Orchestra of St. Luke's Adds Programs to 2012-13 Season

Orchestra of St. Luke's (OSL) will enter into a new phase of development with a 2012/2013 season marked by notable artistic collaborations and chamber music programs and the Carnegie Hall main stage debut of its recently-appointed Principal Conductor Pablo Heras-Casado. The season kicks off with the free Subway Series and food drive, reflecting OSL's continuing commitment to community engagement throughout New York City and at its state-of-the-art new home, The DiMenna Center for Classical Music.

"We look forward to returning to all our major venues this season with St. Luke's outstanding musicians and some of the world's most talented guest artists," said OSL President and Executive Director Katy Clark. "We are particularly enthusiastic about continuing to work with our new Principal Conductor Pablo Heras-Casado, who has provided new creative leadership for the orchestra and helped us explore new possibilities in our programming."

"This season marks the beginning of a new chapter in my career. I am excited about getting to know music lovers in New York better through an orchestra with a sterling reputation and deep roots in the city," said OSL Principal Conductor Pablo Heras-Casado.

ORCHESTRAL CONCERTS

Carnegie Hall Series

Conductor Nicholas McGegan will open OSL's annual Carnegie Hall series on November 1, 2012 with a program of Haydn and Mozart that includes cellist and MacArthur 'Genius' Alisa Weilerstein performing Haydn's virtuosic Cello Concerto No. 2. This will be maestro McGegan's first performance with OSL at Carnegie Hall.

Making his debut on the Carnegie Hall main stage, OSL Principal Conductor Pablo Heras-Casado will conduct a broad collection of works by Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy and Schumann on February 7, 2013-including the U.S. premiere of Debussy's Five Préludes (orch. Hans Zender) and Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2 featuring the distinguished pianist Christian Zacharias. This will be Zacharias' and Heras-Casado's first collaboration. In previewing this concert, Heras-Casado said, "I think it's very important to bring the Five Préludes to audiences in the U.S. for the first time. The work respects the essence of Debussy's music, with a new light that is cast from Hans Zender, the famous German conductor and composer who wrote the arrangement for small orchestra in 1991."

Following a sold-out performance last season, Iván Fischer will once again close out OSL's orchestra series, performing J.S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion before Easter Sunday on March 28, 2013 with the superb New York City-based chorus Musica Sacraand soloists soprano Dominique Labelle, mezzo-soprano Barbara Kozelj, tenor John Tessier and bass-baritone Hanno Müller-Brachmann.

Special Projects

Throughout the season OSL will perform in three additional concerts on the main stage of Carnegie Hall outside of its annual orchestra series. On December 21, 2012 the orchestra will join the illustrious New York Virtuoso Singers for their first concert together at Carnegie Hall, performing Joseph Haydn's oratorio The Creation.

OSL returns to Carnegie Hall on March 14, 2013 to reunite with one of its longtime collaborators, soprano Renée Fleming. As part of Ms. Fleming's Perspectives residency at Carnegie Hall, OSL will perform a semi-staged production of André Previn's opera A Streetcar Named Desire, based on the play by Tennessee Williams.

On April 20, 2013 OSL will join a festival chorus of young singers from around the country for a performance of the Mozart Requiem in Carnegie Hall's Stern Auditorium. John Nelson will conduct the program, and Kent Tritle will prepare the chorus.

On April 12 and 13, 2013 OSL will take part in The Rite of Spring at 100 presented by Carolina Performing Arts and The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This year-long, multidisciplinary centennial commemoration will explore the impact of The Rite of Spring and what the work means today. Together with Basil Twist,a third-generation puppeteer and one of the most creative performers in contemporary theater, OSL will perform a world premiere "ballet without dancers" inspired by Stravinsky's masterwork. Twist will also stage his new versions of Stravinsky's Pulcinella and Fireworks with OSL.

On November 8, 2012 OSL will once again accompany the Saint Thomas Choir of Men and Boys to perform Brahms' German Requiem at the stunning Saint Thomas Church in midtown Manhattan.

CHAMBER CONCERTS

Chamber Music Series

St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble will return to The Morgan Library & Museum and Brooklyn Museum to present three programs that range from the Baroque era to a new, commissioned work. Beginning with Baroque In Pieces on October 14, 17 and 19, 2012, St. Luke's renowned chamber musicians will present the musical dialogue that spanned across Italy, France and Germany throughout the 17th and 18th centuries.

Later in the season, on March 3, 6 and 8, 2013, Spin Paris will feature music by three composers who defined French music at the turn of the 20th century, along with a world premiere by American composer Sean Shepherd, whose work reflects a French musical sensibility. To close the series, St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble will perform Three Part Inventions on April 28, May 1 and 3, 2013, tracing the evolution of the trio over a period of 125 years with works by Schubert, Brahms and Bartók.

Special Projects

On September 20 and 21, 2012 St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble and Baryshnikov Arts Center's will co-present Whirlwind-an all-wind program featuring Mozart's Gran Partita and György Ligeti's Six Bagatelles for Wind Quintet. The performance will take place at the Jerome Robbins Theater, with set design by renowned visual artist Anne Patterson and lighting design by Matt Frey. This will be OSL's second co-production with BAC since moving into their shared home at 450 West 37th Street in Manhattan.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND ARTS EDUCATION

Subway Series

As part of its ongoing community programs, OSL travels to each of the five boroughs every year to present five free concerts in St. Luke's Subway Series. This year's concerts will take place September 14 – 30, 2012, featuring Beethoven's Septet in E-flat Major and selections from John's Book of Alleged Dances by American composer John Adams. The concerts will also include a food drive in partnership with the New York City nonprofit City Harvest. At each event, attendees are encouraged to bring non-perishable food donations to support New York City's homeless. New York's own Melt Bakery will also sell their gourmet ice cream sandwiches immediately following each performance.

