Marking its 32nd season at Caramoor International Music Festival, Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) returns to its birthplace and summer residence to perform works spanning from Bruch and Beethoven to bel canto. OSL will present six performances throughout its summer season at Caramoor's beautiful country estate in Katonah, NY, featuring an array of distinctive artistic collaborations.
For Caramoor's opening night on June 25, OSL will take the stage to celebrate the 15th anniversary season of Bel Canto at Caramoor under the leadership of Will Crutchfield with a semi-staged production of Gilbert & Sullivan's operetta H.M.S Pinafore. Crutchfield will also conduct OSL and a cast of bel canto luminaries in two performances of Rossini's Guillaume Tell. In another high point of the summer season, violinist Charles Yang will join OSL and conductor Michael Barrett for Caramoor's popular Independence Day program.
On July 16, in the first of two concerts that showcase OSL in symphonic repertoire, the ensemble reunites with violinist Sarah Chang to perform Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1-the same piece that Chang performed in her Juilliard audition as a five-year-old violin prodigy. To round out the program, OSL will perform Beethoven's Overture to Fidelio and Symphony No. 2 under the baton of Douglas Boyd, a brilliant oboist-turned-conductor who will make both his Caramoor and his OSL debut.The second of OSL's symphonic programs, scheduled for July 30, will also feature fresh faces at Caramoor-including the young Spanish conductor Pablo Heras-Casado, who will make his Caramoor and OSL debuts in Beethoven's Overture to Egmont. Casado and OSL will be joined by two of the world's most sought-after young string soloists: violinist Jennifer Koh and cellist Alisa Weilerstein, who will join forces in a performance of Brahms' Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra.
"We're thrilled to be returning to Caramoor-our longtime summer home-with such an exciting group of performers," said Katy Clark, President and Executive Director of Orchestra of St. Luke's. "We're especially pleased that conductors Douglas Boyd and Pablo Heras-Casado will be making both their Caramoor and OSL debuts this summer."Orchestra of St. Luke's Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, Venetian TheaterSaturday, June 25, 2011 8:30 pm Opening Night: H.M.S. Pinafore by Gilbert & Sullivan: Orchestra of St. Luke's; Will Crutchfield, conductor; Scott Bearden, baritone; Jeffrey Beruan, bass; Vanessa Cariddi, mezzo-soprano; Robin Flynn, mezzo-soprano; Georgia Jarman, soprano; Nicholas Masters, bass; Robert McPherson, tenor; Jason Plourde, baritone; Jorell Williams, baritoneBel Canto at CaramoorGILBERT & SULLIVAN HMS PinaforeSunday, July 3, 2011 8:00 pm Pops, Patriots and Fireworks: Orchestra of St. Luke's; Michael Barrett, conductor; Charles Yang, violin VIEUXTEMPS Souvenir d'Amérique: Variations burlesques sur "Yankee Doodle", Op. 17 SOUSA Stars and Stripes Forever and other marches GERSHWIN For Lily Pons GERSHWIN Short Story BERNSTEIN Overture to Candide JOPLIN The Entertainer JOPLIN Ragtime Dance Saturday, July 9, 2011 7:30 pm Guillaume Tell (William Tell) by Gioachino Rossini: Orchestra of St. Luke's; Will Crutchfield, conductor; Scott Bearden, baritone; Jeffrey Beruan, bass; BrIan Downen, tenor; Vanessa Cariddi, mezzo-soprano; Julianna di Giacomo, soprano; Nicholas Masters, bass; Daniel Mobbs, bass-baritone; Michael Nyby, baritone; Rolando Sanz, tenor; Michael Spyres, tenor; Talise Trevigne, soprano Bel Canto at Caramoor ROSSINI Guillaume Tell (William Tell) Friday, July 15, 2011 7:30 pm Guillaume Tell (William Tell) by Gioachino Rossini (repeat performance)
Friday, July 16, 2011 8:00 pm Orchestra of St. Luke's: Douglas Boyd, conductor; Sarah Chang, violinBEETHOVEN Overture to Fidelio, Op. 72c BRUCH Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26 BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36Saturday, July 30, 2011 8:00 pm Orchestra of St. Luke's: Pablo Heras-Casado, conductor; Jennifer Koh, violin; Alisa Weilerstein, celloBEETHOVEN Overture to Egmont, Op. 84 BRAHMS Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra, in A minor, Op. 102 MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4 in A Major, Op. 90 "Italian" For tickets ($16 - $106), call (914) 232-1252 or visit tickets.caramoor.org.ABOUT ORCHESTRA OF St. LukeSNow in its 37th year, Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) is one of America's foremost and most versatile ensembles. Dedicated to engaging audiences throughout New York City and beyond, OSL performs approximately 70 orchestral, chamber, and educational concerts each year-including an annual chamber music series at The Morgan Library & Museum and Brooklyn Museum, an orchestra series at Carnegie Hall and summer concerts as Orchestra-in-Residence at the Caramoor International Music Festival. The Orchestra collaborates regularly with the world's great artists, such as Renée Fleming, Yo-Yo Ma, Jessye Norman, Anna Netrebko, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Mark Morris Dance Group, Peter Gabriel, Sting, Elton John and many more. In March 2011, OSL opened The DiMenna Center for Classical Music-its first permanent home, and New York City's first rehearsal and recording facility dedicated to classical music. Committed to community-building, OSL produces free concerts in each of the five boroughs, and has engaged more than one million children in its arts education programs. OSL's stellar 70+ discography includes four acclaimed releases on its own label, St. Luke's Collection, and four Grammy Award-winning recordings. For Orchestra of St. Luke's calendar of events, tickets and more information, visit OSLmusic.org.