BSO Announces 2018 Concert Schedule

From the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra: The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) kicks off the second half of its 2017-2018 season with classical programming that includes favorites from Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik to Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring. Music Director Marin Alsop, BSO Associate Conductor Nicholas Hersh and acclaimed guest conductors lead concerts that include pianists Gabriela Montero, Stephen Hough and Joyce Yang and saxophonist Branford Marsalis.

On January 5-7, Canadian conductor Bernard Labadie begins 2018 with an all-Mozart concert that includes the composer’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik and his final symphony, Symphony No. 41 in C Major, “Jupiter.” This program features BSO Principal Flute Emily Skala and Acting Principal Harp Sarah Fuller in Mozart’s Concerto in C Major for Flute, Harp and Orchestra.

Music Director Marin Alsop presents the first Off The Cuff performances of 2018 with “Impressionist Masterworks,” a program that sees the BSO collaborate with the Baltimore Museum of Art. On January 12 and 13, Alsop explores the influence Impressionist painters like Monet and Degas had on Debussy’s La Merand Ravel’s La Valse with visuals from the BMA. Off The Cuff performances allow audiences to explore the story behind the music, perfect for first-time symphony attendees and aficionados alike. Each performance includes a post-concert question-and-answer session led by the conductor. The concert on January 13 at the Meyerhoff will be followed by an after-party, “Ravel on the Rocks,” with live entertainment, food and drink specials.

La Mer and La Valse are also featured on traditional classical programs on January 11 and 14, which incdlue BSO Principal Timpanist James Wyman and Jauvon Gilliam of the National Symphony Orchestra in Philip Glass’ Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists. Rounding out the program is Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals, with original narration by Baltimore-based hip-hop artist, Wordsmith.

On January 19-21, Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero returns to the BSO with Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1. Perhaps the most popular concerto of the Romantic piano repertoire, Marin Alsop pairs this work with Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra and Rumanian Folk Dances, both of which showcase the influence of folk music on the 20th-century composer’s writing. Join Montero in the Meyerhoff lobby for a post-concert performance on Friday, January 19.

Günther Herbig leads the BSO on February 1-3 in Bruckner’s final composition, Symphony No. 9, which was left unfinished upon his death in 1896. Grammy®-nominated pianist Stephen Hough performs Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in G Minor.

BSO Associate Conductor Nicholas Hersh takes the lead on Feb 16-18 in one of classical music’s most recognizable works, Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. The program includes Florence Price’s Dances in the Canebrakes, and pianist Joyce Yang makes her return to the BSO with Prokofiev’s virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 3. Join Yang in the Meyerhoff lobby for a post-concert performance on Friday, February 16.

Saxophonist Branford Marsalis joins the BSO and Music Director Marin Alsop on February 22 and 25 for “Rite of Spring.” Marsalis performs works by 20th-century French masters Ibert and Milhaud on a program that includes Anna Clyne’s Abstractions. Stravinsky’s explosive The Rite of Spring completes the program.

Alsop and the BSO also present Stravinsky’s iconic work in an Off The Cuff program on February 23 and 24. Explore the legend of The Rite of Spring’s 1913 premiere in Paris with Alsop and partake in a post-concert question-and-answer session. The performance on Saturday, February 24 at the Meyerhoff will be followed by an after-party, “Single Malt Stravinsky,” with live entertainment, food and drink specials.

All concerts take place at The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, MD and at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore.

Performance Schedule

Mozart’s Jupiter

• Fri, Jan 5, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Sat, Jan 6, 8 pm – Music Center at Strathmore
• Sun, Jan 7, 3 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

Mozart’s beloved and revolutionary “Jupiter” Symphony spans the breadth of human emotion, showcasing compositional skill that remains unrivaled. Mozart’s only score for harp, his Double Concerto, performed by BSO Principal Flute Emily Skala and Acting Principal Harp Sarah Fuller, is divine and melodic.

