FINALE CONCERT May 17, 2022 Christ Lutheran Church
WELCOME
Welcome! I’m delighted to welcome you to the final concert of the season, featuring all three of our incredible Youth Orchestras. This evening you’ll experience the Youth Ensemble, Youth Philharmonic, and Youth Orchestra performing works that explore the full spectrum of orchestral music, from Mozart and Mahler to Gershwin and Bruno Mars! Under the direction of our highly skilled conducting staff, including Christopher James Lees and Eric Thompson, and musicians from the Charlotte Symphony, these inspiring young musicians have risen to meet challenges head-on, demonstrated their discipline and commitment, and created lasting bonds in music and friendship.
I would like to thank Christ Lutheran and their Associate Minister of Music, Mark Johanson, for hosting the Youth Orchestras in their inspiring space. And none of this would be possible without the commitment and support of parents and families and the generous donors to the Charlotte Symphony. Thank you for being here tonight to hear these talented young musicians and for your support of the future of music in Charlotte. Enjoy the performance!
David Fisk President & CEO
The Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestra Conductor Chair is made possible by a generous gift from The Symphony Guild of Charlotte
The Charlotte Symphony Youth Ensemble Conductor Chair is made possible by a generous gift from
Debbie & Pat Phillips The Charlotte Symphony is supported, in part, by the Infusion Fund and its generous donors.
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contents
PROGRAM
FINALE CONCERT Tuesday, May 17, 2022 | 6:30 p.m. Christ Lutheran Church
Christopher James Lees, conductor Eric Thompson, conductor
YOUTH ENSEMBLE BOB PHILLIPS
Sword Dance
(b. 1953) Words and Music by Christopher Brown,
Jeremy Reeves, Jonathan Yip, Bruno Mars, Philip Lawrence, James Fauntleroy, Ray Romulus & Ray McCullough II
W. A. MOZART (1756-1791)
“That’s What I Like” arr. Michael Story
Overture to The Abduction of Seraglio arr. Richard Meyer
YOUTH PHILHARMONIC CHRIS M. BERNOTAS
Ablaze
(b. 1969)
MATT TURNER
Blue Skies and Bright Stars
(b. 1966)
GUSTAV MAHLER (1860-1911)
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Moods of Mahler’s First Symphony arr. Vernon F. Leidig
Symphony No. 5 in C minor - Finale arr. Vernon F. Leidig
YOUTH ORCHESTRA ALEXANDER BORODIN (1833-1887)
GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL (1685-1759)
GEORGE GERSHWIN (1898-1937)
Symphony No. 2 in B minor III. Andante Harp Concerto in B-flat, Op. 4, No. 6 I. Andante − Allegro Selections from Porgy & Bess arr. Chuck Sayre welcome
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CONDUCTORS
Christopher James Lees CSO Resident Conductor CSYO Principal Conductor
The Symphony Guild of Charlotte Youth Orchestra Conductor Chair Since his 2016 appointment as Assistant Conductor by Music Director Christopher Warren-Green, Mr. Lees has curated and conducted more than 50 performances a year, leading Pops and Family series concerts, plus the popular On Tap series at Charlotte-area breweries and the Symphony's traveling series, CSO On the Go. Lees was named Resident Conductor of the Charlotte Symphony in 2018. In the community, he leads performances at area senior care centers and recreation centers, and conducts Link Up, a program of Carnegie Hall, which engages over 3,000 students in the Symphony experience at Belk Theater. He believes in arts access for all, and leads the Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestras program. Mr. Lees has led performances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Houston, Detroit, Milwaukee, North Carolina, Portland, and Flint Symphonies. Additional engagements have taken him to the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Orchestra de Chambre de Paris, Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra, Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, and at the Music in the Mountains Festival & Festival Internacional de Inverno de Campos do Jordão in Brazil.
