The Orchestra Now's Sight & Sound Series Presents: Shostakovich, Michelangelo And The Artistic Conscience at the Met

Music director Leon Botstein will conduct Shostakovich, Michelangelo, & the Artistic Conscience, the second installment this season in The Orchestra Now's (T?N) popular Sight & Sound series at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on Sunday, February 11. The program will present Shostakovich's Suite on Verses of Michelangelo in conjunction with the exhibition Michelangelo: Divine Draftsman and Designer, on view at The Met Fifth Avenue until February 12, 2018. As with all Sight & Sound concerts, on-screen artworks are staged in a lively discussion alongside musical excerpts performed by the Orchestra, followed by a full performance and audience Q & A.

To celebrate the 500th anniversary of Michelangelo's birth, Shostakovich set 11 poems by the Renaissance master to music. This symphonic song cycle illuminates the timeless struggle of artists across the ages-from Michelangelo to Beethoven and Shostakovich himself-in their quest to remain free.

This concert will be streamed on Facebook Live via The Met's Facebook page. All Sight & Sound concerts are a co-presentation with MetLiveArts.

Tickets, starting at $30, may be purchased online at metmuseum.org/sightandsound, by calling The Met at 212.570.3949, or in person at The Great Hall Box Office at The Metropolitan Museum of Art at 5th Ave and 82nd St.

The Orchestra Now (TON) is a group of some 80 vibrant young musicians from more than 12 different countries around the globe, whose goal is to make orchestral music relevant to 21st-century audiences. They are lifting the curtain on the musicians' experience by sharing their unique personal insights in a welcoming environment. Hand-picked from hundreds of applicants from the world's leading conservatories-including The Juilliard School, Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Royal Conservatory of Brussels, and the Curtis Institute of Music-the members of T?N are not only rousing audiences with their critically acclaimed performances, but also enlightening curious minds by presenting on-stage introductions and demonstrations at concerts, offering program notes written from the musicians' perspective, and connecting with patrons through one-on-one discussions during intermissions.

Conductor, educator, and music historian Leon Botstein founded T?N in 2015 as a master's degree program at Bard College, where he also serves as president. The Orchestra is in residence at Bard's Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, offering multiple concerts there each season as well as participating in the annual Bard Music Festival. The Orchestra also performs numerous concert series at major venues in New York, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as a schedule of free performances across New York City boroughs. T?N has collaborated with many distinguished conductors, including Fabio Luisi, Neeme Järvi, Gerard Schwarz, and JoAnn Falletta.

For upcoming activities and more detailed information about the musicians, visit theorchestranow.org.

Leon Botstein brings a renowned career as both a conductor and educator to his role as music director of The Orchestra Now. He has been music director of the American Symphony Orchestra since 1992, artistic co-director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival since their creation, and president of Bard College since 1975. He was the music director of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra from 2003-2011, and is now conductor laureate. This year, he assumes artistic directorship of the Grafenegg Academy in Austria. Mr. Botstein is also a frequent guest conductor with orchestras around the globe, has made numerous recordings, and is a prolific author and music historian. He is the editor of the prestigious The Musical Quarterly, and has received many honors for his contributions to music. More info online at LeonBotstein.com.