Month: May 2017

Lyman McBride reports from Curtis on Tour in London

Date

What’s it like riding in a London cab? Three of us enter the back seat, two in the regular seats you would expect to see in the back of a car, and me in a chair that pulls down like the handicapped chairs on the “L” in Philly. We shout to the driver, “take us to Cadogan Hall!” The driver apparently has no idea where it is, but in London, when people get in your cab, you drive. We’re immediately moving. We keep trying to explain where the hall is, and he heads generally in the right direction. At each stop he asks other cab drivers about it. At a certain point the cab carrying the other half of our load-in crew pulls up on the side. “Hey, have you figured out where this Cadogan Hall is?” barks our cab driver. The response just as quick: “Yeah I’m just lookin’ it up right now. It looks like it’s at the bottom of Sloane Square.” The light turns green and we are off again. We reach our destination in no time, we exit the cab and pay, and we are at the hall for the rehearsal.

What’s it like entering a museum in London? I can’t speak for the British Museum, or any of the other famous museums. I can’t even speak for the Victoria and Albert Museum on any day other than the Friday of our concert. The museum stays open late on Fridays and apparently has a strong following. I only have 20 minutes before I must return to Cadogan Hall for our concert. I dodge people perched on the steps and enter the doors, finding myself immediately engulfed in sound. In front of me is a string of people handing out maps and pamphlets and checking bags. Patrons pointing, and figuring out where to go. And on top of it all jazz-rock music blares over the loudspeakers. I enter and turn left. As I pass a few exhibits rather quickly, a sign, “Raphael,” catches my eye. I enter and a high ceiling towers above me. Gigantic paintings on the wall stare down from 20 feet up. To my right are 30 people on yoga mats with an instructor at the head leading a class. I smile and slowly look around. The room is a collection of cartoons—preliminary paintings—that Raphael used to design tapestries for the Sistine Chapel. The content is the Biblical book of the Acts of the Apostles, which my wife and I are currently studying. Later, when we talk online, I realize that Raphael’s vision of these familiar scenes has changed my own.

This experience feels positive to me. I have often thought about the presentation of classical music to modern audiences. Do you think the Victoria and Albert Museum would be nearly so well frequented if you had to show up exactly at 8 p.m. for a two-hour tour of a single exhibit? During the tour you are not allowed to talk, take pictures, eat anything, drink anything, move loudly, or laugh. So much as coughing will draw scornful faces. You are expected to look at the pictures and read your program which has some information about them, and like it. I have often thought of a concert hall as a museum for these classic and great musical artworks. But our presentation is far too stuffy. We need to continue moving in the direction of more yoga nights, more movie nights, more accessible lectures before and after, more talking during performances, more eating and drinking. People should enjoy the experience 21st-century style, not have to step back into a 150-year-old experience.

Trombonist Lyman McBride entered Curtis in 2016 and holds the Susan and Frank Mechura Annual Fellowship.

Curtis Symphony Orchestra Tours Europe, Appearing in Finland, Germany, England, Austria and Poland May 20-June 2

Date

PHILADELPHIA—May 15, 2017—Audiences across Europe will hear the exceptional student performers of the Curtis Institute of Music as part of an ambitious touring project from May 20 to June 2. The Curtis Symphony Orchestra, led by Osmo Vänskä, embarks on the school’s largest orchestra tour in over 15 years, visiting Helsinki, Bremen, Berlin, Dresden, London, Salzburg, Vienna, and Wroclaw and Luslawice in Poland. These performances are part of Curtis on Tour, the Nina von Maltzahn global touring initiative of the Curtis Institute of Music, an embodiment of the school’s “learn by doing” philosophy that offers students real-world, professional touring experience alongside celebrated alumni and faculty. 

Osmo Vänskä, music director of the Minnesota Orchestra, comments, “I am delighted by the commitment of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra and look forward to working with these remarkable young musicians. A major tour is an investment in these musicians, where they will experience firsthand how to properly prepare as a professional musician in an orchestra tour setting. Curtis on Tour, because of the way it embraces every area of experience both on and off stage, is vital to the development of its musicians and understanding the changing environment of each concert venue to produce the highest quality performances. I think this is a bold and exciting project which I am sure will capture the imagination and inspire our audiences on tour.”

The orchestra makes its London debut on May 26 at Cadogan Hall, with celebrated pianist Peter Serkin (’64) as soloist in Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 1. Serkin also performs the concerto in several other cities on the tour. Of the upcoming tour, Serkin comments, “I had the pleasure of teaching very fine students at Curtis, and now I look forward to the opportunity of making music with current students there, of playing Brahms’s First Piano Concerto with this extraordinary orchestra and the wonderful conductor Osmo Vänskä.”

