InTune | May 2023

InTUNE

Broadway Hits Go to Hollywood

Fairy Tales for Kids! Tchaikovsky 6 Stravinsky

Oedipus Rex

welcome to the houston symphony

Dear Music Lovers,

I can’t believe another season here at the Houston Symphony is already drawing to a close. And what a remarkable season it’s been. It feels like it was just yesterday that we welcomed our new Music Director, Juraj Valčuha, with that unforgettable Verdi Requiem and kicked off the Bank of America POPS Series with Steven Reineke and Cirque de la Symphonie.

And now we finish off the season with Juraj leading two extraordinary programs—a tribute to former Houston Symphony Music Director Sir John Barbirolli, with an exact recreation of one of his programs featuring music by Creston, Prokofiev, and Tchaikovsky (May 12–14), and a concert staging of Stravinsky’s monumental opera-oratorio Oedipus rex, one of his most impressive and moving works (May 19–20). Before that, we welcome back Lucas Waldin to finish off the Bank of America POPS series with Broadway Hits Go to Hollywood (May 5–7).

I hope we’ll see you at one or more of our many summer venues—the coming months find the Symphony at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts for The Music of Queen, as well as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone™ in Concert, and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope in concert, both live to film. We’ll also be at Miller Outdoor Theatre for two weeks of concerts plus the return of our special Fourth of July performance, the Cynthia Woods

Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands, Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land, and communities throughout Greater Houston for our annual series of free summer neighborhood concerts. You can head to the “Concerts & Tickets” section on our website for more information.

The end of our season also means the final push to reach our annual fundraising goal. Two-thirds of our funding comes from donations from people like you, our subscribers and single ticket buyers. Every gift makes a difference, and, this May only, every new and increased gift will be matched dollar for dollar thanks to the inspiring generosity of Symphony Board Chair Janet F. Clark, who has given us a $100,000 challenge grant. Thank you so much to each of you for helping us end the season on a strong note. We are deeply grateful for your support.

And, of course, our 2023–24 Season will be here before you know it, with more Juraj, more Steven, and more incredible music-making from the exceptional musicians who make up your Houston Symphony. Thank you, as always, for joining us at Jones Hall, and I hope you enjoy your concert.

All my best,

Executive Director/CEO

Margaret Alkek Williams Chair

your symphony experience

JONES HALL

Since the opening of Jones Hall in 1966, millions of arts patrons have enjoyed countless musical and stage performances at the venue. Dominating an entire city block, Jones Hall features a stunning travertine marble facade, 66-foot ceilings, and a brilliantly lit grand entrance. Jones Hall is a monument to the memory of Jesse Holman Jones, a towering figure in Houston during the first half of the 20 th century.

CONCERT DISRUPTION

We strive to provide the best possible auditory experience of our world-class orchestra. Noise from phones, candy wrappers, and talking is distracting to the performers on stage and those around you. Please help us make everyone’s concert enjoyable by silencing electronic devices now and remaining quiet during the performance.

FOOD & DRINK POLICY

The Encore Café and in-hall bars are open for Symphony performances, and food and drink will be permitted in bar areas. Food is not permitted inside the auditorium. Patrons may bring drinks into the auditorium for Bank of America POPS Series concerts and Symphony Specials. Drinks are not permitted inside the auditorium for Classical concerts.

LOST & FOUND

For lost and found inquiries, please contact Patron Experience Coordinator Freddie Piegsa during the performance. He also can be reached at freddie.piegsa@houstonsymphony.org. You also may contact Houston First after the performances at 832.487.7050

ETIQUETTE

For Classical concerts, if a work has several movements it is traditional to hold applause until the end of the last movement. If you are unsure when a piece ends, check the program or wait for the conductor to face the audience. If you feel truly inspired, however, do not be afraid to applaud!

CHILDREN

Children ages six and up are welcome to all Classical, Bank of America POPS, and Symphony Special concerts. Children of all ages are welcome at PNC Family Series performances. Children must have a ticket for all ticketed events.

LATE SEATING

Each performance typically allows for late seating, which is scheduled in intervals and determined by the conductor. Our ushers and Patron Experience Coordinator will instruct you on when late seating is allowed.

TICKETS

Subscribers to six or more Classical or Bank of America POPS concerts, as well as PNC Family Subscribers, may exchange their tickets at no cost. Tickets to Symphony Specials or single ticket purchases are ineligible for exchange or refund. If you are unable to make a performance, your ticket may be donated prior to the concert for a tax-donation receipt. Donations and exchanges may be made in person, over the phone, or online.

Juraj valČuha

Conductor Juraj Valčuha is recognized for his effortless expressiveness and depth of musicianship. With sharp baton technique and natural stage presence, the impressive ease of his interpretations translate even the most complex scores into immersive experiences. His profound understanding of composer and score, taste, and naturally elegant style make him one of the most sought-after conductors of his generation.

Since 2016, Valčuha has been music director of the Teatro di San Carlo, Naples, and first guest conductor of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin. He was chief conductor of the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI from 2009 to 2016.

The 2005–06 Season marked the start of his international career with exciting concerts on the podium of the Orchestre National de France followed by remarkable debuts in the U.K. with the Philharmonia London, in Germany with the Munich Philharmonic, and in the United States with the Pittsburgh Symphony. His Italian debut took place at Teatro Comunale in Bologna with a sensational production of La bohème.

He has since led the Berlin Philharmonic, Dresden Staatskapelle, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra,

Frankfurt Radio Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, the NDR Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Vienna Symphony, Czech Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Symphony, Orchestre de Paris, Orchestre National de France, BBC Symphony, Philharmonia London, Amsterdam Royal Concertgebouw, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Maggio Musicale in Florence, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Milan’s Filarmonica della Scala, Montréal Symphony, and NHK and Yomiuri orchestras in Tokyo. His active career in the United States has taken him to the orchestras of Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, St. Louis, and Utah. He enjoys regular collaborations with orchestras in Houston, Minnesota, New York, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco.

International touring with the Orchestra Sinfonica della RAI took them to the Musikverein in Vienna and the Philharmonie in Berlin, as well as Cologne, Düsseldorf, Zurich, Basel, and Munich, and to the Enesco Festival in Bucharest and the Abu Dhabi Classics. He has also toured with the Konzerthaus Orchester Berlin to Riga, Vilnius, and Tallinn to mark the 100 th anniversary of the Baltic nations.

Music Director Roy and Lillie Cullen Chair

Valčuha champions the compositions of living composers and aims to program contemporary pieces in most of his concerts. He has conducted world premieres, including Christopher Rouses’s Supplica with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Steven Mackey’s violin concerto with Leila Josefowicz and the BBC Symphony in Manchester, and Nico Muhly’s Bright Idea with the Houston Symphony. In 2005, he conducted, in the presence of the composer, Steve Reich’s Four Sections at the Melos-Ethos Festival in Bratislava. Other composers he has supported and continues to follow with interest are Bryce Dessner, Andrew Norman, Luca Francesconi, James MacMillan, and Steven Stucky, among others.

On the opera stage, he has conducted Madama Butterfly, Elisir d‘amore, and Marriage of Figaro at the Bavarian State Opera Munich; Elektra and Turandot

at the Deutsche Oper Berlin; Faust and The Love for Three Oranges in Florence; Jenůfa, Peter Grimes, Salome, Tristan und Isolde, and Ariadne auf Naxos in Bologna; Peter Grimes in Venice; and Elektra, Carmen, Bluebeard’s Castle, Die Walküre, The Girl of the Golden West, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Katja Kabanova, and Pique Dame in Naples.

Juraj Valčuha was awarded the Premio Abbiati 2018 from Italian Music critics in the Best Conductor category.

His engagements in the 2022–23 Season take him to the Houston, Pittsburgh and San Francisco orchestras, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, and the Orchestre National de France. He conducts Verdi’s Don Carlo at Teatro San Carlo in Naples, and La bohème and Tristan und Isolde at the Bavarian State Opera Munich.

Born in Bratislava, Slovakia, Juraj studied composition and conducting in his birth place, then at the Conservatory in St. Petersburg (with Ilya Musin), and finally, at the Conservatoire Supérieur de la Musique in Paris.

jurajvalcuha.com

ORCHESTRA ROSTER

Juraj Valčuha

Music Director

Roy and Lillie Cullen Chair

FIRST VIOLIN

Yoonshin Song, Concertmaster

Max Levine Chair

Eric Halen, Co-Concertmaster

Ellen E. Kelley Chair

Qi Ming, Assistant Concertmaster

Fondren Foundation Chair

Marina Brubaker

Tong Yan

MiHee Chung

Sophia Silivos

Rodica Gonzalez

Ferenc Illenyi

Si-Yang Lao

Kurt Johnson*

Christopher Neal

Sergei Galperin

Julia Schilz+

SECOND VIOLIN

MuChen Hsieh, Principal

Amy Semes, Associate Principal

Annie Kuan-Yu Chen

Mihaela Frusina

Jing Zheng

Martha Chapman*

Tianjie Lu*

Anastasia Ehrlich

Tina Zhang

Boson Mo

Teresa Wang+

Samuel Park+

VIOLA

Joan DerHovsepian, Acting Principal

Wei Jiang, Acting Associate Principal

Sheldon Person

Fay Shapiro

Keoni Bolding

Samuel Pedersen

Meredith Harris+

Suzanne LeFevre+

CELLO

Brinton Averil Smith, Principal

Janice H. and Thomas D. Barrow Chair

Christopher French

Associate Principal

Anthony Kitai

Louis-Marie Fardet

Jeffrey Butler

Maki Kubota

Xiao Wong

Charles Seo

Jeremy Kreutz

COMMUNITY-EMBEDDED

MUSICIANS

David Connor, double bass

Rainel Joubert, violin

ASSOCIATE LIBRARIAN

Luke Bryson

ASSISTANT LIBRARIAN

Hae-a Lee

Steven Reineke, Principal POPS Conductor

Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Conductor Laureate

Yue Bao, Ting Tsung and Wei Fong Chao Foundation

Assistant Conductor

Allen Hightower, Director Houston Symphony Chorus

DOUBLE BASS

Robin Kesselman, Principal

Timothy Dilenschneider, Associate Principal

Mark Shapiro

Eric Larson

Andrew Pedersen

Burke Shaw

Donald Howey

FLUTE

Aralee Dorough, Principal General Maurice Hirsch Chair

Matthew Roitstein* Associate Principal

Judy Dines Acting Associate Principal

Mark Teplitsky+

Kathryn Ladner

PICCOLO

Kathryn Ladner

OBOE

Jonathan Fischer, Principal Lucy Binyon Stude Chair

Anne Leek, Associate Principal

Colin Gatwood

Adam Dinitz

ENGLISH HORN

Adam Dinitz

CLARINET

Mark Nuccio, Principal

Bobbie Nau Chair

Thomas LeGrand, Associate Principal

Christian Schubert

Alexander Potiomkin

E-FLAT CLARINET

Thomas LeGrand

BASS CLARINET

Alexander Potiomkin

Tassie and Constantine

S. Nicandros Chair

BASSOON

Rian Craypo, Principal

Isaac Schultz, Associate Principal

Elise Wagner

Adam Trussell

STAGE PERSONNEL

Stefan Stout, Stage Manager

José Rios, Assistant Stage Manager

Nicholas DiFonzo and Justin Herriford, Stage Technicians

Giancarlo Minotti, Recording Assistant

CONTRABASSOON

Adam Trussell

HORN

William VerMeulen, Principal

Mr. and Mrs. Alexander K. McLanahan

Endowed Chair

Robert Johnson, Associate Principal

Brian Thomas

Ian Mayton

Jesse Clevenger+

David Raschella+

TRUMPET

Mark Hughes, Principal

George P. and Cynthia Woods

Mitchell Chair

John Parker, Associate Principal

Robert Walp, Assistant Principal

Richard Harris

TROMBONE

Bradley White, Acting Principal

Ryan Rongone+

Phillip Freeman

BASS TROMBONE

Phillip Freeman

TUBA

Dave Kirk, Principal

TIMPANI

Leonardo Soto, Principal

Matthew Strauss, Associate Principal

PERCUSSION

Brian Del Signore, Principal

Mark Griffith

Matthew Strauss

HARP (Vacant)

KEYBOARD

Scott Holshouser, Principal

LIBRARIAN

Jeanne Case, Principal

*on leave + contracted substitute

MADE WITH 100% AGAVE & VOLCANIC SPRING WATER MADE WITH 100% AGAVE & VOLCANIC SPRING WATER

Unanimously granted the coveted “Best in Show” and “Double Gold” awards by 41 judges in a blind taste test of 88 top tequila brands at the most prestigious spirits competition in the world!

