Program - Holiday Brass and A Very DeVotchKa Holiday

2021/22 SEASON PRESENTING SPONSOR:

HOLIDAY 2021/22 HOLIDAY BRASS BRIAN BUERKLE, conductor COLORADO SYMPHONY BRASS & PERCUSSION Tuesday, December 14, 2021 at 7:00pm Boettcher Concert Hall

BRIAN BALMAGES

“A Festival Fanfare”

TRAD. FRENCH CAROLS

Chants De Noël Français I. Ding Dong! Merrily on High II. O Come, O Come Emmanuel III. Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella

GABRIELI

Sonata XIII a8 from Canzone e Sonate

BRUCKNER

Ave Maria, WAB7

HUMPERDINCK

Suite from Hansel and Gretel I. Introduction II. Evening Prayer III. Witch’s Ride

ANTHONY DiLORENZO

“Baltazar – A King’s Journey” — Intermission —

PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY SOUNDINGS

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PROGRAM I

HOLIDAY 2021/22 TRAD. ENGLISH CAROL

“Hark! The Herald Angels Sing”

PER-ERIK MORAEUS

“Koppågnen”

TRAD. ENGLISH CAROL

“Deck the Halls”

TRAD. SPANISH CAROL

“Fum, Fum, Fun”

RICHARD WILLIS/ EDMUND SEARS

“It Swings Upon a Midnight Clear”

TRAD. GERMAN CAROL

“O Tannenbaum”

JAMES LORD PIERPONT

“Jingle Bells Swing-a-Ling-Ding”

arr. CARL STROMMEN

A Big Band Christmas I. Here Comes Santa Claus II. Santa Clause is Coming To Town III. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas IV. Auld Lang Syne

CONCERT RUN TIME IS APPROXIMATELY 1 HOUR AND 21 MINUTES WITH A 20 MINUTE INTERMISSION

FIRST TIME TO THE SYMPHONY? SEE PAGE 8 OF THIS PROGRAM FOR FAQ’S TO MAKE YOUR EXPERIENCE GREAT!

PROGRAM II

C O L O R A D O SY M P H O N Y.O R G

HOLIDAY BIOGRAPHY BRIAN BUERKLE, conductor Brian Buerkle currently serves as Principal Trumpet of the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra and the Sinfonia Gulf Coast, and has previously held positions as Acting 4th/Utility in the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, 2nd/Sub-Principal in the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, 2nd in the Lexington Philharmonic, and 2nd in the State of Mexico Symphony Orchestra.

As an active freelance musician, Brian has traveled the world performing and recording with some of America’s finest orchestras; including the Pittsburgh Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony and Pops, Columbus Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, and Louisville Orchestra.

He is also a member of several innovative chamber ensembles, including the Spectrum Brass, Canterbury Brass, Sinfonia Chamber Brass, and the Pittsburgh Brass. Brian is currently an Artistin-Residence at the Bay View Music Festival and is a former faculty member of the prestigious Boston University Tanglewood Institute.

Brian is also an accomplished conductor and arranger. His publications have been performed and recorded by groups worldwide, and his conducting experience ranges from brass ensembles and vocal choirs to symphony orchestras. Over the years, Brian’s guest conducting appearances have been with the Colorado Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, Suburban East Coast Music Festival Honors Orchestra, Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, Bay View Chamber Brass, Sinfonia Chamber Brass, and in 2018, he made his overseas conducting debut with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

Brian received a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Performance from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and a Master’s Degree in Music Performance from Duquesne University. In 2010, he was featured in an article of the International Trumpet Guild Magazine, recognizing his many achievements as a professional musician. He is a music critic for the American Record Guide, and the Owner/President of the Southern Ohio Music Company. Brian resides in Cincinnati, OH, where he enjoys an active and diverse musical career.

SOUNDINGS

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PROGRAM III

HOLIDAY AT THE SYMPHONY!

Elf ™ in Concert!

DEC 18-19 SAT 7:30 ✣ SUN 2:30 Movie screened with live orchestra performing full film score. MPAA Rating: PG ELF and all related characters and elements © & ™ New Line Productions, Inc. (s21)

Disney’s A Muppet Christmas Carol in Concert DEC 22-23 WED-THU 7:00 Movie screened with live orchestra performing full film score. Stay for the credits, you’ll be glad you did!

MPAA Rating: PG

COLORADOSYMPHONY.ORG

2021/22 SEASON PRESENTING SPONSOR:

HOLIDAY 2021/22 A VERY DEVOTCHKA HOLIDAY CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, conductor

DEVOTCHKA Thursday, December 16, 2021 at 7:30pm Boettcher Concert Hall

Program to be announced from stage

CONCERT RUN TIME IS APPROXIMATELY 2 HOURS WITH A 20 MINUTE INTERMISSION

FIRST TIME TO THE SYMPHONY? SEE PAGE 8 OF THIS PROGRAM FOR FAQ’S TO MAKE YOUR EXPERIENCE GREAT!

PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY SOUNDINGS

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PROGRAM V

HOLIDAY BIOGRAPHIES CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, conductor Australian conductor Christopher Dragon is the Music Director of the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra and Resident Conductor of the Colorado Symphony. He joined the Colorado Symphony in the 2015/2016 Season as Associate Conductor – a position he held for four years. For three years prior, Dragon held the position of Assistant Conductor with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, which gave him the opportunity to work closely with Principal Conductor Asher Fisch.

Dragon works regularly in Australia and has guest conducted the Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and West Australian Symphony Orchestras. His 2015/16 debut performance at the Sydney Opera House with John Pyke and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra was released on album by ABC Music and won an ARIA the following year. Dragon’s international guest conducting includes Orquestra Sinfônica de Porto Alegre, Omaha Symphony, San Diego Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Symphony Orchestra, and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

He has also conducted at numerous festivals including the Breckenridge and Bangalow Music Festivals, with both resulting in immediate re-invitations. At the beginning of 2016, Dragon conducted Wynton Marsalis’ Swing Symphony as part of the Perth International Art Festival alongside Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.

Dragon began his conducting studies in 2011 and was a member of the prestigious Symphony Services International Conductor Development Program in Australia under the guidance of course director Christopher Seaman. He has also studied with numerous distinguished conductors including Leonid Grin, Paavo and Neeme Jarvi at the Jarvi Summer Festival, Fabio Luisi at the Pacific Music Festival and conducting pedagogue Jorma Panula.

PROGRAM VI

C O L O R A D O SY M P H O N Y.O R G

HOLIDAY BIOGRAPHIES DEVOTCHKA A cross-pollination of numerous influences, including cabaret, spaghetti Westerns, norteño, punk, and the immigrant dance music of Eastern Europe, Colorado-based quartet DeVotchKa emerged as indie heroes in the mid-2000s, infusing modern indie music with a global flavor, eventually finding widespread success in 2006 with their GRAMMY®-nominated soundtrack to the hit indie film Little Miss Sunshine. Signing with Anti- in 2008, they released their landmark fourth album, A Mad & Faithful Telling. Following the world tour in support of 2011's cinematic 100 Lovers album, DeVotchKa entered a hiatus, regrouping for 2018's This Night Falls Forever.

DeVotchKa was formed in Denver by multi-instrumentalists Nick Urata (vocals, guitar, trumpet), Tom Hagerman (violin, accordion), Jeanie Schroder (sousaphone, bass), and percussionist Shawn King. Originally a backing back for local burlesque shows, they recorded their debut album, Supermelodrama, in 2000, garnering numerous accolades. Una Volta followed in May 2003. With the release of their third album, 2004's How It Ends, the band found a wider audience thanks to its title cut being used in, among other places, a major campaign for the video game Gears of War 2, and a trailer for the move Everything Is Illuminated. It was followed in 2006 by Curse Your Little Heart, an EP of covers that included Siouxsie and the Banshees' "Last Beat of My Heart" and the Velvet Underground's "Venus in Furs." That same year, they composed the lush score for the independent film Little Miss Sunshine, earning a GRAMMY® nomination for Best Soundtrack.

Signing with revered indie, Anti-, the band delivered A Mad and Faithful Telling in early 2008, reaching the number nine slot on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. A lengthy world tour followed, including stops at major festivals like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Bumbershoot. After doing more soundtrack work, this time for the 2009 comedy I Love You Phillip Morris, the group returned to the studio for 2011's moody and triumphant 100 Lovers. Embarking on another world tour, they collaborated with the Colorado Symphony on the 2012 concert album Live with the Colorado Symphony. Over the next several years, Urata scored movies like Crazy Stupid Love, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, Paddington, and the Netflix series A Series of Unfortunate Events.

Meanwhile, the band regrouped for a lengthy recording session, eventually returning in 2018 with their sixth album, This Night Falls Forever, this time via Concord Records.

SOUNDINGS

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Face masks and proof of vaccination required

Welcome Back We are looking forward to seeing you at Boettcher Concert Hall this season!

COVID-19 Protocols To protect audiences and the community from illness and to slow the transmission of COVID-19, the Colorado Symphony joins the resident companies of the Denver Performing Arts Complex — Colorado Ballet, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, and Opera Colorado — in requiring both proof of full vaccination and face masks to attend indoor public performances starting October 1, 2021. Please see Coloradosymphony.org for full details.

Please see Coloradosymphony.org for full details.