Saint-Saëns ’ brilliant “ Organ ” Symphony crowns the program .
ELLINGTON AND GERSHWIN
FRI , FEB 18 , 8 PM LATE NIGHT
KEN-DAVID MASUR , CONDUCTOR AARON DIEHL , PIANO
BACEWICZ Overture ELLINGTON “ New World A-Comin ’” GERSHWIN Second Rhapsody BRAHMS Symphony No . 2
Pianist extraordinaire Aaron Diehl joins the BSO for Ellington ’ s intoxicating “ New World A-Comin ’” and Gershwin ’ s Second Rhapsody , an animated and jaunty follow-up to Rhapsody in Blue . Guest conductor Ken-David Masur leads the orchestra in Polish composer Grażyna Bacewicz ’ s Overture , featuring exhilarating passages from the strings and horns , and closes the program with Brahms ’ sunny and uplifting Second Symphony .
Ken-David Masur
Reena Esmail
BEETHOVEN NINTH
FRI , APR 8 , 8 PM LATE NIGHT & PREMIUM
Awadagin Pratt
MARIN ALSOP , CONDUCTOR AH YOUNG HONG , SOPRANO TAYLOR RAVEN , MEZZO JONATHAN JOHNSON , TENOR SIMON SHIBAMBU , BASS
REENA ESMAIL See Me ( BSO Commission ) BEETHOVEN Symphony No . 9 , “ Choral ”
WORDSMITH , SPOKEN WORD ARTIST MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY CONCERT CHOIR THE CARTER LEGACY SINGERS KEUR KHALEYI , AFRICAN DRUMMING TROUPE SEAN JONES AND PEABODY JAZZ
In her final program of the season , Marin Alsop reimagines Beethoven ’ s Ninth Symphony as a 21st-century call for unity , justice , and empowerment . The concert opens with the first live performance of Reena Esmail ’ s See Me that flows into Beethoven ’ s Ninth , featuring new text from Wordsmith . Join Marin Alsop , the BSO , and members of the rich musical community of Baltimore for this bold interpretation of Beethoven ’ s ideas in response to today ’ s world .
AWADAGIN PRATT RETURNS
FRI , MAY 6 , 8 PM LATE NIGHT
CHRISTIAN REIF , CONDUCTOR AWADAGIN PRATT , PIANO
HENZE “ Mänadentanz ” from The Bassarids MOZART Symphony No . 39 JESSIE MONTGOMERY Piano Concerto ( BSO Co-Commission ) STRAUSS Der Rosenkavalier Suite
Acclaimed pianist Awadagin Pratt performs a new piano concerto by Jessie Montgomery , whose music has been described as “ turbulent , wildly colorful , and exploding with life ” by The Washington Post . German conductor Christian Reif guides the orchestra in one of Mozart ’ s final symphonies and two phenomenal operatic works , pairing the unchecked ferocity of Henze ’ s “ Mänadentanz ” with the frivolity of Strauss ’ Der Rosenkavalier Suite .
Beatrice Rana
RACHMANINOFF RHAPSODY
FRI , JUN 17 , 8 PM
JAMES CONLON , CONDUCTOR BEATRICE RANA , PIANO
WYNTON MARSALIS Fanfare ( BSO Co-Commission ) RACHMANINOFF Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No . 7 , “ Leningrad ”
The final concert of the season includes Rachmaninoff ’ s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini featuring Italian pianist Beatrice Rana , whose playing is noted by The London Times as having “ a kind of Orphic seductiveness , a transcendent lightness of touch .” The Rhapsody has a historical connection to the region , as it was premiered by Rachmaninoff himself at the Lyric Opera House in Baltimore . James Conlon leads the orchestra in a performance of Shostakovich ’ s dramatic “ Leningrad ” Symphony in which dueling brass sections represent the competing armies during the siege of Leningrad .
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