Eric Thompson III CSYE Conductor
The Debbie Phillips Youth Ensemble Conductor Chair Eric L. Thompson, III serves as the Conductor for the Charlotte Symphony Youth Ensemble. He received his Bachelor of Music from the Curtis Institute of Music in 2007 where he held the Robert Ehrman Fellowship. There he studied with Grammy Award Winning and MacArthur “Genius” Edgar Meyer and Harold Robinson, principal bass of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Since 2013, Eric Thompson has been teaching orchestra at the Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology and Martin Luther King, Jr. Middle School. His students have participated in CMS All-District Honors Orchestra, Western Regional Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestra, Youth Orchestra of Charlotte, All State Orchestra, NC Governor’s School, Interlochen Arts Camp, UNCG Summer Music Camp and University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Mr. Thompson has been recognized many times as an educator, most recently with the Outstanding Music Educator Award in 2019 by the Youth Orchestras of Charlotte and the Crowning Achievement Award in Music Education in 2020 by the Crown Jewels Chapter, The Links, Incorporated. 4 conductors
AWARDS & THANKS
AWARDS Symphony Guild of Charlotte Membership Anniversary Scholarship As Guild members celebrate service anniversaries, The Guild honors each milestone with a donation, and the resultant fund is set aside to recognize outstanding CSYO musicians. This scholarship is presented annually to a deserving senior who intends to pursue a music major in college. We are proud to announce this year’s recipient is Kendall Pixley.
The Kirsten Ramage Memorial Award This award is given each year in memory of Symphony Guild past president Kit Ramage. The winner must demonstrate a positive attitude and outstanding leadership from CSYO or CSYP. The winner of this year’s Kirsten Ramage Memorial Award is Swathi Balaji.
Seifert Anniversary Scholarship Donated by Betty and Bill Seifert in honor of their wedding anniversary, this merit scholarship recognizes a CSYO high school senior who intends to study music at the collegiate or conservatory level. The recipient is selected by the coaches and music director of the CSYO. We are proud to announce this year’s recipient is Audrey Kim.
SPECIAL THANKS We would like to thank the following individuals whose passion for Music Education and our Youth Orchestra programs helped make this season possible. Kathy & Don Brungard Leslie Gipple Park Road Baptist Church
Christ Lutheran Church Mark Johanson
awards & thanks
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The CSO is…
MORE THAN WHAT’S ONSTAGE.
Did you know that the Charlotte Symphony is much more than what you see on the Belk and Knight Theater stages? Beyond the Classical, Pops, Family, and Movie Series in the theaters, we work to uplift, entertain, and educate our community through inclusive education programs and community performances. • The CSO has three programs for young musicians: the Youth Orchestra, the Youth Philharmonic, and the Youth Ensemble. CSO musicians participate in coaching throughout the year, and even perform with the young musicians! • Reaching approximately 15,000 students each season, we also have extensive school programs, including Project Harmony, “Music and the Holocaust,” and “One Musical Family” Education Concerts. • We perform throughout the region, from community parks and schools to breweries, senior care centers, and places of worship all season long.
The CSO is…FOR EVERYONE. 6 conductor
To learn more, visit charlottesymphony.org
MUSICIANS
CHARLOTTE SYMPHONY
YOUTH ENSEMBLE VIOLINS Heath Byrd Monisha Chaudhari Aksara Dasika Tim Gerlach Alexander Glasscock Sekai Gopo Eden Gourdet Jake Hildebrandt Nicholas Johnson Eloise Koert Amelia Myers Ishika Peter Ava Pinson Lexi Rogers Autumn Rain Scott Reagon Sydnor Vajra Thota
CELLOS Adam Refaey Caswell Taylor
FLUTES Brylee Carpenter Aathimika Thanigai Avanthika Thanigai
CLARINET Sara Echeverry
Visit our website for more information!
