Wednesday, January 31, 2007

NYRO's next concert: Britten, Prokofiev, and Beethoven

The next NYRO concert is on February 10, at the orchestra's usual performance space in the Good Shepherd-Faith Church on West 66th St. Here's the message from our music director about the program. If you haven't gotten an e-mail from me about the concert, consider this your notice/invitation/summons to appear and applaud.

Dear Friends of the New York Repertory Orchestra,

Happy New Year and welcome to the second half of our 2006-2007 season!

NYRO gratefully thanks all of you who made our First Annual Benefit Concert in December such a great success, both musically and financially. Our performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 was a landmark for NYRO and we were thrilled to see so many of you in the audience. We are hoping to post the recording of the concert on our web site (in mp3 files) very soon. We’ll keep you posted.

AND...You are
cordially invited to our first concert of 2007!

We are continuing our wonderful season of great music, fantastic soloists, and the exciting music-making of the New York Repertory Orchestra - New York's leading all-volunteer, community-based orchestra! We look forward to seeing you at our next concert. Here are the details:

When: Saturday, February 10, 2007 – 8:00 p.m.
Where:
Good Shepherd-Faith Church @ 152 West 66th St. (between B'way & Amsterdam)
Admission: FREE


Program

  • Britten: Four Sea Interludes from “Peter Grimes”
  • Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor – Rachel Lee, violin
  • Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F Major

Here's some info about the program:


  • Making her debut with NYRO, violinist Rachel Lee joins us in Serge Prokofiev’s haunting Violin Concerto No. 2. Full of lyrical melodies, sparkling orchestral colors, and exciting virtuosic writing, this concerto has been a favorite of audiences since its premiere. (See below for more information about our wonderful soloist.)


  • The major work on the program will be the Symphony No. 8 in F Major by Ludwig van Beethoven. Often (undeservedly) overshadowed by his Seventh and Ninth Symphonies, but no less a work of Beethoven’s mature genius, his Eighth Symphony is full of optimism, humor, and enthusiastic good spirits. Sunlight radiates from every measure of this wonderful piece.


  • The concert begins with the evocative Four Sea Interludes from British composer Benjamin Britten’s ground-breaking opera “Peter Grimes.” With an elegant economy of means, Britten poignantly evokes the secluded fishing village in which the drama unfolds. From the rising sun, to distant church bells, to a raging storm, the composer uses the orchestra to create vivid sound pictures.


  • Violinist Rachel Lee is regarded as one of the most prodigious and promising talents on the concert stage. In January 2006 she made a successful debut with the Seattle Symphony, of which the Seattle Times wrote: “[she gave] a performance that was polished and technically assured, with a pure, strong tone and supple phrasing”. Rachel also recently made her European concerto debut with the Berlin Staatskapelle to overwhelming enthusiasm. She will make her Chicago Symphony solo debut in February of 2007.

So...it should be a wonderful concert and we hope to see you there on February 10.

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