Robbins Lighter Classics: Martin Riseley displays technical acuity in energetic showpieces for violin

January 6^th, 2010

Violinissimo!

Thursday, January 14^th ’Äì 8:00 pm

Edmonton, AB ’Ķ The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) continues its Robbins Lighter Classics series in 2010 with all things violinistic.  In a concert featuring a dazzling array of his favourite ’Äúparty pieces’Äù, ESO Concertmaster Martin Riseley returns to the Francis Winspear Centre for Music as guest soloist in Violinissimo!  William Eddins and Resident Conductor Lucas Waldin will direct the orchestra through virtuoso showpieces for the violin.

From the lyricism of a quiet Gershwin song written for the musical Girl Crazy, to the dashing display of a playful Tchaikovsky waltz, Martin Riseley’Äôs technical artistry has the opportunity to shine in a wide spectrum of deftly orchestrated pieces.  Saint-Saˆ´ns’Äô Havanaise for Violin explodes with a fiery Latin passion, the Oriental ambience of Kreisler’Äôs Tambourin Chinois will fill the hall with a warm Viennese air, and the final movement of Khachaturian’Äôs Violin Concerto in D minor offers a grandly assertive and energetic vibrancy. 

Ticket prices range from $20 ’Äì $69 (agency fees apply) and are available through the Winspear Centre Box Office.  Until January 8, tickets can be purchased for a special price of $29 (agency fees apply) ’Äì all seating areas, online only, at www.edmontonsymphony.com.

The next performance of the Robbins Lighter Classics series takes place on February 25^th, 2010.  The ESO salutes Vancouver and celebrates the grace, beauty, power, and thrill of athletic excellence in A Tribute to the Games.

Thank you to our series sponsor Bill and Mary Jo Robbins, our series media sponsor Global Television, and our season media sponsor the Edmonton Journal.

Sponsorship inquiries can be directed to Marc Carnes, Director of Development, at (780) 401-2518.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, marking its 58^th season in 2009-2010, has taken its place as one of Canada's foremost orchestral ensemble.  Its current roster includes 56 musicians from Canada and around the world, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from the great classical masterworks to pops and children's concerts. The presence of the orchestra and its enrichment of the community's quality of life are key elements in the stature and profile of Edmonton on the national and international scene.

Enjoy an interactive and spontaneous atmosphere as the ESO presents music of a youthful Beethoven

Late Night with Bill Eddins

Late Night Beethoven

Friday, January 8^th ’Äì 9:30 pm

Classic Landmarks Masters

Beethoven Masters

Saturday, January 9^th ’Äì 8:00 pm

Edmonton, AB ’Ķ The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) kicks off the New Year with an innovative new series to experience great classical music. Late Night with Bill Eddins makes its series debut, offering a uniquely interactive way to listen and learn about the music of masterful composers. In this series’Äô premiere at the Francis Winspear Centre for Music, audiences will hear excerpts from Beethoven’Äôs early works, in a cool, relaxed atmosphere.

Beginning later than our usual concerts, Late Night Beethoven will see ESO Music Director William Eddins leading the orchestra through Symphony No. 2, the optimistic work Beethoven composed in spite of his impending deafness, and conducting the ESO musicians from the piano as he performs Piano Concert No. 2 ’Äì an impressive calling card of the emerging genius. ESO Principal Oboe and guest soloist Lidia Khaner will perform the lone surviving movement of a work long thought to be lost for oboe and orchestra, in what will be its Canadian premiere.

Though Late Night Beethoven will be performed without intermission, audiences have the chance to share their thoughts about the music through discussion with Bill Eddins from the stage. Afterwards, guests can stick around for live jazz and cocktails! The smooth contemporary sounds of the CL Project ’Äì Carter Lee (bass), Steve Frise (guitar), Ian Morris (drums), and Adam Remenda (piano) ’Äì will entertain guests post-concert in the main lobby, with original arrangements showcasing the astounding creative talent of these young rising musicians.

Both the familiar and unusual music of young Beethoven from Late Night Beethoven can be heard the following evening at the Winspear Centre, in Beethoven Masters. The full works of the Second Piano Concerto and Second Symphony, along with a piece featuring an atypical instrumental combination of flute, bassoon, piano, and orchestra will be presented. Resident Conductor Lucas Waldin will make his ESO debut as guest flutist, and will share conducting duties with Bill Eddins. Lidia Khaner returns to perform the same oboe concerto excerpt from Friday, and Edmonton native Kevin Harris makes his ESO debut as guest bassoonist. Learn more about Saturday evening’Äôs performance at Symphony Prelude: 7:15 pm in the Upper Circle (Third Level) Lobby with D.T. Baker.

