Amahl and the Night Visitors December 2018 4 From the President Dear Friends: The holidays are a special time for many reasons, one of which is we get to hear some of our favorite music. There’s nothing like listening to the great Philadelphia Orchestra with friends and family in Verizon Hall to get you into the holiday spirit. We will carry on many cherished holiday traditions this month. Yannick brings his unique vision and warmth to our annual performances of Handel’s Messiah (December 6, 8, and 9), our 57th consecutive year, with a stellar cast of vocalists and the Westminster Symphonic Choir. He also returns to conduct a festive New Year’s Eve concert, the perfect way to usher in 2019. For our younger fans we present the Christmas Kids’ Spectacular Family Concert (December 15), complete with a visit from you-know-who. And beloved guest conductor Bramwell Tovey once again leads the Glorious Sound of Jessica Griffin Christmas (December 20-23) with the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia. These concerts were named for our 1962 album that went “gold,” exceeding one million dollars in sales at the time. Just last year we released a new digital version of the Glorious Sound of Christmas, featuring many of your favorites, including several of Tovey’s own arrangements. This year we add two new concerts to our holiday line-up: a subscription set featuring Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors (December 13 and 15) and an Organ and Brass Christmas (December 14) featuring the Orchestra’s brilliant brass section. It is a first for us, but Amahl is considered a Christmas tradition in many parts of the world, with its story of a poor boy and his mother who are visited by the Three Magi on their way to see the newborn Holy Child. It was also the first opera written specifically for television, in 1951: You can read more about that on page 14 of this Playbill. As the calendar year comes to a close and you reflect on what the Orchestra has meant to you, we ask you to consider a year-end charitable gift—of any size—to the Annual Fund. With your support, we can continue another longstanding tradition: bringing the music of The Philadelphia Orchestra to the stage, into the community, and around the world. The Philadelphia Orchestra is your orchestra, and we hope to see you, our Orchestra family, during this festive time of year. We wish you and yours the most joyous of holiday seasons. With warmest wishes, Matías Tarnopolsky President and CEO 6 Music Director Chris Lee Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin will lead The Philadelphia Orchestra through at least the 2025-26 season, an extraordinary and significant long-term commitment. Additionally, he became the third music director of the Metropolitan Opera, beginning with the 2018-19 season. Yannick, who holds the Walter and Leonore Annenberg Chair, is an inspired leader of The Philadelphia Orchestra. His intensely collaborative style, deeply rooted musical curiosity, and boundless enthusiasm, paired with a fresh approach to orchestral programming, have been heralded by critics and audiences alike. The New York Times has called him “phenomenal,” adding that under his baton, “the ensemble, famous for its glowing strings and homogenous richness, has never sounded better.” Yannick has established himself as a musical leader of the highest caliber and one of the most thrilling talents of his generation. He has been artistic director and principal conductor of Montreal’s Orchestre Métropolitain since 2000, and in summer 2017 he became an honorary member of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. He was music director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic from 2008 to 2018 (he is now honorary conductor) and was principal guest conductor of the London Philharmonic from 2008 to 2014. He has made wildly successful appearances with the world’s most revered ensembles and has conducted critically acclaimed performances at many of the leading opera houses. Yannick signed an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon (DG) in May 2018. Under his leadership The Philadelphia Orchestra returned to recording with three CDs on that label. His upcoming recordings will include projects with The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and the Orchestre Métropolitain, with which he will also continue to record for ATMA Classique. Additionally, he has recorded with the Rotterdam Philharmonic on DG, EMI Classics, and BIS Records, and the London Philharmonic for the LPO label. A native of Montreal, Yannick studied piano, conducting, composition, and chamber music at Montreal’s Conservatory of Music and continued his studies with renowned conductor Carlo Maria Giulini; he also studied choral conducting with Joseph Flummerfelt at Westminster Choir College. Among Yannick’s honors are an appointment as Companion of the Order of Canada; an Officer of the Order of Montreal; Musical America’s 2016 Artist of the Year; the Prix Denise-Pelletier; and honorary doctorates from the University of Quebec in Montreal, the Curtis Institute of Music, Westminster Choir College of Rider University, McGill University, and the University of Pennsylvania. To read Yannick’s full bio, please visit philorch.org/conductor. 