charlottesymphony.org/csyo This program is made possible in part through the support of
DG Brungard Foundation
The Truist Charitable Fund is a donor-advised fund created by Truist and administered by The Winston-Salem Foundation
musicians
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MUSICIANS
CHARLOTTE SYMPHONY
YOUTH PHILHARMONIC FIRST VIOLINS Susan Carroll Sarah Chen Parker Dunn Marcus Freeman Aneka Goli Hailee Gosart Shitij Govil Mila Held Emma Hew Brigitte Kittner Aliya Ling Dhanvi Manivasagam Dhiya Manivasagam Jacob Pecoraro Jordan Polk Rose Mercina Sahana Alphonse Pradeep Nikhil Rapolu Emunah Wang Neil Zhu Rachel Wang SECOND VIOLINS Carly Bennett Amisha Bharti Ian Cox Lillian Dong Parker Dunn Esteban Gil Natalie Haden Mya Ivey Lucy Murray Aarthi Nelatoor Elena Oh Neal Rao Corban Ressler Evelyn Tjahjadi Sameeya Vasan Jane Weiland Zhangkai Yang
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VIOLAS Ivana Gil Padilla Kamila Sofia Gil Padilla Ethan He Keisha Kalra Mia Lederer Rajesh Panchumarthi CELLOS Juniper Li Chloe Oh DOUBLE BASS Agastya Kumar FLUTES Kieran Betts Prisha Desai Nandini Goswami Stella Moy Siya Patel Nitin Rapolu CLARINETS Ana Aspero Jacob Mattapallil Nadia Patterson Nicholas Smith Maxwell Tan TRUMPETS Floyd Carroll III Srijith Chandrasekar PERCUSSION Codi Travis
MUSICIANS
CHARLOTTE SYMPHONY
YOUTH ORCHESTRA FIRST VIOLINS Nathan Butler Noah Chang Joshua Fan Andrew Hempe Evan Hempe Hailey Kim Annie Liu Allen Ma Juilette De May Julia Moy Joy Ni Jana Pak Kendall Pixley Angelina Quan Julia Yang Christina Zhao Jasmine Zheng Alice Zhong SECOND VIOLINS Marie Allbritton Aayush Bharti Jade Doheny Lucy Frost Nhi Ho Maya Hutagalung Connor Jones Samuel Lehe Philip Kasimir Akshara Krishna Madeline McKinney Sydney Ngyuen Sophia Oh Ishara Shrestha-Rai Oscar Stanciauskas Mackenzie Sturgill Michelle Tan Mohit Tankala Kaitlyn Tozzi Medha Ullagaddi Yasmine Yeung
VIOLAS Swathi Balaji Justice Crawford Nicholas Feddersen Diana Gaffner Brendon Hablutzel Katie Jung Geethika Korrapati Kiu Yuk Kieran Lee Katherine Liu Claire Mitchell Neha Parthasarathy CELLOS Tae Bark Charlotte Feddersen Ryan Kim Christian Ko Isaac Park Madeline Sturgill Ben Uslan Raechel Wu Bethany Xiques Gavin Zhu DOUBLE BASSES Alexander Shaffer Michael Stratford Labron Thompson Hunter Turnow Madilyn Wargo FLUTES Karis Huang Sullivan Mann Aubry Wilhelm Boaz Yang
OBOES Kimberly Haines Connor Koivisto Samantha Webber CLARINETS Thierry Charles Caleb Kim Joshua Kim Chelsea Yu HORNS Jaydn Cook Nicholas Garman Liliana Grajales Elliot Kreitman BASSOONS Joshua Metzl Akosua Mensah TRUMPETS Oscar Bao Connor Babb Caleb James Anthony Samson TROMBONES Layla Bouis Joseph Chen Abagail Kritzer James-Dylan Tringone TUBA Mira Scharr PERCUSSION Ethan Xu HARP Audrey Kim
musicians 9
ABOUT US
Celebrating its 90th anniversary in the 2021-22 season, the Charlotte Symphony (CSO) is committed to uplifting, entertaining, and educating the diverse communities of Charlotte-Mecklenburg and beyond through exceptional musical experiences. A cornerstone of Charlotte’s arts and cultural landscape, the CSO performs around 150 concerts annually in addition to robust community engagement and education efforts. Led by internationally renowned Music Director Christopher Warren-Green, the Symphony upholds the highest artistic integrity and takes bold steps to engage the community through music. The CSO employs 62 professional full time musicians, performs throughout the community, and offers significant educational programming aimed at improving areas of our community with the greatest need. Core programming runs September to May and includes Classical, Pops, Movie, and Family series, plus other special performances with notable soloists. We also serve as the soundtrack to our community’s ballet and opera productions. We perform everywhere from community parks and schools to breweries, places of worship, and senior care centers. We are deeply committed to the notion that music, accessible to all and experienced in many forms, enriches and unifies our community. 10 about us