June 6-24, 2023 at the Moores School of Music

Sharon Ley Lietzow Piano Series

Tuesdays, 7:30 pm, Dudley Recital Hall

• June 6 Vadym Kholodenko Recital

• June 13 Awadagin Pratt Recital

• June 20 Amy Yang Recital

Faculty Chamber Music Series

Thursdays, 7:30 pm, Dudley Recital Hall

• June 8, 15, 22

Festival Orchestra Series

Saturdays, 7:30 pm, Moores Opera House

• June 10 Franz Anton Krager, conductor Vadym Kholodenko, piano soloist

• June 17 Gerard Schwarz, conductor

• June 24 Andrew Grams, conductor Mitchell–Hogg Competition Winner, soloist

Cynthia Woods Mitchell–Ima Hogg

Young Artist Competition Final Round

• Sunday, June 11, 2 pm, Dudley Recital Hall

SOCIETY BOARD OF TRUSTEES

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

John Rydman President

Janet F. Clark Chair

Barbara J. Burger President-Elect

Mike S. Stude Chairman Emeritus

Paul Morico General Counsel

Barbara McCelvey Secretary

John Mangum^ Executive Director/CEO

Margaret Alkek Williams Chair

Jonathan Ayre Chair, Finance

Brad W. Corson Chair, Governance & Leadership

Manuel Delgado Chair, Marketing & Communications

Evan B. Glick Chair, Popular Programming

Lidiya Gold Chair, Development

Sippi Khurana Chair, Education

GOVERNING DIRECTORS

Jonathan Ayre

Marcia Backus

Gary Beauchamp

Tony Bradfield

Eric D. Brueggeman

Bill Bullock

Barbara J. Burger

Janet F. Clark

Lidiya Gold

Claudio J. Gutiérrez

William D. Hunt

Rick Jaramillo

Sippi Khurana, M.D.

Mary Lynn Marks Chair, Volunteers & Special Events

Robert Orr Chair, Strategic Planning

Ed Schneider Chair, Community Partnerships

Miles O. Smith Chair, Artistic & Orchestra Affairs

Jesse B. Tutor Chair, Audit

Steven P. Mach ^ Immediate Past Chairman

Bobby Tudor^ At-Large Member

Cheryl Byington^ President, Houston Symphony League

James H. Lee^ President, Houston Symphony Endowment

Juraj Valčuha^ Music Director, Roy and Lillie Cullen Chair

Joan DerHovsepian^ Musician Representative

Mark Hughes^ Musician Representative

Adam Trussell^ Musician Representative

Mark Nuccio^ Musician Representative

Sherry Rodriguez^ Assistant Secretary

Carey Kirkpatrick

Kenny Kurtzman

Cindy Levit

Isabel Stude Lummis

Cora Sue Mach**

Rodney Margolis**

Jay Marks**

Mary Lynn Marks

Elissa Martin

Barbara McCelvey

Paul R. Morico

Robert Orr

Chris Powers

John Rydman**

Miles O. Smith

Anthony Speier

William J. Toomey II

Bobby Tudor**

Betty Tutor**

Jesse B. Tutor**

Judith Vincent

Gretchen Watkins

Robert Weiner

Margaret Alkek Williams**

EX-OFFICIO

Cheryl Byington

Brad W. Corson

Manuel Delgado

Joan DerHovsepian

Evan B. Glick

Mark Hughes

James H. Lee

Steven P. Mach

John Mangum

Mark Nuccio

Sherry Rodriguez

Ed Schneider

Adam Trussell

Juraj Valčuha

TRUSTEES

David J. Beck

James M. Bell Jr.

Devinder Bhatia, M.D.

Carrie Brandsberg-Dahl

Lindsay Buchanan

Nancy Shelton Bratic

Ralph Burch

Terry Ann Brown**

Dougal Cameron

John T. Cater**

Robert Chanon

Michael H. Clark

Virginia Clark

Evan D. Collins, M.D., MBA

Brad W. Corson

Andrew Davis, Ph.D.

Denise Davis

Manuel Delgado

Tracy Dieterich

Bob Duff

Joan Duff

Connie Dyer

Jeffrey B. Firestone

Eugene A. Fong

Aggie L. Foster

Julia Anderson Frankel

Ronald G. Franklin

Carolyn Gaidos

Evan B. Glick

Gary L. Hollingsworth

Stephen Incavo, M.D.

Brian James

I. Ray Kirk, M.D.

David Krieger

Andrew Go Lee, M.D.

Ulyesse J. LeGrange**

Matthew Loden

Steven P. Mach

Michael Mann, M.D.

Jack Matzer

PAST PRESIDENTS OF THE HOUSTON SYMPHONY SOCIETY

Mrs. Edwin B. Parker

Miss Ima Hogg

Mrs. H. M. Garwood

Joseph A. Mullen, M.D.

Joseph S. Smith

Walter H. Walne

H. R. Cullen

Gen. Maurice Hirsch

Charles F. Jones

Fayez Sarofim

John T. Cater

Richard G. Merrill

Ellen Elizardi Kelley

John D. Platt

E.C. Vandagrift Jr.

J. Hugh Roff Jr.

PAST PRESIDENTS OF THE HOUSTON SYMPHONY LEAGUE

Miss Ima Hogg

Mrs. John F. Grant

Mrs. J. R. Parten

Mrs. Andrew E. Rutter

Mrs. Aubrey Leno Carter

Mrs. Stuart Sherar

Mrs. Julian Barrows

Ms. Hazel Ledbetter

Mrs. Albert P. Jones

Mrs. Ben A. Calhoun

Mrs. James Griffith Lawhon

Mrs. Olaf LaCour Olsen

Mrs. Ralph Ellis Gunn

Mrs. Leon Jaworski

Mrs. Garrett R. Tucker Jr.

Mrs. M. T. Launius Jr.

Mrs. Thompson McCleary

Mrs. Theodore W. Cooper

Mrs. Allen W. Carruth

Mrs. David Hannah Jr.

Mary Louis Kister

Mrs. Edward W. Kelley Jr.

Mrs. John W. Herndon

Mrs. Charles Franzen

Mrs. Harold R. DeMoss Jr.

Mrs. Edward H. Soderstrom

Mrs. Lilly Kucera Andress

Ms. Marilou Bonner

Mrs. W. Harold Sellers

Mrs. Harry H. Gendel

Mrs. Robert M. Eury

Mrs. E. C. Vandagrift Jr.

Mrs. J. Stephen Marks

Terry Ann Brown

FOUNDATION FOR JONES HALL REPRESENTATIVES

Dougal A. Cameron

Janet F. Clark

Jackie Wolens Mazow

Alexander K. McLanahan**

Marilyn Miles

Shane A. Miller

Aprill Nelson

Tammy Tran Nguyen

Leslie Nossaman

Scott Nyquist

Edward Osterberg Jr.

Zeljko Pavlovic

David Pruner

Gloria G. Pryzant

Miwa Sakashita

Ed Schneider

Helen Shaffer**

Robert B. Sloan, D.D., Theol.

Jim R. Smith

Quentin Smith

Mike S. Stude **

Ishwaria Subbiah, M.D.

Shirley W. Toomim

Margaret Waisman, M.D.

Fredric A. Weber

Mrs. S. Conrad Weil

Vicki West

Steven J. Williams

David J. Wuthrich

Ellen A. Yarrell

Robert Yekovich

EX-OFFICIO

John Steven Cisneros, Ed.D.

Juan Zane Crawford

Kusum Patel

Frank F. Wilson IV **Lifetime Trustee

Robert M. Hermance

Gene McDavid

Janice H. Barrow

Barry C. Burkholder

Rodney H. Margolis

Jeffrey B. Early

Michael E. Shannon

Ed Wulfe

Jesse B. Tutor

Robert B. Tudor III

Robert A. Peiser

Steven P. Mach

Janet F. Clark

Nancy Strohmer

Mary Ann McKeithan

Ann Cavanaugh

Mrs. James A. Shaffer

Lucy H. Lewis

Catherine McNamara

Shirley McGregor Pearson

Paula Jarrett

Cora Sue Mach

Kathi Rovere

Norma Jean Brown

Barbara McCelvey

Lori Sorcic Jansen

Nancy B. Willerson

Jane Clark

Nancy Littlejohn

Donna Shen

Barbara McCelvey

Dr. Susan Snider Osterberg

Dr. Kelli Cohen Fein

Vicki West

Mrs. Jesse Tutor

Darlene Clark

Beth Wolff

Maureen Higdon

Fran Fawcett Peterson

Leslie Siller

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

SENIOR MANAGEMENT GROUP

John Mangum, Executive Director/CEO, Margaret Alkek Williams Chair

Elizabeth S. Condic, Chief Financial Officer

Vicky Dominguez, Chief Operating Officer

Nancy Giles, Chief Development Officer

Gwen Watkins, Chief Marketing and External Relations Officer

DEVELOPMENT

Lauren Buchanan, Development Communications Manager

Alex Canales, Development Ticket Concierge

Timothy Dillow, Senior Director, Development

Amanda T. Dinitz, Senior Major Gifts Officer

Zitlaly Jimenez, Annual Fund Manager

Hadia Mawlawi, Senior Associate, Endowment and Planned Giving

Meghan Miller, Special Events Associate

Emilie Moellmer, Development Associate, Gifts & Records

Tim Richey, Director, Individual Giving

Sherry Rodriguez, Corporate Relations Manager & Board Liaison

Katie Salvatore, Development Officer

Christine Ann Stevens, Senior Director, Development

Lena Streetman, Manager, Research and Development Operations

Stacey Swift, Director, Special Events

Sarah Thompson, Institutional Giving Associate

Christina Trunzo, Director, Foundation Relations

Alexa Ustaszewski, Major Gifts Officer

FINANCE | ADMINISTRATION | IT | HR

Henry Cantu, Finance Accountant

Kimberly Cegielski, Staff Accountant

Tiffany Gentry, Junior System Administrator

Richard Jackson, Database Administrator

Joel James, Director of Human Resources

Tanya Lovetro, Director of Budgeting and Financial Reporting

Morgana Rickard, Controller

Gabriela Rivera, Senior Accountant

Pam Romo, Office Manager/HR Coordinator

Lee Whatley, Senior Director, IT and Analytics

MARKETING | EXTERNAL RELATIONS

Education and Community Engagement

Jarrett Bastow, Education Manager

Pam Blaine, Chief of Education and Community Engagement

Allison Conlan, Director, Community Engagement

Jennifer Lanham, Student Concerts Coordinator

Marketing and Communications

Mark Bailes, Marketing Revenue Manager

Olivia Cantrell, Marketing and External Relations Coordinator

Heather Fails, Manager, Ticketing Database

Kathryn Judd, Director, Marketing

Yoo-Ell Lee, Junior Graphic Designer

Fiona Legesse-Sinha, Graphic Design Manager

Ciara Macaulay, Creative Director

Mariah Martinez, Email Marketing Coordinator

Bianca Montanez, Content Marketing Coordinator

Eric Skelly, Senior Director, Communications Patron Services

Freddie Piegsa, Patron Experience Coordinator

Ashlan Walker, Manager, Patron Services

Jenny Zuniga, Director, Patron Services

OPERATIONS | ARTISTIC

Stephanie Alla, Associate Director of Artistic Planning

Lila Atchison, Assistant Orchestra Personnel Manager

Becky Brown, Director, Operations

Luke Bryson, Associate Librarian

Catherine Goode, Chorus Manager

Janwin Overstreet-Goode, Chorus Manager

Michael Gorman, Orchestra Personnel Manager

Lauren Moore, Associate Director of Digital Concert Production

José Rios, Assistant Stage Manager

Brad Sayles, Senior Recording Engineer

Claudia Schmitz, Artist Liaison and Assistant to the Music Director

Stefan Stout, Stage Manager

Meredith Williams, Associate Director, Operations

Rebecca Zabinski, Director, Artistic Planning

Houston Symphony's

Summer Neighborhood Concerts

This June, the Houston Symphony will partner with area churches and schools to present free, family-oriented concerts to communities across Greater Houston with its Summer Neighborhood Concerts. The concerts feature a wide variety of musical styles, ranging from classical masterpieces to contemporary works and popular favorites. The Summer Neighborhood Concerts also include engagement activities such as instrument petting zoos, where attendees can get hands-on experience with musical instruments.

