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ALAN GILBERT, MUSIC DIRECTOR DESIGNATE OF THE NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC, IS SET TO CONDUCT THE FINAL CONCERTS OF HIS EIGHT-YEAR TENURE AS CHIEF CONDUCTOR AND ARTISTIC ADVISOR OF THE ROYAL STOCKHOLM PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
GUSTAV MAHLER'S TRANSCENDENT NINTH SYMPHONY WILL BE THE SOLE WORK ON THE PROGRAM FOR CONCERTS ON JUNE 5 AND 7
AFTER STOCKHOLM, GILBERT HEADS TO JAPAN FOR THE "MUSIC MASTERS COURSE IN KAZUSA" BEFORE RETURNING TO THE U.S. FOR CONCERTS WITH THE NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC IN TWO CITY PARKS AND AT THE BRAVO!-VAIL VALLEY MUSIC FESTIVAL IN COLORADO
New York-born conductor Alan Gilbert took up his position as Chief Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra in January 2000. Now, eight and a half remarkable years later, Gilbert prepares to conduct the final program of his tenure there, two performances of Mahler's Ninth Symphony that will take place on Thursday, June 5 and Saturday, June 7. The Saturday performance will take place at 3 pm and will be followed in the evening by a festive dinner party in Gilbert's honor that will be held in the Grünewald Hall of the Stockholm Concert Hall.
With their enormous scope, philosophical depth, and broad emotional range, many of Mahler's symphonies would be suitable for such an occasion. The Austrian composer's valedictory Ninth, with its atmosphere of leave-taking and transcendence, will no doubt provide a deeply affecting experience for Gilbert and the musicians of the orchestra, as well as for the audience. Luckily for those who will not be in attendance, the BIS label will be on hand to record the performances.
Stefan Forsberg, Executive and Artistic Director of the RSPO, comments: "The Gilbert period in Stockholm will be remembered as one of the most important in the history of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra. The recording of Mahler's Ninth Symphony will give us an opportunity to show the world the high artistic level obtained in the cooperation between Gilbert and the orchestra."
With a mixture of acclaimed performances, compelling programming and extensive touring – including the orchestra's first performances at New York's Carnegie Hall in more than two decades – Gilbert and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra achieved great success together, both locally and on the international stage. Together they championed Swedish composers – such as Allan Pettersson, Daniel Börtz, Hugo Alfvén, and Anders Hillborg – and offered intensive composer festivals that have explored the music of contemporary masters such as Henri Dutilleux, Hans Werner Henze, and John Adams. In the current season, they explored a wide range of repertoire, from Handel's Royal Fireworks to Christopher Rouse's Rapture; and from orchestral music from Tristan und Isolde and Der Rosenkavalier to rollicking American works by Bernstein and Copland. In April they performed Messiaen's kaleidoscopic Turangalîla-symphonie, and in the fall they performed Benjamin Britten's seminal War Requiem.
It was nearly a year ago – July 18, 2007 to be exact – that the New York Philharmonic announced that Alan Gilbert would be its 25th Music Director, beginning in the 2009-10 season. Gilbert will be one of the youngest music directors in the history of the orchestra, and the first native New Yorker to hold the post.
Soon after Stockholm
After the June concerts in Stockholm, Gilbert will head to Japan where he will oversee the Music Masters Course in Kazusa (Kazusa is a scientific research center, an hour outside Tokyo). MMCK is a chamber music festival and school co-founded by Gilbert in the early 1990s, when the initial program, "Music from Curtis," brought students and faculty over to Japan for cross-cultural music making. Today, the three-week festival features faculty drawn from the world's leading orchestras of the world – including the Vienna Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic – who work and perform with students from both Japan and around the world. While most of the coaching and performances focus intensely on chamber music, the students – who pay no tuition and whose travel and housing expenses are covered – also gain orchestral experience playing alongside the remarkable roster of world-class musicians.
Alan Gilbert is back in the U.S. in July, heading first to Colorado's Aspen Music Festival, where he will play viola in two chamber music concerts and conduct the Aspen Festival Orchestra. Immediately after, he heads back to his hometown to conduct the New York Philharmonic in Manhattan's Central Park and Brooklyn's Prospect Park, before returning to Colorado to lead the NYPO in two concerts in its summer home at the Bravo!-Vail Valley Music Festival. Dates and program details follow.
