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Your result for "Alsop" from 01/01/2000 to 03/10/2010 in Interviews/Features
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Interviews & Features |
March 3, 2010 |
BSO joins the circus
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra celebrates the big top with a series of programs
By: Tim Smith of the Baltimore Sun
"As a kid, I always wanted to go to the circus," says Marin Alsop. "I was obsessed with the circus. Maybe that's why I became a conductor."
Alsop, music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, gets to relive that obsession with a month of programs, starting this weekend, that celebrate the circus world in one way or another. Although given the marketing tag "BSO Under the Big Top," the venture isn't so much about clowns and acrobats as it is about following a connective thread.
"This really came out of the overall theme of our season, shared traditions and musical roots," Alsop says. "The circus is a tradition with such mass appeal. I wanted to explore how we can all relate to it. The circus emanates from at least the Roman days, which got me thinking about John Corigliano's, 'Circus Maximus.'."
For that 2004 work, to be performed March 19-21, the BSO will be joined by members of the U.S. Army Band and University of Maryland Wind Orchestra. Many of the players will be positioned around the audience.
"What I love about circuses is the weirdness - things in the circus are so distorted and contracted - and the risk-taking, the colors," Alsop says. "I wanted to pick some pieces that are challenging for the orchestra and have their own risk-taking. The Corigliano piece is really shocking. It's definitely the loudest piece ever. The enormous rifle shot at the end could tear the place open."
Sharing that program will be Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf" (narrated at some performances by NPR's Scott Simon). "It's got the kind of story where you're walking a line between being frightened and being intrigued," Alsop says. Also on tap is David T. Little's "Screamer" - "It's only a five-minute piece, but wild," Alsop adds. "It's been called a 'three-ring blur for orchestra.'."
The BSO's big-top adventure kicks off this weekend with a kind of Las Vegas-meets-the-circus SuperPops program called "Mysterioso." It features magicians Les Arnold and Dazzle, illusionist Joseph Gabriel and quick-change artists David & Dania. BSO pops conductor, Jack Everly, will be on the podium.
"Mysterioso" was developed in late 2008 at the Indianapolis Symphony, where Everly is also pops conductor. "We did research for a couple of years to find the right mix of performers and music that alludes to illusion and magic," Everly says. "Les Arnold and Dazzle is a father and daughter team, and one of the funniest magical acts I've ever seen. We've also got a wonderful singer, Christina Bianco. It's quite a whimsical program, pure entertainment, with first-rate arrangements. The BSO cleverly thought they would put it under the umbrella of the circus project." Next week, Alsop and the BSO will be joined by the Cirque de la Symphonie ensemble, which will add an aerial dimension. The musical lineup includes colorful ballet scores by Aaron Copland, Francis Poulenc, Erik Satie and Bela Bartok.
"The Cirque performers are not just going to be dangling through the whole program," Alsop says, "but it's all integrated into one big concept."
The final installment, March 25-28, works the puppet world into the picture, via another ballet score, Igor Stravinsky's "Pulcinella," which tells a commedia dell'arte tale that "can be kind of frightening," Alsop says.
The conductor is rounding out that program with a couple of rarely heard, short operas. In Samuel Barber's "A Hand of Bridge," two couples playing cards are absorbed in private thoughts. George Gershwin's "Blue Monday," a precursor of sorts to "Porgy and Bess," deals with dice-rolling, love and jealousy.
Those operas, which will feature members of Washington National Opera's Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program, may not seem as readily connected to the overriding circus concept, but Alsop finds the game-playing in each close enough.
"I'm at the point where I can't stretch this theme farther," she says, adding with a laugh, "and it's probably reached that point already."
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Interviews & Features |
February 25, 2010 |
Alsop to conduct in Eugene next fall
From registerguard.com and The Register Guard
Appeared in print Feb. 25
Former Eugene Symphony conductor Marin Alsop will return to Eugene in November for a guest performance with the orchestra here.
Her appearance is expected to be one of the highlights of the symphony’s 2010-11 season, which was announced last week by conductor Danail Rachev.
The symphony also has booked violinist Itzhak Perlman for a special performance Jan. 29.
Alsop, now conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, will be here to conduct the symphony’s regular Hult Center concert on Nov. 18.
