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Marin Alsop and Baltimore Symphony Perform Bernstein's Mass on October 24 & 25
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Carnegie Hall News
Back to Press Release List > 09/11/2008 - Marin Alsop and Baltimore Symphony Perform Bernstein's Mass on October 24 & 25
Most current program information 
MARIN ALSOP AND THE BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
PERFORM BERNSTEIN’S MASS
IN TWO CONCERTS AS PART OF
BERNSTEIN: THE BEST OF ALL POSSIBLE WORLDS FESTIVAL
Monumental, Rarely Performed Work Presented at
Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage on Friday, October 24
500 New York City Public School Students Join
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Soloists at United Palace Theater
For Bernstein Mass Project Performance on Saturday, October 25
For more information visit: www.BernsteinFestival.org
Carnegie Hall will present the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra led by Maestra Marin Alsop in two performances of Bernstein’s Mass, as part of the Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds festival this fall on Friday, October 24 at 8:00 p.m. at Carnegie Hall and on Saturday, October 25 at 3:00 p.m. at the United Palace Theater in Upper Manhattan.
Leonard Bernstein’s monumental Mass: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players, and Dancers, was originally created for a large orchestra, two choruses, a Broadway-sized cast, a rock band, and even a marching band. Directed by Kevin Newbury, Carnegie Hall’s semi-staged performances of this rarely performed work, including costuming and musical movement, will feature hundreds of artists, including baritone Jubilant Sykes (Celebrant), the Morgan State University Choir, the Brooklyn Youth Chorus, a marching band, and a “Street Chorus” performing in collaboration with the BSO. On Saturday, October 25, these performers will be joined by approximately 500 New York City public school students for an afternoon presentation of the Mass at the United Palace Theater, part of The Bernstein Mass Project, created by The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall.
Commissioned by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Mass was created for the opening of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on September 8, 1971. The piece poses questions about the role of religion and the church during this turbulent time in history and focuses on the themes of faith, doubt, tolerance, and renewal of tradition. It also provides listeners with an eclectic mix of musical genres, including rock, jazz, Broadway, blues, opera, and hymns. Bernstein, who was Jewish, had long been fascinated by Catholicism and its rituals, and thus chose the traditional Roman Catholic Mass to commemorate John F. Kennedy, the country’s first and only Catholic president and a close friend of Bernstein. Though overtly religious, the work was also intended as an anti-war piece and with its political undertones, some viewed Mass as a veiled critique of the Nixon administration. Despite the controversy that Bernstein created with Mass, audiences loved the piece and it remains the best-selling classical multi-disc set ever produced. The original performance was directed by Gordon Davidson with texts by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Schwartz (with four lines written by Paul Simon), sets by Oliver Smith, costumes by Frank Thompson, and choreography by Alvin Ailey.
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Music Director Marin Alsop, a Bernstein protégée who has conducted Mass five times, said, “Leonard Bernstein, for me, was the greatest risk-taker in 20th-century classical music. He thrived on conflict, and this is nowhere more evident than in his most controversial composition, Mass. Even the response to Mass was divisive: the public loved it but most of the critics hated it. The vitriolic reaction to the 1971 premiere caused him great heartache, because this work, more than any other, contains the essence of this complex man and artist.”
The Bernstein Mass Project
This past spring and continuing into the fall, New York City public school students were engaged in a variety of educational initiatives created by Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute, exploring the themes of Bernstein’s Mass. For the project’s grand finale, participating students will come together for two programs: the first on Sunday, October 19, when original student compositions inspired by Bernstein’s Mass will be performed by approximately 150 students in Zankel Hall, and the second on Saturday, October 25, when a choir of approximately 500 young people will perform the Mass with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Marin Alsop at the United Palace Theater in Upper Manhattan.
Classroom work from this past spring as well as the ongoing rehearsal and preparation process for the October concerts is being filmed by a documentary crew for video segments appearing on the Bernstein festival website, www.BernsteinFestival.org (click on “The Mass Project”). This online companion to Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds also features up-to-date information on citywide events and a multimedia survey of Leonard Bernstein’s musical life, including interactive timelines, slide shows, audio clips, and video featuring Bernstein, his family, colleagues, and friends.
Prior to the October 24 and October 25 performances in New York, the BSO will perform Bernstein’s Mass at Baltimore’s Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall on October 16–18. Following the New York performances, the BSO will travel to Washington, D.C. to perform Mass at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Sunday, October 26 at 4:00 p.m., marking the fourth time the work has been presented there since its 1971 premiere. All performances will be directed by Kevin Newbury.