Concerto Fantasy for Two Timpanists

• Thu, Jan 11, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Sun, Jan 14, 3 pm – Music Center at Strathmore

Marin Alsop brings Carnival of the Animals into the 21st century with Baltimore hip-hop artist, Wordsmith. Baltimore native Philip Glass creates rhythmic power with his Concerto Fantasy in the hands of BSO Principal Timpanist James Wyman and Jauvon Gilliam of the National Symphony Orchestra.

Off The Cuff: Impressionist Masterworks

• Fri, Jan 12, 8:15 pm – Music Center at Strathmore
• Sat, Jan 13, 7 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

Waves of sound crash through the hall during Debussy’s La Mer in this concert presented in partnership with the Baltimore Museum of Art. Ravel describes the “whirling” patterns of La Valse: “Swirling clouds afford glimpses, through rifts, of waltzing couples.” Yet this waltz may have a darker side: a world war, the death of a loved one and a ballet never danced. Discover the many influences of these impressionist masterworks.

Join us in the lobby of the Meyerhoff for an after-party on Saturday, January 13 featuring live entertainment, food and drink specials.

Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1

• Fri, Jan 19, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Sat, Jan 20, 8 pm – Music Center at Strathmore
• Sun, Jan 21, 3 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

Revered pianist Gabriela Montero returns for Tchaikovsky’s virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 1. “[She] has everything: crackling rhythmic brio, subtle shadings, steely power…and, best of all, unsentimental expressivity” (The New York Times). Bartók expresses his love of folk music with his Concerto for Orchestra andRumanian Folk Dances.

Join us in the lobby of the Meyerhoff for a post-concert performance on Friday, January 19 featuring Gabriela Montero.

Stephen Hough Performs Mendelssohn

• Thu, Feb 1, 8 pm – Music Center at Strathmore
• Fri, Feb 2, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Sat, Feb 3, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

Fall into the Romantic era with this pair of expressive, energetic pieces. Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto is sublimely performed by Stephen Hough, “A virtuoso who begins where others leave off” (The Washington Post). A true visionary, Bruckner transports audiences with the Ninth, his final symphony.

Pictures at an Exhibition

• Fri, Feb 16, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Sat, Feb 17, 8 pm – Music Center at Strathmore
• Sun, Feb 18, 3 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

There are few pieces of music as visually evocative as Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. Written in memory of artist Viktor Hartmann, the piece is a musical depiction of an art exhibition. Composer Florence Prince was the first African-American female recognized as a symphonic composer and the first to have a work premiered by a major symphony orchestra. Witness Joyce Yang push the piano to its limits with her performance of Prokofiev’s colorful Piano Concerto No. 3.

Join us in the lobby of the Meyerhoff for a post-concert performance on Friday, February 16 featuring Joyce Yang.

Rite of Spring

• Thu, Feb 22, 8 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
• Sun, Feb 25, 3 pm – Music Center at Strathmore

A piece of music so wild, so barbaric and yet so brilliant that it incited a riot, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring is terrifying, beautiful and awe-inspiring. Branford Marsalis, who belongs to one of the greatest American musical dynasties, joins the BSO for two melodic French pieces for saxophone and orchestra.

Off The Cuff: Rite of Spring

• Fri, Feb 23, 8:15 pm – Music Center at Strathmore
• Sat, Feb 24, 7 pm – Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall

Inspired by folksongs with roots in pagan times, Stravinsky pushed the boundaries of classical instruments to evoke earthy and bestial sounds in The Rite of Spring. Join Marin Alsop and the BSO and explore Stravinsky’s galvanizing masterpiece.

Join us in the lobby of the Meyerhoff for an after-party on Saturday, February 24 featuring live entertainment, food and drink specials.

Venue Information

Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (Meyerhoff)

1212 Cathedral Street, Baltimore, MD 21201

The Music Center at Strathmore (Strathmore)

5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD 20852

Tickets

Tickets on sale through the BSO Ticket Office at 410.783.8000 or BSOmusic.org.

For press comps, additional artist bios or media materials, please contact the PR Department at tkopasek@BSOmusic.org.

Image by YannaZazu on Pixabay, video via the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra