NJ Symphony Orchestra Presents Opening Night with Joshua Bell & Jeanine De Bique

A new era for the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra begins on September 14, when Jacques Lacombe takes the podium for a Gala Opening Night Celebration-his inaugural concert as the Orchestra's 13th Music Director. To mark the occasion, special guests Joshua Bell and Jeanine De Bique join Lacombe for a program highlighting the new music director's love of music from the orchestral to opera and ballet. The concert, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark, begins at 7 p.m.

"The idea around Opening Night is to present a program that can be a portrait of my musical personality," Lacombe says. "I wear multiple hats-I am a symphony conductor, but I also conduct operas and ballets. I love all these art forms, I love French music and I have a great love of modern music as well."

The special program encompasses all of those genres. Excerpts from Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, Bellini's I Capuleti e I Montecchi, Gounod's Roméo et Juliette and Massenet's Thaïs mingle with Stravinsky's The Firebird, Gershwin's "Summertime" from Porgy and Bess and Saint-Saëns' violin showpiece Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso.

The landmark concert features the world premiere of Montclair State University faculty member Robert Aldridge's Suite from Elmer Gantry, the first piece the NJSO presents in its groundbreaking New Jersey Roots Project-an initiative through which the Orchestra will present works from composers who were either born in New Jersey or whose time spent in the Garden State influenced their artistic identity.

"The New Jersey Roots Project is part of my goal of connecting the Orchestra with the community," Lacombe says. "When I began to learn more about New Jersey, I was amazed at the number of influential composers who have connections with the state. One way to honor and promote that connection is to present music by some of these significant composers."

The program's two guest artists also reflect Lacombe's ambitions, he says: "I am very interested in finding and helping to promote new talent, and Jeanine De Bique is an extraordinary vocalist. One of my goals every year is to help audiences discover new artists. And I also want to bring the greatest artists of our time-like Joshua Bell-to New Jersey."

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