January 2013The Inaugural Season

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From the President

J.D. S

cott

Dear Friends:

I would like to thank you all for the overwhelming welcome you gave Yannick during his inaugural weeks as our new music director. It was so inspiring to see the spontaneous and genuine reaction to his music-making, and I know it touched his heart deeply. Yannick will join us for seven more weeks of concerts this year, including two this month, one of which includes his first time leading the Orchestra in a work by one of his favorite composers—Anton Bruckner. Yannick also conducts the 156th Academy Anniversary Concert on January 26, with special guest Hugh Jackman, a not-to-be-missed event if ever there was one.

The remainder of the subscription season is full of a variety of concert offerings that will appeal to everyone. In particular we are pleased to welcome back, for two weeks each, four conductors who are very special friends of the Orchestra: Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (with pianist André Watts and Carmina burana); Christoph von Dohnányi (leading the perennial favorites Beethoven’s “Eroica” and Schubert’s “Unfinished” symphonies); Jaap van Zweden (with pianist Garrick Ohlsson and Prokofiev’s ever-popular Fifth Symphony); and Simon Rattle (whose programs continue our season-long Stokowski Centennial celebrations). I hope you will join us often for these and all our other performances. You can learn more about the season at our website, www.philorch.org.

This month also brings our annual Martin Luther King Jr. Tribute Concert, held once again at Martin Luther King High School in North Philadelphia on Monday, January 21, at 4:00 PM. We are especially thrilled this year that Yannick will conduct this concert. He has also invited Jeri Lynne Johnson, founder and music director of the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra, to join him as guest conductor. Yannick’s wish to be with us for this special event reinforces his belief, and ours, in the utmost importance of celebrating the strengths of community while also honoring one of our nation’s greatest leaders.

I wish you a bright and happy New Year. It is due to the role you play, as concert-goers, donors, and lovers of this great institution, that we are able to bring our world-class music to all Philadelphians.

Yours in Music,

Allison VulgamorePresident & CEO

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Music DirectorYannick Nézet-Séguin became the eighth music director of The Philadelphia Orchestra with the start of the 2012-13 season. Named music director designate in June 2010, he made his Orchestra debut in December 2008. Over the past decade, Yannick has established himself as a musical leader of the highest caliber and one of the most exciting talents of his generation. Since 2008 he has been music director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic and principal guest conductor of the London Philharmonic, and since 2000 artistic director and principal conductor of Montreal’s Orchestre Métropolitain. He has appeared with such revered ensembles as the Vienna and Berlin philharmonics; the Boston Symphony; the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia; the Dresden Staatskapelle; the Chamber Orchestra of Europe; and the major Canadian orchestras. His talents extend beyond symphonic music into opera and choral music, leading acclaimed performances at the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, London’s Royal Opera House, and the Salzburg Festival.

Highlights of Yannick’s inaugural season include his Carnegie Hall debut with the Verdi Requiem, two world and one U.S. premiere, and performances of The Rite of Spring in collaboration with New York-based Ridge Theater, complete with dancers, video projection, and theatrical lighting.

In July 2012 Yannick and Deutsche Grammophon announced a major long-term collaboration. His discography with the Rotterdam Philharmonic for BIS Records and EMI/Virgin includes an Edison Award-winning album of Ravel’s orchestral works. He has also recorded several award-winning albums with the Orchestre Métropolitain for ATMA Classique. In addition, his first recording with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, is available for download.

A native of Montreal, Yannick studied at that city’s Conservatory of Music and continued studies with renowned conductor Carlo Maria Giulini and with Joseph Flummerfelt at Westminster Choir College. In 2012 Yannick was appointed a Companion of the Order of Canada, one of the country’s highest civilian honors. His other honors include Canada’s National Arts Centre Award; a Royal Philharmonic Society Award; the Prix Denise-Pelletier, the highest distinction for the arts in Quebec; and an honorary doctorate by the University of Quebec in Montreal.

To read Yannick’s full bio, please visit www.philorch.org/conductor.

