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Richard and Helen DeVos Classical concert
The Grand Rapids Symphony opens its 82nd Season with a celebratory evening featuring a rousing opera overture, an exuberant double piano concerto by Mozart, and the glittering orchestration of Rachmaninoff. Music Director David Lockington leads the orchestra in two performances at 8 p.m. on Friday, September 16 and Saturday, September 17, at DeVos Performance Hall.
The evening opens with Wagner’s dramatic Overture to “Rienzi,” one of the composer’s early operas written in grand operatic style. “Rienzi” enjoyed the most popular success of Wagner’s career and made him famous almost literally overnight.
Robert Levin, a foremost scholar and performer of Mozart, takes the stage with his wife, pianist Ya-Fei Chuang, to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 10 in E-Flat major. This husband and wife team will exchange Mozart’s musical ideas between two pianos.
“Levin is the one guy who makes me feel like I’m hearing Mozart played by Mr. Mozart himself,” says Associate Conductor John Varineau. “Through his spontaneity and improvisation, it’s like he’s Mozart reincarnated.”
The evening ends with Rachmaninoff’s “Symphonic Dances,” a shimmering orchestral suite in three movements. The work was the composer’s last composition and it summarizes his orchestral output.
“This late work captures the essence of Rachmaninoff’s style in its length, its beautiful, driving lyrical melodies and its unique tonal colors – there’s even an unusual saxophone solo which is particularly expressive,” says Lockington. “Rachmaninoff knew how to write for orchestra, and this is Rachmaninoff at his very best.”
Pianist Robert Levin has been heard throughout the United States and abroad in recital, as a soloist, and in chamber concerts. He appears frequently with his wife, pianist Ya-Fei Chuang, in duo recitals and with orchestra. He is renowned for his restoration of the Classical period practice of improvised embellishments and cadenzas; his Mozart and Beethoven performances have been hailed for their active mastery of the Classical-era musical language. A noted theorist and Mozart scholar, Levin is the author of a number of articles and essays on Mozart. His completions of Mozart fragments are published and have been recorded and performed throughout the world.
Pianist Ya-Fei Chuang’s recent engagements include concerts and recordings in the Berlin Philharmonic Hall, the Malaysian Philharmonic, and at the National Concert Hall Taipei. She has four CDs soon to be released. A prizewinner in the Cologne International Piano Competition at age 18, Ya-Fei Chuang first performed on television in her native Taiwan at the age of eight and gave her first public recital at age nine. She won first prize at the nationally televised "Genius vs. Genius" Competition at age ten and first prize at the National Competition (Taiwan) at age eleven.
Audiences Gain Insight at “Upbeat”
Ticket holders are invited to attend “Upbeat,” a free pre-concert multi-media presentation that provides insight into the evening’s featured music, composers and guest artists. “Upbeat” takes place at 7 p.m. in the Recital Hall of DeVos Performance Hall.
Tickets
Tickets start at $18 and are available at the Symphony office, weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 300 Ottawa NW, Suite 100, (located across from the Calder), or by calling 616/454-9451, Ext. 4. (Phone orders will be charged a $2 per ticket service fee, with a $12 maximum.) Tickets are available at the DeVos Place Box Office, weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., or on the day of the concert beginning two hours prior to the performance. Tickets may also be purchased through Ticketmaster, 800/982-2787, online at www.grsymphony.org, or in person at Ticketmaster outlets: select D&W Fresh Market, Family Fare Stores and Walmart. Tickets purchased at these locations will include a Ticketmaster service fee. This is a student passport concert.
About the Grand Rapids Symphony
The Grammy-nominated Grand Rapids Symphony was officially organized in 1930 and is recognized as one of America’s leading regional orchestras. Led by Music Director David Lockington, eight concert series are presented, featuring a wide range of music and performance styles. More than 400 performances are presented each year, touching the lives of some 170,000. Nearly half of those who benefit are students, senior citizens and people with disabilities reached through extensive education and community service programs. The Symphony sponsors the Grand Rapids Symphony Chorus, Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra, Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Choruses, and also provides the orchestra for Opera Grand Rapids and the Grand Rapids Ballet Company. To learn more about the Grand Rapids Symphony, please visit www.grsymphony.org.
These concerts are made possible with support from the Michigan Council of Arts and Cultural Affairs, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.