Ticket prices for Late Night Beethoven range from $20 ’Äì $40 (agency fees apply), and $20 - $69 (agency fees apply) for Beethoven Masters. Tickets are available through the Winspear Centre Box Office by calling (780) 428-1414, 1-800-563-5081, or purchase online at www.edmontonsymphony.com.

The next, and only other performance of the Late Night with Bill Eddins series this season will take place on May 28^th, 2010. Late Night Paris will once again see Bill Eddins as conductor and pianist in this concert exploring the beauty of France in the spring through the music of Bizet and Poulenc.

The music of Beethoven returns for the next Masters series performances on January 22^nd & 23^rd, 2010. An unforgettable presentation of the epochal Ninth Symphony ’ÄúChoral’Äù will be performed by the ESO, with guest vocalists and Richard Eaton Singers. A 2008 choral work by John Estacio, set to text by acclaimed Canadian poet and playwright, John Murrell, will also be heard.

Thank you to our Late Night with Bill Eddins series sponsor Lexus of Edmonton, our Masters series title sponsor Classic Landmarks Master Builder and Masters series media sponsor CKUA Radio Network, and ESO season sponsors CBC and the Edmonton Journal.

Sponsorship inquiries can be directed to Marc Carnes, Director of Development, at (780) 401-2518.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, marking its 58^th season in 2009-2010, has taken its place as one of Canada's foremost orchestral ensemble. Its current roster includes 56 musicians from Canada and around the world, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from the great classical masterworks to pops and children's concerts. The presence of the orchestra and its enrichment of the community's quality of life are key elements in the stature and profile of Edmonton on the national and international scene.

The weather outside is frightful, but the ESO’Äôs holiday music is so delightful’Ķ

December 10^th, 2009

A Very Merry Pops

Friday, December 18^th ’Äì 8:00 pm

Saturday, December 19^th ’Äì 8:00 pm

A Family Christmas Concert

Saturday, December 19^th ’Äì 2:00 pm

Edmonton, AB ’Ķ The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) wraps up its holiday season at the Francis Winspear Centre for Music with not only two of the most-anticipated Robbins Pops performances of the season, but also a special family matinˆ©e that will get young sugar-plums dancing around the Christmas tree! In A Very Merry Pops, Steven Reineke, Music Director of the New York Pops and favourite ESO guest conductor, returns to lead Edmonton’Äôs orchestra in its popular potpourri of seasonal songs, carols, light classics, and sing-alongs. On Saturday afternoon, Mr. Reineke will be joined by ESO Resident Conductor, Lucas Waldin, in A Family Christmas Concert.

Lustrous baritone Tyler Hamilton, with his rich vocals and engaging stage presence, along with nearly 100 voices from the Greenwood Singers and the Cantilon Chamber Choir, will light up the stage with their dynamite mix of talent and charisma in A Very Merry Pops. The Cantilon Chamber Choir returns for the family concert, which features medleys of everyone’Äôs favourite carols, plus a presentation of the film The Snowman. This wordless animated adventure about a young boy who makes a snowman that magically comes to life, will be projected above the stage as the orchestra performs the score live. This charming family film, with music by Howard Blake, has become a favourite with ESO audiences in the last few seasons. A Family Christmas Concert will last approximately 75 minutes, without intermission.

Limited single ticket seating remains for these ESO holiday concerts. Ticket prices for A Very Merry Pops range from $20 ’Äì $69 (agency fees apply). Ticket prices for A Family Christmas Concert are Adult $30 / Child $15 (agency fees apply). Call the Winspear Centre Box Office at (780) 428-1414, toll-free 1-800-563-5081, or purchase online at www.edmontonsymphony.com.

The ESO will be collecting non-perishable food items for the Edmonton Food Bank at concerts throughout the month of December.

The next Robbins Pops performances will take place on January 29^th & 30^th, 2010. The ˆíran and Kokopelli Choirs join the ESO to take audiences down The Great White Way with Broadway’Äôs most recent hits.