Roberto Díaz (’84), president and CEO of the Curtis Institute of Music and former principal viola of the Philadelphia Orchestra, will perform Krzysztof Penderecki’s Double Concerto for violin and viola alongside Austrian violinist Benjamin Schmid (’91). Other repertoire on the tour includes Strauss’s monumental Ein Heldenleben and the lush, enchanting Suite No. 2 from Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé.

“I can say as a performing musician that there’s no better learning opportunity than taking part in repeated performances of a program or a piece,” says Díaz, who founded the Curtis on Tour initiative in 2008. “It’s amazing to hear interpretations evolve as part of a broad learning process that includes insights into all the activities in the life of a professional musician, from working as part of a team to taking care of yourself and your instrument on tour.”

Praised for its “otherworldly ensemble and professional level of sophistication” (New York Times), the Curtis Symphony Orchestra embodies the sheer joy of music-making. Honing their craft under celebrated conductors, 100 young musicians—all students at the Curtis Institute of Music—perform with a fresh exuberance that makes each work new. Recent visiting conductors include Vladimir Jurowski, Marin Alsop, Simon Rattle, Robert Spano, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin, mentor conductor for the Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellows at the Curtis Institute of Music. This professional training has enabled Curtis alumni to assume prominent positions in orchestras around the world, including the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra.

Curtis on Tour is the Nina von Maltzahn global touring initiative of the Curtis Institute of Music. An embodiment of the school’s “learn by doing” philosophy, it offers students real-world, professional touring experience alongside celebrated alumni and faculty. In addition to performances, musicians offer master classes, interactive programs, and community engagement activities while on tour. Curtis on Tour also facilitates solo performances of Curtis students and alumni with professional orchestras and recital series. Since the program was established in 2008, students, faculty, and alumni have performed more than 200 concerts in Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

The Curtis Institute of Music, “one of the world’s finest music academies” (BBC Culture), produces top prizewinners of international competitions, soloists with major ensembles, and today’s most promising artists. Founded in 1924, Curtis pairs tradition and innovation, educating exceptionally gifted young musicians as artist-citizens who engage a local and global community through music-making of the highest caliber. Forty percent of the student body comes to Curtis from outside the United States, and 20 nations are represented by the student body in a typical year.

With an average acceptance rate of around 4 percent, Curtis is among the most selective schools in the United States. All its students receive merit-based, full-tuition scholarships. As a result, talent and artistic promise are the only considerations for admission. Curtis limits enrollment to about 175, accepting just enough students to maintain a full symphony orchestra, an opera program, and a string quartet in residence, plus select programs in piano, guitar, composition, conducting, and organ. In this intimate environment, they are nurtured by a celebrated faculty and inspired by the school’s distinctive “learn by doing” approach, offering more than 200 performances a year in Philadelphia and around the world.

The extraordinary young musicians of Curtis graduate to join 4,000 alumni who have long made music history, performing around the world. As musical leaders, they make a profound impact on music onstage and in their communities. 

 

CURTIS ON TOUR | EUROPE 2017
Curtis Symphony Orchestra 

HELSINKI

Saturday, May 20 at 7 p.m.
Helsinki Music Centre 

RAVEL                Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI    Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

STRAUSS            Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40

Presented by the Sibelius Academy. Tickets and more information

BREMEN, GERMANY

Monday, May 22 at 8 p.m.
Die Glöcke

RAVEL                  Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI     Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

BRAHMS             Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano 

Presented by the Philharmonische Gesellschaft Bremen. Tickets and more information

BERLIN

Tuesday, May 23 at 8 p.m.
Konzerthaus Berlin, Grosser Saal

RAVEL                  Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI     Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

BRAHMS              Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano

Presented in cooperation with Young Euro Classic. Tickets and more information

DRESDEN

Wednesday, May 24 at 8 p.m.
Kulturpalast Dresden

BRAHMS     Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano

STRAUSS     Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40 

Presented by the Dresden Music Festival. Tickets and more information

LONDON

Friday, May 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Cadogan Hall 

BRAHMS     Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano

STRAUSS     Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40

Tickets and more information

SALZBURG

Monday, May 29 at 7:30 p.m.
Mozarteum, Grosser Saal

RAVEL                 Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI     Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

BRAHMS              Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano 

Presented by Kulturvereinigung in cooperation with Mozarteum University Salzburg. Tickets and more information

