"Spectacular Strauss" Kicks off the 2023–24 Curtis Symphony Orchestra Season this Weekend
Curtis Opera Theatre students share their excitement about performing scenes from some of Richard Strauss's most iconic operas
The Curtis Symphony Orchestra’s 2023–24 season opens this Sunday, October 28, 2023, at 7 p.m. with “Spectacular Strauss” in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center with rising stars of the Curtis Opera Theatre, under the baton of GRAMMY Award-winning conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin and second-year student Micah Gleason, Curtis’s Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow.
A celebration of the German Romantic composer’s life and legacy, the concert features highlights from some of Strauss’s most popular operas (Salome, Ariadne auf Naxos, and Der Rosenkavalier). It concludes with his final breathtaking symphonic tone poem, An Alpine Symphony (Eine Alpensinfonie), Op. 64, presented in one uninterrupted, fifty-minute-long movement. Maestro Nézet-Séguin and the Curtis Symphony Orchestra scale the spectacular heights of this stunning work, which depicts a perilous, eleven-hour mountain-climbing expedition.
Learn more about “Spectacular Strauss” HERE.
Curtis Opera Theatre Students Discuss the Excitement and Challenges of Singing Strauss
Sarah Fleiss
“I am so incredibly honored for the opportunity to sing the Act III trio from Der Rosenkavalier! For me—besides getting to sing this beautiful music with my colleagues and with Maestro Nézet-Séguin—the most exciting part is the sheer size of the orchestration; this final moment in the opera calls for an incredibly rich wall of sound, and I am looking forward to the task of singing with an orchestration this large for the first time!”
Maya Mor Mitrani
“I love Strauss’s vocal works and have always wanted to tackle the role of Zerbinetta; getting to do so in a quintet together with my friends seems like the perfect way!
The excerpt from Ariadne auf Naxos has such a vibrant personality, and it’s an incredible pleasure to bring it to life with the Curtis orchestra and Maestro Yannick Nézet-Séguin.”
Nathan Schludecker
“Getting the opportunity to study some of Der Rosenkavalier has been a fantastic experience. The biggest challenge has been making sure that I do not get distracted by Strauss’s beautiful orchestration!”
Juliette Tacchino
“Going through the text before learning the pitches is necessary, especially in this very wordy opening scene, as we’re all excited about the arrival of Octavian and the Presentation of the Rose.
“My biggest challenge is to draw out all these beautiful moments of suspension and silver lines that Sophie preciously expresses in the duet. I cannot wait to collaborate with Yannick and the CSO again to bring this wonderful music to life!”
Katie Trigg
“This trio! For Octavian, this is a moment of growth – he is learning about choices, responsibility, and sacrifice. Each character’s unique emotional journey is immaculately expressed in Strauss’s music, and the whole piece comes together in the most luscious, heart-wrenching way. On top of that, this is such a dream team. I feel truly honored to work with Maestro Nézet-Séguin, Sarah, Emily, and all of our formidable instrumentalists in the Curtis Symphony Orchestra to present this piece.”
CURTIS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Spectacular Strauss
Sunday, October 22, at 7 p.m.
Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center; Broad and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor
Micah Gleason, Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow
John Giampietro, stage direction
Members of the Curtis Opera Theatre
PROGRAM
| RICHARD STRAUSS | Dance of the Seven Veils from Salome | |
| Select Opera Excerpts (Sung in German): | ||
| Quintet: “Die Dame gibt mit trüben Sinn” from Ariadne Auf Naxos
Brighella: Hongrui Ren Opening of Act II through the Presentation of the Rose from Der Rosenkavalier Faninal: Nathaniel Schludecker Act III trio from Der Rosenkavalier Octavian: Katie Trigg —Intermission— An Alpine Symphony (Eine Alpensinfonie), Op. 64 |
Tickets
Single tickets for “Spectacular Strauss” start at $19 and are available for purchase at Curtis.edu.
Subscriptions are now on sale for Curtis’s 2023–24 season. The flexible Choose Your Own subscription option offers 25% off ticket prices when purchasing tickets to two or more performances. For the 2023–24 season, Curtis also offers a Season Pass, with access to all events for $179 per person. Each Season Pass is valid for one best-available ticket to each paid season performance. To order a subscription, visit Curtis.edu/Subscribe, call (215) 893-7902, or email tickets@curtis.edu.
Photo stills of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra in rehearsal courtesy of Matthew Hagestuen. Portraits of Sarah Fleiss, Maya Mor Mitrani, Nathan Schludecker, and Juliette Tacchino courtesy of Nichole MCH Photography. Photo of Katie Trigg by Tom Lee, Stuff, New Zealand.