June 11–13
Music Director Lorin Maazel talks about the message behind Britten's haunting War Requiem — with Lionel Bringuier conducting the chamber orchestra, and featuring soprano Nancy Gustafson, tenor Vale Rideout, baritone Ian Greenlaw, the New York Choral Artists, Dessoff Symphonic Choir, and Brooklyn Youth Chorus. Also, Ms. Gustafson discusses her emotional reaction when performing this work.
Published on: June 4, 2009
June 4–9
Principal Clarinet Stanley Drucker reflects on performing Copland's soulful Clarinet Concerto as he ends his unprecedented 60-year tenure with the Orchestra; Music Director Lorin Maazel discusses featuring Philharmonic musicians as soloists in J.S. Bach's warmhearted Fourth Brandenburg Concerto; Mark Travis explores Haydn's charming Trumpet Concerto, featuring Principal Trumpet Philip Smith; and Philharmonic Director of Education Theodore Wiprud describes what makes Ravel's Boléro the most dramatic piece in the orchestral repertoire.
Published on: May 28, 2009
May 14–16
Finnish conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen talks about how he went from disliking his fellow countryman, Sibelius, as a composer, to greatly admiring his work — including his masterful Symphony No. 5, in which David Zinman will lead the New York Philharmonic for the concerts of May 14–16.
Published on: May 7, 2009
May 7–9
Mark Travis explores the tortured origins of Mahler's Blumine and Symphony No. 1; Peter Lieberson discusses the diverse literary and spiritual inspirations behind his New York Philharmonic Commission The World in Flower; and mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato expresses her excitement over joining baritone Russell Braun in the World Premiere of Lieberson's piece.
Published on: May 1, 2009
April 30–May 5
New York Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller discusses Dvořák's tone poem The Golden Spinning Wheel and why Martinů's optimistic Symphony No. 4 is very much a work of our time, and Philharmonic Director of Education Theodore Wiprud reflects on what makes Saint-Saëns's pyrotechnic Third Violin Concerto an exciting vehicle for virtuoso Joshua Bell.
Published on: April 24, 2009
April 22–25
Mark Travis explores conductor Riccardo Muti's all-Italian program, which features Verdi's rarely heard Overture to Giovanna d'Arco and graceful Ballet of the Four Seasons, from Les Vêpres siciliennes; Puccini's gorgeous Preludio sinfonico; and Respighi's evocative tone poem Pines of Rome.
Published on: April 9, 2009
April 15–18
Matías Tarnopolsky, New York Philharmonic Vice President of Artistic Planning, expresses his excitement over virtuoso Mitsuko Uchida performing Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major – one of the masterpieces of the 20th century – and Theodore Wiprud, Philharmonic Director of Education, explains why, as a listener, he never wants Schubert's Great Symphony in C major to end.
Published on: April 3, 2009
April 2–4
New York Philharmonic Vice President of Artistic Planning Matías Tarnopolsky talks about Stravinsky's Bach-inspired Dumbarton Oaks Concerto in E-flat; Prokofiev's searching and mysterious Violin Concerto No. 2, featuring Lisa Batiashvili; and Tchaikovsky's momentous Symphony No. 5.
Published on: March 31, 2009
March 26-28
Conductor Nicholas McGegan discusses his upcoming all-Handel program with the New York Philharmonic, which features the composer's Concerto a due cori No. 3 in F major, soprano Christine Schäfer singing arias from three of his operas — Partenope, Alcina, and Giulio Cesare — the Concerto Grosso in C major, and Music for the Royal Fireworks.
Published on: March 20, 2009
March 18–21
Composer Avner Dorman discusses his exciting work Spices, Perfumes, Toxins! — which is receiving its U.S. premiere and features dynamic percussion duo PercaDu — and the Philharmonic's Vice President of Artistic Planning, Matías Tarnopolsky, talks about conductor Zubin Mehta's brilliant pairing of Dorman's work with Bartók's percussive masterpiece, Concerto for Orchestra.
Published on: March 6, 2009
March 13–14
Philharmonic oboe d'amorist Thomas Stacy discusses performing Telemann's virtuosic Concerto in A major under the baton of Music Director Lorin Maazel, Concertmaster Glenn Dicterow talks about the joys of playing Bruch's heart-melting Violin Concerto in G minor, and Elliott Forrest explores Mendelssohn's spirited Overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream and Mussorgsky's evocative Pictures at an Exhibition.
Published on: February 26, 2009
February 4–7, 2009
Violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter discusses her love of Mendelssohn's passionate and enduringly popular Violin Concerto, and Elliott Forrest explores Mendelssohn's fiery Overture to Ruy Blas and mysterious Die erste Walpurgisnacht (The First Walpurgis Night).