The next special performance for the ESO will take place on March 10^th, 2010. Piano Spectacular, a unique concert all things pianistic, features Bill Eddins, Angela Cheng, Jon Kimura Parker, and Michael Massey, performing entertaining piano solos, duets, and excerpts from concerti.

Thank you to our generous Robbins Pops series sponsor, Bill and Mary Jo Robbins, and our season media sponsors CBC and the Edmonton Journal.

Sponsorship inquiries can be directed to Marc Carnes, Director of Development, at (780) 401-2518.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, marking its 58^th season in 2009-2010, has taken its place as one of Canada's foremost orchestral ensemble. Its current roster includes 56 musicians from Canada and around the world, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from the great classical masterworks to pops and children's concerts. The presence of the orchestra and its enrichment of the community's quality of life are key elements in the stature and profile of Edmonton on the national and international scene.

Thrills and chills in weekend of Halloween Pops concerts - Oct. 30 & 31

Robbins Pops
Trick-or-treat through a ghoulish graveyard of unnerving melodies

Halloween: The Concert
Friday, October 30th ’Äì 8:00 pm
Saturday, October 31st ’Äì 8:00 pm

Edmonton, AB ’Ķ Expect the unexpected when your Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO), conductor Bruce Hangen, and a creepy cast haunt the concert hall with a frightening mix of music. In this Halloween weekend of concerts, the orchestra will send all the right chills down your spine, while filling the Francis Winspear Centre for Music with a spooky spirit.

These ghoulish performances with eerie special effects will see a number of musicians from the strings to the brass dressed up in cryptic costumes, performing suspenseful selections from Phantom of the Opera, Psycho, and Pictures at an Exhibition. Dukas’Äô The Sorcerer’Äôs Apprentice and Saint-Saˆ´ns’Äô Danse macabre are also daunting highlights in these concerts of grave consequences.

Wear your most spooktacular Halloween costumes and trick-or-treat down to the Winspear Centre Box Office for tickets. Ticket prices range from $24 ’Äì $79 (agency fees apply). Purchase by phone at (780) 428-1414 or 1-800-563-5081, or online at www.edmontonsymphony.com.

The next Robbins Pops performances ’Äì the most anticipated of the season ’Äì take place on December 18th and 19th. Steve Reineke returns to conduct our yearly tidings of carols, light classics, and sing-a-longs in A Very Merry Pops.

Thank you to our generous series’Äô sponsor, Bill and Mary Jo Robbins, and our season media sponsor CBC.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, marking its 58th season in 2009-2010, has taken its place as one of Canada's foremost orchestral ensemble. Its current roster includes 56 musicians from Canada and around the world, performing a wide-ranging repertoire from the great classical masterworks to pops and children's concerts. The presence of the orchestra and its enrichment of the community's quality of life are key elements in the stature and profile of Edmonton on the national and international scene.

Winspear Centre Box Office:
#4 Sir Winston Churchill Square
(780) 428-1414 or 1-800-563-5081
www.edmontonsymphony.com

Biography

Bruce Hangen is Director of Orchestral Activities at the Boston Conservatory, serving as the Conservatory’Äôs principal orchestral conductor as well as director of both the orchestra and conducting programs. The 2008/2009 season marked his 11th season as the Music Director of the Indian Hill Symphony. Recently, Mr. Hangen completed his tenure as the Principal Pops Guest Conductor of the Boston Pops. This position was created in May 2002 especially for Mr. Hangen, reflecting the strong musical relationship built over two decades of regular guest conducting. Other past positions include Music Director of the Omaha Symphony. From 1998 to 2000, he was Acting Resident Conductor of both the Utah and Kansas City Symphony Orchestras. Mr. Hangen was for ten seasons (1976-86) Music Director and Conductor of the Portland (Maine) Symphony; 1973-79 Associate Conductor of the Denver Symphony; 1975-79 Music Director of the Arapahoe Chamber Orchestra in Denver; six summer seasons (1966-72) Assistant Conductor of the Colorado Philharmonic.

A graduate of the Eastman School of Music with a major in conducting, Hangen was also a conducting fellow at the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood for two summers, where his conducting teachers included Seiji Ozawa, Leonard Bernstein, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Stanislaw Skrowaczewski. His recent appearances have included concerts with the Florida Philharmonic and Boston Symphony as well as the orchestras of St. Louis, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Atlanta, Jacksonville, Naples (FL), and Houston. His repeat engagements with the Boston Pops and Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestras alone totaled well over 200 performances since 1979. Mr. Hangen is the recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from the University of New England, and in Omaha he received the ICAN Foundation’Äôs 1990 Browning Award for Career Excellence and Vision. Bruce Hangen was born in Pottstown, Pennsylvania and was raised in Great Falls, Montana.

