Curtis Symphony Orchestra Presents “Yannick Leads Mahler & Dawson” on March 26 at Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center
The Curtis Symphony Orchestra presents the final concert of its 2025–26 series on Thursday, March 26, at 7:00 p.m. in Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center, featuring selections from Gustav Mahler’s Des Knaben Wunderhorn and Alma Mahler’s Fünf Lieder, performed with rising stars from Curtis Opera Theatre under the baton of maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Curtis’ head of conducting. This evocative program also features William Dawson’s 1934 masterpiece Negro Folk Symphony and Richard Wagner’s Rienzi Overture, led by Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow Yoann Combémorel.
The program opens with the overture to Wagner’s early opera Rienzi, conducted by Mr. Combémorel. Premiered in Dresden in 1842, the opera reflects the grand, spectacle-driven style of French grand opera and helped launch Wagner’s career. The overture captures the drama of the story—based on the Roman tribune Cola di Rienzi—in a sweeping orchestral prelude. Opening with a solemn chorale drawn from Rienzi’s prayer, the music soon surges into brilliant fanfares, driving rhythms, and bold orchestral colors, building toward a triumphant, electrifying close.
Selections from Alma Mahler’s Fünf Lieder, performed by soprano Nikan Ingabire Kanate, follow. Composed between 1900 and 1901 while Mahler was living in Vienna, the songs reveal her distinctive voice within the city’s late-Romantic musical culture. Kanate performs “Laue Sommernacht” (Mild Summer Night) and “Bei dir ist es traut” (With You It Is Pleasant), two intimate settings of German poetry that explore themes of longing, tenderness, and quiet reflection.
The concert continues with selections from Gustav Mahler’s Des Knaben Wunderhorn, performed by mezzo-soprano Carlyle Quinn, mezzo-soprano Maisy Parker, tenor Landry Allen, and baritone Emilio Vásquez. Drawing on texts from the famous 19th century folk-poetry anthology Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Boy’s Magic Horn), Mahler transforms these deceptively simple poems into vivid musical scenes that range from playful to deeply poignant. Several of the songs would later find their way into Mahler’s symphonies, underscoring the central role this collection played in shaping his musical imagination.
William L. Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony concludes the program. Premiered in 1934 by Leopold Stokowski and The Philadelphia Orchestra, this groundbreaking 35-minute work blends African American spiritual traditions with the scale and architecture of the classical symphony. Across three movements, Dawson evokes the historical journey of the African diaspora in America through soaring melodies, powerful brass writing, and richly layered rhythms. The composer later revised the work following a 1952 trip to West Africa, deepening its rhythmic language and connection to African musical traditions. Today, the symphony remains Dawson’s best-known orchestral work—and his only symphony.
Single tickets for “Yannick Leads Mahler & Dawson” start at $24. Learn more and purchase at curtis.edu.
