February 21, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THE OREGON SYMPHONY IN MARCH:

RENÉE FLEMING AND GARRISON KEILLOR HEADLINE
A DELIGHTFULLY VARIED MONTH OF CONCERTS !

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(PORTLAND, Ore.) –March brims with variety as the Oregon Symphony’s slate of concerts features Classical, Pops, and Special Concerts.  In addition to superstar soprano Renée Fleming and super-storyteller Garrison Keillor, audiences will also enjoy a special St. Patrick’s Day celebration, two extraordinary pianists, Inon Barnatan and Garrick Ohlsson, and an Indian tabla master. 

 

SATURDAY, MARCH 3:
SUNDAY, MARCH 4:
MONDAY, MARCH 5:
DVOŘÁK’S SLAVONIC DANCES

• When and Where: [EDITORS PLEASE NOTE DIFFERING PERFORMANCE TIMES]  Mar. 3 & 4 at 7:30 pm; Mar. 5 at 8:00 pm; Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

• The Performers: The Oregon Symphony with Guest Conductor Michele Mariotti conducting.  Inon Barnatan, piano *

• The Program:
• Mozart: Ballet music to Idomeneo
• * Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2
• Dvořák: Slavonic Dances, Op. 46 (complete)

• More Background Info and Photos:
• On the Oregon Symphony: www.orsymphony.org
• On Inon Barnatan:  www.inonbarnatan.com

• Tickets: $21 to $92; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 during the same hours, at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance, or online at any time from the orchestra’s web site, OrSymphony.org.

• What’s So Special About This Concert:
• This marks the very first time the orchestra has played the Slavonic Dances in their entirety.
• Interestingly, these dances are not based on Slavic folk tunes but are original compositions, so steeped in tradition that they sound like folk tunes.
• Program note writer Steven Kruger says it best:  “Nowhere else . . . do we encounter this much sheer lift, zest and syncopated percussive power . . . and the sophisticated permission to enjoy it.”
• Young piano phenomenon Inon Barnatan makes his debut.
• Barnatan recently performed with Portland Piano International.
• The London Evening Standard described him as “a true poet of the keyboard.”
• Born in Tel Aviv, he moved to the U.S. in 2006 and has since debuted with orchestras in Cleveland, Houston, Philadelphia and San Francisco.
• In 2009 he was awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant.
• Guest conductor Michele Mariotti, born and raised in Pesaro, Italy, is a rising star in Europe and soon to be just as well-known in the U.S.
• He’s been engaged by the Metropolitan Opera for three upcoming seasons.

 

THURSDAY, MARCH 8
AN EVENING WITH GARRISON KEILLOR

• When and Where:   Mar. 8 at 7:30 pm; Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

• The Performers: Garrison Keillor, storyteller, author, creator and host of A Prairie Home Companion .

• The Program: An evening of storytelling, songs and sonnets.

• Tickets: $30-$125; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 during the same hours, at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance, or online at any time from the orchestra’s web site, OrSymphony.org.

• What’s So Special About This Concert:

• No one can tell a story, spin a yarn, tell a tale, or sing a song quite like Garrison Keillor!
• Each weekend countless thousands of people sit at his knee, figuratively, to enjoy his Prairie Home Companion.
• And now, for one night only, we’re going to give him the stage, a microphone and we’re going to sit back and enjoy whatever’s on his mind! 

 

TUESDAY, MAR. 13:
RENÉE FLEMING

• When and Where: One performance only, Mar. 13 at 7:30 pm; Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

• The Performers:  Superstar soprano Renée Fleming  with the Oregon Symphony; Sebastian Lang-Lessing, conductor.

• The Program:

• Ravel: Shéhérazade (Asie, La Flûte enchantée, L’indifférent)
• Gounod: Jewel Song from Faust
• Ricky Gordon: Night Flight to San Francisco
• Cohen: Hallelujah
• Gibbard: Soul Meets Body
• Korngold: Overture to Captain Blood
• Lehár: Vilja-Lied from The Merry Widow
• Korngold: Marietta’s Lied from Die Tote Stadt
• And others . . .

• More Background Info and Photos:

• On the Oregon Symphony:  www.orsymphony.org
• On Renée Fleming:  www.reneefleming.com

• Tickets: $65-$200; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 during the same hours, at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance, or online at any time from the orchestra’s web site, OrSymphony.org.

• What’s So Special About This Concert:
• Superstar soprano Renée Fleming, in concert with the Oregon Symphony for one night only.
• Revered by opera fans around the world and by theater fans for her hosting of the Met’s popular HD series, she is renowned for her sumptuous voice, consummate artistry, and compelling stage presence. 
• Many opera singers attempt to sing “cross over” repertoire with very mixed results.  Renée Fleming is the rare exception, one who can soar on the operatic wings of arias and, a moment later, plant her feet and her voice firmly in the earthy dust of a ballad.
• Her program (and, no doubt, her performance) attest to that ability, with arias from Gounod, Ravel and Korngold, alongside songs by Leonard Cohen and Ricky Gordon.

 

SATURDAY,  MAR. 17:
SUNDAY, MAR. 18:
ST. PATRICK’S CELEBRATION

• When and Where: [EDITORS PLEASE NOTE DIFFERING PERFORMANCE TIMES]  Mar. 17 at 7:30 pm; Mar. 18 at 3:00 pm; Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

• The Performers: The Oregon Symphony with Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik, Irish tenor John McDermott, and the Molly Malone Irish Dancers.

