Puerto Rican-born composer and multi-instrumentalist Angélica Negrón
featured as composer-in-residence
FAIRWINDS Credit Union commits to multi-year sponsorship of Classics Series
The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra announces its 2018-2019 Season today, including five concerts on the FAIRWINDS Classics Series, and five programs of two concerts each on the Pops Series, with all performances taking place at Bob Carr Theater. The Focus Series includes five concerts that take place at The Plaza Live Theater. Summer programming will be announced at a later date.
Music Director Eric Jacobsen returns for his fourth season with the OPO, conducting concerts on each of the Orchestra’s three main series. Soloists highlighting the FAIRWINDS Classics Series include season-opening performances by violinist and OPO Concertmaster Rimma Bergeron-Langlois and soprano Maria Laetitia, both familiar to Orlando audiences, pianist Harmony Zhu, the 2018 Genius of Youth artist, and award-winning cellist Jan Vogler.
Programming in the 2018-19 season evokes the themes and ideas of The Silk Road Ensemble, founded by cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who concludes the OPO’s 25th Anniversary Season with a special concert on Tuesday, May 8, 2018 at 8 p.m. at Bob Carr Theater. Concerts that blend cultures and styles and the return of Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh player of The Silk Road Ensemble, emphasize this theme.
FAIRWINDS Credit Union has committed to continuing its sponsorship of the Classics Series through the 2020-2021 season.
“We are so grateful for the past and future support from FAIRWINDS Credit Union,” said Chris Barton, executive director. “This ongoing support helps us to enrich the community, inspire our audiences, and build our organization to serve Central Florida for the next 25 years.”
Puerto Rican-born composer and multi-instrumentalist Angélica Negrón will be featured as composer-in-residence for the 2018-2019 season. The OPO will perform her compositions and arrangements, including a world premiere on the Focus Series, on four programs throughout the season.
“Having Angélica working with the orchestra this season is a gift to our community,” said Eric Jacobsen, music director. “We look forward to her unique collaboration and contribution during the season with our artistic programming and education programs.
The Pops Series brings together the best of American popular music and live entertainment for Orlando Philharmonic patrons. Highlights include a season-opening performance by Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Rhiannon Giddens, also known for her starring role on the CMT drama Nashville, audience-favorite trumpeter and conductor Byron Stripling leading a program of New Orleans jazz greats in celebration of Mardi Gras, and The Second City Guide to the Symphony, featuring celebrity host, comedian, and star of television’s Whose Line is it Anyway?, Colin Mochrie.
OPO musicians will be featured soloists on the Focus Series, with special performances by Rimma Bergeron-Langlois (violin), Jamie Strefeler (oboe), and Robert Carpenter (tuba) performing a concerto by Orlando musician and composer Benoit Glazer.
Subscription renewals for current subscribers begin this month and new subscriptions for the 2018-2019 season will go on-sale in April. For more information, please contact the Box Office at 407-770-0071 or Boxoffice@orlandophil.org.
Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra 2018-2019 Season
FAIRWINDS Classics Series
Bob Carr Theater
Pines of Rome
Saturday, September 29, 2018 at 8 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Rimma Bergeron-Langlois, violin
Maria Laetitia, soprano
Program
FRANK – Three Latin-American Dances
BRUCH – Scottish Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra
NEGRÓN (Composer-in-Residence) – Puerto Rican Songs
DE FALLA – Ritual Fire Dance from El Amor brujo
RESPIGHI – Pines of Rome
This concert featuring Respighi’s Pines of Rome evokes Latin American dances, Scottish traditions, a portrait of Rome and introduces Orlando Philharmonic composer-in-residence, Angélica Negrón and soprano Maria Laetitia, both from Puerto Rico.
The Planets
Saturday, November 3, 2018 at 8 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh
Karen Ouzounian, cello
Sandeep Das, tabla
University of Central Florida Women’s Chorus
Program
BARTÓK – Three Village Scenes
KALHOR – Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur
HOLST – The Planets
Kayhan Kalhor returns to Orlando with a work he recorded with The Silk Road Ensemble and Music Director Eric Jacobsen leads the massive forces of the Orlando Philharmonic in Holst’s epic astrological masterpiece, The Planets.