Jessica Griffin

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The Philadelphia Orchestra2012-2013 SeasonYannick Nézet-SéguinMusic DirectorWalter and Leonore Annenberg

Chair

Wolfgang SawallischConductor LaureateCharles Dutoit Conductor LaureateCristian MacelaruAssistant Conductor

First ViolinsDavid Kim, ConcertmasterDr. Benjamin Rush ChairJuliette Kang, First Associate ConcertmasterJoseph and Marie Field ChairMarc Rovetti, Acting Associate ConcertmasterAmy Oshiro-Morales, Acting Assistant ConcertmasterHerbert Light Larry A. Grika ChairBarbara GovatosWilson H. and Barbara B. Taylor ChairJonathan BeilerHirono OkaRichard AmorosoRobert and Lynne Pollack ChairYayoi NumazawaJason De PueLisa-Beth LambertJennifer HaasMiyo CurnowElina KalendarevaDaniel HanNoah Geller*

Second ViolinsKimberly Fisher, PrincipalPeter A. Benoliel ChairPaul Roby, Associate PrincipalSandra and David Marshall ChairDara Morales, Assistant PrincipalAnne M. Buxton ChairPhilip KatesMitchell and Hilarie Morgan Family Foundation ChairBooker RoweDavyd BoothPaul ArnoldLorraine and David Popowich Chair

Yumi Ninomiya ScottDmitri LevinBoris BalterWilliam Polk

ViolasChoong-Jin Chang, PrincipalRuth and A. Morris Williams ChairKirsten Johnson, Associate PrincipalKerri Ryan, Assistant PrincipalJudy Geist Renard EdwardsAnna Marie Ahn PetersenPiasecki Family ChairDavid NicastroBurchard TangChe-Hung Chen Rachel KuMarvin MoonJonathan Chu

CellosHai-Ye Ni, PrincipalAlbert and Mildred Switky ChairYumi Kendall, Acting Associate PrincipalWendy and Derek Pew Foundation ChairJohn Koen, Acting Assistant PrincipalRichard HarlowGloria de PasqualeOrton P. and Noël S. Jackson ChairKathryn Picht ReadWinifred and Samuel Mayes ChairRobert CafaroVolunteer Committees ChairOhad Bar-DavidCatherine R. and Anthony A. Clifton ChairDerek BarnesMollie and Frank Slattery ChairAlex Veltman

BassesHarold Robinson, PrincipalCarole and Emilio Gravagno ChairMichael Shahan, Associate PrincipalJoseph Conyers, Assistant PrincipalJohn HoodHenry G. Scott

David FayDuane RosengardRobert Kesselman

Some members of the string sections voluntarily rotate seating on a periodic basis.

FlutesJeffrey Khaner, PrincipalPaul and Barbara Henkels ChairDavid Cramer, Associate PrincipalRachelle and Ronald Kaiserman ChairLoren N. LindKazuo Tokito, Piccolo

OboesRichard Woodhams, PrincipalSamuel S. Fels ChairPeter Smith, Associate PrincipalJonathan BlumenfeldEdwin Tuttle ChairElizabeth Starr Masoudnia, English HornJoanne T. Greenspun Chair

ClarinetsRicardo Morales, PrincipalLeslie Miller and Richard Worley ChairSamuel Caviezel, Associate PrincipalSarah and Frank Coulson ChairRaoul QuerzePeter M. Joseph and Susan Rittenhouse Joseph ChairPaul R. Demers, Bass Clarinet

BassoonsDaniel Matsukawa, PrincipalRichard M. Klein ChairMark Gigliotti, Co-PrincipalAngela AndersonHolly Blake, Contrabassoon

HornsJennifer Montone, PrincipalGray Charitable Trust ChairJeffrey Lang, Associate PrincipalJeffry KirschenDaniel WilliamsDenise TryonShelley Showers

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RosteR continues on pg. 8

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TrumpetsDavid Bilger, PrincipalMarguerite and Gerry Lenfest ChairJeffrey Curnow, Associate PrincipalGary and Ruthanne Schlarbaum ChairRobert W. Earley TrombonesNitzan Haroz*, PrincipalNeubauer Family Foundation ChairMatthew Vaughn, Acting PrincipalEric CarlsonBlair Bollinger, Bass TromboneDrs. Bong and Mi Wha Lee Chair

