MARCH-APRIL 2019 Announcing the 2019-20 SEASON BSO & ELLENTUBE MARIN ALSOP ACCEPTS PRESENT LOCAL CRYSTAL AWARD AT DRUMMING DUO WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM PICASSO • DALÍ • MIRÓ • POLLOCK • MASSON • ROTHKO • TANNING • ERNST • MAGRITTE FEATURING WORKS BY MORE THAN 30 OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY’S MOST CELEBRATED ARTISTS FEBRUARY 24 — MAY 26, 2019 TICKETS AVAILABLE AT ARTBMA.ORG/MONSTERS This exhibition and related programs have been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and by generous funding from Transamerica. Salvador Dalí. Soft Construction with Boiled Beans (Premonition of Civil War). 1936. Philadelphia Museum of Art: The Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection, 1950, 1950-134-41. © 2019 Salvador Dalí, Gala-Salvador Dalí Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York MARCH/ CONTENTS APRIL 2019 2 From the President 4 In Tempo: News of Note 6 BSO Live: Calendar of Events 7 Orchestra Roster 8 Announcing the 2019–20 season! The new season highlights women in classical music and a project in collaboration with Carnegie Hall 10 Christina Bianco: Woman of a Thousand Voices FEB 28, MAR 1–3 12 Scheherazade MAR 8–10 18 Appalachian Spring MAR 14–16 25 Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 MAR 28–30 28 Cirque Goes Hollywood APR 4–7 29 Porgy and Bess APR 11–14 8 Leslie Odom, Jr. with the BSO 33 APR 26 SNITZER 34 Campaign Donor Roll 41 Symphony Fund Honor Roll 48 Board, Endowment Trust & Staff 4 5 ▼ ON THE COVER Marin Alsop leads the BSO at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. Be Green: Recycle Your Program! Please return your gently used program @BSOMusic to the Overture racks in the lobby. Want to keep reading at home? Please do! Connect With Us t @BaltSymphony Just remember to recycle it when you’re finished. @BaltSymphony MAR–APR 2019 / OVERTURE 1 FROM THE PRESIDENT MOVIES WITH elcome to this performance by the ORCHESTRA Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. We are deeply grateful for your Wattendance, and we value the support of community members like you who make what we do possible. In this issue of Overture, we are excited to share the details of our upcoming 2019–20 Season. Next season is filled with an exceptional lineup of guest artists, special projects and beloved repertoire performed by the superb musicians of the BSO. During the 2019–20 Season, we present artists like violinist Viktoria Mullova and Sheku Kanneh-Mason JOHNNY QUIRIN JOHNNY in their BSO debut performances. We also welcome AN AMERICAN back legendary musicians like Emanuel Ax, Renée Fleming and Gil Shaham, audience IN PARIS favorites who never cease to amaze us with their extraordinary artistry. Please join us THU, MAY 2 8 PM STRATHMORE as we embark on this exciting musical journey together. FRI, MAY 3 8 PM MEYERHOFF SAT, MAY 4 8 PM MEYERHOFF Next season, we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven. SUN, MAY 5 3 PM MEYERHOFF To help commemorate this occasion, the BSO and Music Director Marin Alsop are PRESENTING SPONSOR: partnering with Carnegie Hall in a project titled, “All Together: A Global Ode to Joy.” This trailblazing initiative sees Maestra Alsop conducting performances of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony on five continents. The BSO performances, which close our 2019–20 Season, feature a collaboration with Baltimore-based rapper and musician Wordsmith and Indian-American composer Reena Esmail. Another major element of our upcoming season is a celebration of women in classical music. 2020 marks 100 years of women’s suffrage in the U.S., and in honor of this important milestone, the BSO is highlighting the outstanding contributions of women composers and conductors throughout our 2019–20 Season. We are thrilled to take this opportunity to reflect on the wealth of talent that women bring to our industry and to shine a light on their achievements. In addition, we congratulate Marin Alsop on receiving the prestigious Crystal Award WEST SIDE at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. We at the BSO are thrilled that STORY Marin has received this acknowledgement of her remarkable achievements. THU, JUNE 13 8 PM MEYERHOFF FRI, JUNE 14 8 PM MEYERHOFF As always, your attendance and support are vital to the BSO and its programs that serve SAT, JUNE 15 8 PM STRATHMORE our community. We appreciate our audience members, donors and community partners SUN, JUNE 16 3 PM MEYERHOFF for their help in bringing our music and educational programs to the people of Baltimore West Side Story © 1961 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studio Inc. All rights reserved. © A.M.P.A.S and the State of Maryland. On behalf of our Board of Directors, musicians and staff, SUPPORTING thank you, and we hope you enjoy this performance. SPONSOR: TICKETS FROM $25 Peter T. Kjome BSOMUSIC.ORG President and CEO 410.783.8000 Baltimore Symphony Orchestra 2 OVERTURE / BSOmusic.org © Jeffrey Totaro, 2018 1 WEST MOUNT VERNON PLACE NOW OPEN FREE ADMISSION 600 N. Charles St. PLAN YOUR VISIT AT THEWALTERS.ORG Baltimore, MD 