OSL@DMC

Since opening The DiMenna Center for Classical Music in March 2011, OSL has utilized its new home to expand educational and community programs. Through its OSL@DMC series, St. Luke's presents regular, free events that connect audiences to the artistic process of composers and musicians. This year's OSL@DMC series will begin with a Subway Series concert and food drive at The DiMenna Center on September 27, 2012. On December 13, 2012 OSL@DMC will continue with a Holiday Community Sing, where all are welcome to join in songs and carols in English, Spanish, Hebrew and Latin alongside OSL. This first-time event will be hosted by composer and educator Tom Cabaniss.

The OSL@DMC series will continue on January 11, 2013 with a concert showcasing OSL's new Amateur Musician Program (AMP) and continued partnership with the Amateur Classical Musicians Association (ACMA). On January 23, 2013 American composer Sean Shepherd will preview his new commission for St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble.Maestro Iván Fischer will return to The DiMenna Center on March 27, 2013 for an open rehearsal of Bach's St. Matthew Passion before his concert with OSL at Carnegie Hall. The 2012/2013 OSL@DMC series will conclude on April 26, 2013 with an open rehearsal and Q&A featuring St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble and hosted by WQXR's Terrance McKnight.St. Luke'swillplay works from its Three Part Inventions program and stream the rehearsal for a live and online audience.

Arts Education and Community Engagement

Throughout the 2012/2013 season OSL will present a series of free programs for thousands of New York City public school students at The Kaye Playhouse, Tribeca Performing Arts Center and The DiMenna Center for Classical Music. This year's programs will spotlight composer Igor Stravinsky, including performances of his L'Histoire du Soldat on November 27 – 30, 2012 and his Pulcinella Suite along with Baroque selections on March 19 – 21, 2013. The spring concert will offer opportunities for students to explore the themes of music and dance arrangement, and will feature a new dance commission performed by the Dance Theater of Harlem.

Through its school partnership program, OSL musicians and teaching artists will deliver a year-long arts integration curriculum in more than 30 classrooms in the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan. The 2012/2013 season will feature the Instrumental Coaching Program, where students from P.S. 111 receive violins and group instruction by OSL musicians and teaching artists. Since its inception in 1976, OSL's Arts Education program has introduced more than one million students to the beauty and power of the performing arts.

Amateur Musicians Project (AMP)

As part of its vision to connect multiple communities with world-class musicians, OSL offers an immersive chamber music coaching program to New York amateur musicians. From rehearsals at the state-of-the-art DiMenna Center for Classical Music, to coaching sessions with OSL musicians, to a professionally-produced culminating concert at The DiMenna Center, AMP gives passionate musicians an opportunity to work in a superior environment while delving into repertoire, discovering new musical techniques and making musical connections that will last a lifetime.

The 2012/2013 season will showcase our partner organization, the Amateur Classical Musicians Association (ACMA). ACMA was founded in 2007 to provide opportunities for nonprofessional, dedicated classical musicians to play solo and ensemble works in front of an appreciative audience. AMP will culminate in two final performances, on January 11, 2013, and May 22, 2013, featuring the participants' ensembles and members of OSL.

Now in its 38th season, 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 orchestra series at Carnegie Hall, an annual chamber music series at The Morgan Library & Museum and Brooklyn Museum and summer concerts as Orchestra-in-Residence at Caramoor International Music Festival. OSL's Principal Conductor is Pablo Heras-Casado.

OSL 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 as part of its Subway Series, free concerts devoted to the artistic process as part of its OSL@DMC series at The DiMenna Center and has engaged more than one million children in its Arts Education programs.

OSL's stellar 70+ discography includes four releases on its own label, St. Luke's Collection, and four Grammy Award-winning recordings. OSL has commissioned more than 50 new works and performed more than 150 world, U.S. and New York City premieres. For OSL's calendar of events, tickets and more information, visit OSLmusic.org.

The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, located at 450 West 37th Street, is OSL's first permanent home and New York City's first space dedicated to classical music rehearsal, recording and education. The DiMenna Center offers local and touring musicians unprecedented access to high-quality rehearsal and recording space in midtown Manhattan. Opened to wide acclaim in March 2011, the Center has already hosted thousands of musicians, performing artists and presenters, including IvánFischer, Renée Fleming, Emanuel Ax, Susan Graham, Christian Tetzlaff, Pablo Heras-Casado, Sarah Chang, Matthias Pintscher, Joyce Yang, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, The New York Philharmonic, International Contemporary Ensemble, The Knights, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, American Symphony Orchestra, New York Youth Symphony, American Ballet Theater, San Francisco Opera, La Scala, Musica Sacra, American Brass Quintet and more. The 20,000+ square foot facility was designed by H3 Hardy Collaboration Architecture and acousticians Akustiks. The DiMenna Center's building is also home to Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC). For more information, visit DiMennaCenter.org.