The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra announced the
remainder of its 2014-15 season, today, which will incorporate five
family-friendly OrKIDStra Concerts, two 3-concert
Sunday Matinee series, and five special concerts, including a performance from
Tony Award-winner Audra McDonald, and a night of video game scores with Video
Games Live.
In February, the RPO announced its 2014-15
Philharmonics and Pops concerts, along with news that the organization will
change its approach to programming, setting 12 weekends of Philharmonics
offerings instead of the usual 14, and 9 Pops weekends instead of 10. In that
announcement, the RPO said the change “[opens] up three weekends for a set of
innovative and new concert offering.”
The five special concerts announced today are a
result of that repurposed schedule, the RPO says in today’s release.
Along with Video Games Live — Friday, Nov. 21 at
Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre — and Audra McDonald — who will perform with the
RPO on Saturday, Jan. 17, 2015 — the special concert series will also feature Beyond
the Score: “Scheherazade,” part of Chicago Symphony’s Beyond the Score series,
on Saturday, Nov. 22. On Jan. 15, 2015, the RPO presents a production of
Lawrence Siegel’s “Kaddish,” in commemoration of the
70th anniversary of the beginnings to liberation of Nazi concentration camps
during World War II. A performance of Verdi’s “La Traviata”
ends the special concert series on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2015.
Beginning Sunday, Oct. 19, with a performance of
“Superheroes and Heroines,” the OrKIDStra Concerts
will offer families a chance for Sunday afternoons filled with music. The
series will include “The Snowman,” on Dec. 14, “The Young Person’s Guide to the
Orchestra,” on Jan. 25, “Peter and the Wolf,” on March 29, and “Two by Seuss!”
on May 17.
Adding to its Sunday offerings, the RPO will host
two 3-concert series — “Musical Connections” and “Baroque and Beyond” — at the
Performance Hall at Hochstein. See the release below for full details.
Subscriptions to OrKIDStra
and Sunday Matinees are available now to new and renewing subscribers, and
tickets for Specials are now available as add-ons to all 2014-2015 subscribers.
Single tickets for all concerts go on sale to the
general public on Friday, August 1.
The full RPO announcement follows:
RPO ANNOUNCES PART TWO OF 2014/15 SEASON:
SPECIALS, ORKIDSTRA
& SUNDAY MATINEES
Highlights include Audra McDonald, Video Games
LiveTM
Rochester, NY –
The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) announced its 2014-15 Philharmonics and Pops concerts in
February, but today reveals the remainder of its 92nd season,
presented by Dawn & Jacques Lipson. Subscriptions to OrKIDStraandSunday Matinees
are available today to new and renewing subscribers, and tickets for Specials
are now available as add-ons to all 14/15 subscribers. Single tickets for all
14/15 concerts go on sale to the general public on Friday, August 1, 2014.
“We are proud to
announce our 14/15 Special, OrKIDStra
and Sunday Matinee concerts,” says RPO President and CEO Charles Owens. “The new
Special Concerts especiallygive us a chance to experiment with program
content and format with an eye toward theRPO’s long-term strategic goals in
audience development and diversity, and we’re confident
that Rochester audiences will enjoy these new concert experiences.”
SPECIAL CONCERTS: these five new concerts are a
result of the repurposed 14/15 subscription weekends (12 Philharmonics instead
of 14; nine Pops weekends instead of 10). Not part of a subscription package,
they are available as add-ons to all 14/15 subscribers today for presale
discount, before going on sale to the general public August 1.
· The
award-winning Video Games LiveTM will
take over Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre on Friday, November 21,
2014 at 8 p.m. This immersive concert event features music from the
most popular video games of all times, including Final Fantasy, Zelda,
Pong, Halo, Mario, Warcraft and more, performed with exclusive video
footage and music arrangements, synchronized lighting, solo performers,
electronic percussionists, live action and unique interactive segments. Video
Games LiveTM creates an
entertainment experience that exposes new generations of music lovers and fans
to the symphonic orchestral experience while also providing a completely new
and unique experience for families and/or non-gamers.