8 The Philadelphia Orchestra 2018–2019 Season Yannick Nézet-Séguin Violas Flutes Music Director Choong-Jin Chang, Principal Jeffrey Khaner, Principal Walter and Leonore Annenberg Chair Ruth and A. Morris Williams Chair Paul and Barbara Henkels Chair Kirsten Johnson, Associate Patrick Williams, Stéphane Denève Principal Associate Principal Principal Guest Conductor Kerri Ryan, Assistant Principal Rachelle and Ronald Kaiserman Kensho Watanabe Judy Geist Chair Assistant Conductor Renard Edwards Olivia Staton First Violins Anna Marie Ahn Petersen Erica Peel, Piccolo David Kim, Concertmaster Piasecki Family Chair Dr. Benjamin Rush Chair David Nicastro Oboes Juliette Kang, First Associate Burchard Tang Peter Smith, Associate Principal Concertmaster Che-Hung Chen Jonathan Blumenfeld Joseph and Marie Field Chair Rachel Ku Edwin Tuttle Chair Ying Fu, Associate Concertmaster Marvin Moon Elizabeth Starr Masoudnia, Marc Rovetti, Assistant Meng Wang English Horn Concertmaster Joanne T. Greenspun Chair Barbara Govatos Cellos Robert E. Mortensen Chair Hai-Ye Ni, Principal Clarinets Jonathan Beiler Priscilla Lee, Associate Principal Ricardo Morales, Principal Hirono Oka Yumi Kendall, Assistant Principal Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Richard Amoroso Wendy and Derek Pew Chair Robert and Lynne Pollack Chair Foundation Chair Samuel Caviezel, Associate Yayoi Numazawa Richard Harlow Principal Jason DePue Gloria dePasquale Sarah and Frank Coulson Chair Larry A. Grika Chair Orton P. and Noël S. Jackson Socrates Villegas Jennifer Haas Chair Paul R. Demers, Bass Clarinet Miyo Curnow Kathryn Picht Read Peter M. Joseph and Susan Elina Kalendarova Robert Cafaro Rittenhouse Joseph Chair Daniel Han Volunteer Committees Chair Julia Li Ohad Bar-David* Bassoons William Polk John Koen Daniel Matsukawa, Principal Mei Ching Huang* Derek Barnes Richard M. Klein Chair Mollie and Frank Slattery Chair Mark Gigliotti, Co-Principal Second Violins Alex Veltman Angela Anderson Smith Kimberly Fisher, Principal Holly Blake, Contrabassoon Peter A. Benoliel Chair Basses Paul Roby, Associate Principal Harold Robinson, Principal Horns Sandra and David Marshall Chair Carole and Emilio Gravagno Jennifer Montone, Principal Dara Morales, Assistant Principal Chair Gray Charitable Trust Chair Anne M. Buxton Chair Joseph Conyers, Acting Jeffrey Lang, Associate Principal Philip Kates* Associate Principal Hannah L. and J. Welles Mitchell and Hilarie Morgan John Hood Henderson Chair Family Foundation Chair Michael Shahan Daniel Williams Booker Rowe David Fay Jeffry Kirschen Joseph Brodo Chair, given by Duane Rosengard Ernesto Tovar Torres Peter A. Benoliel Robert Kesselman Shelley Showers Davyd Booth Nathaniel West Paul Arnold Trumpets Lorraine and David Popowich Chair Some members of the string David Bilger, Principal Dmitri Levin sections voluntarily rotate Marguerite and Gerry Lenfest Boris Balter seating on a periodic basis. Chair Amy Oshiro-Morales Jeffrey Curnow, Associate Yu-Ting Chen Principal Jeoung-Yin Kim Gary and Ruthanne Schlarbaum Chair Anthony Prisk Robert W. Earley CONTINUED ON PAGE 10 10 The Philadelphia Orchestra 2018–2019 Season Trombones Percussion Librarians Nitzan Haroz, Principal Christopher Deviney, Principal Robert M. Grossman, Principal Neubauer Family Foundation Angela Zator Nelson Steven K. Glanzmann Chair Matthew Vaughn, Co-Principal Piano and Celesta Stage Personnel Eric Carlson Kiyoko Takeuti James J. Sweeney, Jr., Manager Blair Bollinger, Bass Trombone James P. Barnes Drs. Bong and Mi Wha Lee Chair Keyboards Davyd Booth Tuba Carol Jantsch, Principal Harp Lyn and George M. Ross Chair Elizabeth Hainen, Principal Patricia and John Imbesi Chair Timpani Don S. Liuzzi, Principal Dwight V. Dowley Chair Angela Zator Nelson, Associate Principal *On leave Musicians Behind the Scenes Davyd Booth Violin Where were you born? I was born Clarksburg, West Virginia. What piece of music could you play over and over again? Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. Jessica Griffin What is your most treasured possession? My violin. What’s your favorite Philadelphia restaurant? La Viola. Tell us about your instrument. It was made by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume in 1861, and is a copy of a Guarneri del Gesù. I also have two instruments made by Sergio Peresson. What’s in your instrument case? My violin, four bows, rosin, some extra strings, and some photos, one in particular of the pianist Martha Argerich, whom I adore and is one of my idols. If you could ask one composer one question what would it be? I would like to ask Bach why he didn’t write more solo music for the violin. What piece of music never fails to move you? Anything by Bach and Schubert. When did you join the Orchestra? 1973. Do you play any other instruments? Piano, celesta, synthesizer, and accordion, all of which I perform with the Orchestra. What’s your favorite type of food? Anything that is tasty! What books are on your nightstand? The Grand Tradition by J.B.