About the Artists
Hailed as one of the world’s leading conductors for her artistic vision and commitment to accessibility in classical music, Marin Alsop made history with her appointment as the 12th music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. With her inaugural concerts in September 2007, she became the first woman to head a major American orchestra. She also holds the title of Conductor Emeritus at Bournemouth Symphony in the United Kingdom, where she served as the Principal Conductor from 2002–2008. In 2005, Maestra Alsop was named a MacArthur Fellow, the first conductor ever to receive this prestigious award. In 2007, she was honored with a European Women of Achievement Award, and in 2008 she was inducted as a fellow into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Maestra Alsop is a regular guest conductor with the New York Philharmonic, The Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, and Los Angeles Philharmonic. She also appears frequently as a guest conductor with many distinguished orchestras worldwide. After a highly successful 12-year tenure as music director of the Colorado Symphony, Ms. Alsop continues her association as conductor laureate; she also continues as music director of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in California. Marin Alsop attended Yale University and received her master’s degree from The Juilliard School. In 1989, her conducting career was launched when she became a prize winner at the Leopold Stokowski International Conducting Competition in New York, and in the same year was awarded the Koussevitzky Conducting Prize at the Tanglewood Music Center.
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is internationally recognized as having achieved a preeminent place among the world's orchestras. Acclaimed for its uncompromising pursuit of artistic excellence, the BSO has attracted a devoted national and international following while maintaining deep bonds throughout Maryland through innovative education and community outreach initiatives. The Orchestra made musical history in September 2007, when Maestra Marin Alsop led her inaugural concerts as the BSO's 12th music director, making her the first woman to head a major American orchestra. With her highly praised artistic vision, her dynamic musicianship and her commitment to accessibility in classical music, Ms. Alsop's directorship has ushered in a new era for the BSO and its audiences.
Jubilant Sykes, a classically trained baritone, has won the attention and respect of the world’s finest conductors, symphonies and opera companies. Career highlights include performances with such noted conductors as Christoph Eschenbach, Marvin Hamlisch, Raymond Leppard, Andrew Litton, Keith Lockhart, Lorin Maazel, and David Zinman. He has performed with the London, Chicago, Baltimore, and Boston symphony orchestras, the Lincoln Center Chamber Ensemble, The Cleveland Orchestra, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. Mr. Sykes previously performed the role of Celebrant in Bernstein’s Mass with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and with the London Symphony Orchestra, both productions under the baton of Marin Alsop.
The Morgan State University Choir, directed by Dr. Eric Conway, is one of the nation’s most prestigious university choral ensembles including The University Choir, which is over 140 voices strong, and The Morgan Singers—approximately 30 voices strong. While classical, gospel, and contemporary popular music comprise the choir’s repertoire, the choir is noted for its emphasis on preserving the heritage of the spiritual, especially in the historic practices of performance. One of the Choir’s most historic moments came with the opportunity to sing under the baton of Robert Shaw, conducting the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and joined by Jessye Norman and others in Carnegie Hall’s One Hundredth Birthday Tribute to Marian Anderson.
Founded in 1992 with a mission of helping children of all backgrounds realize their potential as musicians and as individuals, the Grammy Award-winning Brooklyn Youth Chorus Academy (BYCA) now stands as one of the country's leading youth choruses, and the only voice-based after-school music academy in New York City. BYCA provides New York City children with an unparalleled program of vocal and musicianship training. BYCA helps its young singers develop the skills, discipline, and concentration needed to achieve success in music and in life. The joyful experience of singing and performing together helps children discover music making as a means of deep and powerful expression and communication.
Kevin Newbury, a New York City-based theatre and opera director, is a resident director at New York University’s MFA Dramatic Writing Program, a member of the Lincoln Center Theatre Director’s Lab and a former member of the Directors-in-Residence Program at Ensemble Studio Theatre. Recent credits include Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro (Minnesota Opera), Mozart’s The Magic Flute (Opera Colorado, Houston Grand Opera), John Adams’s Nixon in China (Stage Director, Chicago, Portland, Minnesota, and Cincinnati operas), Candy and Dorothy (Drama Desk Award nomination, GLAAD Media Award winner), and Kiss and Cry (Ensemble Studio Theatre and NYC Fringe Festival). Education: Bowdoin College and Oxford University.
Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds
Presented by Carnegie Hall and the New York Philharmonic—Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds, September 24–December 13, 2008—celebrates a quintessential New Yorker and one of the most important musicians of the 20th century. Renowned nationally and internationally as a leading musical figure in his own lifetime, most notably as Music Director of the New York Philharmonic from 1958 to 1969 and Laureate Conductor from 1969 to 1990, Leonard Bernstein brought his own particular New World sensibility to classical music. Equally at home in a Broadway theater (in such legendary musicals as West Side Story) or the concert hall, Bernstein—who performed at Carnegie Hall over 400 times during his career—had an enthusiasm for and understanding of music far beyond the classical realm, extending into jazz, world music, American song, and 1960s pop and rock. His charismatic personality and remarkable communication skills through both words and music made him a natural ambassador for music as well as an international celebrity. Through television, Bernstein influenced millions of viewers, sparking excitement and love for classical music that remains with them to this day. With this festival, Carnegie Hall and the New York Philharmonic honor an extraordinary artist, revered as conductor, composer, educator, advocate, and media pioneer.
The Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall
The Weill Music Institute creates wide-reaching music education programs that play a central role in Carnegie Hall’s commitment to making great music accessible to as many people as possible. With its access to the world’s greatest artists and latest technologies, The Weill Music Institute is uniquely positioned to inspire the next generation of music lovers, nurture tomorrow’s musical talent, and contribute to the evolution of music education itself. Its educational programs are woven into the fabric of the Carnegie Hall concert season, serving over 115,000 children, students, teachers, parents, young music professionals, and adults in New York City metropolitan area, across the United States, and around the world annually. The Weill Music Institute’s school-based programs alone reach over 50,000 New York City and area public school students each year.
Program Information
Sunday, October 19 at 3:00 p.m.
Zankel Hall
THE BERNSTEIN MASS PROJECT: A CHORAL EXPLORATION
Original choral anthems inspired by Bernstein’s Mass, composed and sung by New York City middle and high school students. The performance will also include specially chosen repertoire, including excerpts from the Bernstein Mass.
Tickets: Free (see below)
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Friday, October 24 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, Music Director and Conductor
Kevin Newbury, Director
Jubilant Sykes, Celebrant
Morgan State University Choir
Eric Conway, Director
The Brooklyn Youth Chorus
Dianne Berkun, Founder and Artistic Director
Leslie Stifelman, Music Supervisor
Sean Curran, Musical Staging
Alan Adelman, Lighting Designer
Acme Sound Partners, Sound Design
Casting by: Pat McCorkle, CSA
BERNSTEIN Mass
Tickets: $31, $37, $48, $66, $85, $94
This concert is made possible, in part, by an endowment fund for choral music established by S. Donald Sussman in memory of Judith Arron and Robert Shaw.
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Saturday, October 25 at 3:00 p.m.
The United Palace Theater, 4140 Broadway at 175th Street
THE BERNSTEIN MASS PROJECT
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, Music Director and Conductor
Kevin Newbury, Director
Jubilant Sykes, Celebrant
Morgan State University Choir
Eric Conway, Director
The Brooklyn Youth Chorus
Dianne Berkun, Founder and Artistic Director
Leslie Stifelman, Music Supervisor
Sean Curran, Musical Staging
Alan Adelman, Lighting Designer
Acme Sound Partners, Sound Design
Casting by: Pat McCorkle, CSA
BERNSTEIN Mass
The project will culminate with the opportunity for 500 New York City students to perform live with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Marin Alsop, Morgan State University Choir, and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus at the United Palace Theater.
Tickets: $15
For complete festival program information, please visit www.bernsteinfestival.org. This online companion to Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds features up-to-date information on citywide events and a multimedia survey of Leonard Bernstein’s musical life, including interactive timelines, slide shows, audio clips, and video featuring Bernstein, his family, colleagues, and friends.
The Bernstein Mass Project is generously underwritten by Bob and Martha Lipp.
Major funding for Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds has been provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation, The Alice Tully Foundation, American Express, Bob and Martha Lipp, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, Nash Family Foundation, and Mr. and Mrs. A. Alfred Taubman.
Additional funding provided by GWFF USA Inc., and Linda and Stuart Nelson.
Generous support has also been provided by the National Endowment for the Arts.
The Bernstein Mass Project is also made possible, in part, by an endowment fund for choral music established by S. Donald Sussman in memory of Judith Arron and Robert Shaw.
Bank of America is the Proud Season Sponsor of Carnegie Hall.
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Ticket Information
October 19 at 3:00 p.m.
A limited number of free tickets will be available beginning on October 19 at 12:00 noon at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street. Please contact CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 for more information.
October 24 at 8:00 p.m. and October 25 at 3:00 p.m.
For the October 24 performance, tickets are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street, or can be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, www.carnegiehall.org. For the October 25 performance, tickets will also be available for purchase at the United Palace Theater Box Office, 4140 Broadway at 175th Street, beginning on Monday, October 20 at 11:00 a.m.
In addition, for all Carnegie Hall Corporation presentations taking place in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage, a limited number of partial-view seats, priced at $10, will be available day-of-concert beginning at 11:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 12:00 noon on Sunday until one hour before the performance. The exceptions are Carnegie Hall Family Concerts and gala events. These $10 tickets are available to the general public on a first-come, first-served basis at the Carnegie Hall Box Office only. There is a two-ticket limit per customer.
A limited number of student/senior citizen discount tickets, priced at $10, may also be available for some Carnegie Hall events. They are on sale at the Box Office day-of-concert beginning at 11:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 12:00 noon on Sunday until one hour before the performance. Student/senior discount tickets for some Weill Recital Hall events are available at the Box Office one hour before the performance. Please call CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 for ticket availability.
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