NY Philharmonic and Shanghai Symphony Orchestra to Open 2010 Concerts in the Parks

The 2010 New York Philharmonic Concerts in the Parks, Presented by Didi and Oscar Schafer, will open with a free joint concert featuring the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Andrey Boreyko, and the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, conducted by its music director, Long Yu, with pianist Lang Lang as one of the soloists, Tuesday, July 13, 2010, at 8:00 p.m., on the Great Lawn in Central Park. The concert brings the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra to New York as an ambassador for its city - the site of Expo 2010 taking place May-October - and also commemorates New York City's naming of Shanghai as its newest "sister city."

The New York Philharmonic will take the stage first, performing the Polonaise from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from West Side Story, and Ravel's Boléro. After intermission, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra will perform the Overture to Wagner's Tannhäuser; arias by Rossini, Gounod, and Mozart, as well as Jin Fuzai's Go and See the World, the official song of the Expo, with soloists Ying Huang, soprano, and Changyong Liao, baritone; and Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue with Lang Lang as soloist. The New York Philharmonic last performed in Shanghai on the Asia 2008 tour, which was followed by the historic concert in Pyongyang, DPRK.

The 46th season of Concerts in the Parks continues on Wednesday, July 14, at 8:00 p.m., again on Central Park's Great Lawn, with Andrey Boreyko leading Liadov's Baba-Yaga; Glazunov's Concerto for Alto Saxophone, with Branford Marsalis making his New York Philharmonic debut; Schulhoff's Hot-Sonate for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra, again with Mr. Marsalis; and selections from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. The third program, also led by Mr. Boreyko, comprises the Polonaise from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from West Side Story, and selections from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, and will be performed on Thursday, July 15, at 8:00 p.m., in Cunningham Park, Queens, and on Friday, July 16, at 8:00 p.m., in Prospect Park, Brooklyn, as a Target Arts & Wonder free family event. Additionally, a New York Philharmonic Brass and Percussion Ensemble, conducted by Philharmonic Assistant Conductor Daniel Boico, will perform Free Indoor Concerts at the CUNY Center for the Arts, Staten Island, on Saturday, July 17, at 8:00 p.m., and in the Bronx, at the Hostos Center for the Arts, 450 Grand Concourse, Monday, July 19, at 7:30 p.m. Program details for the free indoor concerts will be announced at a later date. Lead corporate sponsorship for the 2010 Concerts in the Parks has been generously provided by Target and MetLife Foundation.

"As musical and cultural ambassadors of the City of New York, the Philharmonic is honored to host the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, which serves as a musical ambassador from our newly named sister city of Shanghai," said Philharmonic President and Executive Director Zarin Mehta. "The Concerts in the Parks are one of the true delights of summer in New York, and we are proud to again be visiting each of the boroughs of New York City with free concerts this summer, continuing this time-honored tradition of bringing great music to all the people of the city. Events like this would simply not be possible without the generous contributions of great New Yorkers like Didi and Oscar Schafer. I'd like to also express our deepest gratitude to the Target Corporation and MetLife Foundation for providing corporate sponsorship of the Concerts in the Parks again this season - and, of course, to the Global Sponsor of the New York Philharmonic, Credit Suisse."

"I am honored to be the music director of the legendary Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, which has become a worldwide cultural ambassador for Shanghai," said Long Yu. "Just in the current season we have toured in North America, Europe and Asia, and we are delighted to perform in the heart of New York City in a concert dedicated to this year's World Expo, hosted by our home city. The musicians and I are very excited to be a part of this unique event."

"As nations of the world are getting ready to showcase their finest achievements at the Shanghai Expo, the city of Shanghai is proud and delighted to present its world-class orchestra in New York's Central Park," said the mayor of Shanghai, Han Zheng. "Our two cities have much in common: both are open to the world and constantly strive for excellence. The international language of music is the perfect medium to express our mutual respect and admiration, and I am thrilled that the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, under the leadership of Maestro Long Yu, is playing such an important part in strengthening the connection between Shanghai and New York."

