This weekend, Summer at Orchestra Hall creative partner Jon Kimura Parker takes the stage to perform Maurice Ravel’s sparkling Piano Concerto in G. Ravel composed this concerto after a four-month concert tour of North America, which included frequent visits to Harlem’s jazz clubs with George Gershwin. Known for his dynamic performances, Parker will deliver a performance of this beloved concerto that you won’t want to miss! Plus, rising star Stephanie Childress conducts lively suites from three pieces written for the stage that illustrate the enduring influence of jazz on orchestral music. Listen to the live broadcast with host Melissa Ousley at 8 p.m. Friday, July 26, on YourClassical MPR.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Stephanie Childress, conductor
Jon Kimura Parker, piano *
KURT WEILL Suite from The Threepenny Opera
MAURICE RAVEL Piano Concerto in G *
FRANCIS POULENC Suite from Les Biches
SERGEI PROKOFIEV Suite from The Love for Three Oranges
‘Thomas Søndergård: Taken by the Sound’
Earlier this year, Melissa Ousley joined Minnesota Orchestra music director Thomas Søndergård in his native Denmark to explore some of the most important places in his life. Join them as they walk through his memories, musical and otherwise, in this new documentary short.
Upcoming concerts
Friday, Aug. 2 — George Gershwin and the Great Gatsby
Lina González-Granados makes her Minnesota Orchestra debut in this concert focused on music that both drew from and canonized the sounds of the Roaring Twenties. Two works from George Gershwin highlight the program, including his Concerto in F for solo piano and orchestra, which will be performed by Jon Kimura Parker, and a selection from his famed opera Porgy and Bess. Two pieces inspired by the sights, scenes and sounds of this incredible decade round out this program: John Harbison’s Remembering Gatsby, a 1985 composition inspired by F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Jazz Age short story collection, and Darius Milhaud’s Le Bœuf sur le toit, conceived as incidental music for Charlie Chaplin’s silent films.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Lina González-Granados, conductor
Jon Kimura Parker, piano *
JOHN HARBISON Remembering Gatsby (Foxtrot for Orchestra)
GEORGE GERSWHIN Concerto in F *
DARIUS MILHAUD Le Bœuf sur le toit
GEORGE GERSHWIN Catfish Row Suite from Porgy and Bess
Previous concerts
Delyana Lazarova and Natsuki Kumagai kick off the Minnesota Orchestra summer season
Minnesota Orchestra’s summer season kicked off with a program from the heart of the classical period of Western music, led by conductor Delyana Lazarova. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Overture to Don Giovanni opened the program. Then, Minnesota Orchestra violinist Natsuki Kumagai performed Chevalier de Saint-Georges’ dazzling and dynamic Violin Concerto No. 2. Rounding out the program was Ludwig van Beethoven’s cheerful Symphony No. 4. Listen to the concert now!
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Delyana Lazarova, conductor
Natsuki Kumagai, violin *
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Overture to Don Giovanni
JOSEPH BOLOGNE, CHEVALIER DE SAINT-GEORGE Violin Concerto No. 2 *
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4
Erin Keefe stars with Minnesota Orchestra in Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1
On Friday, April 12, Thomas Søndergård led the Minnesota Orchestra in Robert Schumann’s bright and joyful Symphony No. 1 and collaborated with concertmaster Erin Keefe for a performance of Max Bruch’s elegant Violin Concerto No. 1. The singers of the Minnesota Chorale lent their voices to two works on the program, Johannes Brahms’ Schicksalslied and the U.S. premiere of Eleanor Alberga’s Rise Up, O Sun! Watch as host Steve Staruch speaks with Keefe regarding her preparation for the performance.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Thomas Søndergård, conductor
Erin Keefe, violin *
Minnesota Chorale **
ELEANOR ALBERG Rise Up, O Sun! **
MAX BRUCH Violin Concerto No. 1 *
JOHANNES BRAHMS Schicksalslied **
ROBERT SCHUMANN Symphony No. 1 (Spring)
Anthony Ross plays Dvorak's Cello Concerto with the Minnesota Orchestra
Not long before he wrote his famous Cello Concerto, Antonín Dvořák spent time exploring places Minnesotans might recognize — staying for a summer in the tiny town of Spillville in northern Iowa and visiting Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis — as he sought out new sparks of inspiration. On Friday, Jan. 12, principal cello Anthony Ross performed the piece alongside the Minnesota Orchestra and conductor Jun Märkl in a program featuring music by Dvořák and Brahms. Listen below to Ross’ talk with host Steve Staruch about his preparation for the performance.
Program
Minnesota Orchestra
Jun Märkl, conductor
Anthony Ross, cello *
ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Cello Concerto *
JOHANNES BRAHMS Symphony No. 3
‘Celebrating 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.
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