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Back to Press Release List > 09/24/2007 - UPDATED: Lucerne Festival Orchestra Residency, 10/3-10/7

CARNEGIE HALL PRESENTS THE FIRST NORTH AMERICAN APPEARANCE OF
THE LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA IN A FIVE-DAY SERIES
FEATURING SEVEN CONCERTS ON ALL THREE STAGES
FROM OCTOBER 3–7

Led by David Robertson, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra Makes Its North American Debut
in an All-Beethoven Concert on The Opening Night of Carnegie Hall’s 117th Season

Carnegie Hall will present the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in its North American debut on October 3 when conductor David Robertson leads the Orchestra in a special all-Beethoven gala concert, marking the Opening Night of Carnegie Hall’s 117th season. This Opening Night performance kicks off a five-day Lucerne Festival New York residency from October 3-7, during which members of the Orchestra will give seven performances on all three Carnegie Hall stages, including appearances as the full Lucerne Festival Orchestra, as the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, and in various chamber configurations. Established in 2003, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra is composed of major European orchestral players and international soloists, all selected by co-founder and Chief Conductor Claudio Abbado, with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra forming its core. The ensemble is in residence at the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland, one of the most prestigious music festivals in the world.

The residency begins Wednesday, October 3 at 7:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage when David Robertson leads the Orchestra in its North American debut, opening Carnegie Hall’s 117th season. The gala evening features an all-Beethoven program, including Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major with Murray Perahia as soloist and Symphony No. 9 in D Minor. Soprano Melanie Diener, contralto Anna Larsson, tenor Jonas Kaufmann, bass Reinhard Hagen, and the Westminster Symphonic Choir, led by Joe Miller, join the Orchestra for Symphony No. 9. The full Lucerne Festival Orchestra and Maestro Robertson also appear in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage on Thursday, October 4 at 8:00 p.m. for a repeat performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. On Saturday, October 6 at 8:00 p.m., conductor Pierre Boulez leads a performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 3, featuring contralto Anna Larsson; the Women of the Westminster Symphonic Choir, under the direction of Joe Miller; and The American Boychoir, led by Fernando Malvar-Ruiz. Lucerne Festival Orchestra co-founder and Chief Conductor Claudio Abbado, who was originally scheduled to lead the performances on October 3, 4, and 6, previously withdrew due to health reasons, following his doctors’ strict advice.

Forming the core of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra is the Mahler Chamber Orchestra. On Friday, October 5 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage, pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard leads the Mahler Chamber Orchestra in Haydn’s Symphony No. 102 in B-flat Major. Mr. Aimard also joins the Orchestra as soloist in Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 13 in C Major, K. 415; and Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19.

Members of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra will also appear in various chamber configurations over the course of the residency:

In Weill Recital Hall on Friday, October 5 at 7:30 p.m. violinists Raphael Christ and Brigitte Lang, violists Julia Neher and Dirk Niewöhner, cellists Thomas Ruge and Claudia Benker, harpist Sarah Christ, and double bassist Slawomir Grenda perform works by Mendelssohn, Caplet, Rossini, and Tchaikovsky.

On Sunday, October 7 at 4:00 p.m. flutist Jacques Zoon, clarinetist Wolfgang Meyer, violinists Kolja Blacher and Mirijam Contzen, violist Simone Jandl, and cellists Clemens Hagen and Rafael Rosenfeld perform a Zankel Hall concert featuring works by Mozart, Ravel, and Schoenberg. Pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard joins the ensemble as soloist in Mozart’s Piano Quartet in G Minor, K. 478 and Ravel’s Piano Trio.

The Lucerne Festival Orchestra’s residency culminates with a final Zankel Hall chamber concert on Sunday, October 7 at 7:30 p.m. Works by Mozart, Janáček, and Brahms are performed by violinists Kolja Blacher, Latica Honda-Rosenberg, and Raphael Christ; violists Wolfram Christ and Simone Jandl; cellists Iseut Chuat, Valentin Erben, and Jens Peter Maintz; clarinetists Sabine Meyer and Reiner Wehle; flutist Jacques Zoon; oboist Diethelm Jonas; bassoonist Guilhaume Santana; and horn player Bruno Schneider.

Continuing this Lucerne Festival collaboration, young musicians of the Lucerne Festival Academy—another facet of the Lucerne Festival, led by Pierre Boulez—will be showcased in Making Music: Pierre Boulez on Thursday, January 17 at 7:30 p.m. in Zankel Hall. Mr. Boulez will conduct the players in a performance of his own Le Marteau sans maître and sur Incises.

* * * *


David Robertson is the Music Director of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. He is recognized as one of the leading conductors of his generation, and is well regarded for his interpretations of standard orchestral repertoire. Over the last two decades, Mr. Robertson has held numerous posts abroad and his international credits are extensive. He served as the Music Director of the Orchestre National de Lyon and Artistic Director of that city’s Auditorium from 2000 to 2004. His tenure in Lyon marked the first time that one artist has held both of these musical appointments. Mr. Robertson was Music Director of the Ensemble Intercontemporain in Paris from 1992 to 2000, and from 1985 to 1987, he was resident conductor of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Robertson appears as guest conductor throughout the world and has led such ensembles as The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Berliner Philharmoniker, and The Cleveland Orchestra.

Born in Santa Monica, California, Mr. Robertson was educated at London’s Royal Academy of Music, where he studied horn and composition before turning to conducting. He was a recipient of the 1997 Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award, the premier prize of its kind, given to exceptionally gifted American conductors. In 2000, Mr. Robertson was named Musical America’s Conductor of the Year, and during Carnegie Hall’s 2005–2006 season he was featured as a Perspectives artist. The recipient of Columbia University’s 2006 Ditson Conductor’s Award, he and the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra received the ASCAP Morton Gould Award for Innovative Programming for the 2005–06 season from the American Symphony Orchestra League. In May 2007, Mr. Robertson was granted an honorary doctorate from Maryville University.

A native of Montbrison, France, Pierre Boulez pursued studies in piano, composition, and choral conducting at the Paris Conservatory. Mr. Boulez began his conducting career in 1958 with the Südwestfunk Orchestra in Baden-Baden, Germany. From 1969 until 1972, he was principal guest conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. In 1971, Mr. Boulez became both chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and music director of the New York Philharmonic, a position he held until 1977.

In 1974, the French government invited Mr. Boulez to create and direct a music research center at the Pompidou Centre. From the Institut de Recherche et de Coordination Acoustique/Musique (IRCAM) sprang the Ensemble Intercontemporain, one of the world’s finest contemporary music ensembles. In 1991, he resigned as conductor of the ensemble, while continuing as its president. Mr. Boulez is also co-founder of Cité de la Musique in Paris.

Mr. Boulez’s numerous compositions are widely performed, including Le marteau sans maître, Pli selon pli, three piano sonatas, Eclat/Multiples, Le visage nuptial, Répons, Notations, and . . . explosante-fixe . . . . He has published five books about music. His awards and honors include honorary doctorates from Leeds, Cambridge, Basel, and Oxford universities, among others; Commander of the British Empire; and Knight of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. Mr. Boulez’s discography includes prize-winning recordings of Parsifal and Berg’s Lulu. He has won 24 Grammy awards since 1967.

Founded by Claudio Abbado and Michael Haefliger, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra is composed of major European orchestral players and international soloists selected by Maestro Abbado, with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra forming its core. The creation of the orchestra dates back to 1938, when Arturo Toscanini summoned an orchestra of superb musicians for a legendary gala performance in front of Richard Wagner’s villa at Tribschen. This ensemble evolved into the Swiss Festival Orchestra, which played at the Lucerne Festival until 1993. The tradition was revived with the formation of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in 2003. Since that time, Maestro Abbado and his musicians gather each August in Lucerne to rehearse and give the opening concert of the Lucerne Festival in Summer. For ten days, the Orchestra performs varied programs of symphony concerts, chamber recitals, and late-night performances. The Lucerne Festival Orchestra has also toured to Rome and Tokyo, and records for the newly-created “Lucerne Festival Edition” label.

The Lucerne Festival hosts three festivals each year: including the aforementioned Lucerne Festival in Summer; the Lucerne Festival at Easter, which features sacred, symphonic, and choral concerts, and early and modern music throughout the week leading up to Easter; and Lucerne at the Piano which showcases renowned pianists in performances ranging from solo recitals to full-scale orchestral concerts.

Program Information
Wednesday, October 3 at 7:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
THE OPENING NIGHT GALA OF CARNEGIE HALL’S 117TH SEASON
Lucerne Festival Orchestra
David Robertson, Conductor
Murray Perahia, Piano
Melanie Diener, Soprano
Anna Larsson, Contralto
Jonas Kaufmann, Tenor
Reinhard Hagen, Bass
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Joe Miller, Conductor

THE OPENING NIGHT GALA OF CARNEGIE HALL’S 117TH SEASON

ALL-BEETHOVEN PROGRAM
Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125

Opening Night Gala Sponsor: PricewaterhouseCoopers

Tickets: $29, $36, $48, $68, $90, $100
____________________________________

Thursday, October 4 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
David Robertson, Conductor
Melanie Diener, Soprano
Anna Larsson, Contralto
Jonas Kaufmann, Tenor
Reinhard Hagen, Bass
Westminster Symphonic Choir
Joe Miller, Conductor

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125

Sponsored by Toshiba Corporation

Tickets: $29, $36, $48, $68, $90, $100
____________________________________

Friday, October 5 at 7:30 p.m.
Weill Recital Hall
SOLOISTS OF THE LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
Raphael Christ, Violin
Brigitte Lang, Violin
Dirk Niewöhner, Viola
Julia Neher, Viola
Thomas Ruge, Cello
Claudia Benker, Cello
Sarah Christ, Harp
Slawomir Grenda, Double Bass

FELIX MENDELSSOHN String Quintet No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 87
ANDRÉ CAPLET Conte fantastique
GIOACHINO ROSSINI Duo for Cello and Double Bass in D Major
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Souvenir de Florence for String Sextet, Op. 70

Tickets: $48
____________________________________

Friday, October 5 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
MAHLER CHAMBER ORCHESTRA
Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Conductor and Pianist

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Piano Concerto No. 13 in C Major, K. 415
JOSEPH HAYDN Symphony No. 102 in B-flat Major
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19

Tickets: $25, $31, $41, $58, $76, $84
____________________________________

Saturday, October 6 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
Pierre Boulez, Conductor
Anna Larsson, Contralto
Women of the Westminster Symphonic Choir
Joe Miller, Conductor
The American Boychoir
Fernando Malvar-Ruiz, Music Director

GUSTAV MAHLER Symphony No. 3

Pre-concert talk starts at 7:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage with Christopher H. Gibbs, Professor of Music, Bard College.

Tickets: $25, $31, $41, $58, $76, $84
____________________________________

Sunday, October 7 at 4:00 p.m.
Zankel Hall
SOLOISTS OF THE LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Piano
Soloists of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra
   Jacques Zoon, Flute
   Wolfgang Meyer, Clarinet
   Ilya Gringolts, Violin
   Mirijam Contzen, Violin
   Simone Jandl, Viola
   Clemens Hagen, Cello
   Rafael Rosenfeld, Cello

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Piano Quartet in G Minor, K. 478
MAURICE RAVEL Piano Trio
ARNOLD SCHOENBERG Chamber Symphony, Op. 9 (arr. Webern)

Tickets: $36, $44
____________________________________

Sunday, October 7 at 7:30 p.m.
Zankel Hall
SOLOISTS OF THE LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
   Jacques Zoon, Flute
   Diethelm Jonas, Oboe
   Sabine Meyer, Clarinet
   Wehle, Clarinet and Bass Clarinet
   Guilhaume Santana, Bassoon
   Bruno Schneider, Horn
   Kolja Blacher, Violin
   Latica Honda-Rosenberg, Violin
   Raphael Christ, Violin
   Wolfram Christ, Viola
   Simone Jandl, Viola
   Iseut Chuat, Cello
   Valentin Erben, Cello
   Jens Peter Maintz, Cello

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Quartet for Flute, Violin, Viola, and Cello in D Major, K. 285
LEOS JANÁČEK Mládí
JOHANNES BRAHMS String Sextet No. 2 in G Major, Op. 36

Tickets: $36, $44
____________________________________

Thursday, January 17, 2008 at 7:30 p.m.
Zankel Hall
MAKING MUSIC: PIERRE BOULEZ
Lucerne Festival Academy Ensemble
Pierre Boulez, Artistic Director and Conductor
Hilary Summers, Contralto
Ara Guzelimian, Series Moderator

ALL-PIERRE BOULEZ PROGRAM
Le Marteau sans maître
sur Incises

Presented by Carnegie Hall in partnership with The Juilliard School

Tickets: $28, $36
____________________________________

Bank of America is the Proud Season Sponsor of Carnegie Hall.

Ticket Information
Tickets are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street. Tickets may also be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 or online by visiting www.carnegiehall.org .

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 beginning at noon on the day of the concert. 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 beginning at noon until 1 hour before concert time. Student/senior discount tickets for some Weill Recital Hall events are available at the Box Office one hour before the performance. Please call CarnegieCharge for ticket availability.



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