Members of the Symphony’s African American and Hispanic Leadership Councils are instrumental in facilitating these partnerships, utilizing their connections to find partners to host these free concerts. Members of the African American Leadership Council have previously helped the Symphony develop partnerships with both Kashmere High School and the Community of Faith, and Hispanic Leadership Council Chair Dr. John Steven Cisneros identified Austin High School, one of the oldest high schools in Houston, as an ideal venue for a Neighborhood Concert this summer. “Throughout the years, many Houston Hispanic business, community, and political leaders have been alumni of Austin High School,” says Cisneros. “Because of its alumni and historic impact throughout the area, Austin High School is a point of pride for the community. There was no school more fitting with which to form a partnership.” These concerts are a true collaboration between the Symphony and the communities it serves.

One of the hallmarks of the Summer Neighborhood Concerts is its accessibility. These concerts are free, open to the public, and take place in neighborhoods outlined in the city of Houston’s Complete Communities initiative, giving families and individuals the chance to experience live orchestral music regardless of geographic or socioeconomic barriers. For many, the concerts provide their first experience with a classical music concert. “The Symphony coming to Kashmere lifted any barriers the community had about the Symphony or classical music,” says Kashmere High School Principal Brandon Dickerson about the 2022 Summer Neighborhood Concert. “It exposed our students and community members to new cultures they may not have been aware of otherwise.” The impact of the Summer Neighborhood Concerts can be seen in the enthusiasm and excitement of the audiences who attend. One attendee from last summer’s concerts remarked, “This was my first concert in 45 years, and I can't think of anything else I would want. I asked [myself], ‘Why have I neglected this part of my life for so long?’”

—Lauren Buchanan

2023 SUMMER NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERT SCHEDULE

JUNE 6, 2023, 7:30 P.M.

Kashmere High School

6900 Wileyvale Rd, Houston, TX 77028

JUNE 7, 2023, 7:30 P.M.

Willowridge High School

16301 Chimney Rock Rd, Houston, TX 77053

JUNE 10, 2023, 7:30 P.M.

Stephen F. Austin High School

1700 Dumble St, Houston, TX 77023

JUNE 15, 2023, 7:30 P.M.

Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church

3826 Wheeler Ave, Houston, TX 77004

JUNE 16, 2023, 7:30 P.M.

Waltrip High School

1900 W 34th St, Houston, TX 77018

Concert host Jasmine Thomas brings the audience into the music during the summer 2022 Neighborhood Concert series.

The Houston Symphony performs at Kashmere High School as part of the 2022 Neighborhood Concert Series.

CLASSICAL SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

The Houston Symphony is gearing up for an exciting and dynamic season, packed with a range of classical and contemporary music performances. From festivals and superstar guest artists to world premieres, debuts, and the return of some familiar faces, the 2023–24 Classical Series will be a season you won’t want to miss.

One exciting aspect of the 2023–24 Season is the array of talented guest performers that will be featured. Superstar pianists Seong-Jin Cho and Jean-Yves Thibaudet will join the Symphony to take on two challenging concertos—Cho will perform Ravel’s Concerto for the Left Hand on October 7 and 8, and Thibaudet will return to perform Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G major on November 17, 18, and 19. Behzod Abduraimov, “The most perfectly accomplished pianist of his generation” (The Independent), will join the Symphony on November 10, 11, and 12 to tackle Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2. Other guest artists include Emanuel Ax, Valeriy Sokolov, Augustin Hadelich, Alexandra Dariescu, and many more. These talented musicians bring their unique perspectives and styles to the Houston Symphony’s stage, adding new dimensions to the orchestra’s artistry.

Following the success of this season’s festival weekends, the Songs of the Earth Festival and the Riots and Scandals Festival, the Symphony will present the Strauss Festival next season. Taking place over two weekends in June, Music Director Juraj Valčuha leads the orchestra, chorus, and special guest artists in masterpieces by German composer Richard

Strauss. On June 1 and 2, 2024, experience one of the natural wonders of the music world when Juraj conducts the epic An Alpine Symphony, featuring an impressive 125 musicians in Jones Hall. Acclaimed soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen, an alumna of the Houston Grand Opera Studio, returns to Houston to join the orchestra for Strauss's nostalgic and poignant Four Last Songs. On June 7 and 9, 2024, a scandalous play by Oscar Wilde meets the explosive music of Strauss in Salome: the result is musical storytelling at its most spellbinding. Soprano Jennifer Holloway brings her celebrated interpretation of the title role— one of opera's most challenging vocal feats—to Jones Hall for these performances. The festival will also include various performances and events at venues throughout the city.

International superstar pianist Seong-Jin Cho makes his Houston Symphony debut in October when he joins the orchestra to perform Ravel's Concerto for the Left Hand.

Juraj Valčuha returns to lead the orchestra in his second season as Music Director and Roy and Lillie Cullen Chair.

Houston Symphony

The 2023–24 Season will feature many new and commissioned works. Pretty, a work co-commissioned with the Berlin Philharmonic, makes its U.S. premiere with the Houston Symphony. Juraj will lead the orchestra in this new work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Julia Wolfe on November 17, 18, and 19. The orchestra will also perform a thrilling world premiere by former Houston Symphony Composer-in-Residence Jimmy López Bellido in a work commissioned by the Houston Symphony.

The 2023–24 Season sees the return of two beloved Houston Symphony former Music Directors, Andrés Orozco-Estrada and Christoph Eschenbach. OrozcoEstrada will lead the orchestra in December in a work with important ties to Houston, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11, The Year 1905. The Houston Symphony gave the U.S. premiere of the work in 1957 and released the first-ever commercial recording of it shortly after. Orozco-Estrada will come back in April to lead the orchestra in Orff’s Carmina burana. Former Music Director Christoph Eschenbach returns in February to lead a performance of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8, a work for which he’s widely acknowledged as a master interpreter. Another familiar face, Itzhak Perlman will return to the Symphony in his last year as Artistic Partner. He’ll join the Symphony as conductor and soloist on February 8, 10, and 11. —Lauren Buchanan

We look forward to seeing you in Jones Hall for what is sure to be an exciting season! For more information about next season’s programming, including the Bank of America POPS Series and the PNC Family Concert Series, scan here:

ORGANICALLY sip SUSTAINABLY

Conductor Laureate Andrés Orozco-Estrada returns to the Houston Symphony next season as a guest conductor in December and April.

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Featured Program

Broadway hits go to hollywood

Lucas Waldin, conductor

Nikki Renée Daniels, vocalist

Hugh Panaro, vocalist

Program to be announced from the stage

About the Music

Friday, May 5

Saturday, May 6

Sunday, May 7

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Livestream of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by Barbara J. Burger

Video enhancement of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by the Albert & Ethel Herzstein Foundation through a special gift celebrating the foundation’s 50 th anniversary in 2015

Program Insight

• The first movie musical, The Jazz Singer, was released in 1927 and starred Al Jolson.

• With the new use of sound in movies, stars like Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were born.

• Broadway musicals were first brought to film in the 1950s. Some of the first productions included Oklahoma! and Guys and Dolls.

• Broadway composer-lyricist team Rodgers and Hammerstein collaborated to write many famous musicals that would later be edited for the screen. However, they wrote two shows specifically for the screen: State Fair and Cinderella.

• The first show Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote together, Oklahoma!, was also their first musical-turned-movie and paved the way for many more.

• The Sound of Music shattered records by making $1.2 billion in today’s money and is still the third highest-grossing movie of all time on the adjusted box office charts.

Program Bios

Lucas Waldin, conductor

Lucas Waldin is a dynamic and versatile conductor whose performances have delighted audiences across North America. He has collaborated with some of today’s most exciting artists, including Carly Rae Jepsen, Ben Folds, The Canadian Brass, and Buffy Sainte-Marie, in addition to conducting presentations such as Disney in Concert, Blue Planet Live, Cirque de la Symphonie, and the groundbreaking symphonic debut of R&B duo Dvsn as part of the global Red Bull Music Festival. Lucas has been a guest conductor for numerous orchestras in the United States and Canada, including the Houston Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Grant Park Festival Orchestra, Modesto Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, the Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, and Toronto Symphony.

Having joined the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra as resident conductor in 2009, Lucas was subsequently appointed artistin-residence and community ambassador—the first position of its kind in North America. He appeared with the ESO more than 150 times and conducted in Carnegie Hall during the

orchestra’s participation in the 2012 Spring for Music Festival. In recognition of his accomplishments, he was awarded the Jean-Marie Beaudet Award in Orchestral Conducting and received a Citation Award from the City of Edmonton for outstanding achievements in arts and culture. A native of Toronto, Canada, Lucas holds degrees in flute and conducting from the Cleveland Institute of Music. 

at City Center Encores! and Rose Lennox in The Secret Garden at David Geffen Hall.

Regionally, Nikki has been seen in Caroline, or Change (Emma) at the Guthrie Theatre; Ray Charles Live! (Della B.) at Pasadena Playhouse; Anything Goes (Hope) at Williamstown Theatre Festival; Beauty and the Beast (Belle) at Sacramento Music Circus and North Shore Music Theater; Ragtime (Sarah) at North Shore Music Theatre; and Aida (Aida) and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Narrator) at ArtPark. Her film and television credits include The Other Woman, Chappelle's Show, Madam Secretary, and The Sound of Music: Live.

Nikki Renée Daniels recently starred in the Tony Award-winning revival of Company on Broadway. Other recent credits include Hamilton (Angelica Schuyler) at the CIBC Center in Chicago and The Book of Mormon (Nabulungi) on Broadway. Nikki has also been seen on Broadway as Clara in the 2012 Tony Award-winning revival of The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess; Fantine in Les Misérables; and in Nine; Aida; Little Shop of Horrors; The Look of Love; Promises, Promises; Anything Goes; and Lestat. She made her New York City Opera debut as Clara in Porgy and Bess. Other New York credits include Martha Jefferson in 1776

Nikki has performed as a soloist with many symphony orchestras across the country and Canada, including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Boston Pops, the Philly Pops, New York Pops, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. She has also performed as a soloist at Carnegie Hall. She holds a BFA from the University of Cincinnati, College-Conservatory of Music. Her debut CD, Home, is available on iTunes.

For more information, please visit nikkireneedaniels.com and follow her on social media at @nikkireneesings. 

Nikki Renée Daniels, vocalist

Program Bios

Hugh Panaro, vocalist

Hugh Panaro most recently starred on Broadway as the Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera. Also on Broadway, he was seen as Gaylord Ravenal in the Harold Prince revival of Show Boat and Marius in Les Misérables. He created the roles of Buddy Foster in Side Show, Julian Craster in Jule Styne’s final musical The Red Shoes, and played the title role of the seductive

vampire in Elton John’s musical Lestat. Hugh made his West End debut as Gaylord Ravenal in Show Boat and went on to perform the title role in Martin Guerre. Some of his Off-Broadway credits include the title role in Sweeney Todd at the Barrow Street Theatre, White Lies at the Triad Theater, Noa Noa at Playwright’s Horizons, Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights at the John Housman Theatre, Children of Eden at the Actor’s Playhouse, and Robert in Little Fish at Second Stage Theatre.

An active concert artist, Hugh has performed with numerous symphony orchestras, including the Houston, Dallas, Detroit, San Francisco, Seattle, San Diego, Calgary, Utah, and London Sinfonietta, among many others. He was privileged to perform in the world premiere of Penderecki’s Te

Deum at Carnegie Hall. Hugh was a guest soloist with the Buffalo Philharmonic, conducted by Marvin Hamlisch.

His recordings include Jerome Kern Treasury, the original cast recording of Side Show, Tap Your Troubles Away (Herman), The Centennial (Weil), Life On The Wicked Stage (Kern), and others. His first solo CD, recorded with Sony/BMG, was released in 2007. Hugh toured throughout Europe with the legendary Barbra Streisand.

A native of Philadelphia, he graduated from Temple University and was awarded the Boyer College of Music Certificate of Honor for his impressive career in musical theatre. 

B n & Raised EST. 1962

TXASSOCIATION FORSYMPHONYORCHESTR A S

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Program Bios

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Underwriter

Vivian L. Smith Foundation

Partner

Video enhancement of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by the Albert & Ethel Herzstein Foundation through a special gift celebrating the foundation’s 50 th anniversary in 2015

The Houston Symphony's Education, Family and Community Engagement concerts are supported in part by the Margarett and Alice Brown Endowment Fund for Education

Nicholas Hersh, conductor

American conductor Nicholas Hersh has earned critical acclaim for his innovative programming and natural ability to connect with musicians and audiences alike. In the 2022–23 Season, Nicholas debuts with the Utah, Colorado, and Modesto symphonies and The Florida Orchestra. He returns to the Houston, Baltimore, and New Jersey symphonies, and Rochester Philharmonic. Highlights of the prior season include engagements with the National (D.C.), Detroit, Grand Rapids, Portland (ME), and Tucson symphony orchestras; Louisiana Philharmonic; Sarasota Orchestra; symphonies of Richmond and Winston-Salem; and Peabody Opera. Other recent conducting appearances include the Phoenix Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, and New World Symphony.

