A Fantastic Beginning
October 8, 2011 at 8:00 P.M.
Red Cape Tango, Michael Daugherty
Totentanz, Franz Liszt
Symphonie fantastique, Hector Berlioz
The fantastic dreams of a lovesick artist. A fantastic fight between evil and the quintessential American superhero. A fantastic vision of the afterlife, animated by one of today's most exciting pianists, Jason Hardink. Spanning 180 years, all three fantasies have common themes - including the very fine line between what we find frightening and what we find seductive. Red Cape Tango is the final movement from Metropolis Symphony by Daugherty, professor of composition at the University of Michigan.
Christmas Around the World
DECEMBER 6, 2011 at 7:30 P.M.
Troika from Lieutenant Kijé Sergei Prokofiev
Adoration of the Magi from Trittico Botticelliano, Ottorino Respighi
The Twelve Days of Christmas, Carol of the Bells, Sleigh Ride and many more.
What we think of as the Pure Michigan Christmas is the blending of many cultural traditions. Take a brief holiday tour of them: Prokofiv's Russian winter; Respighi's musical interpretation of Botticelli's painting of the Three Kings; and familiar carols from America, England and the Ukraine.
Shakespearean Dreams
FEBRUARY 11, 2012 at 8:00 P.M.
Commedia for (Almost) 18th-Century Orchestra, William Bolcom
Let Us Garlands Bring, Gerald Finzi
A Midsummer Night's Dream: Overture & Incidental Music, Felix Mendelssohn
Poets have come and gone for centuries. But only one is known as "The Bard." Finzi's music and Timothy Jones' powerful voice will bring some of Shakespeare's most emotionally stirring verses to life. Pit & Balcony Theatre will perform a semi-staged version of one of the world's greatest comedies, while the SBSO and the Saginaw Choral Society will perform the music that comedy inspired in Mendelssohn. Pulitzer Prize winner William Bolcom, a long time U of M faculty member, pulls the commedia dell'arte of Shakespeare's era into today's world.
Past Masters, Present Promise
MARCH 31, 2012 at 8:00 P.M.
The Black Swan (Intermezzo), Johannes Brahms/Bright Sheng
Mother Goose: Five Children's Pieces, Maurice Ravel
Symphony No. 2, Johannes Brahms
Light and dark, good and evil, magical transformations: they infuse much of our art - old and new. Brahms' Intermezzo for piano is transformed by Bright Sheng's orchestral re-imagining. Ravel explores the magical transformations of Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast and other fairy tales and folklore, and specially-commissioned illustrations by Saginaw-bred artist Kellie Schneider explore the same themes visually. We conclude our program with Brahms' Symphony No. 2, his most joyful and lyrical, full of evocations of springtime.
A Night at the Movies: The Music of John Williams
APRIL 14, 2012 at 8:00 P.M.
Star Wars: Suite for Orchestra
I. Main Title
II. Princess Leia's Theme
III. The Imperial March (Darth Vader's Theme)
IV. Yoda's Theme
V. Throne Room & End Title
Theme from Jaws
NBC's Mission Theme
Raiders of the Lost Ark: Raiders March
March from Superman
Olympic Fanfare and Theme
The Cowboys
Theme from J.F.K.
Theme from Schindler's List
Theme from Jurassic Park
E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial: "Adventures on Earth"
John Williams, arguably the most famous American composer of modern time, celebrates his 80th birthday in February 2012. In honor of his sterling career, the SBSO takes to stage to perform some of his most memorable works. Williams set the scene for a whole new generation of classical music, including Music Director Brett Mitchell.
A Heroic Finale
MAY 12, 2012 at 8:00 P.M.
Symphony No. 3 (Vespertine), Kevin Puts
Symphony No. 3 (Eroica), Ludwig van Beethoven
Heroes give us hope and inspiration. And they come in many forms. Inspired by the ideals of the French Revolution. Beethoven composed his third symphony in honor of one of the revolution's, military leaders: Napoleon Bonaparte. When Napoleon declared himself emperor, Beethoven famously destroyed the title page with the dedication, but preserved one of his most important works. The Icelandic singer Björk provided a different type of inspiration for former Alma, Michigan, resident Kevin Puts. "Stunned by the intensity and great variety in Björk's voice," he writes, "I also found myself drawn to the dazzling array of sounds supporting her." Puts will explain his inspiration in a pre-concert talk.
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