Alan Gilbert: Upcoming Performances
Jun 5, 7: Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra – Mahler: Symphony No. 9 (Stockholm, Sweden)
Jul 3, 5: Chamber music performances at the Aspen Music Festival (Aspen, Colorado)
Jul 6: Aspen Music Festival Orchestra – Hillborg: Eleven Gates; Dvorák: Violin Concerto in A minor; Ravel: Alborada del gracioso and Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2
Jul 14: New York Philharmonic – Bach: Concerto for two Violins in D minor; Beethoven: Symphony No. 4; Sibelius: Finlandia (Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY)
Jul 15: New York Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphony No. 4: Sibelius: Finlandia; Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 with Lang Lang (Central Park, NYC)
Jul 18: New York Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphony No. 4: Sibelius: Finlandia; Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 with Lang Lang (Bravo!-Vail Valley Music Festival, Colorado)
Jul 19: New York Philharmonic – Berlioz: "Roman Carnival" Overture; Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No. 1 with Heinrich Schiff; R. Strauss: Ein Heldenleben (Bravo!-Vail Valley Music Festival, Colorado)
# # #
GUSTAV MAHLER'S TRANSCENDENT NINTH SYMPHONY WILL BE THE SOLE WORK ON THE PROGRAM FOR CONCERTS ON JUNE 5 AND 7
AFTER STOCKHOLM, GILBERT HEADS TO JAPAN FOR THE "MUSIC MASTERS COURSE IN KAZUSA" BEFORE RETURNING TO THE U.S. FOR CONCERTS WITH THE NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC IN TWO CITY PARKS AND AT THE BRAVO!-VAIL VALLEY MUSIC FESTIVAL IN COLORADO
New York-born conductor Alan Gilbert took up his position as Chief Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra in January 2000. Now, eight and a half remarkable years later, Gilbert prepares to conduct the final program of his tenure there, two performances of Mahler's Ninth Symphony that will take place on Thursday, June 5 and Saturday, June 7. The Saturday performance will take place at 3 pm and will be followed in the evening by a festive dinner party in Gilbert's honor that will be held in the Grünewald Hall of the Stockholm Concert Hall.
With their enormous scope, philosophical depth, and broad emotional range, many of Mahler's symphonies would be suitable for such an occasion. The Austrian composer's valedictory Ninth, with its atmosphere of leave-taking and transcendence, will no doubt provide a deeply affecting experience for Gilbert and the musicians of the orchestra, as well as for the audience. Luckily for those who will not be in attendance, the BIS label will be on hand to record the performances.
Stefan Forsberg, Executive and Artistic Director of the RSPO, comments: "The Gilbert period in Stockholm will be remembered as one of the most important in the history of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra. The recording of Mahler's Ninth Symphony will give us an opportunity to show the world the high artistic level obtained in the cooperation between Gilbert and the orchestra."
With a mixture of acclaimed performances, compelling programming and extensive touring – including the orchestra's first performances at New York's Carnegie Hall in more than two decades – Gilbert and the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra achieved great success together, both locally and on the international stage. Together they championed Swedish composers – such as Allan Pettersson, Daniel Börtz, Hugo Alfvén, and Anders Hillborg – and offered intensive composer festivals that have explored the music of contemporary masters such as Henri Dutilleux, Hans Werner Henze, and John Adams. In the current season, they explored a wide range of repertoire, from Handel's Royal Fireworks to Christopher Rouse's Rapture; and from orchestral music from Tristan und Isolde and Der Rosenkavalier to rollicking American works by Bernstein and Copland. In April they performed Messiaen's kaleidoscopic Turangalîla-symphonie, and in the fall they performed Benjamin Britten's seminal War Requiem.
It was nearly a year ago – July 18, 2007 to be exact – that the New York Philharmonic announced that Alan Gilbert would be its 25th Music Director, beginning in the 2009-10 season. Gilbert will be one of the youngest music directors in the history of the orchestra, and the first native New Yorker to hold the post.
Soon after Stockholm
After the June concerts in Stockholm, Gilbert will head to Japan where he will oversee the Music Masters Course in Kazusa (Kazusa is a scientific research center, an hour outside Tokyo). MMCK is a chamber music festival and school co-founded by Gilbert in the early 1990s, when the initial program, "Music from Curtis," brought students and faculty over to Japan for cross-cultural music making. Today, the three-week festival features faculty drawn from the world's leading orchestras of the world – including the Vienna Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic – who work and perform with students from both Japan and around the world. While most of the coaching and performances focus intensely on chamber music, the students – who pay no tuition and whose travel and housing expenses are covered – also gain orchestral experience playing alongside the remarkable roster of world-class musicians.
Alan Gilbert is back in the U.S. in July, heading first to Colorado's Aspen Music Festival, where he will play viola in two chamber music concerts and conduct the Aspen Festival Orchestra. Immediately after, he heads back to his hometown to conduct the New York Philharmonic in Manhattan's Central Park and Brooklyn's Prospect Park, before returning to Colorado to lead the NYPO in two concerts in its summer home at the Bravo!-Vail Valley Music Festival. Dates and program details follow.
Alan Gilbert: Upcoming Performances
Jun 5, 7: Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra – Mahler: Symphony No. 9 (Stockholm, Sweden)
Jul 3, 5: Chamber music performances at the Aspen Music Festival (Aspen, Colorado)
Jul 6: Aspen Music Festival Orchestra – Hillborg: Eleven Gates; Dvorák: Violin Concerto in A minor; Ravel: Alborada del gracioso and Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2
Jul 14: New York Philharmonic – Bach: Concerto for two Violins in D minor; Beethoven: Symphony No. 4; Sibelius: Finlandia (Prospect Park, Brooklyn, NY)
Jul 15: New York Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphony No. 4: Sibelius: Finlandia; Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 with Lang Lang (Central Park, NYC)
Jul 18: New York Philharmonic – Beethoven: Symphony No. 4: Sibelius: Finlandia; Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 with Lang Lang (Bravo!-Vail Valley Music Festival, Colorado)
Jul 19: New York Philharmonic – Berlioz: "Roman Carnival" Overture; Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No. 1 with Heinrich Schiff; R. Strauss: Ein Heldenleben (Bravo!-Vail Valley Music Festival, Colorado)