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Beethoven’s Ode to Joy
Saturday, October 22 · 8PM
Sigfúsdóttir Oceans
Beethoven Symphony No. 9
Amy Shoremount-Obra, soprano
Joan Peitscher, alto
Wesley Lawrence, tenor
Mark Steven Doss, baritone
Erie Philharmonic Chorus
Tom Brooks, director
As Beethoven’s crowning symphonic achievement, the Ninth Symphony looms large with its orchestral might, celestial beauty and spiritual grandeur. Through the introduction of voices into what was previously considered a purely instrumental art-form, Beethoven envisioned a glorious finale by setting Schiller’s Ode to Joy with a quartet of operatic soloists and a full chorus. Embracing themes of brotherhood and celebrating a benevolent Deity, Beethoven’s Ninth is also a paean to the glories of creation. It is in this spirit that we pair his grand work with a colorful and evocative work inspired by the Arctic Ocean by Maria Huld Sigfúsdóttir. With a deft touch and keen ear for sweeping soundscapes, Sigfúsdóttir’s music captivates with its shimmering effects and churning musical waves.
Cameron Carpenter
Saturday, November 12 · 8pm
Diamond Symphony No. 4
Poulenc Concerto for Organ, Timpani and Strings
Cameron Carpenter, organ
Debussy La Mer
November’s concert is a study in color – the instruments of the Philharmonic combine to create vivid sound pictures, and the works on our program form a triptych of contrasting hues. American composer David Diamond’s Symphony No. 4 is a neo-Romantic essay with propulsive rhythms and bold interjections contrasted against delicately painted melodies. His style fuses European and American styles that combine to create a special voice from the twentieth century. We also welcome internationally renown organist Cameron Carpenter back home to northwest Pennsylvania to make his Erie Philharmonic debut in Francis Poulenc’s reverent and powerful Concerto for Organ, Timpani and Strings. With the installation of the Wurlitzer Theatre Organ, finally making its permanent home in the Warner Theatre, Carpenter will surely maximize the kaleidoscopic range of this sensational instrument. The concert culminates in a performance of Debussy’s artful tribute to the sea in La Mer. From dawn to noon on the sea, a play of the waves, and the dialogue of the wind and the sea, La Mer scintillatingly brings the sensations of the ocean to life in a brilliant poetic symphony.
The Planets
Saturday, January 28 · 8PM
Golijov Sidereus
Piazzolla Aconcagua: Concerto for Bandoneon and Orchestra
Hanzhi Wang, accordion
Holst The Planets
Women from the Erie Philharmonic Chorus
In composer Osvaldo Golijov’s world, the beauty of the night sky finds a musical home in the evocative sounds and stylings of Nuevo Tango. With its throbbing rhythms and fascinating color combinations, Sidereus is a work of the twenty-first century that brings a popular style in complete celestial harmony with the modern orchestra. We welcome Hanzhi Wang as she makes her Philharmonic debut with the music of Golijov’s musical hero, the legendary Astor Piazzolla. A rare opportunity to hear the accordion as a solo instrument with the orchestra, Piazzolla’s Aconcagua Concerto sizzles with the infectious rhythms of the tango, coupled with the instrument’s beautiful singing qualities. We finish with Gustav Holst’s famous orchestral tribute to the heavens: The Planets. Each movement of the work is a tone poem inspired by the personalities of the gods after which each planet is named. In music that has deeply influenced sci-fi composers like John Williams, The Planets stands as an epic journey through our solar system that is as fascinating as it is awe-inspiring.
Midori
Saturday, March 25 · 8PM
Strauss Emperor Waltzes
Schumann Violin Concerto
Midori, violin
Brahms Symphony No. 3
Featuring a special performance from the Erie Junior Philharmonic’s Symphony Orchestra!
In our March concert, we begin with the charm and opulence of old Vienna – the Vienna of lavish balls and the height of a dance craze that swept through Europe with a force that is still felt today. Strauss’s Emperor Waltzes teem with invention and melodies that linger in the ear long after the glow of the party has faded away. We then welcome the incomparable Midori to make her Erie Philharmonic debut performing Schumann’s Violin Concerto. A work composed for Joseph Joachim, the same violinist who premiered Brahms’ great Violin Concerto, Schumann’s concerto was written as the composer was suffering from delusions that Schubert and Mendelssohn were dictating the notes to him. Joachim unfortunately recommended that the work be kept hidden, but gratefully this poetic masterpiece has finally come to light and entered the repertoire as a work filled with invention, humanity, and creativity. We round out this concert with Brahms’ Third Symphony, a work that fully-realizes the composer’s command of classical style coupled with sumptuous Romantic harmony. An opus that elegantly straddles matters of the head and heart, Brahms’ Third realizes a symphonic vision that music can plumb the very depths of our human spirit.
Mozart’s Requiem
Saturday, May 13 · 8PM
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1
Adam Golka, piano
Mozart Requiem
Erie Philharmonic Chorus
Meghan Kasanders, soprano
Ashley Dixon, mezzo soprano
Travon Walker, tenor
Christopher Humbert, Jr., bass
In May we present one of the most-loved concertos ever written for the piano: Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. With dazzling virtuosity, finger power, and moments of touching introspection, this concerto demands everything of the soloist, and Adam Golka is up to the task. Making his triumphant return to Erie after helping the Philharmonic choose its brand-new concert Steinway, Golka’s commanding presence at the keyboard has been celebrated throughout the musical world. We conclude our season with a touching tribute to the people of the Ukraine, who have struggled now for over a year to maintain their freedom and regain the fragile peace they once knew. There are few works as poignant as Mozart’s Requiem in service to extraordinary times. Written near the end of his short life, the Requiem contains music that pleas for consolation in the face of human sorrow. It is a work that is as grandiose and openly dramatic as it is touching and deeply personal. Together with the members of the Erie Philharmonic Chorus and our guest soloists, we dedicate this performance to the people of Ukraine and to those everywhere struggling for peace.
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