January 2012: Beethoven's Mighty "Emperor"

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contents January 2012

encoreatlanta.com 46

Jeff Roffman

20

features

the music

20 Coming Home

25 This week’s concert and program notes

Principal Guest Conductor Donald Runnicles makes his season debut and reflects on making history with Robert Spano for more than a decade.

46 A Moment with Monica

Meet violinist Monica Caldwell, a sophomore at Shiloh High School in her third year as a member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Talent Development Program.

8 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

departments 12 President’s Letter 14 Orchestra Leadership 16 Robert Spano 18 Musicians 35 Contributors 50 Calendar 54 Administration 56 General Info 58 Ticket Info 60 Gallery ASO

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Welcome to our first concerts of the new year! We’re delighted that you have chosen to begin your year with us. We step forward into the first month of 2012 with great music — Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and Eroica Symphony, Britten’s Violin Concerto, Dvorak’s Cello Concerto, Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony — all led by our very own Robert Spano and Donald Runnicles. Add the superb Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus, the Morehouse and Spelman College glee clubs, and a host of internationally renowned soloists — cellist Yo-Yo Ma, mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor, soprano Nicole Cabell, violinist James Ehnes and pianist Dejan Lazic — and you have a month which brings our audiences some of the very best that the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra has to offer.

Often I’m asked how we create individual concerts and complete seasons. In many American orchestras, concert programs are created solely by the music director, in keeping with his or her artistic vision. In Atlanta, we have a long-standing tradition of bringing lots of voices to the table: Our Music Director Robert Spano plays a leading role, but we also hear from Donald Runnicles (Principal Guest Conductor), Norman Mackenzie (Director of Choruses), Evans Mirageas (Vice President, Artistic Planning) John Sparrow (Vice President, Orchestral Initiatives and General Manager), Charlie Wade (Vice President, Marketing and Symphony Pops), Sandy Smith (Vice President, Development), Mark Kent (Senior Director, Education and Community Engagement), Ken Meltzer (ASO Insider, Program Annotator), Russell Williamson (Orchestra Personnel Manager), Rebecca Beavers (Principal Librarian), Julie Fish (Orchestra Manager) and me. Lots of intelligent voices, lots of creative insights, lots of brilliant ideas. Our conversations are lengthy, always animated, sometimes contentious and always focused on one essential question: What great music and which accomplished artists will inspire, excite, move — and attract — the people of Atlanta?

The needs and desires of our audiences always come first with us, as they should — and we’re open to your ideas. I invite you to share them with me: stanley.romanstein@woodruffcenter.org.

I look forward to a new year filled with memorable performances of great music by great artists, designed just for you, our audience.

Thank you for supporting your Atlanta Symphony Orchestra!

Wishing you all the best,

Stanley E. Romanstein, Ph.D. President

12 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

leadership Atlanta Symphony Orchestra League 2011-2012 Board of Directors Officers Jim Abrahamson Meghan H. Magruder Joni Winston † Chair Vice Chair Secretary Karole F. Lloyd D. Kirk Jamieson Clayton F. Jackson Chair-Elect Vice Chair Treasurer Directors Jim Abrahamson Pinney L. Allen Joseph R. Bankoff* Neil H. Berman Paul Blackney Janine Brown C. Merrell Calhoun Donald P. Carson S. Wright Caughman, M.D. Ann W. Cramer † Carlos del Rio, M.D. Richard A. Dorfman David Edmiston Gary P. Fayard Dr. Robert M. Franklin, Jr. Paul R. Garcia

Carol Green Gellerstedt Thomas Hooten Tad Hutcheson † Mrs. Roya Irvani † Clayton F. Jackson D. Kirk Jamieson Ben F. Johnson III Mark Kistulinec Steve Koonin Carrie Kurlander James H. Landon Michael Lang Donna Lee Lucy Lee Karole F. Lloyd Kelly L. Loeffler Meghan H. Magruder Belinda Massafra*

Penny McPhee Victoria Palefsky Leslie Z. Petter Suzanne Tucker Plybon Patricia H. Reid Margaret Conant Reiser Martin Richenhagen † John D. Rogers Stanley E. Romanstein, Ph.D.* Dennis Sadlowski Lynn Schinazi William Schultz John Sibley H. Hamilton Smith Lucinda B. Smith Thurmond Smithgall Paul Snyder

Gail Ravin Starr Mary Rose Taylor Joseph M. Thompson Liz Troy Ray Uttenhove Chilton Davis Varner † S. Patrick Viguerie Rick Walker Thomas Wardell Mark D. Wasserman John B. White, Jr. † Richard S. White, Jr. † Joni Winston † Patrice Wright-Lewis Camille Yow

Board of counselors Mrs. Helen Aderhold Robert M. Balentine Elinor Breman Dr. John W. Cooledge John Donnell Jere Drummond Carla Fackler Arnoldo Fiedotin

Charles Ginden John T. Glover Frances B. Graves Dona Humphreys Aaron J. Johnson Herb Karp Jim Kelley George Lanier

Patricia Leake Mrs. William C. Lester Mrs. J. Erskine Love Carolyn C. McClatchey Joyce Schwob Mrs. Charles A. Smithgall, Jr.

W. Rhett Tanner G. Kimbrough Taylor Michael W. Trapp Edus Warren Adair R. White Neil Williams

Life Directors Howell E. Adams, Jr. Bradley Currey, Jr.

Mrs. Drew Fuller Mary D. Gellerstedt

Azira G. Hill Dr. James M. Hund

Arthur L. Montgomery * ex officio † 2011-2012 sabbatical

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Robert Spano music Director

M

usic Director Robert Spano, currently in his 11th season as music director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, is recognized internationally as one of the most imaginative conductors today. Since 2001, he has invigorated and expanded the Orchestra’s repertoire while elevating the ensemble to new levels of international prominence and acclaim.

Under Mr. Spano’s artistic leadership, the Orchestra and its audiences have together explored a creative mix of programming, including Theater of a Concert performances, which explore different formats, settings, and enhancements for the musical performance experience, such as the first concert-staged performances of John Adams’s Doctor Atomic in November 2008 and the production of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in June 2011. The Atlanta School of Composers reflects Mr. Spano’s commitment to nurturing and championing music through multi-year partnerships defining a new generation of American composers, including Osvaldo Golijov, Jennifer Higdon, Christopher Theofanidis, Michael Gandolfi and Adam Schoenberg. Since the beginning of his tenure (to date), Mr. Spano and the Orchestra have performed more than 100 concerts containing contemporary works (composed since 1950).

angela morris

Mr. Spano has a discography with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra of 19 recordings, six of which have been honored with Grammy® awards. He has led the Orchestra’s performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, as well as the Ravinia, Ojai, and Savannah Music Festivals. Mr. Spano has led the New York and Los Angeles philharmonics, San Francisco, Boston, Cleveland, Chicago and Philadelphia symphony orchestras, as well as Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala, BBC Symphony and Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. In addition, he has conducted for Covent Garden, Welsh National Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, and the 2005 and 2009 Seattle Opera Ring cycles. Mr. Spano was Musical America’s 2008 Conductor of the Year.

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In March 2010, Mr. Spano began a three-year tenure as Emory University’s distinguished artist-in-residence, in which he leads intensive seminars, lectures, and presents programs on science, math, philosophy, literature and musicology.

In March 2011, Mr. Spano was announced as the incoming music director of the Aspen Music Festival. He was in residence in Aspen for the 2011 summer season as music director-designate and will assume the full role of music director in 2012.

Robert Spano

Donald Runnicles

Michael Krajewski

Music Director The Robert Reid Topping Chair *

Principal Guest Conductor The Neil and Sue Williams Chair *

Principal Pops Conductor

FIRST VIOLIN

SECOND VIOLIN

VIOLA

CELLO

David Coucheron Concertmaster William Pu Associate Concertmaster The Charles McKenzie Taylor Chair* Justin Bruns Assistant Concertmaster Jun-Ching Lin Assistant Concertmaster Carolyn Toll Hancock John Meisner Alice Anderson Oglesby Lorentz Ottzen Christopher Pulgram Carol Ramirez Juan Ramirez Olga Shpitko Denise Berginson Smith Kenn Wagner Lisa Wiedman Yancich

David Arenz Principal The Atlanta Symphony Associates Chair* Sou-Chun Su Associate Principal The Frances Cheney Boggs Chair* Jay Christy Assistant Principal Sharon Berenson David Braitberg Noriko Konno Clift David Dillard Eleanor Kosek Ruth Ann Little Thomas O’Donnell Ronda Respess Frank Walton

Reid Harris Principal The Edus H. and Harriet H. Warren Chair* Paul Murphy Associate Principal The Mary and Lawrence Gellerstedt Chair * Catherine Lynn Assistant Principal Wesley Collins Marian Kent Yang-Yoon Kim Yiyin Li Lachlan McBane Jessica Oudin Ardath Weck

Christopher Rex Principal The Miriam and John Conant Chair* Daniel Laufer Associate Principal The Livingston Foundation Chair* Karen Freer Assistant Principal Dona Vellek Assistant Principal Emeritus Joel Dallow Jere Flint Jennifer Humphreys Larry LeMaster Brad Ritchie Paul Warner

SECTION VIOLIN ‡

Judith Cox Raymond Leung Sanford Salzinger

18 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

BASS

Ralph Jones Principal The Marcia and John Donnell Chair * Gloria Jones Associate Principal Jane Little Assistant Principal Emeritus Michael Kenady Michael Kurth Joseph McFadden Douglas Sommer Thomas Thoreson

Jere Flint

Norman Mackenzie

Staff Conductor; Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra The Zeist Foundation Chair*

