pinkerton on cello, Jean-Luc Matton on bass viol, Stephanie Przbylska on bassoon and Peter Ulfers, horn. Tickets to these and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Mozart festival performances cost $16-$45. This will be the NMSO’s eighth Mozart festival. Usually a once-a-year event taking place in January, this season’s festival was moved back to November so as to take place during the NMSO’s absence from Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. Popejoy will, at that time, be engaged with the major touring production of Phantom of the Opera, and will not perform any concerts at Popejoy between Oct. 13 and Dec. 1. Phantom is not an NMSO production, and the NMSO does not sell tickets to it. ‘LORD OF THE RINGS’ SYMPHONY KICKS OFF ALL-NEW NMSO FANTASY SERIES OCT. 28-29 Over a three-year period, composer Howard Shore combined orchestra, chorus, unique instruments from around the world and a powerful emotional tonality with the unforgettable story and characters Peter Jackson’s Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings films to create one of the greatest and most moving film scores ever performed by an orchestra. Now, for the first time since two sold-out performances in 2004, New Mexico audiences will be able to experience a two-hour journey into the magical world of J.R R. Tolkien's Middle-earth on Oct. 28 and 29 with two performances of Shore’s monumental composition of music from the award-winning trilogy--The Lord of the Rings Symphony: Six Movements for Orchestra and Chorus. This spectacular work will be presented at the Kiva Auditorium of the Albuquerque Convention Center by 200 performers comprised of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, the University of New Mexico Concert Choir directed by Bradley Ellingboe, four solo singers and the Albuquerque Boy Choir directed by Ed Torrez, all conducted by Erik Ochsner. The choruses will sing in the Elvish language, and members of the orchestra will play such diverse and unusual instruments as Irish and Hardanger fiddles, percussion from various Asian cultures, musette, hammered dulcimer, as well as Irish whistles and pan flutes. With 200 musical performers and enhanced by production images from the Lord of the Rings films, these performances will make for a truly breathtaking musical experience. The featured images are original concept and storyboard artwork from the films by artists Alan Lee and John Howe. Projected on a large screen, they will chronologically align with the music as the story of the Frodo Baggins and his fellow hobbits’ journey from the peaceful Shire to the dreaded land of Mordor unfolds. “This Lord of the Rings Symphony is a two-hour piece based on the 12 hours of music I wrote for the three films,” said Howard Shore in 2004. “It takes a concert audience through the story of the Lord of the Rings in a narrative way, using the choirs and their singing.” Shore is one of Hollywood’s most prolific composers with more than 60 movie scores, including The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia, Gangs of New York, King Kong, and A History of Violence. He is also well known as the former bandleader on Saturday Night Live. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Lord of the Rings Symphony cost $18-$54. The NMSO Fantasy Series continues Nov. 4 with Star Trek: A 40th Anniversary Celebration, with original Star Trek cast members Walter Koenig and George Takei sharing their memories and giving dramatic presentations, with the NMSO providing music from the Star Trek series and films. The NMSO Fantasy Series concludes for the season with the music of Harry Potter, Feb. 24-25, 2007. The Star Trek and Harry Potter programs also take place at the Kiva Auditorium. NMSO PAYS TRIBUTE TO WORLD Just ahead of the release of the newest James Bond film, Casino Royale, the NMSO Pops and conductor Michael Krajewski will perform music from the Bond films, as well as other film music favorites, at James Bond and Beyond, Oct. 13, 8 p.m., at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus. The program will feature music from Bond films such as Goldfinger, You Only Live Twice, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, A View to a Kill and Diamonds Are Forever. The concert will also feature music from spy, detective and superhero stories such as Mission: Impossible, Peter Gunn, Pink Panther, Batman, Spider-Man and more. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets cost $16-$52. PIANIST NATASHA PAREMSKI RETURNS TO PERFORM WITH NMSO SEPT. 29-30-OCT. 1 After being called “beautifully passionate” by the Albuquerque Journal in her performance with the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra last season, pianist Natasha Paremski returns to stages in Albuquerque in three performances with the NMSO Sept. 29, 30 and Oct. 1. The program will include Paremski and the NMSO, conducted by NMSO Music Director Guillermo Figueroa, performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20. The NMSO Chorus, directed by Roger Melone and conducted by Figueroa, will also join with the NMSO for Berlioz’ Te Deum in all three performances. The Sept. 29 and 30 performances will take place at Popejoy Hall on the University of New Mexico campus, with Friday’s performance beginning at 8 p.m. and Saturday’s starting at 6 p.m. The Oct. 1 concert will take place at 2 p.m. at the National Hispanic Cultural Center’s Journal Theatre. Only 18 years old, Paremski was recently named as a winner of the Gilmore Young Artist Award for 2006, and has already charmed many audiences throughout both Europe and the United States. Recent engagements have included performances with the San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, (Denver) Colorado Symphony, Houston Symphony, New York Youth Symphony at Carnegie Hall, San Diego Symphony, the Orpheum Foundation for the Advancement of Young Soloists (with the Tonhalle Orchestra in Zurich), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, recitals in Seattle at the Schloss Elmau and Verbier festivals and on the Gilmore Rising Stars Series. The prestigious Gilmore award is the most recent of a long list of accolades awarded to this young virtuoso pianist, who was described by BBC Music Magazine as having “flawless technique and unstoppable energy.” The Moscow-born Paremski made her professional debut at age nine with the El Camino (Calif.) Youth Symphony. At the age of fifteen, she debuted with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and recorded two discs on the Bel Air Music Label with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra under Dmitry Yablonsky, the first featuring Anton Rubinstein’s Piano Concerto No. 4 coupled with Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and the second album featuring all of Chopin’s shorter works for piano and orchestra. This concert also features the season debut of the NMSO Chorus, fresh off their triumphant performance with the Rochester (N.Y.) Philharmonic at the Bravo Vail Valley (Colo.) Music Festival. Tickets to this and other NMSO events are available online at NMSO.org, by calling (505) 881-8999 or in-person at the Symphony Store at 4407 Menaul NE (at Washington) in Albuquerque. Tickets for the Popejoy performances cost $11-$57, while tickets to the NHCC Journal Theatre performance cost $17-$59. |
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