TubaCarol Jantsch, PrincipalLyn and George M. Ross Chair

TimpaniDon S. Liuzzi, PrincipalDwight V. Dowley ChairAngela Zator Nelson, Associate PrincipalPatrick and Evelyn Gage Chair

PercussionChristopher Deviney, PrincipalMrs. Francis W. De Serio ChairAnthony Orlando, Associate PrincipalAnn R. and Harold A. Sorgenti ChairAngela Zator Nelson

Piano and CelestaKiyoko Takeuti

HarpsElizabeth Hainen, PrincipalPatricia and John Imbesi ChairMargarita Csonka Montanaro, Co-Principal

LibrariansRobert M. Grossman, PrincipalSteven K. Glanzmann

Stage PersonnelEdward Barnes, ManagerJames J. Sweeney, Jr.James P. Barnes

*On leave

Where were you born? Long Island, NY.What piece of music could you play over and over again? Boccherini’s Cello Quintet recordings, Haydn piano trios, and works by J.S. Bach.What is your most treasured possession? My 2012 Scion iQ.What are your favorite Philadelphia restaurants? Girasole, Figs, and Fork.What’s in your instrument case? My viola by Jean Baptiste Vuillaume; a french bow by La Pierre; a shoulder rest; rosin and a mute; Obligato strings; the score for Jennifer Higdon’s Viola and Piano Sonata; a charmeuse cleaning cloth; an old sound post; and a postcard.What piece of music never fails to move you? Any work by Leonard Bernstein.When did you join the Orchestra? In 1983 under the baton of Riccardo Muti.Do you play any other instruments? Not anymore.What’s your favorite type of food? I like vegetarian: pasta dishes and potato pierogi with peas, sauteed onions, and sour cream!What book is on your nightstand? The Book of Runes.Do you follow any blogs? FactCheck and the Brad Blog.

To read the full set of questions and to see a photo of the inside of Judy’s viola case, please visit www.philorch.org/judygeist.

Musicians Behind the ScenesJudy Geist Viola

Karen M

auch

8 The Philadelphia Orchestra 2012-2013 Season

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A Rite of Spring for a New Millennium

What would The Philadelphia Orchestra have to do to provoke a riot in Verizon Hall? Might the Orchestra’s re-envisioned performances of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring—scheduled for February 21-24 under Yannick Nézet-Séguin’s baton—be the catalyst? “Will we see a riot in Verizon Hall? I don’t think it is so easy to shock people anymore,” says Jeremy Rothman, the Orchestra’s vice president for artistic planning.

Set design by Jim Findlay for the Second Part of The Rite of Spring for the Orchestra’s February performances in collaboration with Ridge Theater.

By Margie Smith Holt

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12 A Rite of Spring for a New Millennium

There is precedent for riots breaking out, of course. Perhaps the most famous of artistic melees was spurred by The Rite of Spring’s premiere in Paris a century ago. That performance at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées on May 29, 1913—a collaboration between Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Diaghilev of the legendary Ballets Russes—pushed the audience well out of its comfort zone with Vaslav Nijinsky’s peculiar choreography, sets and outrageous costumes by Nikolai Roerich, and, oh yes, the story of pagan sacrifice that was unconventional at best, blasphemous at worst.

“Parisians Hiss New Ballet” read the headline in the New York Times review that pronounced the work “a failure.” Witnesses reported whistles, catcalls, and fights from the house. Insults were hurled at the performers on stage. Stravinsky thought it was incredible that conductor Pierre Monteux was actually able to lead the orchestra through the shouts and laughter and play the piece through to the end. Diaghilev called it “Exactly what I wanted.”

Whether Diaghilev’s intent was innovation for art’s sake or merely to generate publicity for his flagging company, The Rite of Spring survived its opening night reviews. Within the decade, it would get its U.S. premiere—presented by Leopold Stokowski and The Philadelphia Orchestra on March 3, 1922. The audience remained underwhelmed. “Although the public seemed to feel an awareness of the work’s importance,” wrote the Philadelphia Bulletin, “there was little comprehension and even less tolerance for Mr. Stravinsky’s uncouth delight in the utmost barbarism.”