Over a remarkable tenure as associate conductor of the

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas created the BSO Pulse series, through which he brought together indie bands and orchestral musicians in unique collaborations; he led the BSO in several subscription weeks and concerts in and around Baltimore; and he directed the BSO’s educational and family programming, including the celebrated Academy for adult amateur musicians. He maintains a close relationship with the National Symphony Orchestra, leading concerts throughout Washington, D.C. He stepped in to replace an indisposed Yan Pascal Tortelier, on subscription, to great acclaim. Nicholas is frequently in demand as an arranger and orchestrator, with commissions from orchestras around the globe for adaptations of everything from classical solo and chamber music to popular songs. His orchestration of Beethoven’s Cello Sonata, Op. 69 was premiered by the Philharmonie Zuidnederland in January 2022, while his symphonic arrangement of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” continues to see worldwide success as a viral YouTube hit. He also serves as arranger and editor for the James P. Johnson Orchestra Edition.

Nicholas grew up in Evanston, Illinois, and started his musical training as a cellist. He earned a

Saturday, May 6

Jones Hall 10:00 & 11:30 a.m.

Program Bios

bachelor’s degree in music from Stanford University and a master’s degree in conducting from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He is a two-time recipient of the Solti Foundation Career Assistance Award. Nicholas lives in Philadelphia with his wife, Caitlin, and their two cats. In his free time, he enjoys baking (and eating) sourdough bread.

served as concertmaster of the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra on numerous occasions, including for the orchestra’s 2016 tour to Carnegie Hall. She has also performed with the New York Philharmonic as a Zarin Mehta Global Academy Fellow.

An avid chamber musician, she has collaborated with James Dunham, Jon Kimura Parker, Kathleen Winkler, and Larry Wheeler. When Jessica is home in Taiwan, she enjoys organizing chamber music concerts with friends. She also has a passion for coaching and leading local orchestra concerts during the summer in Taiwan with the concertmaster of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, RayChou Chang.

MuChen Hsieh, violin

MuChen (Jessica) Hsieh, from Taiwan, joined the Houston Symphony as principal second violin in 2017. Prior to her appointment in Houston, she worked with conductors, including Thomas Adès, Charles Dutoit, Larry Rachleff, David Robertson, Joshua Weilerstein, and Hugh Wolff. She studied with Kathleen Winkler at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, and Malcolm Lowe and Masuko Ushioda at the New England Conservatory.

Jessica regularly performs recitals, chamber music concerts, and in orchestras in the United States and Taiwan. Her festival performances include New York String Orchestra, Sarasota Festival Orchestra, and Music Academy of the West Festival Orchestra. Jessica has

Aside from playing violin, Jessica enjoys cooking and baking with friends, jogging, or dreaming about getting a dog.

As a professional stage actor, Juan has worked with many theaters, including Stages Repertory, 4th Wall, TUTS, and the Alley. He also works as a teaching artist for both TUTS and the Alley, where he engages with students and adults throughout the city. Some of his favorite residencies include the Wesley House Community Center for senior citizens and singing and playing with pediatric patients at Memorial Hermann Children's Hospital. His interests have also led him to work as a circus acrobat, where he has performed at wellknown locations such as Discovery Green, the Galleria, and the Texas Renaissance Festival.

Juan has a bachelor’s degree in visual and dramatic arts with a concentration in theater from Rice University. He loves sharing his passion for the arts with the Houston community. 

Juan Sebastian Cruz, host

Juan Sebastian Cruz is thrilled to join the Houston Symphony again as a host. A band member throughout middle and high school, he is incredibly grateful for the opportunity to combine his public speaking talents with his love for classical music.

Featured Program

Tchaikovsky 6

Juraj Valčuha, conductor

Augustin Hadelich, violin

0:12 CRESTON – Dance Overture, Opus 62

0:22 PROKOFIEV – Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Opus 19

I. Andantino

II. Scherzo: Vivacissimo

III. Moderato

INTERMISSION

0:46 TCHAIKOVSKY – Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Opus 74, (Pathétique)

I. Adagio—Allegro non troppo—Andante

II. Allegro con grazia

III. Allegro molto vivace

IV. Finale: Adagio lamentoso

About the Music

Friday, May 12

Saturday, May 13

Sunday, May 14

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Program Insight

High School Night Sponsor

Margaret Alkek Williams

Spotlight Series

Dr. Sippi and Mr. Ajay Khurana

Guarantor

Dr. Gudrun H. Becker

Sponsor

Livestream of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by Barbara J. Burger

Video enhancement of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by the Albert & Ethel Herzstein Foundation through a special gift celebrating the foundation’s 50 th anniversary in 2015

The Classical Season is endowed by The Wortham Foundation, Inc., in memory of Gus S. and Lyndall F. Wortham

This weekend, Music Director Juraj Valčuha celebrates a chapter of Houston Symphony history: the tenure of legendary music director Sir John Barbirolli. Throughout his storied career, Barbirolli conducted virtually all the world’s major orchestras and held official posts with the Hallé Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and, from 1961 to 1967, the Houston Symphony. During his tenure, the suave British conductor brought a worldly sophistication and glamor to the booming Texas oil town, which also became home to the Johnson Space Center during this time. At heart, however, Barbirolli was a Romantic, as this program shows with two Russian masterpieces and a contemporary, mid-century American work. Together, these pieces recreate concerts Barbirolli gave with the Houston Symphony on February 14 and 15, 1966. Juraj notes that he has listened to Barbirolli’s recordings “quite a lot,” making special mention of his predecessor’s distinctive take on Mahler’s Sixth Symphony. Regarding the legacy of Barbirolli and the many other great music directors of the Houston Symphony’s past, Juraj reflects that here in Houston we have “tradition and heritage on one hand, and innovation and artistic creativity on the other—I think this combination is something that fits perfectly to what a modern symphony orchestra should be.”

—Calvin Dotsey

Program Notes

CRESTON

Dance Overture, Opus 62 (1955)

Born in New York City to a family of poor Sicilian immigrants, Paul Creston was originally christened Giuseppe Guttoveggio. His professional surname “Creston” came from a character he portrayed in a high school play; “Paul” he felt simply had a nice ring to it. Although

Program Notes

CRESTON

Dance Overture, Opus 62 (1955)

he received instruction in piano and organ performance, as a composer he was completely self-taught, or “self-learned” as he preferred to say, mastering the art by pouring over scores of Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Stravinsky, and other composers. He only committed to pursuing a career as a composer in 1932 at age 26. After becoming organist at St. Malachy’s Church in New York in 1934, he came to national prominence when his Symphony No. 1 won him the New York Music Critics’ Circle Award in 1941.

Creston soon became one of the most popular and frequently performed American composers; his highly rhythmic and harmonically accessible idiom attracted conductors such as Arturo Toscanini, Eugene Ormandy, and Leopold Stokowski (who served as the Houston Symphony’s music director from 1955 to 1961). Over the course of his career, he completed more than 150 works, including six symphonies. Sadly, he lived to see his works fall out of fashion in the 1960s as more atonal, avant-garde music became de rigueur in new music circles. Since the 1980s, interest in his music has renewed with the thawing of critical opinion toward mid-century tonal composers. His works featuring saxophone, marimba, trombone, and accordion in solo roles have remained firmly in the repertoire.

Completed in December 1954, Creston composed his Dance Overture for the 1955 convention of the National Federation of Music Clubs in Miami, Florida. This light, exuberant score develops a main theme by dressing it up in various national guises. A brilliant introduction presents the rhythms of the Spanish bolero, leading to the first appearance of the main theme in the trombones and tuba. After some development, the music becomes quieter as a solo oboe transforms the theme into a jolly English country dance. The tempo slows for the next transformation: a graceful French louré (a dance form made famous in Bach’s Partita for Solo Violin in E major, BWV 1006). The Dance Overture then concludes with a quick American square dance, full of fancy fiddling and percussionists imitating the off-beat clapping of a crowd (at one point, they put down their mallets and actually do start clapping). With its virtuoso orchestral writing and numerous solo turns for woodwinds, the Dance Overture makes a sparkling concert-opener. —Calvin Dotsey

PROKOFIEV

Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Opus 19 (1923)

Although the young Sergei Prokofiev established a reputation for composing iconoclastic, satirical music, full of pounding dissonance, a conservative vein ran quietly alongside his youthful penchant for sensationalism. We know it best from the ballets of his late years, Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella, but it could be heard as early as his lyrical First Violin Concerto and his Haydnesque Classical Symphony.

Amazingly, both works were composed during the violence of World War I and on the cusp of the upheaval brought by the Russian Revolution. He began composing the First Violin Concerto in 1915, and during the summer of 1917, he visited a country estate where he composed the

Program Notes

PROKOFIEV

Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major, Opus 19 (1923)

Classical Symphony and orchestrated most of the concerto. But the revolution intervened, and the concerto was not heard anywhere until 1923 when Serge Koussevitzky gave the belated premiere in Paris, with the concertmaster of his orchestra, Marcel Darrieux, as soloist. The design of the First Violin Concerto has traditional as well as novel attributes. It is cast in three movements: a large sonata form, but one whose tempo is slow rather than fast; a central "Scherzo;" and a slower finale, again lyrical like the opening movement. The opening theme of the concerto is immediately presented by the solo violin, and then repeated by the oboe over the first of many elaborate filigree passages played by the soloist. After a sprightly, piquant second theme, three plucked chords by the lower strings bring on a moment of silence, concluding the exposition. Both themes are extensively reworked in the development section, and are soon joined by a constant run of rapid, technically challenging passages on the part of the soloist. After a climactic point, this section dies away in another brief pause. Then the main theme resumes in the flute and piccolo, accompanied by delicate filigree from the harp and solo violinist, so that the recapitulation takes on the character of a slow reflective coda.

Biting, sardonic staccato music dominates the central "Scherzo," though this mood is relieved in its two trio sections. The first is a duet for the clarinet and solo violinist over a light accompaniment of strings and percussion, the second is a muted running passage in the soloist’s low register, again accompanied by strings. The third movement also begins as a brusque, brilliant, sharp-pointed finale, but gradually mutates into a calm, shimmering apotheosis. At this moment, its leaping principal theme is combined with the main theme of the first movement, presented in quiet, reflective trills by the solo violinist as the music slowly fades away.

—Carl R. Cunningham

TCHAIKOVSKY

Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Opus 74 (Pathétique) ( 1893)

During the winter of 1892–93, Tchaikovsky embarked on a tour of Western Europe that profoundly impacted his mental health; away from friends and family, the shy composer plunged into a deep depression, writing, “I currently find myself in a horrendous mood; I am going through a kind of moral crisis from which I will emerge either victorious—that is, I will gain new strength and a fresh desire to fill notepaper with my scribblings—or vanquished—that is, I will go into retirement and start to live out my days quietly.”

Shortly after returning to Russia in February 1893, he wrote to his nephew, Bob Davydov: “During my journey I had the idea for another symphony, this time with a programme [a story], but such a programme that will remain an enigma to everyone—let them guess [...] not infrequently during my travels, while composing it in my head, I wept a great deal. [...] The form of this symphony will have much that is new, and amongst other things, the finale will not be a noisy allegro, but on the contrary, a long drawn-out adagio.”

Tchaikovsky soon completed the sketches for the symphony, and the orchestration was finished that summer. By August, he wrote again to Bob: “I absolutely consider it to be the best, and in particular, the most sincere of all my creations.”

Program Notes

TCHAIKOVSKY

Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Opus 74 (Pathétique) (1893)

The symphony was indeed innovative; particularly noteworthy is that its germinal idea—a simple descending scale—is not stated explicitly at the beginning, but only gradually emerges from the fabric of the music, like a specter haunting the score. The intense first movement contrasts violence and passion: the famous, singing second theme bears a striking resemblance to Don José’s “Flower Song” from Bizet’s Carmen, specifically the verses “For you had only to appear,/Only to cast a glance at me,/To take hold of all my being.” In the middle of the movement, the brass intone a quotation of the Russian Orthodox chant “With thy saints, O Christ, give peace to the soul of thy servant,” a traditional prayer for the dead. This builds to a devastating climax in which the main idea is first revealed in all its starkness: a simple, descending scale.