"The Philharmonic's free Concerts in the Parks are legendary," says Oscar Schafer. "Didi and I feel privileged to be able to help support them. As always, we look forward to these summer events, and especially, to hearing the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and its superlative soloists in collaboration with the New York Philharmonic in Central Park."

Each year the New York Philharmonic transforms parks throughout the New York area into a patchwork of picnickers, and provides music lovers with an opportunity to hear the best classical music under the stars. Since their inception in 1965, the performances have delighted more than 14 million listeners, including over 148,000 last summer alone.

Artists
Andrey Boreyko is currently chief conductor of the Bern Symphony Orchestra, and principal guest conductor of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra and of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Euskadi. In the 2009-10 season he also become general music director of the Düsseldorf Symphony, in which position he conducts one opera production per season at the Deutsche Oper am Rhein. Mr. Boreyko has worked as a guest conductor with many of the world's most renowned orchestras. In Germany and Austria he has conducted the Berlin Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, and the Vienna Symphony. Elsewhere in Europe, he has appeared with Amsterdam's Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, FilharMonica Della Scala, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, London Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. In the United States and Canada he has conducted the Chicago, Boston, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Dallas, and Toronto symphony orchestras. Highlights of the current season include return visits to the Los Angeles and New York Philharmonics orchestras, and to The Philadelphia and Cleveland Orchestras. His extensive discography includes Arvo Pärt's Lamentate and Valentin Silvestrov's Symphony No. 6, both recorded with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra and released by ECM records. In 2006 Hänssler Classic released a live recording of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4 and the world premiere recording of Shostakovich's original version of the Suite from the opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk.

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Andrey Boreyko studied conducting and composition (with Elisabeta Kudriavtseva and Alexander Dmitriev) at the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory, graduating summa cum laude. Over the course of his career he has held several positions, including those of music director of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra (from 2001 to 2006), principal guest conductor of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra (2000-03), chief conductor of Hamburg Symphony (2004-08), and chief conductor of the Jenaer Philharmonie (1998-2003). During his tenure at the Jenaer Philharmonie, Mr. Boreyko received awards for the most innovative concert programming in three consecutive seasons from the German Music Critics (Deutscher Musikverleger-Verband) - an unprecedented achievement in the history of this prize.

Long Yu is the artistic director and principal conductor of the China Philharmonic Orchestra (since 2000), music director of the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra (since 2003) and of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra (since 2009), and artistic director of the Beijing Music Festival (since 1998). He has appeared with leading orchestras and opera companies around the world, including the Chicago, National (Washington, D.C.), Bamberg, Sydney, and Singapore symphony orchestras; the Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and Tokyo philharmonic orchestras; the Berlin and Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestras; and The Philadelphia Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Hamburg Staatsoper, and Venice's Teatro la Fenice. Under Long Yu's leadership, the Beijing Music Festival has become regarded as one of the world's most important music festivals. Along with performances by world-renowned ensembles and artists, the festival plays an active role in commissioning new works from many of today's most important composers, including Krzysztof Penderecki, Philip Glass, Guo Wenjing, and Ye Xiaogang.

Long Yu, co-founder of the China Philharmonic Orchestra, in 2005, led that ensemble on a 40-day, 22-city international tour throughout North America and Europe in 2008, for the first time in history, he conducted it at the Vatican in the Paul VI Auditorium, a performance that was attended by Pope Benedict XVI. His recordings with the China Philharmonic include Schoenberg's orchestration of Brahms's Piano Quartet in G minor and Wagner's Tannhäuser Overture, highlights of Chinese symphonic music, and Yellow River Concerto with Lang Lang, all on the Deutsche Grammophon label. His recordings on Naxos include Korngold's Violin Concerto and Ding Shande's Long March Symphony.