Stokowski’s “uncouth delight” in the alleged barbarism of Rite extended to the staged version—also given its American premiere by the Philadelphians on April 11, 1930. Martha Graham danced the role of the sacrificial virgin. The maestro tried to set the mood. He described the ballet as he had seen it in Paris and told concertgoers he would be surprised if they liked the work at first. But he assured them that it was great music.

Igor Stravinsky around 1913, the year The Rite of Spring was premiered.

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14 A Rite of Spring for a New Millennium

“The Rite of Spring is such a symbolic work,” says Yannick. “It’s famous for its difficulty, first. How it was a nightmare and a headache for the musicians and the dancers alike when it was created. It’s also famous because we can define this as the beginning of real modern music. … It has influenced and still is influencing every new piece of music that is performed.”

As revolutionary as the piece was then, the Orchestra is poised to give this seminal 20th-century work a modern update. In honor of the 100th anniversary of The Rite of Spring’s premiere—and as part of the centennial celebration of the always-innovating Stokowski’s tenure in Philadelphia—the Orchestra is again asking its audience to try something new. “We wanted to create an experience of The Rite of Spring coming to life in a new century,” says Rothman.

Enter Bob McGrath, artistic director of the Manhattan-based Ridge Theater Company, whose work has been described as “hallucinatory.” “There’s a trance element to our work,” says McGrath. “It’s very delicate and

Dancers from the world premiere of The Rite of Spring in 1913.

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The program from the U.S. premiere performances of The Rite of Spring.

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elegant and organized.” He says the company tries to produce “an all-encompassing nightmare or dream that creates an experience for the audience.” The Rite of Spring falls into the nightmare category, he says, with its “primitive, violent quality.”

Ridge Theater is collaborating with the Orchestra through a first-of-its-kind partnership with the avant-garde Philadelphia Live Arts. Almost two years in the making, the company is busy putting the finishing touches on an ambitious vision that includes theatrical lighting, projected images (some from a filmmaker who uses decomposing film as a source), large screens that can separate to show depth, choreography, even an aerialist performing from a silk trapeze suspended over the conductor’s podium. Okay, she’s not technically over the musicians (and those priceless instruments), she’s slightly downstage; so even though she won’t be directly over Yannick, “It’s going to appear that way to the audience,” says McGrath. “Which is good!”

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16 A Rite of Spring for a New Millennium

A 1904 sketch of Sergei Diaghilev by Valentin Aleksandrovich Serov.

McGrath is thrilled to be working with The Philadelphia Orchestra, especially on a piece as inspiring as Rite. “It’s always been this monolith out there,” he says. “The great modernist symphony. The thing about The Rite of Spring is—it still sounds great. It’s still outrageous. After all this time, it completely resonates, not just as this monument of 1913 that changed everything, but as is. It’s just amazing.” He adds, “We’re just trying to make a version for a new millennium.”

McGrath says he hopes the audience will see the performances as “exciting, thought-provoking, moving. All the things that Stravinsky’s music is. Savage and unrelenting and just all the things that that masterpiece is.” Rothman predicts a performance the audience will never forget; one so extraordinary that anyone who misses it will regret it.

For anyone worried that all the extras will detract from the music, Rothman says fear not: The Orchestra will still be very much the centerpiece. Theatrical elements, however, are becoming part of the repertoire. Consider this season’s performances of West Side Story and Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky, both of which included film, or the Stokowski Celebration, which featured projected imagery on the Academy’s proscenium and lighting that made the chandelier glow neon blue. There are people who want to see the Orchestra take a bit more of a risk, Rothman says, and, far from being a daring choice, The Rite of Spring deserves the kind of treatment it’s about to get.

“It is impossible and, frankly, irresponsible to separate a work like this from its theatrical genesis,” says Rothman, adding that doing so would sell short the Orchestra’s responsibility as an arts organization to be vibrant, creative, and push boundaries. “That’s what’s great about being an experimental artist,” says McGrath. “You are at least trying to push boundaries all the time.”

So about those riots? “I don’t think so,” says McGrath, echoing Rothman, “but you never know! People might think, ‘Why aren’t we just listening to this?’ I don’t know what the reaction is going to be. That’s really part of the fun: I don’t know.”

Margie Smith Holt is a New York-based writer and journalist. She is former director of communications for The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts and was the host of The Philadelphia Orchestra’s Global Concert Series.

