Princeton Symphony Orchestra Music Director Falls in Love with POPS

For Princeton Symphony Orchestra (PSO) Music Director Rossen Milanov, stepping up to the podium is anything but new. Yet, the accomplished conductor divulges that he has butterflies about the upcoming PSO POPS! concert, which takes place Saturday, February 12 at 8 pm, at Richardson Auditorium. "The music on a POPS! concert is common to many people in the U.S., but it's not part of my background," explains Milanov, originally from Bulgaria. "I'm much more accustomed to conducting classical concerts."

Nevertheless, in PSO POPS! The Broadway Concert: Hollywood in Love, Milanov will delve whole-heartedly into the pops genre, as the PSO presents a program of music by composers including Rodgers and Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein, Lerner and Loewe, Andrew Lloyd Weber, and many more. Taking place just two days before Valentine's Day, the concert will explore love songs that first appeared on Broadway and were later memorialized in Hollywood on the silver screen. The evening will unfold like a love story, with theatrical scenes that depict themes such as Falling in Love, Love's Conflict, Commitment!? Marriage!?, and Forever Hopeful.

The concert presents an opportunity, rarely even found on Broadway today, to experience these romantic show tunes as they were originally meant to be heard: with a full symphony orchestra.

Two world-class artists, tenor Brent Barrett and soprano Anna Bergman, will join the PSO, bringing their superb voices and theater expertise to the stage as they relate tales of desire, romance, and occasional heartache. Barrett is best known for his work on Broadway, which most recently includes leading roles in the Tony Award-winning musicals Chicago and Kiss Me, Kate. He has also recorded extensively and has made numerous television and film appearances. Bergman is known internationally for concert, cabaret, theater, and opera engagements. She has been noted especially for her incredible dedication to the roles she sings, which translates into heartfelt, honest performances.

Milanov, for his part, has completely immersed himself in the repertoire on the upcoming program, discovering the excitement and passion of music from Broadway and Hollywood. "There is a lot of freedom in pops music," he comments. "It's an opportunity to make a different type of great art, which is very fulfilling. And, I was not prepared for how much fun it is!"

In a Beat:

Who: Princeton Symphony Orchestra
Rossen Milanov, music director and conductor
Anna Bergman, soprano
Brent Barrett, tenor
What: PSO POPS! The Broadway Concert: Hollywood in Love
When: February 12, 2011, 8 pm
Where: Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall on the Princeton University campus
Tickets: For tickets, please call the PSO at (609) 497-0020. Tickets may also be purchased at the Richardson Auditorium box office and at www.princeton.edu/utickets. Prices range from $20 to $64. Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.

Richardson Auditorium is wheelchair accessible and large-print programs are available.

PSO POPS! The Broadway Concert: Hollywood in Love is presented in association with Nina Wainwright, Edward E. Matthews, Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Paneyko, Judith McCartin Scheide, and Mr. and Mrs. John Steffens.

ABOUT THE PRINCETON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Whether performing classical masterworks, introducing music by modern-day masters, or hosting students at their first live symphony performance, the Princeton Symphony Orchestra (PSO) is a cultural centerpiece of the Princeton community and one of the state's finest music organizations. Guided by an extraordinary Board of Trustees and invested in artistic excellence, the PSO offers concerts of the highest quality, including orchestral, pops, and chamber music programs. Under the auspices of BRAVO!, the PSO produces wide-reaching and innovative education programs, carried out in partnerships with local schools, arts organizations, and other community agencies. The PSO is proud to have been awarded the New Jersey State Council on the Arts' highest honors: a Citation of Excellence and designation as a Major Arts Institution. The only professional orchestra to make its home in Princeton, the PSO performs at beautiful Richardson Auditorium on the campus of Princeton University. In June 2009, the Board of Trustees appoinTed Rossen Milanov as the PSO's third music director.

Find the PSO online at www.princetonsymphony.org; on Facebook at www.facebook.com/princetonsymphony; and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/psomusic.

 

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