Born in 1964 into a family of musicians in Shanghai, Long Yu received his first musical education from his grandfather, composer Ding Shande. He later studied at the Shanghai Conservatory and Berlin's Hochschule der Kunst. In 1992 he was appointed principal conductor of the Central Opera Theatre in Beijing; in the same year he was involved in the planning of the first Beijing New Year's Concert, and subsequently served as its conductor for three years. He produced operas for The Urban Council of Hong Kong for five consecutive years. His honors include the 2002 Montblanc Arts Patronage Award from the Montblanc Cultural Foundation; Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the Government of France; and Italy's L'Onorificenza di Commendatore in 2005.
Pianist Lang Lang plays sold-out recitals and concerts in every major city in the world. In 2008 he was featured in concert with jazz pianist Herbie Hancock at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards, and was a featured performer at the Opening Ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lang Lang appeared in the 2009 Time 100 - Time magazine's annual list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Most recently, he was chosen as an official worldwide ambassador for the 2010 Shanghai Expo.

Lang Lang is an inspiration to the 40 million classical piano students in China, and he has made it his mission to broaden the reach of classical music around the world, with a focus on children. In 2004 he was appointed an International Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), and in 2008 he established the Lang Lang International Music Foundation, with the goal of expanding young audiences and inspiring the next generation of musicians through outreach programs.

Lang Lang began playing the piano at age three, and gave his first public recital by age five. He entered Beijing's Central Music Conservatory at age nine, won first prize at the Tchaikovsky International Young Musicians Competition, and played the complete 24 Chopin études at the Beijing Concert Hall at age thirteen. Lang Lang's break into stardom came at age 17 when he was called upon as a last-minute substitution at the "Gala of the Century," playing the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Shortly thereafter, he became the first Chinese pianist to be engaged by the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and the top American orchestras. He has performed with the New York Philharmonic numerous times: the first was in May 2002 playing Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 3, and most recently, in November 2008, playing Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1.

Chinese soprano Ying Huang made a critically acclaimed debut as Cio-Cio San in French director Frederic Mitterand's 1995 feature film, Madama Butterfly. Her performances this season include the title role in a new production of Handel's Semele with Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, directed by Zhang Huan; Opera Hong Kong as Pamina in Mozart's The Magic Flute in Hong Kong and Beijing; and her Boston Opera debut in the world premiere of Zhou Long's Madame White Snake. In New York she will be featured in recital by the Lyric Chamber Music Society of New York. Ms. Huang is sought after throughout the world for her portrayals of soprano roles in Mozart arias, which have included Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro, Despina in Così fan tutte, as well as Pamina. She made her Metropolitan Opera debut in the 2006-07 season as Pamina in the new English language version of The Magic Flute and starred in The Met's first high-definition simulcast into movie theaters across North America and the United Kingdom. She also created the role of Du Liniang in Tan Dun's Peony Pavilion, directed by Peter Sellars, which opened at the Vienna Festival and went on to London, Paris, and California.

In the concert hall, Ms. Huang has performed many works by Mahler, including the Symphony No. 2 with the Houston Symphony Orchestra under Christoph Eschenbach; the Fourth, with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and Neeme Järvi and with the New World Symphony and Michael Tilson Thomas; and the Eighth, with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, led by Christoph Eschenbach. With the Cologne Philharmonic and James Conlon she has performed Poulenc's Stabat Mater, Mozart's Exsultate, jubilate, Debussy's La Damoiselle élue, and concerts of Mozart and Rossini. Other engagements have included Orff's Carmina burana with the San Francisco and Houston Symphony

Orchestras; Mozart's Coronation Mass with the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York and Tokyo; Handel's Messiah with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra; and Villa-Lobos's Bachianas Brasilieras with the Houston Symphony Orchestra and with cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic.

