Park and Ainomae team up with conductor Andrew Manze for Brahms' Double Concerto
The Minnesota Orchestra is made up of extraordinarily talented musicians, and this week two of them are featured together as first associate concertmaster Susie Park and associate principal cello Silver Ainomäe team up for a long-awaited performance of Johannes Brahms’ Double Concerto. Eleanor Alberga’s Tower opens the second half of the program, led by visiting conductor Andrew Manze. Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 1, a fiery work written as the young composer’s graduation project, concludes the program. Listen to the live broadcast with host Melissa Ousley at 8 p.m. Friday, June 2, on YourClassical MPR.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Andrew Manze, conductor
Susie Park, violin *
Silver Ainomäe, cello *
JOHANNES BRAHMS Double Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra *
ELEANOR ALBERGA Tower
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 1
Previous Concerts
May 19 - Listen: Minnesota Orchestra presents George Floyd-inspired 'brea(d)th' with the help of 150 singers
In a new work commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, composer Carlos Simon and librettist Marc Bamuthi Joseph tell a uniquely American story. As Simon and Joseph write in their artist statement, brea(d)th is a classical work, inspired by the enduring presence of George Floyd the Ancestor, asking America to consider an equitable future.” Rooted in the Minneapolis community and built upon Joseph’s words, brea(d)th considers the nation’s history, promise and possibilities. On Friday, May 19, conductor Jonathan Taylor Rush led the orchestra and 150 singers through this groundbreaking work. Listen to the concert now, and follow along with brea(d)th using the libretto embedded below.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Jonathan Taylor Rush, conductor
Vocal soloists to be announced
Steven Campbell, tuba
Marc Bamuthi Joseph, spoken word
Minnesota Chorale, Twin Cities Choral Partners and 29:11 International Exchange
SAMUEL COLERIDGE-TAYLOR Petite Suite de Concert
CARLOS SIMON brea(d)th
May 12 - Listen: Leonidas Kavakos returns to conduct and perform Bach and Brahms
Leonidas Kavakos appears courtesy of Sony Classical, a label of Sony Music Entertainment. Find out more: https://LeonidasKavakos.lnk.to/Bach.
On May 12, violinist Leonidas Kavakos returned to Orchestra Hall as guest soloist and conductor. As a violinist, Kavakos is known for his crystal-clear tone and ardent musical integrity. He led the ensemble while playing the solo part in Johann Sebastian Bach’s Violin Concerto No. 1, a work that the composer himself likely performed in house concerts and at social gatherings. Then, stepping onto the podium, Kavakos guided the orchestra through Johannes Brahms’ triumphant Symphony No. 1. Listen to the concert now!
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Leonidas Kavakos, conductor and violin
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH Violin Concerto in D minor
JOHANNES BRAHMS Symphony No. 1
March 1 - Listen: The Minnesota Orchestra celebrates underrepresented composers through the 'Listening Project'
The Minnesota Orchestra’s new ‘Listening Project’ has grown out of an ongoing initiative to spotlight the music of historically underrepresented composers and to collaborate with a broader group of composers living today.
This concert, conducted by Kensho Watanabe and hosted by renowned performer, scholar and professor Dr. Louise Toppin, features performances of six works that will be recorded to aid and encourage future programming of this music by other orchestras, including Eleanor Alberga’s The Soul’s Expression and Margaret Bonds’ Spirituals, both of which feature bass-baritone Christopher Humbert Jr. as soloist.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Dalia Stasevska, conductor
Erin Keefe, violin *
SAMUEL COLERIDGE-TAYLOR Idyll
ELEANOR ALBERGA The Soul’s Expression
HALE SMITH Contours
ADOLPHUS HAILSTORK Lachrymosa: 1919
MARGARET BONDS Spirituals
FLORENCE PRICE Colonial Dance
Feb. 3 - Watch: Minnesota Orchestra celebrates a century on the airwaves
On most Friday nights, no matter where you are in the state—or in the world, for that matter—you can look forward to tuning into YourClassical Minnesota Public Radio to hear a live concert. From a radio debut in 1923 under Bruno Walter to television transmissions in the 1950s and the ensemble’s unprecedented international broadcast from Havana in 2015, the orchestra has always been on the forefront of finding new ways to connect audiences with music.
Reflecting on 100 years of radio broadcast history, MPR host Melissa Ousley sat down with historian John Michel, technical director Michael Osborne and former broadcast host and current orchestra staffer Brian Newhouse for a spirited retelling of this vital history.
Upcoming concert broadcasts
GINASTERA, KODÁLY AND TCHAIKOVSKY
Friday, June 9, 2030, 8 p.m.
Minnesota Orchestra
Miguel Harth-Bedoya, conductor
Grace Roepke, harp *
ZOLTÁN KODÁLY Concerto for Orchestra
ALBERTO GINASTERA Harp Concerto *
ZOLTÁN KODÁLY Dances of Galánta
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Capriccio italien
JAMES EHNES AND BEETHOVEN’S SEVENTH
Friday, June 16, 2023, 8 p.m.
Minnesota Orchestra
Sir Andrew Davis, conductor
James Ehnes, violin *
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Egmont Overture
ALBAN BERG Violin Concerto *
CHEN YI Duo Ye for Chamber Orchestra
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7
JUNETEENTH: CELEBRATION OF FREEDOM
Friday, June 23, 2023, 8 p.m.
Minnesota Orchestra
André Raphel, conductor
TBD
This activity is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment‘s Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.