Tickets for next season are available at 541-682-5000 and on the Web at eugenesymphony.org
Here is a rundown of the complete regular season:
Sept. 23
Leonard Bernstein: Three dance episodes from “On the Town”
Edouard Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole
Modest Mussorgsky: “Pictures at an Exhibition”
Oct. 21
Alexander Borodin: “In the Steppes of Central Asia”
P.I. Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
Igor Stravinsky: “Petrushka”
Nov. 18
Guest conductor: Marin Alsop
Tchaikovsky: “Romeo and Juliet” Overture
Bernstein: Serenade
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 2
Dec. 2
Ludwig van Beethoven: “Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage”; Elegaic Song; Symphony No. 9
Jan. 20
Samuel Barber: “Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance”
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 3, “Rhenish”
Antonín Dvorák: Cello Concerto
Feb. 17
Guest conductor: Mei-Ann Chen
Dvorák: “Carnival” Overture
Francis Poulenc: Concerto for Two Pianos in D Minor
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: “Scheherazade”
March 17
Felix Mendelssohn: “The Hebrides”
Claude Debussy: “La Mer”
Brahms: Violin Concerto (soloist Sarah Chang)
April 18
John Harbison: “The Most Often Used Chords”; Flute Concerto
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1
May 19
W.A. Mozart: Symphony No. 40
Franz Liszt: “Orpheus”
Richard Strauss: “Death and Transfiguration”
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Interviews & Features |
February 25, 2010 |
Alsop to conduct in Eugene next fall
From registerguard.com and The Register Guard
Appeared in print Feb. 25
Former Eugene Symphony conductor Marin Alsop will return to Eugene in November for a guest performance with the orchestra here.
Her appearance is expected to be one of the highlights of the symphony’s 2010-11 season, which was announced last week by conductor Danail Rachev.
The symphony also has booked violinist Itzhak Perlman for a special performance Jan. 29.
Alsop, now conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, will be here to conduct the symphony’s regular Hult Center concert on Nov. 18.
Tickets for next season are available at 541-682-5000 and on the Web at eugenesymphony.org
Here is a rundown of the complete regular season:
Sept. 23
Leonard Bernstein: Three dance episodes from “On the Town”
Edouard Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole
Modest Mussorgsky: “Pictures at an Exhibition”
Oct. 21
Alexander Borodin: “In the Steppes of Central Asia”
P.I. Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
Igor Stravinsky: “Petrushka”
Nov. 18
Guest conductor: Marin Alsop
Tchaikovsky: “Romeo and Juliet” Overture
Bernstein: Serenade
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 2
Dec. 2
Ludwig van Beethoven: “Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage”; Elegaic Song; Symphony No. 9
Jan. 20
Samuel Barber: “Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance”
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 3, “Rhenish”
Antonín Dvorák: Cello Concerto
Feb. 17
Guest conductor: Mei-Ann Chen
Dvorák: “Carnival” Overture
Francis Poulenc: Concerto for Two Pianos in D Minor
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: “Scheherazade”
March 17
Felix Mendelssohn: “The Hebrides”
Claude Debussy: “La Mer”
Brahms: Violin Concerto (soloist Sarah Chang)
April 18
John Harbison: “The Most Often Used Chords”; Flute Concerto
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1
May 19
W.A. Mozart: Symphony No. 40
Franz Liszt: “Orpheus”
Richard Strauss: “Death and Transfiguration”
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Interviews & Features |
February 25, 2010 |
Alsop to conduct in Eugene next fall
From registerguard.com and The Register Guard
Appeared in print Feb. 25
Former Eugene Symphony conductor Marin Alsop will return to Eugene in November for a guest performance with the orchestra here.
Her appearance is expected to be one of the highlights of the symphony’s 2010-11 season, which was announced last week by conductor Danail Rachev.
The symphony also has booked violinist Itzhak Perlman for a special performance Jan. 29.
Alsop, now conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, will be here to conduct the symphony’s regular Hult Center concert on Nov. 18.