Ms. Huang's recordings include the sound track of Madama Butterfly; her first solo disc, Operatic Arias with James Conlon and the London Symphony Orchestra; and Bitter Love, a collection of songs composed and conducted by Tan Dun. She is a graduate of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

Baritone Changyong Liao was born in Sichuan Province in 1968, and in 1995 graduated with a master's degree from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he now director of the vocal performance department. He has performed across the globe, and is the winner of many international competitions, including three first prizes in one year (1996-97) at the Plácido Domingo International Opera Competition, Queen Sonja International Music Competition, and the 41st French International Toulouse Singing Competition, respectively. He has worked with numerous orchestras, including the BBC Broadcasting and London Symphony Orchestras; San Francisco Opera and France Toulouse National Symphony Orchestras; Japan Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra; and the Norwegian National Opera House and Norwegian National Symphony Orchestra.

Changyong Liao's various operatic roles have included Valentin in Gounod's Faust with the Opéra Comique; Morales in Bizet's Carmen with the London Symphony Orchestra; Toreador in Carmen at Shanghai Opera House and Nancy Opera House; Germond in Verdi's La Traviata with the Taipei National Symphony Orchestra; the title role in Verdi's Rigoletto; Rinaldo in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera and as Marcello in Puccini's La bohème at ZHOU Xiaoyan Opera Centre; Danilo in Léhar's The Merry Widow at Shanghai Opera House; and Alfio in Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana at Shanghai Grand Theatre. Mr. Liao is currently director of the Chinese Musicians Association and vice-chairman of the Shanghai Musicians Association.

Saxophonist Branford Marsalis, born in 1960, has numerous musical interests, including jazz, blues, and funk as well as classical music. The three-time Grammy winner has continued to exercise and expand his skills as an instrumentalist, a composer, and as the head of Marsalis Music, the label he founded in 2002 for which he produces his own projects and those of the jazz world's most promising new and established artists.

Mr. Marsalis is equally at home on the stages of the world's greatest clubs and in concert halls. In recent years he has become increasingly sought after as a featured soloist with the Chicago, Detroit, Düsseldorf, and North Carolina symphony orchestras and the Boston Pops, in a growing repertoire that includes compositions by Copland, Debussy, Glazunov, Ibert, Mahler, Mihaud, Ned Rorem, and Vaughn Williams, in addition to modern classical composers. Mr. Marsalis is dedicated to changing the future in the classroom. He has shared his knowledge at institutions including Michigan State, San Francisco State, Stanford, and North Carolina Central universities, with his full participation in an innovative extended residency at the North Carolina Central University campus. He is also the honorary chair of the New Orleans Habitat for Humanity effort to rebuild the city, and, together with his friend Harry Connick, Jr., he conceived the Habitat Musicians' Village recently completed in the city's historic Ninth Ward. Mr. Marsalis is making his New York Philharmonic debut in these Concerts in the Parks, and will perform Schulhoff's Hot-Sonate for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra with the Philharmonic again in February 2011.

Founded in 1842, the New York Philharmonic is the oldest symphony orchestra in the United States and one of the oldest in the world. It has always played a leading role in American musical life, championing the music of its time, and is renowned around the globe, having appeared in 429 cities in 61 countries, including the February 2008 historic visit to Pyongyang, DPRK. The Philharmonic's concerts are broadcast on the weekly syndicated radio program, The New York Philharmonic This Week - streamed on the Orchestra's Website, nyphil.org, and carried on Sirius XM Radio - and are telecast annually on Live From Lincoln Center on U.S. public television. The Philharmonic has made nearly 2,000 recordings since 1917, with more than 500 currently available. The first major American orchestra to offer downloadable concerts, recorded live, the Philharmonic this season released the first-ever classical iTunes Pass.

The Orchestra has built on the long-running Young People's Concerts® to develop a wide range of education programs, including the School Partnership Program, enriching music education in New York City, and Learning Overtures, fostering international exchange. Alan Gilbert became Music Director in September 2009, succeeding Lorin Maazel in a distinguished line of musical giants. Credit Suisse is the New York Philharmonic's exclusive Global Sponsor.