Director of Choruses The Frannie and Bill Graves Chair

FLUTE

BASS CLARINET

TROMBONE

HARP

Christina Smith Principal The Jill Hertz Chair* Robert Cronin Associate Principal Paul Brittan Carl David Hall

Alcides Rodriguez

Colin Williams Principal Stephen Wilson Associate Principal Nathan Zgonc George Curran

Elisabeth RemyJohnson Principal The Delta Air Lines Chair

PICCOLO

Carl David Hall OBOE

Elizabeth Koch Principal The George M. and Corrie Hoyt Brown Chair * Yvonne Powers Peterson Associate Principal Ann Lillya † CLARINET

Laura Ardan Principal The Robert Shaw Chair* Ted Gurch Associate Principal William Rappaport Alcides Rodriguez E-FLAT CLARINET

Ted Gurch

BASSOON

Carl Nitchie Principal Elizabeth Burkhardt Associate Principal Laura Najarian Juan de Gomar

BASS TROMBONE

George Curran

CONTRA-BASSOON

TUBA

Juan de Gomar

Michael Moore Principal

HORN

Brice Andrus Principal Susan Welty Associate Principal Thomas Witte Richard Deane Bruce Kenney

TIMPANI

TRUMPET

PERCUSSION

Thomas Hooten Principal The Madeline and Howell Adams Chair* The Mabel Dorn Reeder Honorary Chair* Karin Bliznik Associate Principal Michael Tiscione Joseph Walthall

Mark Yancich Principal The Walter H. Bunzl Chair* William Wilder Assistant Principal

Thomas Sherwood Principal The Julie and Arthur Montgomery Chair* William Wilder Assistant Principal The William A. Schwartz Chair* Charles Settle

KEYBOARD

The Hugh and Jessie Hodgson Memorial Chair* Peter Marshall † Beverly Gilbert † Sharon Berenson LIBRARY

Rebecca Beavers Principal Nicole Jordan Assistant Principal Librarian John Wildermuth Assistant Librarian

‡ rotate between sections * Chair named in perpetuity † Regularly engaged musician Players in string sections are listed alphabetically

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 19

Coming Home Jeff Roffman

Principal Guest Conductor Donald Runnicles makes his season debut and reflects on making history with Robert Spano for more than a decade

By Kimberly Nogi

T

iming is everything in music, and Donald Runnicles’s decision 12 years ago to become Principal Guest Conductor-designate of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and join Music Director-designate Robert Spano in a novel creative partnership has been serendipitous for all parties.

“I’m delighted and grateful to be part of what I consider to be a vital and groundbreaking collaboration,” Mr. Runnicles said at the time, and the creative partnership has certainly been a trailblazer, bringing dynamic programming and guests and today’s brightest young composers to Atlanta Symphony Hall and dramatically energizing the Orchestra’s presence in the community.

Throughout his tenure in Atlanta, the career trajectory of the acclaimed maestro has soared. Mr. Runnicles’s first Orchestra recording, Orff’s Carmina Burana, was released in 2003 and subsequent releases of Mozart’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, and a Brittania album were all well received. His visits with the Chorus to perform with the esteemed Berlin Philharmonic were acclaimed and led to the

20 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

Donald Runnicles leads the Orchestra Chorus and Berlin Philharmonic at the Berliner Philharmonie concert hall in 2004.

Chorus’s burgeoning global reputation as a major force in the operatic and symphonic arenas. Not to mention that his conducting appearances at Atlanta Symphony Hall have been increasingly popular with Orchestra patrons. Mr. Runnicles’s involvement with the Atlanta Symphony organization has been tremendous, and this year his relationship with Orchestra will extend even further, as he will lead a reading session with the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra for the first time at the end of the month.

Over the past few years, Mr. Runnicles’s focus has shifted abroad as the music director of the Deutsche Oper Berlin and chief conductor of his homeland pride and joy, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

The move to Berlin, where he now resides, “constituted a huge shift in my personal life,” recalled Mr. Runnicles. “Yet I relish being at the helm of one of the most storied opera houses in the world, which annually performs all of the major German romantic operas — Wagner and Strauss, not to mention Mozart, Berlioz, Debussy and Janacek. The orchestra also gives 22 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

symphonic concerts and has a chamber music series. Life is busy and diverse!”

Yet his importance to the players and singers here is unquestioned and his two appearances during the 2011-12 season are indispensable: conducting the Beethoven “Eroica” Symphony No. 3 and Britten’s Violin Concerto, featuring the fine Canadian virtuoso James Ehnes, January 19-22; and with the Chorus, Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony No. 2, January 26/28.

Mr. Runnicles is especially looking forward to reuniting with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus, in his view “one of the finest in the world. There is a phenomenal discipline to their singing.

To listen to their warm-up routine is still awe-inspiring!” Throughout his Atlanta tenure, his relationship with the Chorus has blossomed. In his 11 years as Principal Guest Conductor, Mr. Runnicles and the Chorus have annually performed in Atlanta, as well as with the Berlin Philharmonic on three separate occasions.

Continued on page 44

program

Robert Spano, Music Director Donald Runnicles, Principal Guest Conductor

Delta Classical Series Concerts Thursday, Friday and Saturday, January 5, 6 and 7, 2012, at 8 p.m.

Robert Spano, Conductor Dejan Lazic´, Piano

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Opus 73 (“Emperor”) (1809)

I. Allegro

II. Adagio un poco mosso

III. Rondo: Allegro

Dejan Lazic´, Piano

INTERMISSION

Edward Elgar (1857-1934)

Symphony No. 1 in A-flat Major, Opus 55 (1908)

I. Andante. Nobilmente e semplice. Allegro II. Allegro molto III. Adagio IV. Lento. Allegro

“Inside the Music” preview of the concert, Thursday at 7 p.m., presented by Ken Meltzer, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Insider and Program Annotator.

The use of cameras or recording devices during the concert is strictly prohibited.

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 25

sponsors

is proud to sponsor the Delta Classical Series of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

Delta is proud to be celebrating our 70th anniversary as Atlanta’s hometown airline. Delta’s community spirit worldwide continues to be a cornerstone of our organization. As a force for global good, our mission is to continuously create value through an inclusive culture by leveraging partnerships and serving communities where we live and work. It includes not only valuing individual differences of race, religion, gender, nationality and lifestyle, but also managing and valuing the diversity of work teams, intracompany teams and business partnerships.

Delta is an active, giving corporate citizen in the communities it serves. Delta’s community engagement efforts are driven by our desire to build long-term partnerships in a way that enables nonprofits to utilize many aspects of Delta’s currency — our employees time and talent, our free and discounted air travel, as well as our surplus donations. Together, we believe we can take our worldwide communities to new heights!

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s concert on November 5, 2011 at Carnegie Hall is made possible through the generous support of Delta Air Lines, Thurmond Smithgall and the Massey Charitable Trust.

Solo pianos used by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra are gifts of the Atlanta Steinway Society and in memory of David Goldwasser. The Hamburg Steinway piano is a gift received by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in honor of Rosi Fiedotin.

The Yamaha custom six-quarter tuba is a gift received by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in honor of Principal Tuba player Michael Moore from The Antinori Foundation.

This performance is being recorded for broadcast at a later time. Atlanta Symphony concert broadcasts are heard each week on Atlanta’s WABE FM-90.1 and Georgia Public Broadcasting’s statewide network.

The Atlanta Symphony records for ASO Media. Other recordings of the Orchestra are available on the Argo, Deutsche Grammophon, New World, Nonesuch, Philips, Telarc and Sony Classical labels.

Media sponsors: WABE, WSB AM, and AJC. Trucks provided by Ryder Truck Rental Inc.

26 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

program Notes on the Program

By Ken Meltzer Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Opus 73 (“Emperor”) (1809) Ludwig van Beethoven was baptized in Bonn, Germany, on December 17, 1770, and died in Vienna, Austria, on March 26, 1827. The first performance of the “Emperor” Piano Concerto took place in Leipzig, Germany, on November 28, 1811, with Friedrich Schneider as soloist and Johann Philipp Christian Schulz conducting. In addition to the solo piano, the Fifth Piano Concerto is scored for two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani and strings. Approximate performance time is thirty-nine minutes.

First ASO Classical Subscription Performance: January 22, 1953, Eugene Istomin, Piano, Henry Sopkin, Conductor.

Most Recent ASO Classical Subscription Performances: September 28, 29 and 30, 2006, André Watts, Piano, Robert Spano, Conductor.

P

erhaps the “Emperor” Piano Concerto is the work that most eloquently testifies to Ludwig van Beethoven’s ability to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles through the sheer force of will and genius. Beethoven, a fiery virtuoso, had previously stunned Vienna with brilliant performances of his keyboard compositions, including four Concertos for Piano and Orchestra. However, by the time the composer began work on his E-flat Concerto in 1808, Beethoven’s advancing deafness made public appearances all but impossible. The “Emperor” is the only Beethoven Piano Concerto not premiered by the composer himself.

But even the loss of his hearing did not stop the iron-willed Beethoven from occasionally attempting to play the piano, although the results were inevitably tragic. Composer Louis Spohr recalled Beethoven’s rehearsal of one of the Piano Trios (sources differ as to whether it was Opus 70, No. 1, or Opus 97): It was not a treat; for one thing the piano was badly out of tune — something that did not disturb Beethoven because in any case he could not hear it — and for another thing his deafness had robbed him of nearly all his once-celebrated virtuosity. At forte passages the poor deaf fellow banged the keys so vigorously that the strings twanged, while in the piano passages he played so softly that whole groups of notes went unheard and one lost the thread unless one could look into the music at the same time. The thought of his hard fate plunged me into deep depression. It is a great misfortune for anyone to be deaf, so how can a musician endure it without despair? I was no longer puzzled by Beethoven’s almost perpetual melancholy ... encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 27

“Human misery in every form” Beethoven completed his Fifth Piano Concerto in 1809 — the year Napoleon invaded Vienna. In May, Napoleon’s forces bombarded the city. Beethoven’s lodgings stood directly in the line of fire, so he took refuge in a basement in the home of either his brother Carl, or the composer’s friend, poet Ignaz Franz Castelli (again, scholars are not unanimous on this point). During the massive shelling, Beethoven tried to protect the last remnants of his hearing by covering his ears with pillows.

The succeeding French occupation brought physical and economic chaos. On July 26, 1809, Beethoven wrote to his publisher, Breitkopf and Härtel: “Normally I should now be having a change of scene and air — The levies are beginning this very day — What a destructive, disorderly life I see and hear around me, nothing but drums, cannons and human misery in every form....”

The following year, Beethoven was forced to request financial assistance from his publisher, complaining, “Last year, before the French came, my 4,000 fl. was worth something; this year it is not even worth 1,000 fl.”

Through all of this turmoil and despair, Beethoven never lost his fierce sense of independence and rebellious spirit. Once, during the occupation, a friend spied Beethoven in a café. There the composer stood behind a French officer, shaking his fist and proclaiming: “If I were a general and knew as much about strategy as I do counterpoint, I’d give you fellows something to think about.” And there is an undeniable aura of pride and heroism in the E-flat Concerto.

Beethoven did not coin the nickname “Emperor” for his final Piano Concerto. In all likelihood, “Emperor” was first used in connection with the Concerto after Beethoven’s death. The nickname refers to the Concerto’s majestic character, not to any specific political figure (although the composer did dedicate the piece to his friend and patron, Archduke Rudolph of Austria). Beethoven would compose no more piano concertos during the remaining 18 years of his life. Nevertheless, the “Emperor” is as fitting a summation of the composer’s achievements in the realm of the Piano Concerto as is the immortal Ninth (“Choral”) in the symphonic repertoire.

Musical Analysis I. Allegro — The grand opening movement begins in dramatic fashion, with the orchestra’s massive chords answered by the soloist’s elaborate flourishes. Finally, the orchestra launches into its exposition with the first violins’ statement of the robust, initial theme.

The violins offer a quiet, staccato version of the second principal theme, which the horns soon play in more regal fashion to undulating string accompaniment. The soloist enters with elegant, highly-developed versions of the principal themes. Soon the intensity builds, particularly in a stormy development section that features a violent series of ascending and descending octaves by the soloist. A varied reprise of the orchestra-soloist dialogue that

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program inaugurated the movement now serves as introduction to the recapitulation of the principal material. Beethoven provides a brief, but fully-transcribed cadenza at the point where the soloist would traditionally have improvised his own. The opening movement concludes with a majestic coda.

II. Adagio un poco mosso — The muted violins introduce the lovely principal theme, whose rising passages create a sense of yearning. The soloist enters, and a series of variations ensues, including one in which the pianist serves as accompanist. Then, one of the several masterstrokes in this work creates a moment of incomparable magic. After a sudden and unexpected shift from B to B-flat, the soloist quietly entices the listener with fragments of the principal theme of the spirited Rondo finale, which follows without pause.

III. Rondo: Allegro — The soloist, immediately followed by the orchestra, plays the jaunty principal theme of the finale. Despite its title, the final movement is actually an ingenious combination of both rondo and sonata forms. As usual, the composer’s mastery of contrast is evident throughout. Beethoven adds a touch of mystery just before the closing measures, as the pianist is accompanied only by a repeated timpani figure. Suddenly, a series of ascending flourishes by the soloist leads to an athletic restatement of the principal theme, and Beethoven’s “Emperor” Concerto reaches its triumphant conclusion.

Symphony No. 1 in A-flat Major, Opus 55 (1908) Edward Elgar was born in Broadheath, near Worcester, England, on June 2, 1857, and died in Worcester on February 23, 1934. The first performance of the Symphony No. 1 took place at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester, England, on December 3, 1908, with Hans Richter conducting the Hallé Orchestra. The Symphony No. 1 is scored for piccolo, three flutes, three oboes, English horn, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, bass drum, cymbals, snare drum, two harps and strings. Approximate performance time is fifty-two minutes.

First ASO Classical Subscription Performances: February 27 and 29, March 1, 1986, Yehudi Menuhin, Conductor.

Most Recent ASO Classical Subscription Performances: May 6, 7 and 8, 1999, Donald Runnicles, Conductor.

“A massive hope for the future”

I

n 1870, the great German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) wrote to his friend, conductor Hermann Levi: “I shall never write a symphony. You have no idea how the likes of us feel when we hear the tramp of a giant like him beside us.”

The “giant” Brahms invoked was Ludwig van Beethoven, whose Nine Symphonies form the cornerstone of the orchestral repertoire. And indeed, it was not until 1876 that Brahms, then 43, finally summoned the courage to complete his First Symphony. encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 29

For Edward Elgar, the journey to his First Symphony was even more protracted. By the time he put the finishing touches on his Symphony No. 1, Elgar was 51, and, with such works as the Enigma Variations (1899), The Dream of Gerontius (1900), and the Pomp and Circumstance March, Opus 39, No. 1 (1901), firmly established as England’s most prominent contemporary composer. In truth, the idea of composing a symphony had long been on Elgar’s mind. In 1898, Elgar acknowledged he was “possessed” with the idea of writing a program symphony based upon the life of British Major-General Charles Gordon, killed in the Sudan in 1885.

But eventually, Elgar abandoned the “Gordon Symphony” project.

During the ensuing decade, Elgar continued to contemplate the possibility of a symphony, and what form it might take. During a series of lectures at Birmingham University (190508), Elgar noted: “the symphony without a programme was the highest achievement of the art.” And indeed, when Elgar finally completed his First Symphony, he confided to composer Henry Walford Davies: “There is no programme beyond a wide experience of human life with a great charity (love) & a massive hope for the future.”

On June 27, 1907, Lady Elgar noted in her diary that Edward played “a great beautiful tune.” By all accounts, this “tune” was the melody, introduced at the very start of the First Symphony, that serves as a leitmotif throughout the work. It’s possible that a visit six months earlier to Rome provided the inspiration for this majestic theme. After the premiere of the First Symphony, Elgar sent a postcard to W. G. McNaught of the music publisher Novello. The postcard was a picture of the Appian Way. In the sky above the ancient road, Elgar wrote the first three measures of the Symphony’s opening melody, along with the comment: “Here it was!”

It was during another visit to Rome, during the winter of 1907-08, that Elgar began his First Symphony. In May, Elgar and his family returned to England. On June 29, Elgar’s wife observed he was “possessed with his symphony.” Elgar completed the First Symphony on September 25, 1908.

“The greatest symphony of modern times” Elgar dedicated his Symphony No. 1 to the Austro-Hungarian conductor Hans Richter, whom the composer described as a “True Artist and True Friend.” Richter led his Hallé Orchestra in the Symphony’s world premiere, which took place in Free Trade Hall in Manchester, England, on December 3, 1908. The performance was a triumph. After the conclusion of the slow third movement, the audience’s response was so enthusiastic that, prior to launching the finale, Richter summoned Elgar to the stage for a bow.

The following day, Richter rehearsed the Elgar First Symphony with the London Symphony Orchestra. Richter began by addressing the musicians: “Let us now rehearse the greatest symphony of modern times, and not only in this country.” The following year, the Elgar First Symphony received more than eighty performances throughout Europe and Australia.

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program Musical Analysis I. Andante. Nobilmente e semplice. Allegro — In program notes for the premiere of the First Symphony, Elgar deemed the work “a composer’s outlook on life.” The Symphony’s slow introduction (Andante. Nobilmente e semplice) presents the melody Elgar described to music critic Ernest Newman in the following fashion: It is perhaps obvious that the opening theme is intended to be simple &, in intention, noble & elevating (I do hate to attempt to describe what I feel): the sort of ideal call (emphasis added) — in the sense of persuasion, not coercion or command — & something above everyday & sordid things.

After a pair of hushed rolls of the timpani, the melody appears twice, first played in hushed dynamics and dolce (“sweetly”), then as a grand, fortissimo statement. A diminuendo concludes the slow introduction, leading directly to the agitated principal Allegro, and a restless minor-key figure, introduced by the strings, clarinets and bassoons. A transition from duple to 6/4 meter brings a lovely, contrasting major-key theme. The tension builds to a fff climax, played tutta forza. However, this outburst finally yields to hushed statement by muted horns of the “ideal call,” bringing the exposition to a close. The development (Poco più mosso) opens peacefully, but soon develops its own tension and momentum. A hushed invocation of the “ideal call” serves as a bridge to the recapitulation (Tempo I) of the central themes. The Symphony’s opening melody also dominates the serene final coda (Poco meno mosso).

II. Allegro molto — The second movement, by far the briefest of the four, serves as the Symphony’s scherzo. After four hushed introductory measures, the first violins are off and running with a scurrying sixteenth-note motif. The motif yields to a more forceful march theme, first played by the violas and clarinets. A serene episode in B-flat Major acts as the trio portion of the scherzo (while rehearsing an orchestra, Elgar admonished the musicians to “play it like something we hear down by the river”). The opening sixteenth-note motif later accompanies both the trio and march episodes. The energy subsides, and hints of the “ideal call” lead to the Symphony’s slow movement, which follows without pause.

III. Adagio — Perhaps the most arresting moment in Elgar’s Enigma Variations is the expansive Adagio, titled Nimrod. This was Elgar’s tribute to his dear friend, August Jaeger, and of “a long summer evening talk, when my friend grew nobly eloquent (as only he could) on the grandeur of Beethoven, and especially his slow movements.” And in describing the slow movement of the Elgar First Symphony, Jaeger deemed it: “not only one of the greatest slow movements since Beethoven but…worthy of that master.” The Adagio opens with the strings singing the movement’s heartfelt principal melody — in fact, an expansion of the sixteenth-note motif from the previous movement. The Adagio’s second principal melody, like its predecessor, is introduced by the strings and directed by Elgar to be played cantabile (“in a singing manner”). As in the case of Nimrod, this Adagio maintains a breathtaking,

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 31

rapt lyricism throughout. Upon completing the Adagio’s ppp final measures, Elgar wrote, quoting Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “the rest is silence.”

IV. Lento. Allegro — The finale opens with a dark and mysterious slow introduction (Lento), with hints of the “ideal call,” and a march that Elgar described as “restless, enquiring and exploring.” The principal Allegro opens with a surging dotted-note theme, played risoluto by the violins. The remainder of the movement depicts a grand conflict, not resolved until the final measures. There, the “ideal call” is played in Grandioso fashion by the orchestra, capped by a stringendo dash to the finish. Some commentators have questioned how complete the triumph is at the Symphony’s close. But such ambiguity only reinforces Elgar’s own view of the work, as communicated to Ernest Newman: “As to the phases of pride, despair, anger, peace & the thousand & one things that occur between the first page & the last, I prefer the listener to draw what he can from the sounds he hears.”

32 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

program dejan lazic´, Piano

A

fter highly successful concerts in Europe and South America with Budapest Festival Orchestra and Iván Fischer, pianist and composer Dejan Lazic´ debuted at the prestigious BBC Proms in London in summer 2011 to great critical acclaim and performed again at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw. His 2012 U.S. tour brings him to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and four other dates, followed by recording sessions in Budapest with Budapest Festival Orchestra and Iván Fischer.

Dejan Lazic´

Dejan celebrated Franz Liszt’s 200th birthday in October with a performance of the famous Totentanz (Dance of the Dead) and appeared on tour with Basel Chamber Orchestra.

Dejan’s 2011-12 season started with the release of his new CD, Liaisons - Vol. 3: C. Ph. E. Bach/Britten, and two European premieres of Brahms/arr. Lazic´ Piano Concerto No. 3 (after Violin Concerto, op. 77) at the BBC Proms in London in August (U.K. premiere), and at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw in September (Dutch premiere). The German premiere of the concerto will take place in Hamburg in April at the festival Hamburger Ostertöne; the Japanese premiere, in Sapporo, is scheduled for March, with additional performances in The Hague and in Utrecht in February.

Dejan Lazic´ was born into a musical family in Zagreb, Croatia, and grew up in Salzburg, Austria, where he studied at the Mozarteum. He is quickly establishing a reputation worldwide as “a brilliant pianist and a gifted musician full of ideas and able to project them persuasively” (Gramophone). The New York Times hailed his performance as “... full of poetic, shapely phrasing and vivid dynamic effects that made this music sound fresh, spontaneous and impassioned.” After a successful Edinburgh Festival recital, The Scotsman wrote recently: “Dejan Lazic´ shines like a new star!”

As recitalist and soloist with orchestra, Lazic´ has appeared at major venues in Europe, North and South America, Asia and Australia, and has been invited to numerous international festivals.

In 2008 he gave his orchestral debuts at New York’s Lincoln Center with Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, and at London’s Royal Festival Hall with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Kirill Petrenko. He also gave successful recital debuts at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, London Queen Elizabeth Hall, Munich Prinzregententheater, Washington's Kennedy Center, and in Montreal, Tokyo, Beijing and in Istanbul. Also in 2008 he performed Beethoven’s 3rd Piano Concerto at the Beijing Great Hall of People in a televised pre-Olympic gala concert for an audience of 7,000.

He has performed with the Philharmonia Orchestra under Vladimir Ashkenazy, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under Giovanni Antonini, Atlanta and Seattle Symphonies under Robert Spano, Swedish Radio, Danish National, Indianapolis, and Sapporo Symphonies, and with the Seoul, Hong Kong and Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestras. Last winter he toured Spain with Bamberger Symphoniker under Jonathan Nott. encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 33

Other orchestral engagements lead him to the BBC Symphony in London, BBC Philharmonic in Manchester, Royal Scottish National Orchestra in Glasgow and Edinburgh, SWR Symphony in Stuttgart, MDR Symphony in Leipzig, Residentie Orkest in The Hague, Helsinki Philharmonic, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Orquesta Ciudad de Barcelona, and Orquestra Sinfonica do Estado de Sao Paulo. With Basel Chamber Orchestra and Giovanni Antonini he performs on tour at, among others, the Vienna Konzerthaus, Munich Herkulessaal, Cologne Philharmonie and Brussels Palais des Beaux Arts. In the 2008-09 season, he was artist in residence with the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra in Amsterdam.

He also enjoys a growing following in the Far East, which he visited last season on tour with NHK Symphony Orchestra. Other engagements there include those with Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra (including concerts at Tokyo’s Suntory Hall and Metropolitan Art Space), Sapporo Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic, Hong Kong Philharmonic and NSO Taiwan, as well as a series of recitals throughout Japan and at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, China.

In 2009 he toured Australia with the Australian Chamber Orchestra led by Richard Tognetti, including concerts at the world famous Sydney Opera House. In 2010-11 he toured Europe, South America and Asia with Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra.

Lazic´ also is a passionate chamber musician. He records exclusively for Channel Classics and has released over 20 recordings. The first volume of his new Liaisons series, with works

by Scarlatti and Bartók, was released in 2007 to critical acclaim; the second volume, with a Schumann/Brahms program, was released in 2009; the third volume with a C.P.E. Bach/ Britten program, was released in 2011. Other recordings include a CD with the London Philharmonic Orchestra under Kirill Petrenko playing Rachmaninov’s famous 2nd Piano Concerto — a live recording that earned rave reviews from critics and audiences worldwide and the prestigious German Echo Klassik Award 2009; and a disc featuring Beethoven’s 4th Piano Concerto recorded live in Sydney with the Australian Chamber Orchestra led by Richard Tognetti.

Lazic´ also is active as a composer. His works include piano compositions, chamber music (including String Quartet op. 9, written for Mstislav Rostropovich’s 70th birthday gala), and orchestral works, as well as cadenzas for Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven piano concertos. In the 2007-08 season, he premiered his piano cycle Kinderszenen – Hommage à Schumann op. 15 at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw.

His recent arrangement of Brahms’ Violin Concerto for piano and orchestra saw its world premiere in October 2009 in Atlanta, with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under music director Robert Spano. This concert was recorded live by Channel Classics; the CD was released in January 2010 to critical acclaim.

Dejan is working on his own Concerto for Piano and Orchestra No. 1.

34 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

support The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra gratefully acknowledges the generous gifts of individuals, corporations, foundations, government and other entities whose contributions help the Orchestra fulfill its mission to be a vigorous part of the cultural fabric of our community. The following list represents the cumulative total of philanthropy of $1,750 and above to the Orchestra’s fundraising campaigns, events and special initiatives from 2011.

(Please note that donor benefits are based solely on contributions to the annual fund.) $500,000+

Mrs. Thalia N. Carlos** Delta Air Lines

The Mabel Dorn Reeder Foundation The Zeist Foundation, Inc.

$250,000+

Madeline & Howell Adams, Jr. Mrs. Anne Cox Chambers

The Coca-Cola Company Mrs. William A. Schwartz

$100,000+

GE Asset Management Abraham J. & Phyllis Katz Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Charles H. McTier

Turner Broadcasting System The Vasser Woolley Foundation, Inc. Woodruff Arts Center

$75,000+

Fulton County Arts Council

National Endowment for the Arts

UPS

$50,000+

Anonymous AT&T Real Yellow Pages GE Energy The Graves Foundation InterContinental Hotels Group

The Charles Loridans Foundation, Inc. The Reiman Foundation Mr. Thurmond Smithgall Robert Spano Susan & Thomas Wardell

SunTrust Bank SunTrust Foundation SunTrust Bank Trusteed Foundation – Walter H. and Marjory M. Rich Memorial Fund

$35,000+

Georgia Natural Gas Massey Charitable Trust

Porsche Cars North America Publix Super Markets Charities

Patty & Doug Reid Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP

John H. & Wilhelmina D. Harland Charitable Foundation, Inc. Lucy R. & Gary Lee, Jr. MetLife Foundation The Sara Giles Moore Foundation Terence L. & Jeanne P. Neal* Victoria & Howard Palefsky Mr. & Mrs. Solon P. Patterson*

Printpack Inc. & The Gay & Erskine Love Foundation Ryder System, Inc. Mrs. Charles A. Smithgall, Jr. Mr. & Mrs. K. Morgan Varner, III Adair & Dick White Ann Marie & John B. White, Jr.* Sue & Neil Williams

$25,000+

Jim & Adele Abrahamson Susan & Richard Anderson Stephanie & Arthur Blank Mr. & Mrs. C. Merrell Calhoun Mr. & Mrs. Bradley Currey, Jr. Marcia & John Donnell Catherine Warren Dukehart Georgia Council for the Arts Ann & Gordon Getty Foundation

*We are grateful to these donors for taking the extra time to acquire matching gifts from their employers. **Deceased.