Christopher Warren-Green music director
Now in his twelfth season with the Charlotte Symphony, Music Director Christopher Warren-Green also serves as Music Director of the London Chamber Orchestra. Key engagements have included the Philadelphia and Minnesota Orchestras; Detroit, Houston, St Louis, Toronto, Milwaukee, Seattle and Vancouver symphony orchestras; Washington’s National Symphony Orchestra; the Philharmonia, London Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, and Royal Scottish National orchestras. 2021–22 marks Warren-Green’s final season as Music Director of Charlotte Symphony, after which he will become Conductor Laureate and Artistic Adviser. Highlights this season include an all-English program celebrating the orchestra’s 90th birthday and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. A product of community music education, Warren-Green plays a key role in the CSO’s educational efforts including the Youth Orchestras and Project Harmony.
ADMINISTRATION EXECUTIVE David J. L. Fisk, President & CEO Samantha Hackett, Executive Administrator ARTISTIC OPERATIONS John Clapp, Vice President of Artistic Operations & General Manager Sara Gibson, Director of Operations Carrie Graham, Director of Artistic Planning Tim Pappas, Orchestra Personnel Manager Nixon Bustos, Principal Music Librarian Bradley Geneser, Assistant Librarian John Jarrell, Stage Manager DEVELOPMENT Leslie Antoniel, Director of Donor Engagement Amanda LoCascio, Director of Corporate Engagement Tammy Matula, Database Manager Jennifer Gherardi, Campaign Coordinator Senta Harvey, Development Coordinator - Stewardship & Events Toni Freeman & Associates LLC, Grants Strategy & Proposal Writing FINANCE Wendy Laxton (Laxton CFO Services), Fractional Vice President of Finance Chazin & Company, Financial Services HUMAN RESOURCES Kirsten Morris, Vice President of Human Resources & Administration Amy Hine, Office Administrator LEARNING & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Aram Kim Bryan, Vice President of Learning & Community Engagement Iván Garnica, Community Experience Manager Emily Gordon, Program Coordinator - Project Harmony Dylan Lloyd, Program Coordinator - Youth Orchestras Peyton Wulff, Learning Coordinator Christen Crumpler, Programs Assistant - Project Harmony Arturo Morales-Garduño, Programs Assistant - CSYO Jirah Montgomery, Programs Assistant - CSYO Elysia Ducket, Programs Assistant/ UNCC Intern- CSYO
128 S. Tryon Street Suite 350 Charlotte, NC 28202 tickets: 704.972.2000 office: 704.972.2003 charlottesymphony.org
MARKETING Candace Sykes, Vice President of Marketing & Patron Experience Deirdre Roddin, Director of Communications Nicole Glaza, Senior Manager of Digital Marketing Chad Calvert, Visual Communications Manager Stephen Emery, Patron Communications Manager Laura Thomas, Marketing Manager Meghan Starr, Ticket Services Manager administration 11
Christopher Warren-Green, conductor Charlotte Master Chorale
May 20 – 22
| Belk Theater
In his final performance as Music Director before becoming Conductor Laureate, Christopher Warren-Green conducts one of the greatest works of all time: Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.
Experience the epic power and unparalleled expression of joy, culminating with the uplifting “Ode to Joy” finale.
For tickets or more info, call 704.972.2000 or visit us online at