Reminiscent of Tchaikovsky’s ballet music, the second movement is a curious waltz in 5/4 time. This beguiling theme surrounds a contrasting central episode: a sighing melody based on a descending scale. The third movement takes the form of a march; fragmentary at first, the main theme gradually coalesces and crescendos, evoking a military parade approaching from a distance. Throughout, the music is punctuated by uneasy descending scales, which dominate the movement’s bombastic conclusion. As Tchaikovsky noted, the final adagio is among his most original conceptions. Marked “lamentoso” (“lamenting”), the opening melody is the culmination of the many descending scales that pervade the symphony. In the end, this powerful music slowly fades to nothing.

Tchaikovsky conducted the St. Petersburg premiere himself on October 28, 1893. Nine days later, he was dead. Tchaikovsky had contracted cholera—St. Petersburg was in the midst of an outbreak. By the time doctors were called, the disease had destroyed his kidneys, and he passed soon after. Tsar Alexander III ordered a state funeral, and thousands thronged Nevsky Prospect as the cortege passed. Twelve days after his death, a memorial concert was given that featured his Sixth Symphony. It now appeared with the subtitle Tchaikovsky intended for the published score: Pateticheskaya, meaning “full of pathos, impassioned, passionate, emotional.” In the West, it is usually translated as the French “Pathétique.” —Calvin Dotsey

Augustin Hadelich, violin

Augustin Hadelich is one of the great violinists of our time. Named Musical America’s 2018 Instrumentalist of the Year, he is consistently cited worldwide for his phenomenal technique, soulful approach, and insightful interpretations.

Juraj Valčuha, conductor

See p. 6 for bio

Program Bios

Program Bios

Highlights of his 2022–23 Season include return engagements with The Philadelphia Orchestra and the Boston Symphony, as well as the U.S. premiere of a new violin concerto written for him by Irish composer Donnacha Dennehy to be performed by the Oregon Symphony. Augustin has appeared with virtually every major orchestra in North America, including the Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, among many others. His worldwide presence has been rapidly rising with recent appearances with the Berlin Philharmonic, Hamburg Elbphilharmonie, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and London Philharmonic as well as

numerous engagements in the Far East, South America, and Australia.

Among his numerous recordings, Augustin was the winner of a 2016 Grammy Award—Best Classical Instrumental Solo—for his recording with the Seattle Symphony of Dutilleux’s Violin Concerto, L’Arbre des songes Other prizes include the 2006 Gold Medal at the International Violin Competition of Indianapolis. Born in Italy, the son of German parents, Augustin is now an American citizen. He holds an artist diploma from The Juilliard School, where he was a student of Joel Smirnoff. He is a member of the violin faculty of Yale School of Music at Yale University. He plays the violin "Leduc, ex-Szery.”

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About the Music

Friday, May 19

Jones Hall

Jones Hall

8:00 p.m.

8:00 p.m. Saturday, May 20

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

Mike Stude

Grand Guarantor

Livestream of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by

Barbara J. Burger

Video enhancement of Houston Symphony concerts is made possible by the Albert & Ethel Herzstein Foundation through a special gift celebrating the foundation’s 50 th anniversary in 2015

The Classical Season is endowed by The Wortham Foundation, Inc., in memory of Gus S. and Lyndall F. Wortham

Program Insight

This weekend, Music Director Juraj Valčuha brings his inaugural season to a powerful close with riveting 20 th- and 21st-century masterpieces. Bookended by two works of Stravinsky, the program begins with a solo turn from Principal Clarinet Mark Nuccio in Stravinsky’s Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet, a work that fuses jazz influences with Stravinsky’s signature Russian period inventiveness. In contrast with this intimate concert opener, Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Helix calls for a large orchestra; beginning quietly, the music gradually becomes faster and louder, building to an arresting climax. The second half of the program takes on a profound character with Lili Boulanger’s moving Of a Sad Evening, one of the last works she completed before her untimely passing at age 24. Oedipus rex, Stravinsky’s gripping operatic tragedy, closes the program. An ancient Greek murder mystery set against the backdrop of a pandemic, Sophocles’s classic drama is brilliantly reinterpreted through Stravinsky’s monumental neoclassical score. —Calvin Dotsey

Program Notes

STRAVINSKY

Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet (1919)

Together with his wife and four children, Stravinsky spent World War I in Switzerland, that serene Alpine fortress in the center of Europe, which had long provided refuge for artists, revolutionaries, and other exiles. The Stravinskys had wintered there before (Stravinsky composed parts of both Petrushka and The Rite of Spring in Switzerland), so when the war broke out, the village of Morges near Lausanne proved a logical safe haven for the family. Although the war years were productive ones for Stravinsky, yielding works such as The Nightingale, The Wedding, and Renard, the composer’s finances became increasingly precarious as the war destabilized the normal course of European artistic life. With the ascendance of the Bolsheviks in November 1918, Stravinsky would lose his family home in Ustilug, a town that now lies on Ukraine’s Polish

Program Notes

STRAVINSKY

Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet (1919)

border.

The culmination of Stravinsky’s wartime works would be his Histoire du soldat. Responding to economic conditions, Stravinsky and his creative partner, writer Charles Ferdinand Ramuz, envisioned a low-cost but innovative theatrical work that would require only a few actors and a small chamber ensemble. The project was largely underwritten by Werner Reinhart, a wealthy Swiss tea importer and amateur clarinetist who adored Stravinsky’s music. Although the Spanish Influenza epidemic shuttered performances of L'histoire du soldat after a single performance, Stravinsky was nevertheless deeply grateful to Reinhart and composed the Three Pieces for Clarinet Solo for him in the autumn of 1918 as a thank you gift. The work received its public premiere in Lausanne on November 8, 1919, performed by clarinetist Edmond Allegra.

The Three Pieces display a fascinating blend of stylistic influences, from the folk music inflections characteristic of Stravinsky’s Russian period to the early jazz that was beginning to take Europe by storm. In the first piece, Stravinsky might well be giving clarinetists the opportunity to perform their own version of the famous bassoon solo that opens The Rite of Spring. Marked “Sempre piano e molto tranquillo” (“Always soft and very tranquil”), this piece shows off the dark-hued legato possible in the clarinet’s lower range.

In contrast with the outer two pieces, which feature the shifting meters of Stravinsky’s mature style, the second piece is written without barlines, giving it the character of a free-flowing cadenza that links the outer movements together. Halfway through, it switches from fast fingerwork in the clarinet’s upper register to a more restrained figure in the clarinet’s lower register, ending with a return to the high notes. Although it is difficult to document how much authentic jazz music Stravinsky had heard by 1918, he certainly had access to some transcriptions and scores of early jazz music. In L'histoire du soldat, he had even included his own interpretation of ragtime. Many commentators have heard the influence of jazz in the high-flying finale, which has been compared to the virtuoso clarinet playing of Sidney Bechet, who would cause a sensation in London in 1919. —Calvin

Dotsey

I decided to compose a celebratory and direct overture-like piece, which would nevertheless be very rigidly structured, and based on essentially one continuous process. The form of Helix can indeed be described as a spiral or a coil; or more academically a curve that lies on a cone and makes a constant angle with the straight lines parallel to the base of the cone.

The process of Helix is basically that of a nine-minute accelerando. The tempo gets faster, but the note values of the phrases become correspondingly longer. Therefore only the material’s relation to the pulse changes, not necessarily the impression of speed itself. Hence the

E. SALONEN Helix (2005)

Program Notes

E. SALONEN

Helix (2005)

spiral metaphor: the material (which consists essentially of two different phrases) is being pushed through constantly narrowing concentric circles until the music reaches a point where it has to stop as it has nowhere to go.

The musical expression changes quite drastically in the course of these nine minutes: the idyllic, almost pastoral opening phrase for piccolo and contra-bassoon returns much later in the horns and trumpets, fortissimo, surrounded by a very busy tutti orchestra. The closing section shows the material in an almost manic light.

—Esa-Pekka Salonen

L. BOULANGER

D'un soir triste (Of a Sad Evening) (1918)

The pages of music history are all too often filled with composers who died young, but perhaps the dearest loss of this kind was Lili Boulanger. Music, it would seem, ran in her blood: her father won the Prix de Rome (France’s most prestigious prize for composers) in 1835, and her sister, Nadia, was also a gifted composer who became an influential composition teacher. Even with so much talent around her, Lili stood out. Her father recognized her great potential by the time she was two years old; by three, however, her lifelong health troubles had already begun with a case of bronchial pneumonia. Despite a weakened immune system and chronic ill health, in 1913 she made history by becoming the first female composer to win the Prix de Rome, following in her father’s footsteps. Over the course of her 24 years, she developed a remarkable individual voice as a composer, producing dozens of exquisite pieces that continue to enchant listeners today.

Composed from 1917 to 1918, D’un soir triste (Of a Sad Evening) is one of her final completed works. Together with its companion piece, D’un matin de printemps (Of a Spring Morning)—heard earlier this season as part of a November program featuring the Schumann Piano Concerto and Brahms’s Third Symphony—it was simultaneously conceived in three different versions: for piano and solo instrument (cello for the soir, violin or flute for the matin), for piano trio, and for orchestra. Like a pair of classical theater masks, the matin laughs while the soir cries. Thanks to its slow tempo, D’un soir triste is about double the length of D’un matin de printemps; it opens marked “lent; lourd, triste” (“slow; heavy, sad”). The pulsing harmonies of the strings recall the rhythms of the baroque sarabande, a dance that served as the vehicle for some of Bach and Handel’s most somber meditations. Clarinet and bass clarinet introduce the main theme of the piece, a long, languorous melody of shifting moods and shadowy colors. This theme gives way to a more fragmented, developmental middle section, building to a powerful climax punctuated by an ominous tam tam. Marked “funèbre” (funereal), the quiet passage that follows wends its way back to a reprise of the main theme. A final, searing statement of the main melody for the full orchestra then dies away to the soir’s hushed conclusion. With its rich harmonies and sophisticated orchestral palette, the piece is a masterful study in shades of darkness. Especially in light of the composer's brief life, it is also a deeply moving artistic utterance. —Calvin

Dotsey

Program Notes

Oedipus rex (1927)

Across the arts, a transformation occurred in the years after World War I: artists turned from the hyper-emotive, post-Romantic, expressionist world of the pre-War years to a cooler, more ordered, and restrained style, usually known as “neoclassicism.” Frequently turning to the past for inspiration, they sought to make the old new again. In the visual arts, Picasso abandoned cubism for more realistic, sculptural figures, and in music, we see Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony, Schoenberg’s Suite for Piano (featuring a gavotte and a minuet), and works by numerous other composers who engaged creatively with the past.

None, however, embraced this trend as whole-heartedly as Stravinsky. Stravinsky’s first neoclassical work was his 1920 comic ballet Pulcinella, which adapted music by the 18th-century Italian composer Pergolesi and his contemporaries. Other neoclassical works soon followed, including the comic opera Mavra, the Concerto for Piano and Winds, and the Piano Sonata. By 1925, several years had passed since Stravinsky had composed a large-scale work for the stage. For his return to theatrical music, he abandoned the light, comedic character of Pulcinella and Mavra in favor of high seriousness. Ultimately completed and premiered in 1927, his “opera-oratorio,” an updated cross between Handelian oratorio and Mozartian opera seria, would be based on a classical Greek tragedy: Sophocles’s Oedipus.

In a letter to Jean Cocteau, the Parisian artistic polymath, Stravinsky expressed his desire to compose “an opera in Latin on the subject of a tragedy of the ancient world, with which everyone would be familiar.” Cocteau had recently found success with an adaptation of Sophocles’s Antigone, so he seemed a likely choice as a collaborator. The two soon agreed on Sophocles’s Oedipus as the subject of their new work, and Cocteau produced a libretto in two acts accompanied by spoken narration. Curiously, Cocteau’s French libretto was then translated into Latin, even though the original was in ancient Greek.

One reason for the Latin text may be that it allowed Stravinsky to engage with the extensive sacred music tradition of Western Europe (most apparently in the "Gloria" that ends Act I and begins Act II). During this period of Stravinsky’s life, the composer (like many of his contemporaries and associates, including Cocteau) became increasingly spiritual. Adding to the ecclesiastical atmosphere of the work is the use of an exclusively male chorus, which evokes the chanting of monks—or perhaps the Spanish inquisition of Verdi’s Don Carlo.

Indeed, sacred music was not the only influence on Oedipus. In Stravinsky’s neoclassicism, diverse styles are integrated into a composite whole with “quotation marks,” as if fused together into a musical collage. For Oedipus, Stravinsky drew on both 18th-century styles (typical of neoclassicism) and the operas of Verdi. The work opens with a Verdian chorus in which the people of Thebes plead for salvation, much as the people of Cyprus pray for the salvation of a storm-tossed ship at the opening of Verdi’s Otello. The opening of Creon’s Act I aria could almost be by Mozart, and references to Handelian counterpoint and ornament abound throughout.