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 35

$17,500+

Anonymous (2) The Arnold Foundation, Inc. Kelley O. & Neil H. Berman Mr. & Mrs. Paul J. Blackney

Janine Brown & Alex J. Simmons, Jr. City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs Gary & Nancy Fayard Mr. & Mrs. Paul R. Garcia

Jane & Clay Jackson Amy & Mark Kistulinec Karole & John Lloyd Kelly Loeffler & Jeffrey C. Sprecher Mr. Kenneth & Dr. Carolyn Meltzer

Loren & Gail Starr Alison M. & Joseph M. Thompson Patrick & Susie Viguerie Camille Yow

Mr. Donald F. Fox Charles & Mary Ginden D. Kirk Jamieson, Verizon Wireless Ann A. & Ben F. Johnson III* Sarah & Jim Kennedy Steve & Eydie Koonin

Carrie & Brian Kurlander Michael & Cindi Lang Donna Lee & Howard C. Ehni Meghan & Clarke Magruder Suzanne & Bill Plybon Dr. Stanley & Shannon Romanstein

Lynn Schinazi Joyce & Henry Schwob Irene & Howard Stein Mary Rose Taylor Mike & Liz Troy Ray & John Uttenhove Mr. & Mrs. Edus H. Warren, Jr.

Cynthia & Donald Carson Dr. John W. Cooledge Trisha & Doug Craft Cari Katrice Dawson Eleanor & Charles Edmondson Rosi & Arnoldo Fiedotin Mr. & Mrs. Lawrence L. Gellerstedt III Mary D. Gellerstedt GMT Capital Corporation Nancy D. Gould Joe Guthridge & David Ritter*

Jan & Tom Hough Mr. Tad Hutcheson Roya & Bahman Irvani Anne Morgan & Jim Kelley Mr. & Mrs. Donald R. Keough James H. Landon Mr. & Mrs. John M. Law The Livingston Foundation, Inc. Mike’s Hard Lemonade Morgens West Foundation Primerica

Margaret & Bob Reiser Bill & Rachel Schultz* Mr. John A. Sibley III Siemens Industry, Inc. John Sparrow Carol & Ramon Tome Family Fund* Trapp Family Turner Foundation, Inc. Mark & Rebekah Wasserman Neal & Virginia Williams Suzanne Bunzl Wilner

Atlanta Federation of Musicians Jeff & Ann Cramer*

Mr. & Mrs. Jesse Hill, Jr. JBS Foundation

The Hellen Plummer Charitable Foundation, Inc.

Mary Helen & Jim Dalton Richard A. & Lynne N. Dorfman Christopher & Sonnet Edmonds Dr. & Mrs. Carl D. Fackler David L. Forbes James F. Fraser The Fraser-Parker Foundation, Inc. Betty Sands Fuller Sally & Carl Gable Dick & Anne Goodsell The Robert Hall Gunn, Jr. Fund

The Jamieson Family Philip I. Kent George H. Lanier The Sartain Lanier Family Foundation, Inc. Pat & Nolan Leake Links Inc., Azalea City Chapter Belinda & Gino Massafra Linda & John Matthews John F. & Marilyn M. McMullan Penelope & Raymond McPhee*

Dr. & Mrs. Mark P. Pentecost, Jr. Margaret H. Petersen Hamilton & Mason Smith* Sandy & Paul Smith Peter James Stelling Mrs. C. Preston Stephens Triska Drake & G. Kimbrough Taylor, Jr. Charlie Wade & M.J. Conboy Russell Williamson & Shawn Pagliarini

Ellen & Howard Feinsand Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta Herbert & Marian Haley Foundation Steven & Caroline Harless

Sally W. Hawkins Mr. & Mrs. John E. Hellriegel Mr. & Mrs. Daniel H. Hollums

JoAnn Hall Hunsinger Paul & Rosthema Kastin Dr. & Mrs. James T. Laney* Mr. & Mrs. William C. Lester* Deborah & William Liss

$15,000+

Pinney L. Allen & Charles C. Miller III The Antinori Foundation Lisa & Joe Bankoff Mr. & Mrs. David Edmiston In memory of Polly Ellis

by Admiral James O. Ellis, Jr. $10,000+ Anonymous AGCO Corporation, Lucinda B. Smith Mark & Christine Armour The Balloun Family Mr. David Boatwright The Boston Consulting Group The Breman Foundation, Inc. The John & Rosemary Brown Family Foundation The Walter & Frances Bunzl Foundation $7,500+ The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc.

$5,000+ Anonymous (2) John** & Helen Aderhold* Aadu & Kristi Allpere* Ms. Julie M. Altenbach The ASCAP Foundation Irving Caesar Fund Mrs. Suzanne Dansby Bollman & Mr. Brooks Bollman Bubba Brands, Inc. Dr. Robert L. & Lucinda W. Bunnen Charles Campbell & Ann Grovenstein-Campbell

$3,500+ Anonymous Mr. & Mrs. Dennis Chorba Mr. James L. Davis & Ms. Carol Comstock* Jere & Patsy Drummond

36 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

support

$3,500+ continued Dr. & Mrs. James T. Lowman Ruth & Paul Marston Mr. & Mrs. Harmon B. Miller III

Walter W. Mitchell Leslie & Skip Petter Mr. & Mrs. Joel F. Reeves

S.A. Robinson Nancy & Henry Shuford In memory of Willard Shull Elliott Sopkin

Ms. Kimberly Tribble & Mr. Mark S. Lange Burton Trimble H. & T. Yamashita*

Gregory & Debra Durden Ms. Diane Durgin The Robert S. Elster Foundation John & Michelle Fuller Mr. & Mrs. Edward T. Garland Dr. Mary G. George & Mr. Kenneth Molinelli Ben & Lynda Greer Dr. & Mrs. Alexander Gross Paul B., Paul H., & M. Harrison Hackett Darlene K. Henson Mr. Thomas Hooten & Ms. Jennifer Marotta Mr. & Mrs. Harry C. Howard Richard & Linda Hubert Dr. William M. Hudson Mr. & Mrs. William C. Humphreys, Jr. Dr. & Mrs. James M. Hund Dorothy Jackson** Ms. Cynthia Jeness Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. Johnson Mr. W. F. & Dr. Janice Johnston Dr. Maurice J. Jurkiewicz** Hazel & Herb Karp Mr. & Mrs. John H. Kauffman Mr. & Mrs. L. Michael Kelly Dick & Georgia Kimball*

Mr. & Mrs. Daniel J. King Dr. & Mrs. Scott I. Lampert Dr. Fulton D. Lewis III & Mr. Stephen Neal Rhoney Mr. & Mrs. J. David Lifsey Mr. & Mrs. Paul A. Lutz* Mr. & Mrs. Frederick C. Mabry Barbara & Jim MacGinnitie The Devereaux F. & Dorothy McClatchey Foundation, Inc. Mr. & Mrs. Albert S. McGhee Birgit & David McQueen Gregory & Judy Moore Ms. Lilot S. Moorman & Mr. Jeffrey B. Bradley Dr. & Mrs. R. Daniel Nable Mr. & Mrs. Robert Olive Ms. Rebecca Oppenheimer Mr. & Mrs. Andreas Penninger Susan Perdew Elise T. Phillips Mr. & Mrs. Rezin Pidgeon, Jr. Dr. & Mrs. W. Harrison Reeves, Sr. Mr. & Mrs. Richard L. Rodgers Mr. & Mrs. George P. Rodrigue John & Kyle Rogers Dr. Paul J. Seguin

Elizabeth S. Sharp Angela & Morton Sherzer Kay R. Shirley Beverly & Milton Shlapak Helga Hazelrig Siegel Lewis Silverboard Sydney Simons Baker & Debby Smith Amy & Paul Snyder Mr. & Mrs. Raymond F. Stainback, Jr. Lynne & Steven Steindel* John & Yee-Wan Stevens Mr. & Mrs. George B. Taylor, Jr. Mr. & Mrs. Mark Taylor Annie York-Trujillo & Raul F. Trujillo Mr. William C. Voss Mr. & Mrs. Randolph O. Watson Dr. & Mrs. Roger P. Webb Dr. & Mrs. James O. Wells, Jr. David & Martha West Mr. & Mrs. Peter L. Whitcup Mary Lou Wolff Jan & Beattie Wood Mr. & Mrs. John C. Yates

Mary Frances Early Ree & Ralph Edwards Heike & Dieter Elsner George T. & Alecia H. Ethridge Bill & Susan Gibson Carol & Henry Grady Mary C. Gramling Mr. Lewis H. Hamner III Thomas High In memory of Carolyn B. Hochman Stephanie & Henry Howell Mary B. & Wayne James Aaron & Joyce Johnson Veronique & Baxter Jones Lana M. Jordan Mr. Thomas J. Jung Dr. Rose Mary Kolpatzki Mr. & Mrs. David Krischer Thomas C. Lawson Mr. & Mrs. Craig P. MacKenzie

Kay & John Marshall Martha & Reynolds McClatchey Captain & Mrs. Charles M. McCleskey Virginia K. McTague Angela & Jimmy Mitchell Mrs. Gene Morse** Barbara & Sanford Orkin Dr. & Mrs. Keith D. Osborn Dr. & Mrs. Bernard H. Palay Mr. & Mrs. Emory H. Palmer Mr. Robert Peterson Dr. & Mrs. Frank S. Pittman III The Reverend Neal P. Ponder, Jr. Provaré Technology, Inc. Mr. & Mrs. David M. Ratcliffe

Ms. Susan Robinson & Ms. Mary Roemer The Gary Rollins Foundation John T. Ruff Dr. & Mrs. Rein Saral Alida & Stuart Silverman Alex & Betty Smith Foundation, Inc. Johannah Smith Mr. & Mrs. Gabriel Steagall Kay & Alex Summers Elvira Tate Mr. & Mrs. William M. Tipping Drs. Jonne & Paul Walter Alan & Marcia Watt Drs. Julius & Nanette Wenger Mr. & Mrs. William White* Hubert H. Whitlow, Jr. Mrs. Frank L. Wilson, Jr. Charlie & Dorothy Yates Family Fund Herbert & Grace Zwerner

