Rhode Island Philharmonic Announces 2016-17 Season with Director Larry Rachleff's Last Year, 9/17

The Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra will soon begin its 2016-2017 Season, Music Director Larry Rachleff's last leading the Orchestra. Beginning on September 17, eight Saturday classical concerts and four Friday Rush Hour concerts will take place at The VETS, 1 Avenue of the Arts in Providence.

The season offers symphonies by Brahms, Beethoven, Dvorak, Schubert and Shostakovich, and concerti by Barber, Beethoven, Haydn, Poulenc and Rachmaninoff. Popular favorites such as Beethoven's Eroica Symphony, Mozart's Requiem and Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier Suite are featured with less familiar repertoire such as Dreamtime Ancestors, a 2015 symphonic poem by American composer Christopher Theofanidis, dedicated to the late composer Stephen Paulus. May's finale is comprised of evocative French music - Debussy's Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun and Canteloube's Chants d'Auvergne - paired with Strauss' Alpine Symphony.

"We're pulling out all the stops for Larry's farewell season," said David Beauchesne, Executive Director. "He's chosen some favorite pieces that mean a lot to him and the Orchestra, and some new pieces they've always wanted to do together. And we've expanded the budget to bring back many of his favorite soloists. Farewells are bittersweet, but every concert will be a joyful experience for our audience and Orchestra to share."

2016-2017 is the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra's 72nd season and Music Director Larry Rachleff's 21st with the orchestra. The season's eight-concert Saturday TACO Classical Series features world-renowned guest artists including pianists Garrick Ohlsson, Robert Levin and Joyce Yang; violinists Augustin Hadelich and Alexander Kerr; cellist Alban Gerhardt; and Susan Lorette Dunn, mezzo-soprano. Making their debuts with the Philharmonic are guest conductor Bramwell Tovey and pianist Ya-Fei Chuang. The four-concertFriday Amica Rush Hour Series offers an earlier start time and shorter program with full performances of select repertoire from the Taco Saturday Classical concerts and musical discussion. Special concerts include the holiday favorite Handel's Messiah with Providence Singers and a Gala Evening with pianist, Lang Lang.

About Larry Rachleff

Larry Rachleff is Music Director of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra. He also serves as Director of Orchestras and holds the Walter Kris Hubert Chair at Rice University's Shepherd School of Music in Houston. He has served as Music Director of the San Antonio Symphony, as Artistic Advisor for the Grand Rapids Symphony and as a regular guest conductor with orchestras across the country, including Colorado, Indianapolis and Kansas City. His summers are spent guest conducting at the Music Academy of the West, the Aspen Music Festival and School, where he served as guest director of the summer conducting academy, the Sarasota Music Festival, the Chautauqua Music Festival and the Grand Teton Festival. Other summer festival engagements have included Tanglewood, Interlochen, Brevard Music Festival and Opera Theatre of Lucca, Italy. A former faculty member at the Oberlin Conservatory, where he was Music Director of Orchestras and Conductor of the Contemporary Ensemble, Mr. Rachleff also served as conductor of the Opera Theatre at the University of Southern California. He has conducted and presented master classes all over the world, including the Chopin Academy in Warsaw, the Zurich Hochschule, the Sydney and Queensland, Australia conservatories, the Juilliard School, the New England Conservatory and Royal Northern College in the U.K. He has also served as principal conducting teacher for the League of American Orchestras, the Conductors' Guild and the International Workshop for Conductors in the Czech Republic. He is an enthusiastic advocate of U.S. public school music education and conducts All-State orchestras and festivals throughout the United States, Europe and Canada. Mr. Rachleff has collaborated with leading composers including Samuel Adler, the late Luciano Berio, George Crumb, Michael Daugherty and John Harbison, among others. He lives in Houston with his wife, Susan Lorette Dunn, and their son, Sam.

RHODE ISLAND PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA: 2016-2017 SEASON

1. BEETHOVEN'S EMPEROR!

TACO Classical Concert Series
Saturday, September 17 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Garrick Ohlsson, piano

SMETANA The Bartered Bride: Overture

LUTOSLAWSKI Concerto for Orchestra

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No.5 (Emperor)

Amica Rush Hour Concert
Friday, September 16 at 6:30pm

SMETANA The Bartered Bride: Overture

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No.5 (Emperor)

2. MOZART'S REQUIEM with PROVIDENCE SINGERS

TACO Classical Concert Series
Saturday, October 15 at 8:00pm

Bramwell Tovey, guest conductor

Providence Singers

Christine Noel, artistic director

TCHAIKOVSKY Francesca da Rimini

MOZART Requiem

Amica Rush Hour Concert
Friday, October 14 at 6:30pm

MOZART Requiem

3. BREATHTAKING BARBER

TACO Classical Concert Series
Saturday, November 12 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Alexander Kerr, violin

THEOFANIDIS Dreamtime Ancestors

BARBER Violin Concerto

DVORAK Symphony No.6

4. SCHUBERT'S UNFINISHED

TACO Classical Concert Series
Saturday, January 21 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Alban Gerhardt, cello

R. STRAUSS "Dance of the Seven Veils" from Salome

HAYDN Cello Concerto No.2

SCHUBERT Symphony No.8 (Unfinished)

STRAUSS Der Rosenkavalier: Suite

5. BEETHOVEN'S EROICA!

TACO Classical Concert Series

Saturday, February 18 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Robert Levin, piano

Ya-Fei Chuang, piano

MESSIAEN Les offrandes oubliées

POULENC Concerto for Two Pianos

BEETHOVEN Symphony No.3 (Eroica)

Amica Rush Hour Concert
Friday, February 17 at 6:30pm

BEETHOVEN Symphony No.3 (Eroica)

6. ALL BRAHMS

TACO Classical Concert Series

Saturday, March 18 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Augustin Hadelich, violin

BRAHMS Symphony No.2

BRAHMS Violin Concerto

7. RACHMANINOFF with JOYCE YANG

TACO Classical Concert Series

Saturday, April 8 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Joyce Yang, piano

RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No.1

SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No.8

Amica Rush Hour Concert
Friday, April 7 at 6:30pm

RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No.1

Selections from SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No.8

8. LARRY RACHLEFF'S FINALE!

TACO Classical Concert Series

Saturday, May 6 at 8:00pm

Larry Rachleff, conductor

Susan Lorette Dunn, mezzo-soprano

DEBUSSY Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun

CANTELOUBE Chants d'Auvergne

R. STRAUSS An Alpine Symphony

All programs and artists are subject to change without notice.