· Part
of the Chicago Symphony’s acclaimed Beyond the Score® series, Beyond
the Score®: Scheherazade on Saturday, November 22,
2014 at 8 p.m.in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre will
explore Rimsky-Korsakov’s exotic masterpiece in a fascinating multimedia
concert that includes video, excerpts and narration. The first half of the
program is a stunning visual presentation that puts the composition into an
important contextual perspective. Then, with new-found background, the complete
performance of the work in the second half brings listeners into the music as
they have never experienced it before. The series weaves together theater,
music and design to draw audiences into the concert hall and into the spirit of
a work.
· Commemorating
the 70th anniversary of the Allied Forces’ liberation of the
World War II Nazi concentration camps that began in January 1945, the RPO presents an intensely moving and
thought-provoking composition entitled Kaddish by
Lawrence Siegel in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre on Thursday, January
15, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. Featuring a libretto drawn verbatim from
interviews with Holocaust survivors, this choral masterpiece also incorporates
elements of folk songs and Klezmer music with vocal
soloists. Visit http://kaddishproject.org/ for more information.
· Five-time
Tony-winner Audra McDonald performs with your RPO on Saturday, January 17,
2015 at 8 p.m. in Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. Known for her roles
on Broadway in Carousel, Master Class, Ragtime, A Raisin in the
Sun and Porgy and Bess–and currently starring in
Broadway’s Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill–McDonald also won TV
fame for Private Practice. With two Grammy Awards and a host
of other accolades, McDonald is “a one-of-a-kind musical
super-talent,” says The New York Times, “…a defining
voice of our time.” A limited number of VIP meet-and-greet packages for
$250 that include front row seating are now available to 14/15 subscribers
(others on August 1).
· A
concert performance of Verdi’s La Traviata rounds
out the 14/15 Special Concerts on Thursday, February 26, 2015 at7:30
p.m. and Saturday, February 28 at 8 p.m. in
Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. Guest conductor
and Rochester native Ward Stare will lead your RPO and guest vocalists in this poignant
and utterly timeless opera that features some of the world’s most unforgettable
arias.
ORKIDSTRA CONCERTS: sponsored by Wendy’s, this series
of five family-friendly concerts is available now to subscribers for $45.
Single tickets ($15 adults/$10 kids) will go on sale August 1.
· Superheroes
and Heroines on Sunday, October 19, 2014 at 2
p.m. in the Performance Hall at Hochstein features iconic music from favorite
superheroes and heroines, including Spider-Man, Superman, Harry
Potter, Captain America and The Incredibles. Plus, our own stars of the RPO showcase tunes from Pirates
of the Caribbean, Star Wars and X-Men.
· The
Snowman returns on Sunday, December 14, 2014 at 2
p.m. in the Performance Hall at Hochstein. Along with live orchestral
accompaniment to the classic animated film on the big screen, a reading of Dr.
Seuss’s beloved tale How the Grinch Stole Christmas!will round out this holiday offering.
· Benjamin
Britten’s masterpiece TheYoung Person’s Guide to
the Orchestra will take kids of all ages on a listening adventure
on Sunday, January 25, 2015 at 2 p.m. in the Performance Hall
at Hochstein. Kids will make and play their own bottle flutes and hosaphones too.
· Prokofiev’s
enchanting symphonic fable Peter and the Wolf weaves
music and narration for a woodland adventure that entertains young and old
alike on Sunday, March 29, 2015 at 2 p.m. in the Performance
Hall at Hochstein. Marlene Pauleyguest conducts and Kevin
Doran, WROC News 8 anchor, narrates this classic story that has delighted
generations of young audiences.
· Two
By Seuss!will
enchant the whole family with two iconic stories from the whimsical world of
Dr. Seuss: that ode to finicky eaters (Green Eggs and Ham)
and the story of a girl bird who learns to like herself just as she is (Gertrude
McFuzz). Concert is Sunday, May 17, 2015 at
2 p.m. in the Performance Hall at Hochstein with guest conductor Robert
Franz.
SUNDAY MATINEE
CONCERTS:theseinclude
two 3-concert series: Musical Connections and Baroque
& Beyond. Series subscriptions are now on sale: the six-concert package
is $136; three-concert package (for either series) is $69. Single tickets go on
saleAugust 1.
· Musical
Connections Series
1)The Passion of
Patriotism on Sunday, September 21, 2014 at 2
p.m. in the Performance Hall at Hochstein:MichaelButterman conducts a program of symphonic
compositions written to celebrate the homelands of famous composers including
Sibelius (Finlandia), Copeland (“Hoe-down”),
Elgar (“Pomp and Circumstance”) and more.
2)Portraits of Film
Music on Sunday, November 2, 2014 at 2 p.m. in
the Performance Hall at Hochstein: Michael Butterman and
your RPO examine the
relationship between music and film (projected above the orchestra) with some
of the most famous examples in history, including John Williams’ score to E.T. and
Bernard Hermann’s music for Psycho, along with sci-fi classic Metropolis and
award-winning scores from recent documentaries.
3)Breaking Musical
Boundaries on Sunday, May 10, 2015 at 2 p.m. in
the Performance Hall at Hochstein: Michael Butterman and
the Orchestra explore the work of musical renegades who saw beyond the confines
of genre to create something unique and unprecedented: Debussy, Stravinsky,
Frank Zappa and more.
· Baroque
& Beyond Series
1)Molière Two Ways on Sunday,
March 22, 2015 at 2 p.m. in the Performance Hall at Hochstein: guest conductorFabien Gabel returns after his
triumphant RPO debut in 2014
to interpret two scores for Molière’s satirical play Le bourgeois gentilhomme (The Middle Class Aristocrat)–Lully’s
original for King Louis XIV and Richard Strauss’ version 200 years later–plus
music by Respighi and Rameau.
2)Organ
Masterworks on Sunday, April 19, 2015 at 2 p.m.
(locationTBD) with special guest organ soloist David Higgs:
hear some of the world’s greatest organ works by J.S. Bach, Howard Hanson,
Samuel Barber and others.
3) An English
Springtime on Sunday, May 31, 2015 at 2 p.m. at
the Performance Hall at Hochstein: guest Conductor Daniel Meyer with
special guests Concentus Women’s
Chorus (Gwen Gassler, director) will trace
the legacy of musical landscape portraits from English composers Thomas Morley,
Vaughan Williams, Handel (“Water Music”) and Haydn (“London” Symphony).
All subscriptions and
subscription add-ons are now available in person at the Eastman Theatre Box
Office (433 East Main Street), by phone at (585) 454-2100, or online at rpo.org. Single tickets
on sale August 1 will also be available at all WegmansThat’s T.H.E. Ticket! outlets.
The 2014-15 Season
sponsors include: Dawn & Jacques Lipson; Canandaigua National Bank &
Trust; Fibertech Networks; M&T Bank;
Wendy’s; County of Monroe; City of Rochester; NYSCA; The Alfred
Davis and Brunhilde Knapp Artists Performance Fund;
The Mozart Performance Fund: Sarah D. Atkinson, M.D. and Steven Hess; and
Katherine T. and Jon L. Schumacher Orchestra Musician Soloist Fund.
The Rochester
Philharmonic Orchestra has been committed to enriching and inspiring
our community through the art of music since its founding in 1922. The RPO presents approximately 150 concerts
and broadcasts a year, serving more than 150,000 people through ticketed
events, education and community engagement activities, and concerts in schools
and community centers throughout the region. Notable former music directors
include Eugene Goossens, José Iturbi, Erich
Leinsdorf, David Zinman, and Conductor Laureate
Christopher Seaman; Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik
has earned a national reputation for excellence in pops programming during his
20-year tenure with the RPO. With
Michael Butterman as Principal Conductor for
Education and Outreach (The Louise and Henry Epstein Family Chair)–the first
endowed position of its kind in the country–the RPO reaches more than 13,000 children through its specific
programs for school-aged children. The RPO’s
2013-14 season highlights include Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik’s 20th anniversary celebration, and a performance at
Carnegie Hall on May 7, 2014, as part of the Spring For Music festival.
This article appears in Apr 16-22, 2014.