• The Program:
• An exciting mixture of great Irish tunes with the Symphony and dancers.
• Irish Tenor John McDermott will sing “Voyage,” “Flow Gently Sweet Afton,” “Scotland the Brave,” “The Last Rose of Summer,” “My Bonnie,” “Danny Boy,” and many others.

• More Background Info and Photos:

• On the Oregon Symphony:  www.orsymphony.org
• On John McDermott:  www.johnmcdermott.com

• Tickets: $21 to $92; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 during the same hours, at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance, or online at any time from the orchestra’s web site, OrSymphony.org.

• What’s So Special About This Concert:

• The orchestra and Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik get their brogues on for a unique and distinctive St. Patrick’s Day Celebration.
• Irish Tenor John McDermott has become an international recording star and household name for whom singing was a hobby less than ten years ago.
• He was discovered by chance when, working for the Toronto Sun, he belted out an impromptu rendition of “Danny Boy” at a company party.
• His recordings have won him three Canadian platinum records, five Juno nominations and a busy international touring schedule.
• In addition to his hectic schedule, he is deeply committed to veterans’ causes.  His McDermott House Canada is committed to creating an improved quality of care in the final stages of a terminal illness, coupled with a warm, welcoming place to stay in Canada for veterans, military, first responders and their families.
• Locally based Molly Malone dancers will high step to some great Irish tunes.

 

FRIDAY, MARCH 30:
ZAKIR HUSSAIN AND THE MASTERS OF PERCUSSION

• When and Where: Mar. 30 at 7:30 pm; Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

• The Performers: Zakir Hussain; Fazal Qureshi (tabla and kanjira), Rakesh Chaurasia (bansuri), T.H.V. Umashankar (ghatam), Sabir Khan (sarangi), Navin Sharma (dholak), Abbos Kosimov (doyra), Ningombam Joy Singh, Meitei Pung Cholom (dancing drummer of Manipur).

• The Program:
• Program to be announced from the stage

• More Background Info and Photos:
• On Zakir Hussain:  www.zakirhussain.com

• Tickets: $25 to $60; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 during the same hours, at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance, or online at any time from the orchestra’s web site, OrSymphony.org.

• What’s So Special About This Concert:
• One of the foremost percussionists in the world today, Zakir Hussain takes the Indian tabla to an extraordinary level.
• He astonished audiences in 2009 and comes back by popular demand.
• The Oregonian said it best in a review of his 2009 performance:  “Simply put, Hussain is a virtuoso.” 
  
  

 

SATURDAY, MAR. 31:
SUNDAY, APR. 1:
MONDAY, APR. 2:
OHLSSON PLAYS MOZART

• When and Where: [EDITORS PLEASE NOTE DIFFERING PERFORMANCE TIMES]  Mar. 31 and Apr. 1 at 7:30 pm; Apr. 2 at 8:00 pm; Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

• The Performers: The Oregon Symphony with Music Director Carlos Kalmar conducting; * Garrick Ohlsson, piano.

• The Program:
• Haydn: Overture in C major
• * Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 9, “Jeunehomme”
• Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5

• More Background Info and Photos:

• On the Oregon Symphony:  www.orsymphony.org
• On Garrick Ohlsson:  www.opus3artists.com/artists/garrick-ohlsson

• Tickets: $21 to $92; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland. Ticket office hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets may also be purchased by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 during the same hours, at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance, or online at any time from the orchestra’s web site, OrSymphony.org.

• What’s So Special About This Concert:

• Popular, San Francisco-based pianist Garrick Ohlsson returns for the sixth time.
• Sometimes a pianist’s prowess can be demonstrated geographically.  Garrick Ohlsson’s 2011/12 schedule attests not only to his consummate skills but to his global demand.  In 2011/12 he plays (or has played) recitals in Chicago, Hong Kong, London, New York, France, England, Italy, Taiwan, Poland and Japan.  In addition, he’s appeared with orchestras in San Francisco, Atlanta, New York, Nashville, Indianapolis, Ottowa and many others.
• He plays Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 9 (Jeunehomme) which displays, in addition to Mozart’s typical brilliance, a unique and exciting dialogue between the piano and the orchestra.
• Written when he was only 21, Mozart’s concerto was incredibly well-received and continues to be wildly popular with today’s audiences.
• Haydn’s overture to L’Anima del filosofo brims with energy, capturing the lively tension and dramatic plot twists of the Orpheus legend, from its slow minor-key introduction to Orpheus’ harrowing journey into the bowels of Hades to rescue his beloved Euridice.
• What a way to finish an evening—with Shostakovich’s 5th, one of the composer’s most popular symphonies!
• Written in the mid-1930s when Shostakovich had fallen out of favor with the Stalinists, the piece has generated considerable discussion about whether it was written to curry favor or whether it contained subtle critiques of the Stalinist era.  Regardless, it remains to this day a powerful and popular piece of music.

 

Photos for media uses can be found at:
www.orsymphony.org/newsroom/artists.aspx

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CONTACT:
Jim Fullan
Vice President, Communications, Marketing & Sales
503-416-6347
jfullan@orsymphony.org