VIENNA

Tuesday, May 30 at 7:30 p.m.
Wiener Konzerthaus, Grosser Saal

RAVEL                 Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI     Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

BRAHMS             Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano 

Presented by Jeunesse. Tickets and more information

WROCŁAW, POLAND

Wednesday, May 31 at 7 p.m.
Wrocław National Music Forum

RAVEL                  Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI     Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

BRAHMS             Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15

Peter Serkin, piano

Presented by the Ludwig van Beethoven Association. Tickets and more information

LUSŁAWICE, POLAND

Friday, June 2 at 7 p.m.
Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music 

RAVEL                 Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé
PENDERECKI     Concerto doppio for Violin, Viola, and Orchestra

Benjamin Schmid, violin
Roberto Díaz, viola

STRAUSS             Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40 

Presented by the Ludwig van Beethoven Association in cooperation with the Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music. Tickets and more information

 

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Osmo Vänskä leads the Curtis Symphony Orchestra May 6 in Allentown and May 7 in Philadelphia

Date

PHILADELPHIA, PA – May 4, 2017 – Osmo Vänskä, the charismatic music director of the Minnesota Orchestra, conducts the Curtis Symphony Orchestra on Saturday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m. at Miller Symphony Hall in Allentown, Pa. and Sunday, May 7 at 8 p.m. in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center. The concerts feature celebrated American pianist and Curtis alumnus Peter Serkin (’64). 

In homage to another master nurtured at Curtis, this memorable evening opens with Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings, led by conducting fellow Conner Gray Covington. Then Osmo Vänskä joins forces with the formidable Peter Serkin in the monumental Piano Concerto No. 1 by Brahms. Continuing the theme of heroic struggle leading to ultimate triumph is Ein Heldenleben, Strauss’s autobiographical epic.

Tickets for the Allentown performance are available from the Miller Symphony Hall Box office, MillerSymphonyHall.org or (610) 432-6715. Free student tickets are available via phone. Tickets for the Philadelphia performance start at $5 and can be purchased at the Kimmel Center Box Office, KimmelCenter.org or (215) 893-1999. 

This concert is a preview of the program the orchestra will perform on an ambitious tour of Europe May 17 through June 2, visiting nine cities — Helsinki, Bremen, Berlin, Dresden, London, Vienna, Salzburg, Wrocław, and Lusławice — in eighteen days. Part of Curtis on Tour, the Nina von Maltzahn global touring initiative, these performances are an embodiment of the school’s “learn by doing” philosophy, offering students real-world, professional touring experience alongside celebrated alumni and faculty, and including master classes, interactive programs, and community engagement activities. Since Curtis on Tour was established in 2008, Curtis students, faculty, and alumni have performed in nearly 100 cities across Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

Immediately preceding the concert on May 7, the Curtis Institute of Music will hold its Annual Gala at the Kimmel Center. On the eve of a momentous European tour, this year’s gala celebrates Curtis’s remarkable students, shaped in Philadelphia and heard around the world as part of the school’s rising global presence. Guests will enjoy cocktails at 5 p.m. and dinner at 6 p.m., followed by the concert. For more information, visit Curtis.edu/Gala.

Praised for its “otherworldly ensemble and professional level of sophistication” (New York Times), the Curtis Symphony Orchestra embodies the sheer joy of music-making. Honing their craft under celebrated conductors, 100 young musicians from the Curtis Institute of Music perform with a fresh exuberance that makes each work new. Recent visiting conductors include Vladimir Jurowski, Marin Alsop, Simon Rattle, Robert Spano, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin, mentor conductor for the Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellowship Program at the Curtis Institute of Music. This professional training has enabled Curtis alumni to assume prominent positions in orchestras around the world.

 

CURTIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

The Jack Wolgin Orchestral Concerts

Osmo Vänskä, conductor 
Conner Gray Covington, conducting fellow
Peter Serkin, piano (’64)

BARBER       Adagio for Strings 
BRAHMS      Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor
STRAUSS     Ein Heldenleben (A Hero’s Life)


Saturday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Miller Symphony Hall, 23 N. 6th Street, Allentown, Pa.
Tickets $25–$35, sold by the Miller Symphony Hall Box Office, MillerSymphonyHall.org or (610) 432-6715. Free student tickets are available via phone.


Sunday, May 7 at 8 p.m. 
Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center, Broad and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia
Tickets $5–$50, sold by the Kimmel Center Box Office, Kimmelcenter.org or (215) 893-1999.

 

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