21201 BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA inTEMPONEWS OF NOTE THE BUILD UP BSO works with ellentube to present local drumming duo t’s not every day that our offices receive a call from the duo by announcing a new digital Baltimore drummers Timothy Ellen DeGeneres’ team! But that’s just what happened series called “The Build Up,” that Fletcher and Malik Perry when Ellen's producers approached the BSO about a would provide the friends with some perform with the BSO during unique collaboration featuring Baltimore drummers incredible life experiences and help to December’s A Swingin’ Nutcracker Family Concert. Timothy and Malik. inspire music students everywhere. (above). Ellen DeGeneres ITimothy Fletcher and Malik Perry, ages 21 and 19, respectively, One of those life experiences was announces the launch of “The Build Up” digital series became friends in high school and began drumming together, the chance to perform with the BSO, on her talk show. (below-left). posting videos online and performing on the streets of Baltimore. which Timothy and Malik did during They caught Ellen’s attention, and she invited them to play on her last December’s A Swingin’ Nutcracker concert. Under the baton show twice last fall. After their second appearance, Ellen surprised of Associate Conductor Nicholas Hersh, the friends performed a rendition of Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” alongside the orchestra and in front of the ellentube cameras. “We had an amazing time working with Timothy and Malik,” said Hersh. “Their energy, enthusiasm and musicianship were incredible, and we are all very proud to see them representing Baltimore as a vibrant city full of talent and excitement.” The performance went so well that Timothy and Malik came back a few weeks later, appearing on the BSO’s Holiday Pops program! To watch the complete, 6-episode web series featuring Timothy and Malik, including their BSO debut performance, ROZMAN head to ellentube.com. 4 GLOBAL STAGE Marin Alsop accepts Crystal Award TEMPO at World Economic Forum he World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland brings together leaders from international organizations, government, culture and media, and this year’s event honored none other than the BSO’s own Music Director, Marin Alsop. On January 21, Alsop was Tone of three recipients of this year’s Crystal Award, which celebrates the achievements of leading artists and cultural figures whose leadership inspires inclusive and sustainable change. “Attending the World Economic Forum in 2006 inspired me to strive to become a more engaged world citizen, and I am deeply honored to return to accept the Crystal Award and share my journey over these past 13 years,” said Alsop. Alsop accepted the award alongside film director Haifaa Al-Mansour and broadcaster and naturalist Sir David Attenborough. Alsop also led the meeting’s opening performance with the Taki Concordia Orchestra. “We are thrilled that Music Director Marin Alsop received the prestigious Crystal Award at the World Economic Forum,” said BSO President and CEO Peter Kjome. “The outstanding work she has done here in Baltimore to promote access to music education through initiatives like OrchKids and the BSO Academy program demonstrates her commitment to inspiring change in our community.” This year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting took place January 22–25 under the theme, “Globalization 4.0: Shaping a Global Architecture in the Age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” WHITEADRIANE BSO OFFERS FREE TICKETS TO GOVERNMENT WORKERS n recognition of furloughed workers during the partial government shutdown this winter, the BSO made complimentary I tickets available to federal workers and contractors. Free tickets were offered for January performances at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall and The Music Center at Strathmore of Turangalîla- symphonie with Music Director Marin Alsop and Sibelius’ Violin Concerto with Principal Guest Conductor Markus Stenz. “We were very happy to welcome government employees to the BSO at no cost during the shutdown,” said BSO Vice President and General Manager Tonya McBride Robles. “With so many federal workers living in our area, it was important to the BSO that we recognize those affected during this challenging time and acknowledge in our own way the immeasurable contributions they make in our community.” Marin Alsop leads the BSO at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall during January The 35-day partial government shutdown this winter is the longest performances of Turangalîla-symphonie. on record in American history. 5 BSO KEY UPCOMING EVENTS MAY/JUNE 2019 events at The Music Center at Strathmore [S] and at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall [M] SUPERPOPS MUSIClive BOX Mahler Movie with Opposites Symphony No. 9 Orchestra: SAT, MAY 11, 10 AM FRI, JUN 7, 8 PM M An American & 11:30 AM S SAT, JUN 8, 8 PM S in Paris SUN, JUN 9, 3 PM M THU, MAY 2, 8 PM S Brahms Violin MARIN ALSOP, conductor FRI, MAY 3, 8 PM M Concerto MAHLER Symphony No.