The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is the earliest and the most well-known ensemble of its kind in Asia. Originally known as the Shanghai Public Band, the ensemble developed into an orchestra in 1907, and was renamed the Shanghai Municipal Council Symphony Orchestra in 1922. Notably under the baton of the Italian conductor Mario Paci, the orchestra promoted Western music and trained Chinese young talents very early on in China, and introduced the first Chinese orchestral work. It has therefore been considered the "the best in the Far East." The history of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra may be referred as the history of the development of China's symphonic music.

The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra has now embraced a new era; it has given more than 10,000 concerts, including premiere performances of several thousand musical works, and has collaborated with many world-renowned conductors, soloists, and vocalists. The orchestra has gained a reputation as the most authoritative exponent of Chinese symphonic compositions. The orchestra has become increasingly influential both at home and abroad, and has recently completed audio and video recordings of such works as Zhu Jian'er's symphonies, Tan Dun's multimedia concerto The Map, and music for the Oscar and Grammy Award-winning film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Since the 1970s the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra has toured extensively abroad. In 1990 it made its debut at Carnegie Hall; in 2003 the ensemble performed in 11 U.S. cities; and in 2004 it toured Europe to celebrate the Sino-French Cultural Year. It was the first Chinese symphony orchestra to play in the Berlin Philharmonie, where it gave its 125th Anniversary Celebration Concert. Long Yu is the current music director of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.

2010 New York Philharmonic CONCERTS IN THE PARKS, PRESENTED BY DIDI AND OSCAR SCHAFER
All concerts begin at 8:00 p.m.
Outdoor concerts will be followed by fireworks.
Program I
New York Philharmonic
Andrey Boreyko, conductor
TCHAIKOVSKY Polonaise from Eugene Onegin BERNSTEIN Symphonic Dances from West Side Story
RAVEL Boléro
Intermission
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
Long Yu, conductor
Lang Lang, piano
Ying Huang, soprano
Changyong Liao, baritone
WAGNER Overture to Tannhäuser
ROSSINI Largo al factotum della città from
The Barber of Seville
GOUNOD "Je veux vivre" from Romeo and Juliet
MOZART "La ci darem la mano" from Don Giovanni
Jin FUZAI Go and See the World
GERSHWIN Rhapsody in Blue
The Great Lawn, Central Park Manhattan Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Westside entrances: West 81st or 86th Streets at Central Park West
Eastside entrances: East 79th or 85th Streets at Fifth Avenue
Program II
Andrey Boreyko, conductor Branford Marsalis, saxophone*
LIADOV Baba-Yaga
GLAZUNOV Concerto for Alto Saxophone
SCHULHOFF/Bennett Hot-Sonate for Alto Saxophone and
Orchestra
PROKOFIEV Romeo and Juliet (selections)
The Great Lawn, Central Park Manhattan Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Program III
Andrey Boreyko, conductor
TCHAIKOVSKY Polonaise from Eugene Onegin
BERNSTEIN Symphonic Dances from West Side Story
PROKOFIEV Romeo and Juliet (selections)
Cunningham Park, Queens Thursday, July 15, 2010
Enter at 193rd Street, near 81st Avenue or Union Turnpike. Concert site is at 193rd Street Field
Prospect Park, Brooklyn Friday, July 16, 2010
Enter at Grand Army Plaza, Prospect Park West at 9th Street or Bartel-Pritchard Circle at the intersection of Prospect Park West, Prospect Park Southwest and 15th Street
*denotes New York Philharmonic debut
ADDITIONAL FREE INDOOR CONCERTS
New York Philharmonic Brass and Percussion Ensemble
Daniel Boico, conductor
Program to be announced
CUNY Center for the Arts, Saturday, July 17, 2010, 8:00 p.m.
2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island
Hostos Center for the Arts and Culture Monday, July 19, 2010, 7:30 p.m.
Hostos Community College, CUNY
450 Grand Concourse, Bronx
All programs subject to change