Tango!
Saturday, January 19, 2019 at 8 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Simone Porter, violin
Program
KÄRKI, arr. LJOVA – Finnish Tango
PIAZZOLLA, arr. LJOVA – Libertango
PIAZZOLLA – The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires for Violin and String Orchestra
SIBELIUS – Symphony No. 1
Dynamic, social, playful, romantic, elegant, and fun. Argentina may have invented it, but Finland has its own passion for the tango. Celebrate the great masters of tango along with Jean Sibelius, who is credited with helping Finland develop its national identity. Violinist Simone Porter, an emerging artist of impassioned energy, performs The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires.
Beethoven’s 7th
Saturday, February 23, 2019 at 8 p.m.
Pablo Rus Broseta, conductor
Harmony Zhu, piano (Genius of Youth artist)
Program
LIGETI – Romanian Concerto
SCHUMANN, R. – Piano Concerto in A minor
BEETHOVEN – Symphony No. 7
Beethoven’s seventh Symphony has enchanted audiences with its joyous energy ever since its first performance. It’s a piece full of dance, celebration, pulse, and joy. Harmony Zhu performs Robert Schumann’s colorful piano concerto as the “Genius of Youth” artist for this season.
French Soirée
Saturday, April 27, 2019 at 8 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Jan Vogler, cello
University of Central Florida Chorus
Program
RAVEL – Daphnis et Chloé: Suite No. 1
SAINT-SAËNS – Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor
SAINT-SAËNS – The Swan from Carnival of the Animals
FAURÉ – Pavane
MESSIAEN, arr. NEGRÓN (Composer-in-Residence) – Piano Prelude
BIZET – Excerpts from Carmen
Don’t miss this opportunity to celebrate France and its renowned composers who created some of the best-loved classical music of today. Well-known as a culture capital for its music, fashion, art, and cuisine, join us for an evening of sophisticated and diverse styles as we soak up the culture of Belle Époque France and its enduring and international appeal.
Pops Series
Bob Carr Theater
American Blues
featuring Rhiannon Giddens
Saturday, October 13, 2018 at 2 & 8 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Rhiannon Giddens, vocalist & banjo
Celebrate classics from American composers including Gershwin’s An American in Paris, Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story and others, as well as selections from her solo albums with Rhiannon Giddens, co-founder of the Grammy award-winning band Carolina Chocolate Drops.
Rhiannon stole the show at the T Bone Burnett–produced Another Day, Another Time concert at New York City’s Town Hall in 2013. The elegant bearing, prodigious voice, and fierce spirit that brought the audience to its feet that night is also abundantly evident on Giddens’ critically acclaimed solo debut, the Grammy-nominated album Tomorrow Is My Turn, which masterfully blends American musical genres like gospel, jazz, blues, and country, showcasing her extraordinary emotional range and dazzling vocal prowess. She won the Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Bluegrass and Banjo in 2016. In February of 2017, Giddens’ follow-up album Freedom Highway was released.
Home for the Holidays!
Saturday, November 24, 2018 at 2 & 8 p.m.
Albert George Schram, conductor
Join us for a musical celebration of community and capture the spirit of the season at Central Florida’s most popular holiday concert. A perennial audience-favorite, Albert George Schram leads the orchestra, choirs, and guest artists through musical traditions and delightful surprises. Ring in the season with family and friends – there’s no place like home for the holidays!
The Second City Guide to the Symphony with Colin Mochrie
A Humorous Celebration of the Symphony Orchestra by the premier comedy theater, The Second City
Saturday, February 2, 2019 at 2 & 8 p.m.
Albert George Schram, conductor
“The Second City Guide to the Symphony” is a blend of original sketch comedy, new music, and songs by Matthew Reid, and orchestral works by the great masters – including Mozart, Mahler, and Glinka. The show is a humorous celebration of the symphony orchestra, taking a satirical but loving look at the players, the repertoire, the composers, the personalities, and even the audience.