Published on: January 27, 2009
January 29–31, 2009
Conductor Riccardo Muti discusses how Scriabin's own personality as well as his many influences can be heard in his masterful Symphony No. 2, and Matías Tarnopolsky, Vice President of Artistic Planning, expresses the Philharmonic's excitement over Radu Lupu performing Beethoven's pivotal Piano Concerto No. 3.
Published on: January 22, 2009
January 22–27, 2009
Bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff talks about performing arias from Haydn's Armida and L'anima del filosofo ossia Orfeo ed Euridice; Matías Tarnopolsky, Philharmonic Vice President of Artistic Planning, discusses why he is delighted that the concerts will open with Haydn's Symphony No. 89; and Mark Travis looks at Brahms's exquisite Serenade No. 1.
Published on: January 13, 2009
January 15–20, 2009
New York Philharmonic Director of Education Theodore Wiprud talks with Elliott Forrest about Oliver Knussen's colorful Violin Concerto, performed by Pinchas Zukerman, Mahler's emotional Symphony No. 5, and the return to the Philharmonic of the dynamic conductor Gustavo Dudamel.
Published on: January 12, 2009
January 8–10, 2009
Conductor Ludovic Morlot and pianist Olli Mustonen talk about the French-inspired program, which features the U.S. Premiere of Tristan Murail's Gondwana, Messiaen's ingenious Oiseaux exotiques, and Debussy's evocative La Mer, in addition to Mozart's joyous yet rarely performed Piano Concerto in F major.
Published on: January 5, 2009
January 2-6, 2009
James M. Keller, New York Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence, discusses the particular challenges of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 2, while Mark Travis explores Mussorgsky's masterpiece Pictures at an Exhibition as well as Szymanowski's Symphonie concertante and Richard Strauss's Burleske – both featuring piano virtuoso Emanuel Ax.
Published on: December 22, 2008
December 17-20, 2008
New York Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller talks with Elliott Forrest about why Handel's 1741 masterpiece, Messiah, is an enduring favorite, and why audience members may leap to their feet during the work's glorious "Hallelujah" chorus.
Published on: December 11, 2008
December 11-12, 2008
New York Philharmonic Principal Horn Philip Myers explains why Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 2 is always a treat for concertgoers; Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller talks about the mysterious second movement of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3; Director of Education Theodore Wiprud reflects on Falla's passionate El amor brujo; and Mark Travis discusses how Prokofiev came to write his Piano Concerto No. 4 for left hand, performed in these concerts by Leon Fleisher.
Published on: December 9, 2008
December 4–13, 2008
Music Director Lorin Maazel talks about his incredible love for opera and how symphony orchestras love to wrestle with a great score like R. Strauss's Elektra, while Elliott Forrest explores the story behind the opera, based on the Greek tragedy by Sophocles.
Published on: November 18, 2008
December 8, 2008
Gilbert Kaplan discusses leading the New York Philharmonic in Mahler's Symphony No. 2, Resurrection — featuring soprano Christiane Oelze, mezzo-soprano Janina Baechle, and the Westminster Symphonic Choir — on the one-hundredth anniversary of the work's U.S. premiere, while Elliott Forrest explores the individual movements of the monumental work.
Published on: December 3, 2008
November 25–29, 2008
New York Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller discusses the distinct personality of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 1; Music Director Lorin Maazel talks about how the Orchestra's season-long presentation of the Brandenburg Concertos spotlights the virtuosic talents of the Philharmonic's musicians; and Mark Travis explores Mozart's Turkish Violin Concerto, featuring Julia Fischer, and how Schumann's Symphony No. 4 rebounded from a disastrous premiere in 1841.
Published on: November 10, 2008
November 20–22, 2008
Cellist Alisa Weilerstein reflects on the dark language in Penderecki's gripping but accessible Second Cello Concerto; New York Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller talks about J.S. Bach's buoyant Sixth Brandenburg Concerto; and Mark Travis looks at Beethoven's immortal Symphony No. 5, which the Philharmonic performed in its first concert, in 1842.
Published on: October 30, 2008
November 12–15, 2008
Violinist Gil Shaham talks about the pleasure of performing Khachaturian's spectacular Violin Concerto, a piece he grew up listening to; Matías Tarnopolsky, the Philharmonic's Vice President of Artistic Planning, discusses Lyadov's tone poem Kikimora and Giya Kancheli's alluring Abii ne viderem; and Elliott Forrest explores Stravinsky's dramatic 1919 suite from his ballet score The Firebird.