P

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Beyond the BatonWhat piece of music have you always wanted to conduct but haven’t had the chance to yet?I delayed conducting Wagner operas because they are such a whole world on their own. But in a few months I will finally be starting my first Wagner opera.

What’s the first thing you do when learning a new piece of music?Studying scores is a lengthy and layered process, but the first step is to divide the phrases, the sections, in order to get a sense of its structure.

Do you have a favorite visual artist?David Altmejd, a sculptor who is a Montreal native and who has represented Canada at the Venice Biennale and the Whitney Biennial. Increasingly he is creating outdoor sculptures, a little bit like all the public art we have here in Philadelphia. He is now gaining much more notice because of his recent installation, The Eye, in front of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

What is the strangest thing you’ve ever eaten?I have actually received some excellent coaching from pianist Yundi Li. He advised me that I should eat a dish of tiny chicken bones because it would be good for my skin!

Which talent would you most like to have?I would have loved to become a dancer and I definitely wish I had a real talent to play tennis.

Do you have a favorite vacation spot?One of the most wonderful was Bora Bora—the closest to Paradise!

To read the questions from previous months, please visit www.philorch.org/baton.

Chris Lee

A Q&A with Yannick Nézet-Séguin

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According to Reinhard and Sue Kruse, they have done three things right in their lives: marrying their one true love; moving to Philadelphia; and buying a condo in the Academy House in Center City.

As Dallas residents in the mid-1970s, Reinhard and Sue were faithful Dallas Symphony patrons—often traveling 260 miles round trip to concerts each month. However, when the ensemble suspended operations for a year due to financial problems they seized the opportunity to make a life for themselves outside of the South.

According to Reinhard, The Philadelphia Orchestra was the main reason they chose to move here.

One of their first orders of business once in town? Signing up for a subscription to the Orchestra. Over 37 years later, they now have two season subscriptions because according to Sue they “always have to hear each program, and some twice.” Reinhard agrees. “The programs are always such a good balance,” he says. “We know there will always be something familiar that we really love and know well, and then something new that we would never have given a chance otherwise.” And of course, there is Yannick.

“Yannick is fantastic! He seems so open, friendly, engaging—he and the Orchestra have such a wonderful rapport, and you can just feel (and hear) it in the hall,” says Sue. Their Texan friends made bets on how long they would last in Philadelphia. It’s likely they have conceded by now. When asked if they ever miss the South, Sue replies, “Sometimes, I miss the bluebonnets in Texas during April and May. I can live without bluebonnets, but I cannot live without classical music.”

For more on Reinhard and Sue’s story visit www.philorch.org/kruse.

In the SpotlightA Monthly Series of Donor and Patron Profiles

Sue and Reinhard Kruse

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A Master StorytellerCharlotte Blake Alston made her Philadelphia Orchestra debut on a 1991 Family Concert telling the Native-American story The Seven Dancing Stars. Since then she has become one of the Orchestra’s great friends and artistic partners, appearing on numerous Family and School concerts, as host of the Orchestra’s Sound All Around series since its founding, on several Neighborhood Concerts, and annually in the Martin Luther King Jr. Tribute Concert since 2003. Each of Charlotte’s appearances with the Orchestra makes an extraordinary impression, especially on children. But it is perhaps her passionate reading of excerpts from Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech (among others) at the Tribute Concert that touches hearts most deeply, bringing audiences to tears and a standing ovation each and every time.

In addition to her work with the Orchestra, Charlotte appears throughout the country at festivals, schools, museums, libraries, and performing arts centers, and with numerous orchestras, instrumental ensembles, and opera and dance companies. She also performs with her brother, jazz violinist John Blake Jr. and his band.

“I never imagined that my first appearance on a Family Concert in 1991 would be the beginning of a relationship with The Philadelphia Orchestra that has continued over more than 20 years,” says Charlotte. “It has been one of the great gifts of my life. To stand in front of this ensemble, to work with individual musicians, and to represent this orchestra in a range of contexts has and continues to be an honor I do not take lightly and accept with humility and gratefulness.”

Pete C

hecchia

Charlotte Blake Alston reads excerpts from Martin Luther King Jr. speeches at the 2010 King Tribute Concert.

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