The Second City is the world’s premier comedy theater and school of improvisation, specializing in sketch comedy and improvisation and has been delighting audiences for over 50 years with permanent theaters in Chicago and Toronto as well as an International Touring Company. The Second City is well known as the incubator of some of the best-known comedic talent in North America, including Martin Short, Tina Fey, John Candy, Stephen Colbert, Catherine O’Hara, Mike Myers, Andrea Martin – too many to list!
Mardi Gras in New Orleans
with Byron Stripling
Saturday, March 9, 2019 at 2 & 8 p.m.
Byron Stripling, conductor
Get caught up in the spirit of Mardi Gras with a night of hot, steamy, New Orleans jazz. The good times roll with music from New Orleans natives like Fats Domino, Mahalia Jackson, and Louis Armstrong. From street parades in the French Quarter to late night jams in the city’s famed clubs, this party transforms into an unforgettable Mardi Gras Celebration with Byron Stripling leading the parade!
A powerhouse trumpeter, gifted with a soulful voice and a charismatic onstage swagger, Byron Stripling has delighted audiences internationally. As a soloist with the Boston Pops Orchestra, Stripling has performed frequently under the baton of Keith Lockhart, as well as being a featured soloist on the PBS television special, “Evening at Pops,” with conductors John Williams and Lockhart.
Star Wars and More:
The Music of John Williams
Saturday, April 13, 2019 at 2 & 8 p.m.
Michael Krajewski, conductor
University of Central Florida Chorus
Michael Krajewski, Music Director of The Philly Pops and Principal Pops Conductor of the Atlanta and Jacksonville Symphonies, leads this concert, featuring the best of John Williams’ legendary film scores, including pieces from Jaws, Schindler’s List, Harry Potter, and the Star Wars series.
In a career that spans five decades, composer and conductor John Williams has become one of America’s most accomplished and successful composers for film and for the concert stage.
Focus Series at The Plaza Live
Schumann and Schumann
Monday, October 8, 2018 at 7 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Gabriela Martinez, piano
PÄRT – Silouan’s Song (My Soul Yearns after the Lord…)
SCHUMANN, C. – Piano Concerto in A minor
MESSIAEN, arr. NEGRÓN (Composer-in-Residence) – Piano Prelude
SCHUMANN, R. – Symphony No. 4
Tchaikovsky & Mozart
Monday, November 19, 2018 at 7 p.m.
Laura Jackson, conductor
Jamie Strefeler, oboe
CLYNE – Within Her Arms
MOZART – Oboe Concerto in C Major
TCHAIKOVSKY – Serenade for Strings
Mahler’s Song of the Earth
Monday, January 14, 2019 at 7 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Rachel Calloway, alto
Alex Richardson, tenor
CHEN YI – Shuo
MAHLER – The Song of the Earth
Mozart’s Symphony No. 33
Monday, March 18, 2019 at 7 p.m.
Ruth Reinhardt, conductor
Rimma Bergeron-Langlois, violin
JANÁČEK – Suite for String Orchestra
ZWILICH – Romance for Violin and Chamber Orchestra
MYSLIVEČEK – Overture No. 2
MOZART – Symphony No. 33
Mendelssohn’s Italian
Monday, April 8, 2019 at 7 p.m.
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Robert Carpenter, tuba
GLAZER – Tuba Concerto
NEGRÓN (Composer-in-Residence) – World Premiere
MENDELSSOHN – Symphony No. 4, ‘Italian’
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Celebrating its 25th Anniversary Season, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra is led by Music Director Eric Jacobsen and comprised of accomplished musicians from around the world. The Philharmonic annually presents the FAIRWINDS Classics and Pops Series at Bob Carr Theater and its Sounds of Summer, Focus and Women in Song Series at The Plaza Live. Known for its artistic excellence and community collaboration, the Philharmonic presents more than 150 live concerts and impacts more than 70,000 children, youth and families annually through its Young People’s Concerts, Symphony Storytime Series, Notes in Your Neighborhood program, and free outdoor community concerts. A resident company of the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, the Philharmonic will perform in Steinmetz Hall when it opens in 2020. Learn more at orlandophil.org.
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