$2,250+ Anonymous (3) Mrs. Kay Adams* & Mr. Ralph Paulk Mr. & Mrs. Phillip E. Alvelda* Paul & Marian Anderson Jack & Helga Beam Ms. Laura J. Bjorkholm & Mr. John C. Reece II Rita & Herschel Bloom Edith H. & James E. Bostic, Jr. Family Foundation Margo Brinton & Eldon Park Jacqueline A. & Joseph E. Brown, Jr. Dr. & Mrs. Anton J. Bueschen Major General & Mrs. Robert M. Bunker Dr. Aubrey M. Bush & Dr. Carol T. Bush The Buss Family Charitable Fund Ms. Marnite B. Calder Mr. & Mrs. Beauchamp C. Carr Ralph & Rita Connell Chip & Darlene Conrad Mr. & Mrs. Thomas G. Cousins Mr. Robert Cronin & Ms. Christina Smith Sally & Larry Davis Drs. Carlos del Rio & Jeannette Guarner

$1,750+ Anonymous Mr. & Mrs. Stephen D. Ambo Dr. David & Julie Bakken Mr. & Mrs. Ron Bell Dr. & Mrs. Joel E. Berenson Leon & Linda Borchers Mr.** & Mrs. Eric L. Brooker Mr. & Mrs. Russell E. Butner Mr. & Mrs. Walter K. Canipe Susan & Carl Cofer Mr. & Mrs. R. Barksdale Collins* Dr. & Mrs. William T. Cook Jean & Jerry Cooper Mr. & Mrs. Brant Davis* Mrs. H. Frances Davis Peter & Vivian de Kok Elizabeth & John Donnelly Xavier Duralde & Mary Barrett Cree & Frazer Durrett Dr. Francine D. Dykes & Mr. Richard Delay

*We are grateful to these donors for taking the extra time to acquire matching gifts from their employers. **Deceased.

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 37

additional support Blonder Family Foundation

William McDaniel Charitable Foundation

Appassionato

William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund

Meghan Magruder, Appassionato Chair

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is privileged to receive annual contributions from individuals throughout the Southeast. Appassionato was inaugurated in 2000 and welcomes annual givers of $10,000 and above. Appassionato members provide the Symphony with a continuous and strong financial base in support of our ambitionous aritistic and education initiatives.

Patron Partnership

Thomas J. Jung, Chair

The Patron Partnership of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra is the society of donors who have given $1,750 or more and comprise a vital extension of the Orchestra family through their institutional leadership and financial support.

Henry Sopkin Circle Honoring the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s first Music Director, the Henry Sopkin Circle recognizes our friends who have planned bequests and other gifts to benefit the Orchestra’s future. We remain grateful to all Henry Sopkin Circle members – past and present – for their generosity, trust, and vision.

Madeline & Howell E. Adams, Jr. Mr.* & Mrs. John E. Aderhold William & Marion Atkins Dr. & Mrs. William Bauer Neil H. Berman Fred & Bettye Betts Mr.* & Mrs. Sol Blaine W. Moses Bond Robert* & Sidney Boozer Elinor A. Breman William Breman* James C. Buggs, Sr. Mr. & Mrs. Richard H. Burgin Hugh W. Burke Wilber W. Caldwell Mr. & Mrs. C. Merrell Calhoun Cynthia & Donald Carson Margie & Pierce Cline Dr. & Mrs. Grady Clinkscales, Jr. Dr. John W. Cooledge John R. Donnell Catherine Warren Dukehart Ms. Diane Durgin Kenneth P. Dutter Arnold & Sylvia Eaves Elizabeth Etoll

Rosi & Arnoldo Fiedotin Dr. Emile T. Fisher A. D. Frazier, Jr. Betty & Drew* Fuller Carl & Sally Gable William H. Gaik Mr.* & Mrs. L. L. Gellerstedt, Jr. Ruth Gershon & Sandy Cohn Micheline & Bob Gerson Mr. & Mrs. John T. Glover Robert Hall Gunn, Jr. Billie & Sig* Guthman Betty G.* & Joseph F.* Haas James & Virginia Hale Miss Alice Ann Hamilton* Dr. Charles H. Hamilton* John & Martha Head Ms. Jeannie Hearn Richard E. Hodges Mr. & Mrs. Charles K. Holmes, Jr. Mr.* & Mrs. Fred A. Hoyt, Jr. Dr. & Mrs. James M. Hund Mary B. James Calvert Johnson Herb & Hazel Karp Anne Morgan & Jim Kelley Bob Kinsey

38 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

James W. & Mary Ellen* Kitchell Paul Kniepkamp, Jr. Miss Florence Kopleff Ouida Hayes Lanier Mr. & Mrs. William Lester Liz & Jay* Levine Jane Little Mrs. J. Erskine Love, Jr. Nell Galt & Will D. Magruder K Maier John W. Markham, III Dr. Michael S. McGarry Mr. & Mrs. Richard McGinnis John & Clodagh Miller Mr. & Mrs. Bertil D. Nordin Roger B. Orloff Dr. Bernard & Sandra Palay Bill Perkins Mr. & Mrs. Rezin E. Pidgeon, Jr. Janet M. Pierce Reverend Neal P. Ponder, Jr. William L. & Lucia Fairlie Pulgram The Reiman Foundation Vicki J. & Joe A. Riedel Dr. Shirley E. Rivers Mr. & Mrs. Martin H. Sauser

Mr. Paul S. Scharff & Ms. Polly G. Fraser Edward G. Scruggs* Dr. & Mrs. George P. Sessions Mr. & Mrs. H. Hamilton Smith Mrs. Lessie B. Smithgall Elliott Sopkin Elizabeth Morgan Spiegel Peter James Stelling Barbara Dunbar Stewart* C. Mack* & Mary Rose Taylor Jennings Thompson IV Margaret* & Randolph Thrower Kenneth & Kathleen Tice Steven R. Tunnell Mary E. Van Valkenburgh Mr. & Mrs. John B. White, Jr. Adair & Dick White Hubert H. Whitlow, Jr. Sue & Neil Williams Mrs. Frank L. Wilson, Jr. Joni Winston George & Camille Wright Mr.* & Mrs. Charles R. Yates Anonymous (12) *Deceased

corporate & government support

Classical Series Title Sponsor Classic Chastain Title Sponsor Family and SuperPOPS Presenting Sponsor

Holiday Title Sponsor Muhtar Kent Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer

Richard Anderson Chief Executive Officer

Darryl Harmon Southeast Regional President

Major funding for this organization is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of the Fulton County Arts Council.

Atlanta School of Composers Presenting Sponsor

Supporter of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus

Philip I. Kent Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Jerry Karr Senior Managing Director

This program is supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts (GCA) through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. GCA also receives support from its partner agency, the National Endowment for the Arts

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra programs are supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Major support is provided by the City of Atlanta Office of Cultural Affairs.

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 39

Atlanta Symphony Associates The volunteer organization of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

2011-2012 board Belinda Massafra President Sylvia Davidson President Elect Suzy Wasserman, Leslie Petter, Camille Yow Advisors Elba McCue Secretary

Sabine Sugarman Treasurer Camille Kesler VP Administration Dawn Mullican VP Public Relations Paula Ercolini VP Youth Education Ruth & Paul Marston VP Membership Gayle Lindsay Parliamentarian

Ann Levin & Gail Spurlock Historians Judy Schmidt Nominating Committee Chair Amy Mussara, Chair, Decorators’ Show House & Gardens Natalie Polk & Hillary Inglis Co-Chairs, Decorators’ Show House & Gardens

Janis Eckert, Nancy Fields & Gail Spurlock Chairs, ASA Fall Meeting Poppy Tanner Chair, ASA Night at the ASO Glee Lamb & Adele Abrahamson Chairs, ASA Spring Luncheon Pat King ASA Notes Newsletter Editor Jamie Moussa Chair, ASA Annual Directory

Nancy Levitt Ambassadors’ Desk Helen Marie Rutter Bravo Chair Elba McCue Concerto Chair Joan Abernathy Encore Chair Liz Cohn & Betty Jeter Ensemble Chairs Karen Bunn Intermezzo Chair Whitley Greene Vivace Chair

BRAVO! CRUISIN’ CASINO NIGHT. Members of Bravo!, the young professional volunteer group of the Orchestra, tried their luck at casino game tables while enjoying the smooth sounds of Yacht Rock DJ. From left to right, Ashley Jones, Andy Nickerson, Joe Fischer, and Jonathon Javetz. For more information on Bravo! and other events like these please contact Volunteer Project Manager, Sarah Levin at 404-733-4921

40 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

Patron Circle of Stars By investing $15,000 or more in The Woodruff Arts Center and its divisions — the Alliance Theatre, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, High Museum of Art and Young Audiences — these outstanding Annual Corporate Campaign donors helped us raise more than $8.9 million last year. Thank you!

