St. Louis Symphony Announces 2013-2014 Season

Today, the St. Louis Symphony announced its 2013-2014 season, the orchestra's 134th since its founding in 1880 and the ninth led by Music Director David Robertson. The 2013-2014 classical subscription series is sponsored by Wells Fargo Advisors and runs from September 20, 2013 through May 11, 2014.

The classical subscription series schedule is a dynamic and varied study of contrasts: new and old, sacred and secular, popular and classical, eastern and western. David Robertson, his tenure as Music Director now extended with the St. Louis Symphony through 2016, leads the orchestra in a season that includes orchestral favorites, music of living composers, and other masterpieces that are sure to delight new and returning St. Louis Symphony audiences. Exciting soloists, including Yo-Yo Ma, Joshua Bell, Gil Shaham, Karita Mattila and Christian Tetzlaff, return to Powell Hall in 2013-2014 to perform with the St. Louis Symphony.

Another highlight of the new season: the orchestra, under the baton of David Robertson, makes a triumphant return to Carnegie Hall November 22, 2013, performing Britten's opera Peter Grimes with a cast that includes tenor Anthony Dean Griffey and soprano Susanna Phillips on the composer's 100th birthday.

The St. Louis Symphony also makes a return to recording in 2013-2014. The October 5-6, 2013 performances of a new John Adams' concerto written for saxophone, a St. Louis Symphony co-commission and premiere, will be recorded by Nonesuch Records for release in 2014. (Nonesuch also records the St. Louis Symphony's February 16, 2013 performance of Adams' City Noir for this CD.) The St. Louis Symphony's last release with Nonesuch in 2009 included John Adams' Dr. Atomic Symphony, and was named "Classical Album of the Decade" by The Times of London.

"Our new season explores the amazing range of emotions and feelings that music evokes," said Music Director David Robertson. "We can be carried away by incredible passion and energy or transported to a realm of indescribable peace and calm, often while listening to the same composition. We imagined a season of these contrasts by linking works, time periods and themes in unusual ways that will show the amazing range and expressive power of the St. Louis Symphony."

St. Louis Symphony President & CEO Fred Bronstein said: "Nearly five years ago the St. Louis Symphony launched a vision to build new audiences through the breadth and depth of its offerings and to create the most dynamic and varied programming possible. Since then, we have seen a direct response from our audiences with steady increases in our ticket sales and attendance. The 2013-2014 season, with its broad range of musical styles and artists throughout all of our series, defines what the St. Louis Symphony means today: a pinnacle of musical excellence where there is something for everyone to relate to, to be thrilled by, and to love."

The St. Louis Symphony is proud of its success story in recent years, which includes:

A 39% increase in ticket revenues, 16% increase in seats sold and 14% increase in per-concert average attendance since the launch of major audience development initiatives four years ago
Early negotiation of a long-term collective bargaining agreement that provides labor stability with the orchestra through 2017
Extension of Music Director David Robertson's contract through 2016
Nonesuch recordings of John Adams' Doctor Atomic Symphony and City Noir
Successful tours to Europe and California
Regular engagements at Carnegie Hall

Moreover, the St. Louis Symphony continues to be recognized as one of the world's great orchestras, whether at home in Powell Hall, on a run-out program in rural Missouri, at Carnegie Hall, or in the concert halls of Europe. Its reputation as a dedicated ensemble known for its musical sophistication, talent and spirit was confirmed on its fall 2012 tour of Europe, where it was met with enthusiastic audiences and critical praise, The Times of London calling its performance "like a victory parade."

2013-2014 season highlights include:

Music Director David Robertson will be at the podium Opening Weekend conducting Ives' multi-layered Three Places in New England and Copland's Lincoln Portrait. Soloist Kirill Gerstein joins the St. Louis Symphony to perform Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1.

Nonesuch will be back in Powell Hall recording the St. Louis premiere of Adams' concerto for saxophone for a future release (along with the 2012-2013 season's City Noir performance).

On November 22, 2013, the Symphony returns to Carnegie Hall. Music Director David Robertson will lead the orchestra, along with a cast that includes tenor Anthony Dean Griffey and soprano Susanna Phillips, in a concert version of Britten's haunting opera Peter Grimes. St. Louis audiences can preview the opera prior to the Carnegie Hall engagement at Powell Hall on Saturday, November 16, 2013. The concert celebrates Britten on his 100th birthday.

The St. Louis Symphony's 5th Annual Red Velvet Ball brings legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma back to Powell Hall on October 19, 2013. David Robertson will be at the podium for this very special evening. Proceeds from the gala benefit the Symphony. The event will be chaired by Peggy Ritter and Marsha Rusnack.

Orchestral Favorites include works such as Verdi's Requiem, Bach's Christmas Oratorio, Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, Beethoven's Symphony No. 5, Sibelius' Symphony No. 2 and Orff's Carmina burana.

In January 2014, the St. Louis Symphony begins a month-long Winter Beethoven Festival. Some of the composer's best-known works (Symphony No. 7, Piano Concerto No. 5, "Emperor," Symphony No. 3, "Eroica," and Symphony No. 5) will be paired with contrasting modern masterpieces by composers from around the globe.

Exciting Soloists will perform with the St. Louis Symphony throughout the entire season, from violin virtuoso Joshua Bell and acclaimed pianists Jon Kimura Parker and Lars Vogt, to favorite vocalists Christine Brewer, Nicholas Phan, Susanna Phillips and Karita Mattila.

Ten living composers are featured throughout the 2013-2014 season, including the St. Louis co-commission and premiere of Adams' concerto for saxophone, Brett Dean's Viola Concerto (performed by the composer and conducted by David Robertson) and Marc-André Dalbalvie's La Source d'un regard.

The St. Louis Symphony is also proud to perform contemporary works from two composers who have been part of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, 2012 International Composers Festival, sponsored by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation: Patrick Harlin's Rapture and Stephanie Berg's Ravish and Mayhem. Both Harlin and Berg were resident composers at the International Composers Festival, and Berg was awarded the Sinquefield Prize, which goes to University of Missouri-Columbia students.

Several St. Louis Symphony Featured Musicians will solo during the season, including:

Concertmaster David Halen and Principal Cello Daniel Lee (Brahms Double Concerto, February 7-9, 2014)
Associate Principal Second Violin Kristin Ahlstrom, Associate Principal Cello Melissa Brooks, Acting Co-Principal Oboe Philip Ross and Associate Principal Bassoon Andrew Gott (Haydn's Sinfonia concertante, February 21-23, 2014)

The St. Louis Symphony welcomes a distinguished group of musicians and conductors for their Powell Hall subscription series debuts in 2013-2014, including violist Brett Dean, saxophonist Tim McAllister, violinists Adele Anthony and Stefan Jackiw, and conductors Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Juanjo Mena and Carlos Izcaray.

Pulitzer Series Concerts continue during the 2013-2014 season, exploring and celebrating the fusion between art and music in a series of performances programmed to complement exhibitions at the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts. These concerts take place at the Pulitzer and will be announced at a future date.

The 2013-2014 season marks the fourth year of partnerships with two leading public media outlets - The Nine Network of Public Media and St. Louis Public Radio, 90.7-KWMU. In addition, the St. Louis Symphony looks forward to welcoming and working with the Radio Arts Foundation St. Louis in the future.

The St. Louis Symphony expands its tradition of excellence with Education and Family Concerts, incorporating creative programming that familiarizes young listeners with the Symphony, its musicians and classical music.