Published on: October 30, 2008
November 5–8, 2008
Elliott Forrest explores Bruckner's powerful and dramatic Ninth Symphony, which the composer was working on up until his death, while music commentator Charles Zachary Bornstein discusses how Beethoven, emerging from Mozart's shadow, asserts his own originality in his Piano Concerto No. 1, performed in these concerts by pianist Lang Lang.
Published on: October 17, 2008
October 30, 31, and November 1, 2008
Conductor David Robertson returns to the New York Philharmonic to lead the Orchestra in works by four American composers: the ballet Appalachian Spring by Aaron Copland; Of Rewaking, featuring mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung, by Elliott Carter — who reflects on his composing habits as he approaches his 100th birthday; Symphony No. 1, Jeremiah, also featuring Ms. DeYoung, by Leonard Bernstein; and Rapture by Christopher Rouse — which, the composer explains, is the most blissful and ecstatic of his works.
Published on: October 14, 2008
October 23, 24, 25, and 28, 2008
New York Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller discusses Mozart's dazzling Symphony No 34 – the last of the composer's Salzburg symphonies; music commentator Charles Zachary Bornstein explores the folk elements in Bartók's melodic Second Violin Concerto, featuring Leonidas Kavakos; and host Elliott Forrest talks about Brahms's magnificent and moody Symphony No. 3.
Published on: October 3, 2008
October 16, 17, 18, and 21, 2008
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos leads the New York Philharmonic in two passionate and transporting Spanish masterworks: Albéniz's Suite española (featuring selections set to Frühbeck's own orchestrations), and Falla's opera La vida breve, presented here in a semi-staged version starring a dynamic international cast.
Published on: September 30, 2008
October 7 and 11, 2008
Conductor Marin Alsop discusses Bartók's adult fairy tale, The Wooden Prince Suite, Chopin's glorious Piano Concerto No. 2, featuring Rafał Blechacz in his New York Philharmonic debut, and Dvořák's evocative and always popular Symphony No. 9, From the New World, which was given its World Premiere by the Orchestra in 1893.
Published on: September 18, 2008
October 1-2, 2008
Special Video Podcast: Rands' CHAINS LIKE THE SEA
From nature to poetry, composer Bernard Rands finds inspiration all around him. Learn more about his muse and what to expect of his CHAINS LIKE THE SEA.
Published on: September 25, 2008
October 1-2, 2008
Composer Bernard Rands discusses his new work, a Philharmonic Commission titled CHAINS LIKE THE SEA, inspired by the Dylan Thomas poem "Fern Hill"; Philharmonic Program Annotator and Leonard Bernstein Scholar-in-Residence James M. Keller explores how Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 is the starting point of the great piano concerto tradition; and Music Director Lorin Maazel reflects on the brilliant orchestration of Tchaikovsky's popular Suite No. 3.
Published on: September 11, 2008
September 25–27, 2008
Lorin Maazel and others discuss the program of works by past Philharmonic Music Directors — Gustav Mahler's Adagio from Symphony No. 10, Pierre Boulez's Pli selon Pli: Improvisation II sur Mallarmé, and Leonard Bernstein's Symphony No. 2, The Age of Anxiety — as well as Mr. Maazel's own Music for Flute and Orchestra, with Tenor Tuba Obbligato.
Published on: September 5, 2008
September 18-20 & 23, 2008
Special Video Podcast: Steven Stucky's Rhapsodies
Composer Steven Stucky discusses how the limitations put on commissions can spur creativity. This video reveals the story behind his Rhapsodies for Orchestra, receiving its U.S. premiere in Philharmonic concerts on September 18-20 & 23, 2008.
Published on: September 12, 2008
September 18, 19, 20, and 23, 2008
Mark Travis explores Rachmaninoff's passionate and jaw-dropping Piano Concerto No. 3, featuring Yefim Bronfman; Ravel's endearing Mother Goose Suite; and Bartók's lurid Miraculous Mandarin Suite, while Lorin Maazel – as he enters his valedictory season as Music Director – reflects on his fondness for the Philharmonic and discusses the music of Steven Stucky, whose Rhapsodies for Orchestra will receive its U.S. premiere in these performances.
Published on: August 28, 2008
September 17, 2008
Sir James Galway talks about Ibert's challenging Flute Concerto – with its gorgeous, requiem-like second movement – while Elliott Forrest discusses Berlioz's festive Roman Carnival Overture and music commentator Charles Zachary Bornstein provides a detailed look at Tchaikovsky's stormy Symphony No. 4.
Published on: August 26, 2008