Chairman’s Council ★★★★★★★★★★★★ $500,000+ The Coca-Cola Company Georgia Power Foundation, Inc. UPS

KPMG LLP, Partners & Employees The Rich Foundation, Inc. Wells Fargo

★★★★★★★ $100,000+ Alston & Bird LLP ★★★★★★★★★★★ Bank of America $450,000+ Kaiser Permanente Cox Interests Atlanta Journal-Constitution, King & Spalding Partners & Employees James M. Cox Foundation, Cox Radio Group Atlanta, The Klaus Family Foundation WSB-TV The Marcus Foundation, Inc. Hon. Anne Cox Chambers The Sara Giles Moore Foundation Novelis Inc. ★★★★★★★★★★ Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. $300,000+ The David, Helen & Marian Deloitte LLP, its Partners Woodward Fund & Employees ★★★★★★★★★ $200,000+ AT&T The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, Inc. Ernst & Young, Partners & Employees The Home Depot Foundation Jones Day Foundation & Employees PwC Partners & Employees Mabel Dorn Reeder Foundation SunTrust Bank Employees & Trusteed Foundations Florence C. & Harry L. English Memorial Fund Greene-Sawtell Foundation SunTrust Foundation Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. ★★★★★★★★ $150,000+ Delta Air Lines, Inc. Equifax Inc. & Employees

★★★★★★ $75,000+ AirTran Airways Holder Construction Company Kilpatrick Townsend The Sartain Lanier Family Foundation, Inc. Regions Financial Corporation ★★★★★ $50,000+ AGL Resources Inc. Lisa & Joe Bankoff Cisco Ann & Jay Davis Doosan Infracore International Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta Frank Jackson Sandy Springs Toyota and Scion Beth & Tommy Holder Newell Rubbermaid Primerica

42 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

Devyne Stephens Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP The Zeist Foundation, Inc. ★★★★ $35,000+ Katharine & Russell Bellman Foundation Bryan Cave LLP Mr. & Mrs. Bradley Currey, Jr. GE Energy Georgia-Pacific The Imlay Foundation, Inc. Invesco PLC Norfolk Southern, Employees & Foundation Siemens Industry, Inc. Alex & Betty Smith Foundation, Inc. Harris A. Smith Frances Wood Wilson Foundation, Inc ★★★ $25,000+ Accenture & Accenture Employees Air Serv Corporation Atlanta Foundation Julie & Jim Balloun BB&T Corporation Laura & Stan Blackburn CIGNA Foundation Cousins Properties Incorporated Crawford & Company Ford & Harrison LLP Jack & Anne Glenn Foundation, Inc. GMT Capital Corporation Infor Global Solutions ING Sarah & Jim Kennedy Philip I. Kent Foundation The Ray M. & Mary Elizabeth Lee Foundation, Inc.

LexisNexis Risk Solutions The Blanche Lipscomb Foundation Macy’s Foundation Katherine John Murphy Foundation Patty & Doug Reid Family Foundation RockTenn SCANA Energy Southwire Company Sprint Foundation Towers Watson Troutman Sanders LLP Waffle House, Inc. Gertrude & William C. Wardlaw Fund ★★ $15,000+ A. E. M. Family Foundation ACE Charitable Foundation AlixPartners Alvarez & Marsal Arnall Golden Gregory LLP The Partners & Employees of Atlanta Equity Investors Atlanta Marriott Marquis Beaulieu Group, LLC Susan R. Bell & Patrick M. Morris The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation The Boston Consulting Group Catherine S. & J. Bradford Branch The Capital Group Companies Charitable Foundation Roxanne & Jeffrey Cashdan Center Family Foundation Mr. Charles Center Mr. & Mrs. Fred Halperin Ms. Charlene Berman

Chartis Chick-fil-A, Inc. CornerCap Investment Counsel Duke Realty Corporation Egon Zehnder International Eisner Family Foundation Feinberg Charitable Trust Fifth Third Bank First Data Corporation Gas South, LLC Genuine Parts Company Georgia Natural Gas Dolores & Javier C. Goizueta Grant Thornton LLP Harland Clarke HD Supply The Howell Fund, Inc. ICS Contract Services, LLC Mr. & Mrs. M. Douglas Ivester Jamestown Mr. & Mrs. Tom O. Jewell Weldon H. Johnson Family Foundation Ingrid Saunders Jones Jones Day Foundation, in honor of James H. Landon Mr. & Mrs. Muhtar Kent Kurt P. Kuehn & Cheryl Davis Lanier Parking Solutions The Latham Foundation Barbara W. & Bertram L. Levy Fund Livingston Foundation, Inc. Karole & John Lloyd Lockheed Martin Marsh-Mercer Mohawk Industries, Inc. & Frank H. Boykin Mueller Water Products, Inc. Gail & Bob O’Leary Vicki R. Palmer

Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP Piedmont Charitable Foundation, Inc. Printpack Inc./The Gay & Erskine Love Foundation Mary & Craig Ramsey Mr. & Mrs. David M. Ratcliffe Emily Winship Scott Foundation Skanska USA Building Inc. Spencer Stuart Karen & John Spiegel Superior Essex Inc. Sysco Atlanta United Distributors, Inc. WATL/WXIA/Gannett Foundation Sue & John Wieland Mr. & Mrs. James B. Williams Sue & Neil Williams Carla & Leonard Wood The Xerox Foundation Yancey Bros. Co. Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. Yellowlees *Annual Campaign Donors from June 1, 2010 May 31, 2011

encoreatlanta.com/Atlanta’s Performing Arts Publication 43

Continued from page 22

“We really enjoy working with Donald,” said Nick Jones, a longtime member of the Chorus and the Orchestra’s former Program Annotator. “[His] fluid conducting style, his songful interpretations, his idiosyncratic left-handed baton … we love

Robert and this Orchestra have gone by so quickly,” Mr. Runnicles said. “It’s been a unique, joyous, utterly inspiring synergy that Robert and I have enjoyed, and I’ve loved and treasured the partnership. The challenges and achievements over the years have been considerable. What a joy and privilege to belong to the Atlanta family.”

“ The excitement and fulfillment of working with Robert Spano and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra deepens for me each year” his piercing Scottish gaze and his lilting brogue. We accompanied him to Germany three times, allowing us to build a terrific relationship with the Berlin Philharmonic.

And of course, we joyfully anticipate each time he works with us in Atlanta.”

Reminiscing about the Chorus’s performance of the Berlioz Requiem with the Berlin players in 2008, Mr. Runnicles said, “When the Chorus began to sing without accompaniment, the orchestra all turned around. The collective look on their faces was one of the most moving things I have ever seen.” Most recently, Mr. Runnicles and the Chorus performed Brahms’s A German Requiem with the German orchestra in 2009.

And the creative partnership? “It’s hard to believe 10 years of collaborating with 44 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

For more than a decade, Mr. Spano and Mr. Runnicles have helped shape musical perspective and programming within the Atlanta Symphony and throughout the country. Under their leadership, the Orchestra has been acknowledged as a hub of creativity through performances, presentations, and learning forums, all inspired by the work of this dynamic artistic team.

“The excitement and fulfillment of working with Robert and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra deepens for me each year,” explained Mr. Runnicles.

And the feeling is mutual. Of the creative partnership, Mr. Spano said, “To have been able to have this journey here with Donald has been one of the joys of my life. We have a wonderful professional friendship and I’m very blessed.”

“With Robert and with Donald, it’s sometimes easy to forget — until we read about them in the New York Times or some other place — that these are two international superstars who are completely at home here in Atlanta,” said Atlanta Symphony Orchestra President Stanley E. Romanstein. “We’re incredibly fortunate to have him.”

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community corner a moment with

Monica…

Meet Monica Caldwell, a sophomore at Shiloh High School. The 15-year-old violist is in her third year as a member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Talent Development Program and her second season with the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra. Monica attributes her success as a musician to what she has gained through these student musician training programs.

When did you start playing the viola?

When I was in sixth grade, I joined my school orchestra and I had no idea what a viola was — or that it even existed! I actually had my mind set on playing the bass, but after trying it I decided I wanted to play the cello instead. I thought I had finally made up my mind, but as soon as the orchestra teacher played a few notes on the viola, I was intrigued and quickly changed my decision.

It was love at first sight!

What made you decide to become involved with the Orchestra’s student musician training programs?

In my seventh grade year, I was improving on my instrument much faster than my peers. I would spend hours practicing and the extra time I dedicated to my viola became evident very quickly through the 46 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

improved quality of my playing. At that point, my music teacher recommended me for the Talent Development Program (TDP). I was really excited about the opportunity, but I had no idea how significantly it would impact my life and what kind of musician I was yet to become.

So, how has it impacted you?

My whole perception of playing the viola is completely different than when I began in my small sixth-grade orchestra. After being accepted into the TDP program, I began studying privately with Atlanta Symphony violist Lachlan McBane. He has encouraged me to always be very thoughtful about what I’m playing. Nothing about playing an instrument is careless, and everything in music has meaning. I started incorporating that concept into my music, and my playing has never been the same since.

I’ve also been incredibly fortunate to have a wonderful mentor, harpist Angelic Hairston, who graduated from the Talent Development Program last spring. As an older member of the program, Angelica was one of the first students to reach out to me, and I was incredibly inspired by how much she had already accomplished at such a young age. I hope to accomplish just as much as she did in her five years in TDP! She’s now studying music in Canada, but I still make time to keep in touch with her. Even though she’s far away, she still encourages me to take my music to the next level.

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Do you hope to mentor younger students?

Yes! I aspire to be a performer, but I also hope to inspire someone the way I was first inspired to play the viola and pursue a career in music.

One of the “perks” of being a member of the TDP is the opportunity to study at prestigious summer music festivals.

What have your experiences been like?

During the past two summers, I have attended Interlochen Arts Academy and Credo Chamber Music Camp at Oberlin Conservatory. My quick musical progress simply would not have been possible without these summer programs. I had the opportunity to study with two of the best viola teachers in the world — David Holland and Peter Slowik — and they truly shaped my technique and helped me develop my mature sound. Sometimes I would get a little homesick, but I knew that being away from home, and away from so many distractions, was the best way for me to focus on my musical development.

And you’re also a member of the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra?

Yep! Last year was my first season with the Youth Orchestra. It was a great experience and really pushed me musically and mentally because the music was so challenging! I remember sightreading through a piece of music at the first rehearsal and not being able to play any of it, and I realized that I

had a lot of work to do to keep up with such an amazing group of students!

What do you like most about the Youth Orchestra?