This unique stylistic melange resulted in a work of profound dramatic power. Stravinsky traces the downfall of Oedipus, solver of the riddles of

Program Notes

STRAVINSKY

Oedipus rex (1927)

Program Bios

Juraj Valčuha, conductor

See p. 6 for bio

the sphinx, as he unravels the terrible mystery of his own origins with a series of uncanny harmonic relationships. With its backdrop of a plaguestricken Thebes, this opera-oratorio takes on new resonances in the post-COVID era, demonstrating this work’s continued relevance into the 21st century. —Calvin Dotsey

Mark Nuccio, clarinet

Critics have praised clarinetist Mark Nuccio for both his solo and chamber appearances, describing him as “the evening’s highlight,” full of “mystery and insight,” and “shaping his phrases beautifully with a rich, expressive tone.” (The New York Times)

Mark has served as Principal Clarinetist of the Houston Symphony since 2016. Prior to that, he was a member of the New York Philharmonic for 17 years and held positions in Pittsburgh, Denver, Savannah, and Florida. He has performed concerti multiple times with Houston and the NYP, among others, and while in New York, was a regular performer at Carnegie Hall, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the 92nd Street Y.

Time spent with students is Mark’s proudest work. He has taught as a

faculty member, currently at the Frost School of Music (University of Miami), and previously at Northwestern University, Manhattan School of Music, Mannes College, and Duquesne University. During summers, he has taught and performed at Brevard, Aspen, National Repertory Orchestra, and Sarasota Music Festival (2023), among others. 

Highlights of the 2022–23 Season include the Metropolitan Opera premiere of The Hours as well as a return to Komische Oper Berlin for a new production of Luigi Nono’s Intolleranza 1960. The tenor makes his Bayerische Staatsoper debut as Laertes in Hamlet, and he returns to the Wiener Staatsoper to sing Tambourmajor in Wozzeck and to the English National Opera as Don José in Carmen. Symphonic performances include Stravinsky’s Oedipus rex with the Houston Symphony and Bruckner’s Te Deum with the New Jersey Symphony.

Sean Panikkar, tenor (Oedipus)

Sean Panikkar continues “to position himself as one of the stars of his generation…” [Opera News]. The American tenor of Sri Lankan heritage achieved a break-out success in his 2018 Salzburger Festspiele debut as Dionysus in Henze’s The Bassarids. He was also critically acclaimed that year in his Los Angeles Opera debut as Gandhi in the company’s production of Philip Glass’s Satyagraha

Last season, Sean sang in Intolleranza 1960 at the Salzburger Festspiele, made his Wiener Staatsoper debut as Tambourmajor in Wozzeck, appeared as Gandhi in Satyagraha at English National Opera, and performed the title role of Oedipus rex at the San Francisco Symphony. Concert appearances included Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Minnesota Orchestra and Charlotte Symphony Orchestra.

Highly prized as an interpreter of contemporary music on leading international stages, Sean has performed Adam in Giorgio Battistelli’s CO2 for a debut at Teatro alla Scala and in The Bassarids at the Komische Oper Berlin. He created the roles of

Program Bios

Wendell Smith in The Summer King for Pittsburgh Opera and Michigan Opera Theatre, Agent Henry Rathbone in David T. Little’s JFK at the Fort Worth Opera and Opéra de Montréal, and the title role of Jack Perla’s Shalimar the Clown for Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.

Sean Panikkar is a member of Forte, the operatic tenor group combining voices from different cultures. The trio debuted for America’s Got Talent in 2013. Its self-titled debut recording and a second, The Future Classics, were released on Columbia Records.

An alumnus of San Francisco Opera’s Adler Fellowship, Sean holds master’s and bachelor's degrees in voice performance from the University of Michigan. 

She has also performed at the prestigious festivals of Ravinia, Tanglewood, Saito Kinen, Edinburgh, and Lucerne. In Australia, she has appeared multiple times with Sydney Symphony.

Equally at home on the opera stage, Michelle has appeared with the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Teatro alla Scala, Bayreuth Festival, Berliner Staatsoper, and the Paris Opera. Her many roles include Fricka, Sieglinde, and Waltraute in The Ring Cycle; Kundry in Parsifal; Venus in Tannhäuser ; Brangäne in Tristan und Isolde; Eboli in Don Carlos; Amneris in Aida; Santuzza in Cavellaria Rusticana; Ježibaba in Rusalka; Marguerite in Le Damnation de Faust ; Dido in Les Troyens; Judith in Bluebeard’s Castle; and Jocaste in Oedipus rex. She also created the role of the Shaman in Tan Dun’s The First Emperor at the Metropolitan Opera.

Michelle DeYoung, mezzo-soprano (Jocasta)

Mezzo-soprano Michelle DeYoung has gained a reputation as a critically acclaimed artist who appears regularly with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Philharmonic, and the Concertgebouworkest.

A multi-Grammy award-winning recording artist, Michelle’s impressive discography includes Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, and Götterdämmerung with the Jaap van Zweden and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (Naxos); Kindertotenlieder, Mahler’s Symphony No. 3, and Das Klagende Lied with Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony (SFS Media); Les Troyens with Sir Colin Davis and the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO Live!); and Mahler Symphony No. 3 with both the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Bernard Haitink (CSO Resound), and the Pittsburgh Symphony and Manfred Honeck (Challenge Records International). Her most recent recording of Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde with the

Shanghai Symphony Orchestra (Deutsche Grammophon) was released in July 2021, and she is a featured soloist in the Met Opera’s Verdi’s Requiem: The Met Remembers 9/11 that was nominated for a 2023 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance.

Michelle DeYoung recently launched Ensemble Charité, an organization that aims to support various charities while also fostering young, emerging musicians through community performances of chamber concerts with seasoned professional musicians, which she conducts. 

David Pittsinger, bassbaritone (Tirésias)

American bass-baritone David Pittsinger is renowned as a stage performer of the greatest distinction for his dramatic portrayals in the world’s major opera houses. Of his Helen Hayes Award-nominated performance as Emile de Becque in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific at the Kennedy Center, the Washington Times wrote: “His brilliant, knife-clean bass-baritone voice, impeccable enunciation— even with a French accent—and his authoritative, passionate delivery provide the perfect mix of

Program Bios

romance, passion, and traditional masculine bravado. And his vocal delivery of ‘Some Enchanted Evening’ as well as the sorrowing ‘This Nearly Was Mine’ registers extraordinarily high on the threehanky scale. His Emile is perhaps the definitive interpretation of this role in our time.”

In the current and recent seasons, David debuted with Maryland Lyric Opera as Lodovico in Othello and with Opera Omaha in Eugene Onegin in the role of Prince Gremin. He returned to Opera Theatre of St. Louis to sing the role of Seneca in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione de Poppea and made his role debut as Captain Von Trapp in the Sound of Music at the Ivorytown Playhouse.

Born in Connecticut, David holds a master’s degree in vocal performance from the Yale School of Music and was a recipient of the Outstanding Alumnus Award at his undergraduate alma mater, the University of Connecticut. Upon graduation, he became a member of the Merola Program at the San Francisco Opera. He can be heard on the Grammy Award-winning Virgin Classics recording of Carlysle Floyd's Susannah and in La Calisto by Cavalli on the Harmonia Mundi label. He lives in Connecticut with his wife and two children.

Dashon Burton, baritone (Créon and Messenger)

Dashon Burton has established a vibrant career appearing regularly throughout the United States and Europe. Highlights of his 2022-23 Season include returns to the Cleveland Orchestra for Schubert’s Mass No. 6 with Franz Welser-Möst in Cleveland and at Carnegie Hall, to the Houston Symphony for Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex with Juraj Valčuha, and to the New York Philharmonic for Michael Tilson Thomas’s Rilke Songs led by the composer. Debut appearances this season include Mendelssohn’s Elijah with the Milwaukee Symphony led by Ken-David Masur, the world premiere of Chris Cerrone’s The Year of Silence with the Louisville Orchestra led by Teddy Abrams, and the Dvořák Requiem with the Richmond Symphony. Dashon continues his relationship with San Francisco Performances as an artist-in-residence with appearances at venues and educational institutions throughout the Bay Area.

A multiple award-winning singer, Dashon won his second Grammy Award in 2021 for Best Classical Solo Vocal Album with his performance featured in Dame

Ethyl Smyth’s masterwork The Prison with The Experiential Orchestra (Chandos). As an

original member of the groundbreaking vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth, he won his first Grammy Award for the group’s inaugural recording of new commissions.

His other recordings include Songs of Struggle & Redemption: We Shall Overcome (Acis); the Grammy-nominated recording of Paul Moravec’s Sanctuary Road (Naxos); Holocaust, 1944 by Lori Laitman (Acis); and Caroline Shaw’s The Listeners with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra. His album of spirituals garnered high praise and was singled out by The New York Times as “profoundly moving…a beautiful and lovable disc.”

Dashon received a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College and Conservatory, and a master’s degree from Yale University’s Institute of Sacred Music. He is an assistant professor of voice at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music. 

Matthew White, tenor (The Shepherd)

American tenor Matthew White, whom the New York Classical Review described as a “distinctive tenor [with a] dark and powerful lyric sound” is, in the 2022–23 Season, performing Alfredo in La

Program Bios

traviata with Houston Grand Opera, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly with Opéra de Montréal, Duca in Rigoletto with Utah Opera, and for his much-anticipated European debut, Don José in Carmen with Oper im Steinbruch in Austria. On the concert stage, he sings the Shepherd in Stravinsky’s Oedipus rex with the Houston Symphony and Handel’s Messiah with Nashville Symphony and the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. In the 2021–22 Season, he performed Don José with Santa Fe Opera, Rodolfo in La bohème with Detroit Opera and Spoleto Festival USA, Don José with Arizona Opera, Lancelot in Chausson’s Le roi Arthus with Bard SummerScape, and the title role in Faust et Hélène with the Houston Symphony.

A graduate of Philadelphia’s prestigious Academy of Vocal Arts, Matthew performed Roméo in Roméo et Juliette, the title role in Massenet’s Werther, Roberto in Puccini’s Le Villi, Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor, Avito in Montemezzi’s L’amore dei tre re, and Faust in Lili Boulanger’s Faust et Helene. He made his debut with Opera Maine as Rinuccio in Gianni Schicchi and has appeared with Palm Beach Opera and Vero Beach Opera. Concert credits include performances with the New Jersey Festival Orchestra, Ocean City Pops, and the Longfellow Chorus Festival. A favorite of competitions, Matthew was selected to compete in the 2019 Operalia Competition in Prague. He was awarded the Grand Prize of the Gerda Lissner International Vocal Competition, first place in the Deborah Voigt International Vocal Competition, second place in the Metropolitan Opera Mid-Atlantic region, the

Grand Prize in the Mario Lanza Vocal Competition, and an Encouragement Award from the George London Foundation. He is the recipient of the Alfonso Cavaliere Award. He has participated in the training programs of Bel Canto at Caramoor, PORTopera, and Seagle Music Colony.

A trained violinist, Matthew is also an avid surfer and runs his own surfboard business, which currently has clients around the world.

LoveMusik on Broadway; Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking The Waves at Opera Philadelphia and the Prototype Festival; Lee Breuer’s The Gospel at Colonus at the Athens, Edinburgh, and Spoleto festivals; Esperanza Spalding's 12 Little Spells national tour; David Lang's Prisoner of the State at the New York Philharmonic; Watermill at the BAM Next Wave Festival; Haruki Murakami’s The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle at the Singapore and Edinburgh festivals; Janáček’s From the House of the Dead at Canadian Opera; Bernstein’s Mass at the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Lincoln Center; Britten’s Peter Grimes, Bernstein’s On the Town, Mussorgsky’s Boris Godunov, as well as all nine seasons of the SoundBox series, at San Francisco Symphony.

Adam Larsen, creative director

Adam Larsen is excited to return to the Houston Symphony after Bluebeard's Castle. He has designed video projections for more than 200 productions for theatre, dance, symphony, and opera. Projects have ranged from intimate to extravagant and have appeared both on Broadway and in most of the major venues across the country.

