Alan Gilbert News

Music Director Alan Gilbert will lead the New York Philharmonic in a celebration of the centennial of English composer, conductor, and pianist Benjamin Britten. The program will include Britten's Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings, featuring tenor Paul Appleby and Philharmonic Principal Horn Philip Myers, and Britten's Spring Symphony, with soprano Kate Royal (in her Philharmonic debut), mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke (Philharmonic subscription debut), tenor Paul Appleby, New York Choral Artists directed by Joseph Flummerfelt, and Brooklyn Youth Chorus directed by Dianne Berkun-Menaker. The concerts, which include a performance on the composer's 100th birthday, November 22, will take place Thursday, November 21, 2013, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, November 22 at 8:00 p.m.; and Saturday, November 23 at 8:00 p.m.

Music Director Alan Gilbert will lead the New York Philharmonic in the New York Premiere of The Marie-Josee Kravis Composer-in-Residence Christopher Rouse's Oboe Concerto, featuring Principal Oboe Liang Wang, and Richard Strauss's Also sprach Zarathustra and Don Juan, both featuring Concertmaster Glenn Dicterow in concertmaster solos. The concerts will take place Thursday, November 14, 2013, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, November 15 at 2:00 p.m.; Saturday, November 16 at 8:00 p.m.; and Tuesday, November 19 at 7:30 p.m.

The Collegiate Chorale announces its 2013-14 season of three important works: Arrigo Boito's Mefistofele at Carnegie Hall, followed by with Max Bruch's Moses at Carnegie Hall, and David Lang's battle hymns at Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.

The fifth season of CONTACT!, the New York Philharmonic's new-music series, opens with An Evening with Esa-Pekka Salonen, Monday, November 4, 2013, at 7:30 p.m. at SubCulture, a new arts venue in Manhattan's NoHo neighborhood. Composer-conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen hosts this concert that features musicians from the New York Philharmonic performing five of his compositions: knock, breathe, shine for solo cello, Memoria for wind quintet, YTA III for solo cello, Homunculus for string quartet, and Second Meeting for oboe and piano. The program is a co-presentation by the New York Philharmonic and 92nd Street Y.

Music Director Alan Gilbert will conduct the New York Philharmonic in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and the U.S. Premiere of Mark-Anthony Turnage's Frieze - written in response to Beethoven's Ninth and co-commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society, New York Philharmonic, and BBC Radio 3 - tonight, October 3, 2013, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, October 4 at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday, October 5 at 8:00 p.m.; Tuesday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m.; and Wednesday, October 9 at 7:30 p.m. Part of the Royal Philharmonic Society's 2013 bicentennial, this program reflects the New York Philharmonic's historic link to the Ninth Symphony: the Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) commissioned the work in 1817, and the New York Philharmonic gave its U.S. Premiere in 1846, for which it commissioned the first English translation of 'Ode to Joy.'

The Collegiate Chorale announced its first concert of the season, Mefistofele, by Arrigo Boito on November 6, 2013 at 8pm at Carnegie Hall, 881 7th Avenue, NYC. Tickets are available at www.carnegiehall.org or by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800. Single tickets for this concert start at $15. The Collegiate Chorale will hold its Annual Fall Gala immediately following the concert. (For more information or tickets to the Gala, please contact Mariane Lemieux at mlemieux@collegiatechorale.org or 646-435-9052.)

Bernard Labadie will return to the New York Philharmonic to conduct Mozart's Requiem; J.S. Bach's Cantata No. 51, Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen!; and Handel's 'Let the Bright Seraphim' from Samson. The program's soloists will include soprano Miah Persson, mezzo- soprano Stephanie Blythe, tenor Frédéric Antoun in his Philharmonic debut, bass Andrew Foster- Williams, Philharmonic Principal Trumpet Philip Smith, and the New York Choral Artists directed by Joseph Flummerfelt. The concerts will take place Thursday, November 7, 2013, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, November 8 at 8:00 p.m.; and Saturday, November 9 at 8:00 p.m.

Music Director Alan Gilbert will launch the New York Philharmonic's 2013-14 subscription season with concerts featuring pianist Yefim Bronfman's first performances as The Mary and James G. Wallach Artist-in-Residence, tonight, September 26, 2013, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, September 27, 2013, at 11:00 a.m.; Saturday, September 28, 2013, at 8:00 p.m.; and Tuesday, October 1, 2013, at 7:30 p.m. The concerts will include Ravel's Alborada del gracioso; Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from West Side Story; and Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, with Mr. Bronfman as soloist.

Music Director Alan Gilbert opens the New York Philharmonic's 2013-14 season with the Opening Gala concert, headlined by cellist Yo-Yo Ma, tonight, September 25, 2013, at 7:30 p.m. Mr. Gilbert will conduct Mr. Ma and the Orchestra in two works by Argentinian composers: the World Premiere of Octavio Brunetti's arrangement, commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, of a suite from Astor Piazzolla's La serie del Ángel, and Osvaldo Golijov's Azul, composed for the eminent cellist. The program opens with Ravel's Alborada del gracioso and closes with Bolero, two pieces that reflect the French composer's fascination with Spain. The concert will be telecast nationally on Live From Lincoln Center at a later date, and Classical 105.9 FM WQXR at 7:30 p.m.

The New York Philharmonic's Free Dress Rehearsal of the Opening Gala concert -today, September 25, 2013, at 9:45 a.m. - will be presented to the City for the seventh consecutive year by the Orchestra and Credit Suisse, the Philharmonic's Global Sponsor. General admission tickets will be handed out on Lincoln Center's Josie Robertson Plaza on a first-come, first-served basis, one ticket per person, that morning starting at 8:00 a.m. Previous seasons' Free Dress Rehearsals have drawn thousands of music lovers to Avery Fisher Hall.

Great Performances presents the New York Philharmonic's concert staging of Stephen Sondheim's award-winning musical Company with an all-star cast including (in alphabetical order) Craig Bierko (as Peter), Stephen Colbert (as Harry), Jon Cryer (as David), Katie Finneran (as Amy), Neil Patrick Harris (as Robert), Christina Hendricks (as April), Adam Lazar (as Paul), Patti LuPone (as Joanne), Jill Paice (as Susan), Martha Plimpton (as Sarah), Anika Noni Rose (as Marta), Jennifer Laura Thompson (as Jenny), Jim Walton (as Larry), and Chryssie Whitehead (as Kathy).

Great Performances presents the New York Philharmonic's concert staging of Stephen Sondheim's award-winning musical Company with an all-star cast

Live From Lincoln Center will ring in the new year with a special broadcast of the New York Philharmonic's Opening Gala concert from Avery Fisher Hall featuring Music Director Alan Gilbert and special guest cello soloist Yo-Yo Ma. The Opening Gala concert, to be taped on September 25, will feature dance-inspired orchestral works, including Azul by Osvaldo Golijov, a cello concert written for Ma; the world premiere of an arrangement of Astor Piazzolla's La serie del Ángel by Octavio Brunetti, commissioned by the New York Phliharmonic; and two classics by Maurice Ravel,Alborada del gracioso and Bolero. The broadcast-hosted by Audra McDonald and featuring interstitial interviews with Yo-Yo Ma and composer Osvaldo Golijov-will air on PBS stations on Tuesday, December 31, 2013 at 8 p.m. (ET) (check local listings).

The New York Philharmonic's Free Dress Rehearsal of the Opening Gala concert -Wednesday, September 25, 2013, at 9:45 a.m. - will be presented to the City for the seventh consecutive year by the Orchestra and Credit Suisse, the Philharmonic's Global Sponsor. General admission tickets will be handed out on Lincoln Center's Josie Robertson Plaza on a first-come, first-served basis, one ticket per person, that morning starting at 8:00 a.m. Previous seasons' Free Dress Rehearsals have drawn thousands of music lovers to Avery Fisher Hall.

New York Philharmonic Assistant Conductor Joshua Weilerstein will make his Philharmonic subscription debut conducting Osvaldo Golijov's Last Round; Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto, featuring violinist Arabella Steinbacher, also in her Philharmonic debut; and Dvorak's Symphony No. 8, Saturday, October 12, 2013, at 8:00 p.m. and Tuesday, October 15 at 7:30 p.m.

On Tuesday, October 29 at 7:30 p.m., sopranoJessica Rivera and mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor are joined by pianist Robert Spanoon a program featuring three New York premieres, two of which are Carnegie Hall co-commissions. Ms. O'Connor and Ms. Rivera have collaborated in concert halls and on modern operatic masterpieces including Osvaldo Golijov's Ainadamar and John Adams's El Niño. This unique program features Ms. O'Connor performing the New York premiere of David Bruce's That Time With You, a four-song cycle that she co-commissioned with Carnegie Hall. Ms. Rivera sings the New York premiere of Jonathan Leshnoff's Monica Songs, another Carnegie Hall co-commission. Two selections from The Kitchen Songbook by Gabriela Lena Frank will also have their New York debuts, sung by both Ms. O'Connor and Ms. Rivera. Completing this diverse program, the artists present vocal duets by Saint-Saens, Mendelssohn, and Gounod, as well as Debussy's erotically charged Chansons de Bilitis and Mompou's haunting "Combat del Somni."

The Collegiate Chorale announces its first concert of the season, Mefistofele, by Arrigo Boito on November 6, 2013 at 8pm at Carnegie Hall, 881 7th Avenue, NYC. Tickets are available at www.carnegiehall.org or by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800. Single tickets for this concert start at $15. The Collegiate Chorale will hold its Annual Fall Gala immediately following the concert. (For more information or tickets to the Gala, please contact Mariane Lemieux at mlemieux@collegiatechorale.org or 646-435-9052.)

The October broadcasts of The New York Philharmonic This Week — the weekly radio series of concerts and recordings by the New York Philharmonic, hosted by Alec Baldwin — begin with two programs featuring The Mary and James G. Wallach Artist-in-Residence Yefim Bronfman. In the first, Lorin Maazel leads Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 1, with Mr. Bronfman as soloist, and Sibelius's Symphony No. 2. The following week Music Director Alan Gilbert conducts Ravel's Alborada del gracioso; Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from West Side Story; and Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, again with Mr. Bronfman as soloist.

Building upon a rich tradition of distinguished conducting faculty and alumni, the Curtis Institute of Music launches a new conducting program this fall with Philadelphia Orchestra Music Director Yannick Nezet-Seguin as its first mentor conductor.

Beginning with the 2013-14 season, the New York Philharmonic's Insights Series - in which artists and experts will explore some of the season's themes and concerts - will now be free, and take place at the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center. This season's events will include discussions with Concertmaster Glenn Dicterow during his farewell season (October 23); composer-conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen and violinist Leila Josefowicz (October 28), who will discuss Mr. Salonen's Violin Concerto, written for Ms. Josefowicz (which they will perform with the Philharmonic in its New York Concert Premiere, October 30-November 5); Music Director Alan Gilbert and Executive Director Matthew VanBesien on the state of the Philharmonic (March 3, 2014); The Mary and James G. Wallach Artist-in-Residence Yefim Bronfman (May 20, 2014), who will talk about Beethoven's piano concertos (which he will perform during The Beethoven Piano Concertos: A Philharmonic Festival, June 11-28, 2014); and discussions relating to the NY PHIL BIENNIAL, the details of which will be announced at a later date.