In February 2005, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra gave its debut performance at Strathmore. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma was on hand to celebrate what, that night, became the nation’s first orchestra with year-round venues in two metropolitan areas.
Music director Marin Alsop is thrilled to announce the orchestra’s eighth season in their Bethesda home; one that will include a commemoration of the 200th anniversary of Richard Wagner’s birth, new works by living composers and all-star SuperPops programming featuring such stars as John Waters, who will narrate a show based on his quirky Broadway and film sensation, “Hairspray.”
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra will delve into the transformative power of film in two major screenings on the Strathmore stage, each accompanied by full orchestral performance. The 10-time Oscar winner, “West Side Story” showcases the timeless brilliance of its musical score composed by Leonard Bernstein. Following the sold-out BSO presentations of “The Gold Rush” and “City Lights,” the BSO will also pay tribute to legendary actor, director and composer, Charlie Chaplin with a screening of “Modern Times.”
“Great cinema has the power to inspire, excite, entertain and make us laugh,” noted Marin Alsop. “A crucial component of a great film is a captivating and compelling musical score. I’m thrilled to present some of the best movies throughout the ages, enhanced by full orchestral scores with themes that have become embedded in the soundtrack of our culture.”
Alsop will also premieres pieces by Baltimore composer, Christopher Rouse as well as the works of several American icons.
“Music is a direct reflection of a country’s culture,” she continued. “This season we explore American culture through the voices of some of our nation’s treasured composers. From Chris and David Brubeck’s jazz-filled ‘Ansel Adams: America’ to Copland’s triumphant Third Symphony to Bernstein’s mournful ‘Kaddish Symphony’… we will experience the amazing mosaic that is America.”
Guest classical artists include pianists Garrick Ohlsson and Stephen Hough, violinist Kolja Blacher and cellist Sol Gabetta. Guest conductors include Yan Pascal Tortelier, Carlos Kalmar and Mario Venzago.
Four concerts from Marin Alsop’s Off the Cuff series feature Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 5,” Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 3,” Saint-Saens’ “Organ Symphony and finally, a unique presentation called “Wagner: A Composer Fit for a King.”
Check out the entire roster and subscribe today. Full subscription information and a comprehensive brochure are available at 1-877-BSO-1444 and BSOmusic.org/subscribe.