Adam’s multifaceted work has led to collaborations with leading voices in symphony and opera, including Michael Tilson Thomas, John Adams, Gustavo Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Esperanza Spalding, Missy Mazzoli, and Ellen Reid. Designs include Hal Prince’s

He recently directed and designed two large-scale filmic installations in Omaha, Nebraska: A Worm’s Eye View, a 360-degree cycloramic experience for the Common Senses Autism Festival; and Nebraska Flatwater, a 12-projector meditation on the Nebraska landscape at Gallery 1516. In addition, Adam produced and directed two feature length documentaries about disability: Neurotypical, about autism from the perspective of autistics, which aired on the PBS series P.O.V.; and Undersung, in collaboration with MacArthur Award-winning poet, Heather McHugh, about caregivers of severely disabled family members. 

houston symphony chorus

Allen Hightower, Director

Janwin Overstreet-Goode

Chorus Manager

Catherine Goode

Chorus Manager

Scott Holshouser

Pianist

Tony Sessions

Librarian/Stage Manager

The Houston Symphony Chorus is the official choral unit of the Houston Symphony and consists of highly skilled and talented volunteer singers. Over the years, members of this historic ensemble have learned and performed the world’s great choral-orchestral masterworks under the batons of Juraj Valčuha, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Hans Graf, Christoph Eschenbach, Robert Shaw, and Helmuth Rilling, among many others.

In addition, the Chorus enjoys participating in the Houston Symphony’s popular programming under the batons of conductors such as Steven Reineke and Michael Krajewski. Recently, the ensemble sang the closing subscription concerts with the Prague Symphony Orchestra in the Czech Republic.

Singers are selected for specific programs for which they have indicated interest. A singer might choose to perform in all 45 concerts, as was the case in a recent season, or might elect to participate in a single series. The Houston Symphony Chorus holds auditions by appointment and welcomes inquiries from interested singers.

ALLEN HIGHTOWER

Dr. Allen Hightower, a seventh-generation Texan, is interim director of the Houston Symphony Chorus beginning in the 2022–23 Season. He is the director of choral studies at the University of North Texas, where he leads the master’s and doctoral programs in choral conducting and oversees a comprehensive choral program of eight ensembles. He serves as conductor of UNT’s A Cappella Choir, Grand Chorus, and the early music vocal ensemble Vox Aquilae.

As a teacher and conductor, Allen has visited 30 states, Asia, and Europe. His students hold leadership positions as choral conductors in public schools, colleges, universities, churches, and community choirs throughout the United States. Prior to joining UNT, Allen held the Weston Noble Endowed Chair in Music at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa, where he was conductor of the renowned Nordic Choir and artistic director of Christmas at Luther. Previously, he served as professor of music and director of choral studies at Sam Houston State University and taught at the high school level in the Houston and Odessa areas.

Outside the academic setting, Allen was Houston Masterworks Chorus and Orchestra’s artistic director, leading an annual concert series of choral/ orchestral masterworks. As a deeply committed church musician, he has served churches in Texas, California, and Minnesota. Currently, he is on the music staff of Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco, Texas, and is the church music vice-president of the Texas Choral Directors Association. Allen earned his undergraduate degree in music education and piano from Sam Houston State University, a master’s in choral conducting from the Eastman School of Music, a master’s in orchestral conducting from Baylor University, and his doctorate in conducting from the University of California, Los Angeles. He pursued additional studies in orchestral and choral conducting at the University of Southern California, at Westminster Choir College, and the Oregon Bach Festival. After winning first prize in the graduate division of the American Choral Directors Association’s Conducting Competition in 1997, he was assistant to Paul Salamunovich, conductor of the Los Angeles Master Chorale.

Allen lives in McKinney, Texas, with his wife, Dr. Kristin Hightower, and their daughters, Caroline and Julianne.

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Steve Abercia

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George E. Howe

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Mark Kim

Nobuhide Kobori

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Ken Mathews

Scott Mermelstein

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Robert Nash

Bill Parker

Greg Railsback

Douglas Rodenberger

James Kenneth Romig

Tony Sessions

Todd Swann

Paul Van Dorn

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Lee Estes Williams

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Doug & Kay Wilson

Ms. Beth Wolff **

Scott and Lori Wulfe

Mr. and Mrs. Edward R. Ziegler

Nina & Michael Zilkha

Anonymous (2)

Mr. Mark Grace and Mrs. Alex Blair

Jo and Billie Jo Graves

The Greentree Fund

Mrs. Tami A. Grubb

Mr. David Grzebinski

Mary N. Hankey

Ms. Deborah Happ and Mr. Richard Rost

Mr. and Mrs. Frank Herzog

Mrs. Ann G. Hightower

Steve and Kerry Incavo

Mr. Michael Jang

Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Jankovic

Stephen Jeu and Susanna Calvo

Phil and Josephine John

Beverly Johnson

Dr. Charles Johnson & Tammie Johnson

Mr. and Mrs. John F. Joity

Debbie and Frank Jones

Dr. Rita Justice

Ms. Mandy Kao

Ms. Linda R. Katz

Mr. Mark Klitzke and Dr. Angela Chen

Dr. William & Alice Kopp

Mr. Kenneth E. Kurtzman

Mr. and Mrs. Phillip Ladin

Golda Anne Leonard

Matthew and Kristen Loden

Richard Loewenstern

Ms. Tama Lundquist

Alison and Ara Malkhassian

Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Matiuk

Ms. Kathy McCraigh

Carol and Paul McDermott

John & Dorothy McDonald

Mr. and Mrs. Michael McGuire

Mr. and Mrs. William B. McNamara

Mr. and Mrs. D. Bradley McWilliams

Mr. Stephen Mendoza

Stephen & Marilyn Miles

Ginni and Richard Mithoff

Dr. and Mrs. Jack Moore

Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Moynier

Aprill Nelson

Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Nelson

Bobbie Newman

Mr. and Mrs. Geoffrey B. Newton

Jenni and Todd Olges

Katherine and Jonathan Palmer

Mr. and Mrs. Raul Pavon

Michael P. and Shirley Pearson

Mr. Robert J. Pilegge

Dr. and Mrs. Taj Popatia

Heather and Chris Powers

Tim and Katherine Pownell

Roland and Linda Pringle

Cris and Elisa Pye

Kathryn and Richard Rabinow

Dr. and Mrs. George H. Ransford

Jan Rhodes

Vicky and Michael Richker

Jill & Allyn Risley

Dr. Douglas and Alicia Rodenberger

Linda & Jerry Rubenstein

Harold H. Sandstead, M.D.

Garry and Margaret Schoonover

Susan and Ed Septimus

Donna and Tim Shen

Mr. and Mrs. Steven Sherman

Mr. and Mrs. Lance Smith

Mr. and Mrs. Quentin Smith

Sam and Linda Snyder

Richard and Mary Spies

Georgiana Stanley

Mr. and Mrs. Keith Stevenson

Wesley L. Story

Mr. and Mrs. Hans Strohmer

Drs. Ishwaria and Vivek Subbiah

Stephanie and Bill Swingle

Susan L. Thompson

Nanako and Dale Tingleaf

Pamalah* and Stephen Tipps

Mr. and Mrs. David Vannauker

Mr. and Mrs. David Walstad

Nancy B. Willerson **

Ms. Barbara E. Williams

Doug Williams and Janice Robertson

Loretta and Lawrence Williams

Ms. Tara Wilson

Jerry & Gerlind Wolinksy

Woodell Family Foundation

Mrs. Lorraine Wulfe

Robert and Michele Yekovich

Erla & Harry Zuber

Anonymous (7)

Our Donors

$2,500+

Pat and John Anderson

Mr. Tom Anderson

Dr. Julia Andrieni

Mr. and Mrs. Stephen J. Banks

Drs. Henry and Louise Bethea

Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Bickel

George Boerger

Mr. Russell Boone

Robert and Gwen Bray

Joe Brazzatti

Mr. and Mrs. Bruce G. Buhler

Justice Brett and Erin Busby

Kori and Chris Caddell

Ms. Greta Carlson

Mr. Steve Carroll and Ms. Rachel Dolbier

Drs. David A. Cech and Mary R. Schwartz

Darleen and Jack Christiansen

Mr. Per Staunstrup Christiansen

Mr. and Ms. Daniel Chavanelle

Dr. and Dr. Stephen Chen

Matt Chuchla

Jimmy and Lynn Coe

Richard Collins

Consurgo Sunshine

Ms. Jeanette Coon and Thomas Collins

Ms. Sandra Cooper

Mr. and Mrs. James L. Cross

Mr. and Mrs. John Dabbar

Mrs. Myriam Degreve

Mr. and Mrs. Manuel Delgado

Joseph and Rebecca Demeter

Ms. Cynthia Diller

Mrs. Edward N. Earle

David and Carolyn Edgar

Mr. John Egbert and Ms. Kathy Beck

Aubrey & Sylvia Farb

Mrs. Christina Fontenot

Mr. and Mrs. David French

Edwin Friedrichs and Darlene Clark**

Dr. and Mrs. Robert H. Fusillo

Ms. Lucy Gebhart

David George Ph.D.

Wendy Germani

Kathy and Albrecht Goethe

Ms. Lidiya Gold

Susan and Kevin Golden

Marcos Gonzalez

Mr. and Mrs. Herb Goodman

Julianne and David Gorte

Mr. William Gray and Mrs. Clare Fontenot-Gray

Mr. and Mrs. Gary Greaser

Cortney Guebara

Eric and Angelea Halen

Mr. and Mrs. Charles R. Hall

Dr. and Mrs. Carlos R. Hamilton Jr.

Mr. & Mrs. Houston Haymon

Maureen Y. Higdon**

Katherine and Archibald Govan Hill IV

Mr. and Mrs. John Homier

Mr. and Mrs. R. O. Hunton

Mr. Daniel Irion

Mady and Ken Kades

Kathryn L. Ketelsen

Jane and Kevin Kremer

Connie Kwan-Wong

Mr. and Mrs. Richard Langenstein

Ms. Debra Laws

Mrs. Evelyn Leightman

Mrs. Raquel Lewis

Mr. William W. Lindley

Music Director Fund

Matthew and Kristen Loden

Mr. and Mrs. Stephen A. Lubanko

Mr. and Mrs. Peter MacGregor

Mr. and Mrs. Wallis Marsh

Mr. and Mrs. Michael L. Mason

David and Heidi Massin

Mary Ann and David McKeithan

Ms. Kristen Meneilly

Larry and Lyn Miller

David Mincberg & Lainie Gordon

Mr. and Mrs. Thomas L. Molloy

Denise Monteleone

Richard & Juliet Moynihan

Jo Ann and Marvin Mueller

Mr. and Mrs. Richard Murphy

Jessica & Erick Navas

Ms. Barbara Nussmann

Macky Osorio

Rochelle and Sheldon Oster

Nancy Parra

Kusum & K. Cody Patel

Linda Tarpley Peterson

Mr. and Mrs. Arnaud Pichon

Dr. and Mrs. James L. Pool

Dr. Vanitha Pothuri

Mrs. Dana Puddy

Clinton and Leigh Rappole

Dr. Michael and Janet

Rasmussen

Mr. and Mrs. J.B. Reimer

Mrs. Diane Roederer

Mrs. Adelina Romero

Mr. and Mrs. John Ryder

Mr. Robert T. Sakowitz

Harold H. Sandstead, M.D.

Gina and Saib Saour

Lawrence P. Schanzmeyer

Dr. Mark A. Schusterman

Mr. and Mrs. Steven Schwarzbach

Mr. and Mrs. Dilanka Seimon

Becky Shaw

Mr. and Dr. Adrian D. Shelley

Arthur E. and Ellen Shelton

Leslie Siller**

Hinda Simon

Ms. Diana Skerl

David Smith and Elizabeth A. Fagan

Jeaneen and Tim Stastny

Meredith and Ralph Stone

Mr. and Ms. Kerr Taylor

Dr. and Mrs. Van W. Teeters

Juliana and Stephen Tew

Jean and Doug Thomas

Eric and Carol Timmreck

Courtney & Bill Toomey

Sal and Denise Torrisi

Dr. Brad and Mrs. Frances Urquhart

Patricia Van Allan

Dean Walker

H. Richard Walton

Nancy Ames and Danny Ward

Alton and Carolyn Warren

Ms. Katherine Warren

Dr. and Mrs. Richard T. Weiss

Dr. Robert Wilkins and Dr. Mary Ann ReynoldsWilkins

Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Williams

Mr. Frank Wilson

Mr. and Mrs. Steve Yatauro

Robert and Michele Yekovich

Mrs. Linda Yelin

Anonymous (2)

The Houston Symphony has entered a new era with the introduction of internationally acclaimed conductor, Juraj Valčuha, as its Music Director. Valčuha’s visionary leadership will continue to elevate the orchestra’s level of artistry on the Jones Hall stage, its international reputation, and its relevance to the Houston community.