Tickets for next season are available at 541-682-5000 and on the Web at eugenesymphony.org
Here is a rundown of the complete regular season:
Sept. 23
Leonard Bernstein: Three dance episodes from “On the Town”
Edouard Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole
Modest Mussorgsky: “Pictures at an Exhibition”
Oct. 21
Alexander Borodin: “In the Steppes of Central Asia”
P.I. Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
Igor Stravinsky: “Petrushka”
Nov. 18
Guest conductor: Marin Alsop
Tchaikovsky: “Romeo and Juliet” Overture
Bernstein: Serenade
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 2
Dec. 2
Ludwig van Beethoven: “Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage”; Elegaic Song; Symphony No. 9
Jan. 20
Samuel Barber: “Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance”
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 3, “Rhenish”
Antonín Dvorák: Cello Concerto
Feb. 17
Guest conductor: Mei-Ann Chen
Dvorák: “Carnival” Overture
Francis Poulenc: Concerto for Two Pianos in D Minor
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: “Scheherazade”
March 17
Felix Mendelssohn: “The Hebrides”
Claude Debussy: “La Mer”
Brahms: Violin Concerto (soloist Sarah Chang)
April 18
John Harbison: “The Most Often Used Chords”; Flute Concerto
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1
May 19
W.A. Mozart: Symphony No. 40
Franz Liszt: “Orpheus”
Richard Strauss: “Death and Transfiguration”
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Interviews & Features |
February 25, 2010 |
Alsop to conduct in Eugene next fall
From registerguard.com and The Register Guard
Appeared in print Feb. 25
Former Eugene Symphony conductor Marin Alsop will return to Eugene in November for a guest performance with the orchestra here.
Her appearance is expected to be one of the highlights of the symphony’s 2010-11 season, which was announced last week by conductor Danail Rachev.
The symphony also has booked violinist Itzhak Perlman for a special performance Jan. 29.
Alsop, now conductor of the Baltimore Symphony, will be here to conduct the symphony’s regular Hult Center concert on Nov. 18.
Tickets for next season are available at 541-682-5000 and on the Web at eugenesymphony.org
Here is a rundown of the complete regular season:
Sept. 23
Leonard Bernstein: Three dance episodes from “On the Town”
Edouard Lalo: Symphonie Espagnole
Modest Mussorgsky: “Pictures at an Exhibition”
Oct. 21
Alexander Borodin: “In the Steppes of Central Asia”
P.I. Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1
Igor Stravinsky: “Petrushka”
Nov. 18
Guest conductor: Marin Alsop
Tchaikovsky: “Romeo and Juliet” Overture
Bernstein: Serenade
Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 2
Dec. 2
Ludwig van Beethoven: “Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage”; Elegaic Song; Symphony No. 9
Jan. 20
Samuel Barber: “Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance”
Robert Schumann: Symphony No. 3, “Rhenish”
Antonín Dvorák: Cello Concerto
Feb. 17
Guest conductor: Mei-Ann Chen
Dvorák: “Carnival” Overture
Francis Poulenc: Concerto for Two Pianos in D Minor
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov: “Scheherazade”
March 17
Felix Mendelssohn: “The Hebrides”
Claude Debussy: “La Mer”
Brahms: Violin Concerto (soloist Sarah Chang)
April 18
John Harbison: “The Most Often Used Chords”; Flute Concerto
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1
May 19
W.A. Mozart: Symphony No. 40
Franz Liszt: “Orpheus”
Richard Strauss: “Death and Transfiguration”
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Interviews & Features |
February 13, 2010 |
Pictures at the symphony: BSO performs works by Mussorgsky, Hindemith and Brubeck
by: Tim Smith of the Baltimore Sun
It was possible Friday night to believe that there is life in post-blizzard Baltimore...
...This was the first time the BSO had been back in business since last weekend's storm, which knocked out all performances of a Tchaikovsky-Vaughan Williams-Gershwin program, and the subsequent punch from the skies, which forced the cancelation of Thursday's scheduled concert at Strathmore.
...there was no mistaking the sound of musicians eager to be back in the thick of it. Marin Alsop was clearly relishing the return to normality, too; in remarks to the audience about the music, she inserted several references to being cooped up for the week.
The conductor's cohesive theme for the program was how composers can be inspired by the art they see. The one, obvious war horse, Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition," was balanced by two rarer items: Hindemith's Symphony "Mathis der Maler," drawn from his opera on the Reformation-era painter Matthias Grunewald; and "Ansel Adams: America," jointly composed by Dave Brubeck and his son Chris, and receiving its East Coast premiere…
...The players, once past a tentative start, dug into the surging poetic imagery in the first movement and, especially, the battle of taut thematic ideas in the finale. The reflective middle movement found the strings summoning a gorgeous tone and phrasing with admirable subtlety...
...The Mussorgsky crowd-pleaser, performed here in the familiar Ravel orchestration, received a vibrant, genuinely evocative account. Alsop kept the momentum going, emphasized dynamic contrasts and bursts of character, and lit an impressive fuse under the brass in "Great Gate at Kiev." The several soloists, among them trumpeter Andrew Balio with his laser-beam articulation and saxophonist Brian Sacawa with his mellow phrasing, made valuable contributions along the way.
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