Mr. Hangen last appeared with the ESO in September, 2008.

Wine tasting fundraiser with the ESO and Canada's most in-demand wine region - Jan. 30

A Harmonious Blend of Food, Wine and Music with The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra!

Flavours of BC’Äôs Naramata Bench Wine Fundraiser

January 30, 2009 - Tickets still available!

Edmonton, AB ’Ķ The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) is pleased to invite you to their inaugural wine-tasting fundraiser - Flavours of BC’Äôs Naramata Bench. On January 30, 2009, the ESO is hosting a celebration of fine wines featuring the best of Canada’Äôs most in-demand wine region, BC’Äôs Naramata Bench.

Representatives from 10 different wineries will be on hand to showcase their award-winning wines. Guests will be treated to an evening of fine food, wine, music, and live and silent auctions. All proceeds from the event support our Edmonton Symphony Orchestra.

Registration begins at 6:30pm on January 30^th. The Wine Tasting/Auction runs from 7:00-10:00pm.

Limited tickets still available! Events tickets can be purchased through the Winspear Centre Box Office for $130 (agency fees apply). A tax deductible receipt will be issued for a portion of the ticket cost.

This ESO special event is made possible by the sponsorships of Naramata Bench, California Closets, Magic 99, Winspear Centre, Vines-Riverbend, The Edmonton Journal, Parcom Marketing, Corporate Copy, Avenue Magazine and The Artworks.

For more information, please contact: Pamela Pecush, ESO Publicist:

Phone: (780) 401-2532 or Pamela.Pecush@winspearcentre.com

For ticket purchases, please contact the Winspear Centre Box Office:

Phone: (780) 428-1414 or 1-800-563-5081

#4 Winston Churchill Square.

www.edmontonsymphony.com

About Naramata Bench

One of the most scenic wine regions in all of North America, the Naramata Bench is made up of twenty-two boutique wineries. Situated on the east side of the Okanagan Valley, one of Canada’Äôs premier grape growing regions, some wineries stake claim to picturesque hillsides and others are perched at the edge of cliffs overlooking Okanagan Lake.

As with beauty comes quality, this premiere boutique wine region continues its award winning tradition by taking over 40 awards at the 2008 All Canadian Wine Championship!

Featured wineries will include: D’ÄôAngelo Estate Winery, Elephant Island, Hillside Estate Winery, Kettle Valley Winery, La Frenz Winery, Lake Breeze Vineyards, Nichol Vineyard & Estate Winery, Poplar Gove Winery, Red Rooster Winery and Township 7.

The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra is proud to partner with the Naramata Bench for our most important fundraiser of the season. All guests will also receive a complimentary Riedel wine glass as a keepsake of this special evening and select members of the ESO will entertain with live music.

For more information on Naramata Bench wine country, a must visit destination for wine connoisseurs, visit www.naramatabench.com.

ESO Release: Enjoy a Lighter Classics Evening of International Flavour with the ESO - Jan. 22

Robbins Lighter Classics:

Join The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra on a

journey around the world in Ports of Call

Thursday, January 22^nd - 8:00pm

Edmonton, AB ’Äì The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) presents a virtual cornucopia of music celebrating the unique personalities of different countries and nations. Conductor Jack Everly, vocalist Kristen Plumley and the ESO bravely explore a variety of cultures in this exciting evening of international music. No passport required on this adventure from England to Australia, Central Asia to Italy, and exotic places in between! Featuring music by Cole Porter, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Richard Rodgers, and Rimsky-Korsakov - you'll hear favourites like Around the World in 80 Days, Waltzing Matilda, Song of India, and Canadian Sunset.

Ticket prices for this performance range from $20 to $69 (agency fees apply). Tickets are available through the Winspear Centre Box Office. The next performance in the Robbins Lighter Classics takes place on February 26^th, where you are invited to spend A Night in Vienna with conductor Andrew Grams and violinist Andrew Wan.

This series is generously sponsored by Bill and Mary Jo Robbins

Media Sponsor: The Edmonton Journal