Viola sectionals are always the highlight of rehearsal for me. It’s always interesting having a room full of 14 violists! Our coach is Cathy Lynn, an Atlanta Symphony violist, and she always gives us “hot viola tips.” Her guidance helps us work through the hardest sections of the repertoire so we can be at our very best when we perform on the Atlanta Symphony Hall stage!

Additionally, I truly appreciate being able to play in a full orchestra on a regular basis — it’s an opportunity that I don’t have with my school music program. I also benefit from being around my Youth Orchestra colleagues because we share a love of music and a similar motivation and drive.

If your life could turn out just the way you wanted, what would you be doing in 10 or 15 years?

I would love to have graduated from a prestigious music school and be a professional musician with a nationallyrecognized orchestra. I haven’t really thought about the specifics because I still have three years to figure everything out!

But this is what I do know: My life without music would be a life without passion, and I can’t ever imagine not having music, or the viola, in my life. I’m incredibly grateful to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for making my career as a violist possible!

Edited and condensed

by Kimberly Nogi.

48

calendar

The Amazing Montero February 2/3/4 Delta Classical Thu/Fri/Sat: 8pm Ravel: Mother Goose Suite Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3 Dvo˘rák: Symphony No. 8 Thomas Wilkins, conductor Gabriela Montero, piano

Radiant Mozart, Passionate Elgar February 16/17/19 Delta Classical Thu/Fri: 8pm/Sun: 3pm Wagner: Prelude to Die Meistersinger Elgar: Cello Concerto Mozart: “Haffner” Symphony R. Strauss: Der Rosenkavalier Suite

PHISH PHANS! Roberto Minczuk, conductor February 9 Special Johannes Moser, cello Thu: 8pm sold out!

Trey Anastasio Symphony Gala February 18 and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Sat: 7:30pm Botti’s back!

Bernadette Peters February 10/11 SuperPOPS! Shimmering Josefowicz Fri/Sat: 8pm February 23/25 Delta Classical Chris Botti & band Thu/Sat: 8pm Cinderella Haydn: Overture to February 12 Family Concert L’Isola disabitata Sun: 1:30pm & 3:30pm Thomas AdÈs: Violin Concerto the fabled Cinderella Wagner: Lohengrin Jere Flint, conductor Prelude to Act One Enchantment Theatre Company Debussy: La mer James Gaffigan, conductor Leila Josefowicz, violin

404.733.5000 | aso.org Woodruff Arts Center Box Office @15th and Peachtree Make it a group! 404.733.4848 Presented by:

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Special Gala Concert! with members of the Orchestra February 18 Sat: 8pm | Atlanta Symphony Hall

Bernadette Peters

The dazzling superstar Bernadette Peters, winner of multi Tony (Follies, Gypsy, A Little Night Music) and Grammy awards, lights up the 2nd annual Symphony Gala benefitting the Orchestra’s education and community programs. Tickets starting at $35 on sale now!

“As an actress, singer, comedienne and winning presence, Bernadette Peters has no peer…”

aso.org | 404.733.5000 Woodruff Arts Center Box Office @15th and Peachtree

– Frank Rich, NY Times

staff Administrative Staff Executive Stanley E. Romanstein, Ph.D. President Brien Faucett Assistant to the President

EDUCATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Mark B. Kent Senior Director of Education & Community Engagement Melanie Darby Director of Education Programming Ahmad Mayes Community Programs Coordinator Nicole Bird Education Program Coordinator Janice Crews Professional Learning Teaching Artist Tiffany I.M. Jones Education Sales Associate

ASO Presents (cont.)

MARKETING & CONCERT PROMOTIONS Charles Wade Vice President Verizon Wireless for Marketing Amphitheatre at & Symphony Pops ADMINISTRATION Encore Park Alesia Banks John Sparrow Katie Daniel Director of Customer Vice President VIP Sales Manager Service & Season Tickets for Orchestra Initiatives Jenny Pollock & General Manager Ted Caldwell Operations Manager Group & Corporate Mala Sharma Sales Assistant Rebecca Simmons Assistant to the Box Office Manager Vice President Meko Hector for Orchestra Initiatives Marketing Production Deborah Honan & General Manager Manager Customer Service Manager & Venue Rental Coordinator Jennifer Jefferson Julianne Fish Orchestra Manager Director of e-Business & Interactive Media Nancy Crowder DEVELOPMENT Operations/Rental Melanie Kite Sandy Smith Events Coordinator Subscription Vice President Office Manager Russell Williamson for Development Orchestra Personnel Shelby Moody FINANCE & Rebecca Abernathy Manager Group & Corporate ADMINISTRATION Development Services Sales Manager Susanne Watts Coordinator Donald F. Fox Assistant Orchestra Seth Newcom Executive Vice President Zachary Brown Personnel Manager Database Administrator for Business Operations Director of Paul Barrett & Chief Financial Officer Kimberly Nogi Volunteer Services Senior Production Publicist Shannon McCown Corey Cowart Stage Manager Assistant to the Robert Phipps Director of Richard Carvlin Executive Vice President Publications Director Corporate Relations Stage Manager for Business Operations Melissa A. E. Sanders Janina Edwards & Chief Financial Officer Lela Huff Senior Director, Grants Consultant Assistant Stage Manager Susan Ambo Communications Tegan Ketchie Vice President of Finance Christine Saunders Development Coordinator Artistic Kim Hielsberg Group & Corporate Ashley Krausen Evans Mirageas Director of Financial Sales Associate Special Events Coordinator Director of Artistic Planning Planning & Analysis Karl Schnittke Sarah Levin Carol Wyatt April Satterfield Publications Editor Volunteer Project Manager Executive Assistant Senior Accountant Robin Smith Stephanie Malhotra to the Music Director Peter Dickson Subscription Director of Development & Principal Guest Staff Accountant & Education Sales & Education Services Conductor Michael Richardson Bill Tarulli Melissa Muntz Jeffrey Baxter Venues Analyst Marketing Manager Development Coordinator Choral Administrator Stephen Jones Rachel Trignano Barbara Saunders Ken Meltzer Symphony Store Manager Manager of Director of ASO Insider Broad Based Giving Foundation Relations ASO Presents & Program Annotator Russell Wheeler Meredith Schnepp Clay Schell Director of Group Vice President, Programming Prospect Research Officer & Corporate Sales Tammie Taylor Trevor Ralph Christina Wood General Manager and Senior Assistant to the Director of Marketing Director of Operations VP for Development Holly Clausen Sarah Zabinski Director of Marketing Individual Giving Manager Keri Musgraves Promotions Manager Lisa Eng Graphic Artist

54 Atlanta Symphony Orchestra/aso.org

Chastain Park Amphitheater Tanner Smith Program Director

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general info LATE SEATING Latecomers are seated at the discretion of house management. Reserved seats are not guaranteed after the performance starts. Latecomers may be initially seated in the back out of courtesy to the musicians and other patrons.

SPECIAL ASSISTANCE All programs of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra are accessible to people with disabilities. Please call the box office (404.733.5000) to make advance arrangements.

SYMPHONY STORE The ASO’s gift shop is located in the galleria and offers a wide variety of items, ranging from ASO recordings and music-related merchandise to T-shirts and mugs. Proceeds benefit the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

THE ROBERT SHAW ROOM The ASO invites donors who contribute at least $1,750 annually to become members of this private salon for cocktails and dining on concert evenings — private rentals available. Call 404.733.4860.

IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS Concert Hotline 404.733.4949 (Recorded information) Symphony Hall Box Office 404.733.5000 Ticket Donations/Exchanges 404.733.5000 Subscription Information/Sales 404.733.4800 Group Sales 404.733.4848 Atlanta Symphony Associates 404.733.4865 (Volunteers) Educational Programs 404.733.4870 Youth Orchestra 404.733.5038 Box Office TTD Number 404.733.4303 Services for People 404.733-5000 with Special Needs 404.733.4800 Lost and Found 404.733.4225 Symphony Store 404.733.4345

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ticket info CAN’T ATTEND A CONCERT? If you can’t use or exchange your tickets, please pass them on to friends or return them to the box office for resale. To donate tickets, please phone 404.733.5000 before the concert begins. A receipt will be mailed to you in January acknowledging the value of all tickets donated for resale during the year.

SINGLE TICKETS Call 404.733.5000 Mon.—Fri., 10 a.m.– 8 p.m.; Sat.–Sun., Noon–8 p.m. Service charge applies. Phone orders are filled on a best-available basis. www.atlantasymphony.org Order any time, any day! Service charge applies. Allow two to three weeks for delivery. For orders received less than two

weeks prior to the concert, tickets will be held at the box office.

Woodruff Arts Center Box Office Mon.–Fri., 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.; Sat.–Sun., noon–8 p.m. The box office is open through intermission on concert dates. No service charge if tickets are purchased in person.

Please note: All single-ticket sales are final.

No refunds or exchanges. All artists and programs subject to change.

GROUP DISCOUNTS Groups of 10 or more save up to 15 percent on most ASO concerts, subject to ticket availability. Call 404.733.4848.

GIFT CERTIFICATES Available in any amount for any series, through the box office. Call 404.733.5000.

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gallery

Giving voice & the gift of music

1 SHOUT, SISTER, SHOUT! Richardine Holmes feels it during the Orchestra’s annual Gospel Christmas performances in early December.

2 MUSICAL BALM Violinists Sandy Salzinger and Ruth Ann Little and bassist Gloria Jones and violist Yang-Yoon Kim (not pictured) perform holiday music at the Arbor Terrace assisted living community last month. Orchestra musicians share music with over 2000 senior citizens annually.

1

2

Ahmad Mayes

3 SANTA’S LITTLE HELPERS “ASO Kid’s Christmas” joyfully lived up to its name.

60

Erik Dixon

Jeff Roffman

3

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