The American Symphony Orchestra Begins its 2015 Classics Declassified Series TCHAIKOVSKY'S SYMPHONY NO. 4, 2/8

The American Symphony Orchestra begins its 2015 Classics Declassified series with Tchaikovsky's impassioned and Romantic Symphony No. 4 at Symphony Space on Sunday, February 8, 2015. Discover why the composer said of his work, "Perhaps I'm mistaken, but it seems to me that this symphony is better than anything I've done so far" as Leon Botstein and the Orchestra shed new light on a time-honored masterpiece. Hosted by WQXR's Peabody Award-winning broadcaster and producer Elliott Forrest, the three-part format of Classics Declassified begins with an animated talk providing a guided tour of the work, followed with its full performance. Mr. Forrest then leads a dynamic Q & A with the audience that allows them to make the music personal in a whole new way.

WHEN
Sunday, February 8, 2015 at 4 PM
Discussion, Performance, and Q & A
Peter Norton Symphony Space

WHERE
Peter Norton Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway (Broadway at West 95th Street)

PROGRAM
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36
American Symphony Orchestra
Leon Botstein, conductor
Elliott Forrest, host

TICKETS
$29 / $39, and subscriptions are available at americansymphony.org and by phone at 212-868-9276. Tickets are also available atsymphonyspace.org.

About American Symphony Orchestra
Now in its 53rd season, the American Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski, with a mission of making orchestral music accessible and affordable for everyone. Music Director Leon Botstein expanded that mission when he joined the ASO in 1992, creating thematic concerts that explore music from the perspective of the visual arts, literature, religion, and history, and reviving rarely-performed works those audiences would otherwise never have a chance to hear performed live. The Orchestra's Vanguard Series, which includes these themed programs as well as an opera-in-concert and a celebration of an American composer, consists of six concerts annually at Carnegie Hall. ASO goes in-depth with three familiar symphonies each season in the popular series Classics Declassified at Peter Norton Symphony Space, and has an upstate home at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, where it performs in an annual subscription series as well as Bard's SummerScape Festival and the Bard Music Festival. The Orchestra has made several tours of Asia and Europe, and performed in countless benefits for organizations including the Jerusalem Foundation. Many of the world's most accomplished soloists have performed with the ASO, including Yo-Yo Ma, Deborah Voigt, and Sarah Chang. The Orchestra has released several recordings on the Telarc, New World, Bridge, Koch, and Vanguard labels, and numerous live performances are also available for digital download. In many cases, these are the only existing recordings of some of the rare works that have been rediscovered in ASO performances. More information is available at americansymphony.org.

About Leon Botstein
Leon Botstein is now in his 23rd year as Music Director and Principal Conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra. He has been hailed for his visionary zeal, often creating concert programs that give audiences a once-in-a-lifetime chance to hear live performances of works that are ignored in the standard repertory, and inviting music lovers to listen in their own way to create a personal experience. At the same time he brings his distinctive style to core repertory works. He is also co-Artistic Director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival, which take place at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, where he has been President since 1975. He is also Conductor Laureate of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, where he served as Music Director from 2003-2011.

Mr. Botstein leads an active schedule as a guest conductor all over the world, and can be heard on numerous recordings with the London Symphony (including their Grammy-nominated recording of Popov's First Symphony), the London Philharmonic, NDR-Hamburg, and the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. Many of his live performances with the American Symphony Orchestra are available online, where they have cumulatively sold more than a quarter of a million downloads. Upcoming engagements include the Royal Philharmonic and the Russian National Orchestra. Recently he conducted the Taipei Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, and the Sinfónica Juvenil de Caracas in Venezuela and Japan, the first non-Venezuelan conductor invited by El Sistema to conduct on a tour.

Highly regarded as a music historian, Mr. Botstein's most recent book is Von Beethoven zu Berg: Das Gedächtnis der Moderne (2013). He is the editor of The Musical Quarterly and the author of numerous articles and books. He is currently working on a sequel to Jefferson's Children, about the American education system. For his contributions to music he has received the award of the American Academy of Arts and Letters and Harvard University's prestigious Centennial Award, as well as the Cross of Honor, First Class from the government of Austria. Other recent awards include the Caroline P. and Charles W. Ireland Prize, the highest award given by the University of Alabama; the Bruckner Society's Julio Kilenyi Medal of Honor for his interpretations of that composer's music; the Leonard Bernstein Award for the Elevation of Music in Society; and Carnegie Foundation's Academic Leadership Award. In 2011 he was inducted into the American Philosophical Society.