The purpose of the Music Director Fund is to provide leadership support to Maestro Juraj Valčuha and his artistic endeavors as Music Director. The Symphony extends our special thanks to Board President John Rydman, along with his wife, Lindy, and Spec’s Wines, Spirits & Finer Foods, for kicking off the campaign with the first gift to the fund. To join the Music Director Fund, supporters make a leadership gift of $100,000 above and beyond their annual giving.

To participate in this important effort, please contact Christine Ann Stevens, Senior Director, Development at christine.stevens@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8521.

Margaret Alkek Williams

Robin Angly & Miles Smith

Janice Barrow*

Gary and Marian Beauchamp/The Beauchamp Foundation

Barbara J. Burger

Albert & Anne Chao

Janet F. Clark

Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts

Dr. Sippi and Mr. Ajay Khurana

Barbara and Pat McCelvey

John & Lindy Rydman / Spec’s Wines, Spirits & Finer Foods

Mike Stude

Young Associates Council

The Houston Symphony’s Young Associates Council (YAC) is a philanthropic membership group for young professionals, music aficionados, and performing arts supporters interested in exploring symphonic music within Houston’s flourishing artistic landscape. YAC members are afforded exclusive opportunities to participate in musically focused events that take place not only in Jones Hall, but also in the city’s most sought-after venues, private homes, and friendly neighborhood hangouts. From behind-the-scenes interactions with the musicians of the Houston Symphony to jaw-dropping private performances by world-class virtuosos, the Houston Symphony’s Young Associates Council offers incomparable insight and accessibility to the music and musicians that are shaping the next era of orchestral music.

YOUNG ASSOCIATE LEADERSHIP

Kusum Patel, Chair

Carrie Brandsberg-Dahl, Vice Chair

YOUNG ASSOCIATE PREMIUM $2,500+

Christopher P. Armstrong and Laura Schaffer

Ann and Jonathan Ayre

Lauren and Mark Bahorich

Tim Ong and Michael Baugh

Kimberly and James Bell Jr.

Emily Bivona and Ryan Manser

Carrie and Sverre Brandsberg-Dahl#

Eric D. Brueggeman

Lindsay Buchanan#

Haydée del Calvo and Esteban Montero

Ryan Cantrell

Kendall and Jim Cross

Denise and Brandon Davis

Valerie Palmquist Dieterich and Tracy Dieterich

Vicky Dominguez

Jamie Everett

Carolyn and Patrick Gaidos

Claudio J. Gutiérrez

YOUNG ASSOCIATE $1,500+

Amber Ali

Fiona Anklesaria

Luisa Banos and Vladi Gorelik

Amanda Beatriz

Laura and William Black

Adair and Kevin Brueggeman

Greta Carlson

David Chaluh

Lincoln Chen

Megan and John Degenstein

Chante Westmoreland Dillard and Joseph Dillard

Laurel Flores#

Kallie Gallagher

Patrick B. Garvey

Amy Goodpasture

Rebecca and Andrew Gould

Nicholas Gruy

Lori Harrington and Parashar Saikia

Ashley and John Horstman

C. Birk Hutchens

Mariya Idenova

Jonathan T. Jan

Anna Kaplan

Allegra Lilly and Robin Kesselman

Laurel Flores, Communications Chair

Jeff Hiller, Membership Chair

Elaine and Jeff Hiller#

Mariana and James O. Huff III

Carey Kirkpatrick

Joel Luks

Elissa and Jarrod Martin

Kelser McMiller#

Shane A. Miller

Emily and Joseph MorrelPorter Hedges LLP

Stephanie Weber and Paul Muri

Aprill Nelson#

Maxine Olefsky and Justin Kenney

Liana and Andrew Schwaitzberg#

Nadhisha and Dilanka Seimon

Aerin and Quentin Smith#

Justin Stenberg#

Ishwaria and Vivek Subbiah

Kristin and Leonard Wood

Stephanie Kimbrell and Joshua Allison

Kirby and David Lodholz#

Marisa and Tandy Lofland

Gwen and Jay McMurrey

Miriam Meriwani

Zoe Miller

David Moyer

Trevor Myers

Lee Bar-Eli and Cliff Nash

Lauren Paine

Kusum and K. Cody Patel#

Blake Plaster

Clarice Jacobson and Brian Rosenzweig

Chicovia Scott

Carlos Sierra

Leonardo Soto

Maria Spadaro

Bryce Swinford

Elise Wagner#

Alexander Webb

Genevera Allen and Michael Weylandt

Hannah Whitney

Marquis Wincher

Owen Zhang

For more information, please contact Katie Salvatore, Development Officer, at katie.salvatore@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8544. # Steering Committee

Corporate, Foundation & Government Partners

The Houston Symphony is proud to recognize the leadership support of our corporate, foundation, and government partners that allows the orchestra to reach new heights in musical performance, education, and community engagement, for Greater Houston and the Gulf Coast Region.

CORPORATE PARTNERS (as of April 30, 2023)

Principal Corporate Guarantor ($250,000 and above)

Spec’s Wines, Spirits & Finer Foods / Spec’s Charitable Foundation**

Grand Guarantor ($150,000 and above)

ConocoPhillips**

Guarantor ($100,000 and above)

Bank of America

Boston Consulting Group*

Frost Bank

Underwriter ($50,000 and above)

Accordant Advisors*

Amerapex

Baker Botts L.L.P.*

Cameron Management*

Chevron**

CKP Group*

Engie**

Sponsor ($25,000 and above)

EOG Resources

The Events Company*

H-E-B/H-E-B Tournament of Champions**

Partner ($15,000 and above)

City Kitchen*

Faberge

Gorman’s Uniform Service

Supporter ($10,000 and above)

Houston First Corporation*

Macy’s**

Marine Foods Express, Ltd.**

Mark Kamin & Associates

Benefactor ($5,000 and above)

Bank of Texas

Beck Redden LLP

BHP

Mutiny Wine Room

Patron (Gifts below $5,000)

Amazon Baker Hughes

BeDESIGN*

Christian Dior

Gulf Coast Distillers *

Houston Public MediaNews 88.7 FM; Channel 8 PBS*

Houston Methodist* Kalsi Engineering

Oliver Wyman*

Houston Christian University Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo**

Kinder Morgan Foundation** Kirkland & Ellis The Lancaster Hotel* Nexus Health Systems

Neiman Marcus* One Market Square Garage* Silver Eagle Distributors Houston, LLC

Jackson & Company* Locke Lord LLP

New Timmy Chan Corporation Nordstrom** Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, L.L.P.

Russell Reynolds Associates, Inc. University of St. Thomas* Wortham Insurance & Risk Management

KPMG US Foundation, Inc.

Mercantil ONEOK, Inc.

Quantum Bass Center*

SEI, Global Institutional Group

For information on becoming a corporate partner, please contact Timothy Dillow, Senior Director, Development at timothy.dillow@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8538.

KTRK ABC-13*

PaperCity* Shell USA, Inc.**

Oxy** PNC**

Rand Group, LLC*

Sewell

Silver Eagle Beverages*

Truist United Airlines*

Univision Houston & Amor 06.5FM

Vinson & Elkins LLP

Lockton Companies of Houston USI Southwest

Quantum Energy Partners

Sire Spirits Beth Wolff Realtors Zenfilm*

Smith, Graham & Company Stewart Title Company TAM International, Inc.

* Includes in-kind support

**Education and Community Engagement Support

Corporate, Foundation & Government Partners

FOUNDATIONS & GOVERNMENT AGENCIES (as of April 30, 2023)

Diamond Guarantor ($1,000,000 and above)

The Brown Foundation, Inc. Houston Symphony Endowment**

Premier Guarantor ($500,000 and above)

The Alkek and Williams Foundation

Grand Guarantor ($150,000 and above)

City of Houston through the Miller Theatre Advisory Board**

The Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts

Guarantor ($100,000 and above)

The Jerry C. Dearing Family Foundation

Underwriter ($50,000 and above)

Albert and Ethel Herzstein Charitable Foundation

Beauchamp Foundation

The Elkins Foundation

Sponsor ($25,000 and above)

The Melbern G. & Susanne M. Glasscock Foundation**

Partner ($15,000 and above)

Ruth & Ted Bauer Family Foundation**

William E. & Natoma Pyle Harvey Charitable Foundation**

The Hood-Barrow Foundation

Supporter ($10,000 and above)

Edward H. Andrews

The Carleen & Alde Fridge Foundation

George & Mary Josephine Hamman Foundation

Benefactor ($5,000 and above)

Leon Jaworski Foundation

Patron (Gifts below $5,000)

The Lubrizol Foundation

The Scurlock Foundation

Houston Symphony League

The Wortham Foundation, Inc.

City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance

The Cullen Foundation

The Hearst Foundation**

The Humphreys Foundation MD Anderson Foundation National Endowment for the Arts

The Houston Arts Combined Endowment Fund

The Fondren Foundation

Houston Symphony Chorus Endowment

LTR Lewis Cloverdale Foundation

William S. & Lora Jean Kilroy Foundation

The Vivian L. Smith Foundation**

The Schissler Foundation

The Vaughn Foundation

The C. Howard Pieper Foundation

Texas Commission on the Arts**

John P. McGovern Foundation**

The Powell Foundation**

The William Stamps Farish Fund

Petrello Family Foundation

The Pierce Runnells Foundation

Sterling-Turner Foundation Strake Foundation**

The Radoff Family Foundation

Keith & Mattie Stevenson Foundation

For information about becoming a foundation or government partner, please contact Christina Trunzo, Director, Foundation Relations, at christina.trunzo@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8530.

**Education and Community Engagement Support

Houston Symphony Endowment

The Houston Symphony Endowment is organized and operated exclusively for the benefit of the Houston Symphony Society. Your contributions to the Endowment ensure the financial sustainability of your orchestra now and for generations to come.

A named endowed fund is a wonderful way to honor a loved one or to celebrate you and your family’s passion for the Houston Symphony. Named funds may be permanently established within the Houston Symphony Endowment with a minimum contribution of $250,000. Your fund can be designated for general purposes or specific interests. One of the most impactful funds you can create is an Endowed Orchestra Chair. Opportunities to endow an Orchestral Chair begin at $1,000,000. Endowing a chair provides the Houston Symphony with funds to attract, retain, and support musicians of the highest caliber.

For more information about how you may support the Houston Symphony Endowment through a bequest or with a gift during your lifetime, please contact Hadia Mawlawi, Senior Associate, Endowment and Planned Giving, at hadia.mawlawi@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8532.

TRUSTEES

James H. Lee, President

David Krieger

ENDOWMENT FUNDS $250,000+

Janice H. and Thomas D. Barrow Chair Brinton Averil Smith, Principal Cello

The Brown Foundation Guest Pianist Fund

The Brown Foundation Miller Outdoor Theatre Fund in memory of Hanni and Stewart Orton, Legacy Society Co-Founders

Margarett and Alice Brown Fund for Education

Janet F. Clark Fund

Roy and Lillie Cullen Chair

Juraj Valčuha, Music Director

The Cullen Foundation Maestro’s Fund

The Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts Fund for Creative Initiatives

The Margaret and James Elkins Foundation Fund

The Virginia Lee Elverson Trust Fund

Fondren Foundation Chair

Qi Ming, Assistant Concertmaster

William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund for Education Programs

William Dee Hunt

Lynn Mathre

Jerome Simon

Scott Wise

The General and Mrs. Maurice Hirsch Memorial Concert Fund in memory of Theresa Meyer and Jules Hirsch, beloved parents of General Maurice Hirsch, and Rosetta Hirsch Weil and Josie Hirsch Bloch, beloved sisters of General Maurice Hirsch

General Maurice Hirsch Chair

Aralee Dorough, Principal Flute

Houston Symphony Chorus Fund

Joan and Marvin Kaplan Fund

Ellen E. Kelley Chair

Eric Halen, Co-Concertmaster

Max Levine Chair

Yoonshin Song, Concertmaster

Mary R. Lewis Fund for Piano Performance

M.D. Anderson Foundation Fund

Mary Lynn and Steve Marks Fund

Barbara and Pat McCelvey Fund

Mr. and Mrs. Alexander K. McLanahan Endowed Chair

William VerMeulen, Principal Horn

Monroe L. Mendelsohn Jr. Fund

George P. and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Summer Concerts Fund

Bobbie Nau Chair

Mark Nuccio, Principal Clarinet

C. Howard Pieper Foundation Fund

Walter W. Sapp Fund, Legacy Society Co-Founder

Fayez Sarofim Guest Violinist Fund through the Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts

The Schissler Foundation Fund

Spec’s Charitable Foundation Salute to Educators Concert Fund

The Micijah S. Stude Special Production Fund

Bobby and Phoebe Tudor Fund

Margaret Alkek Williams Chair

John Mangum, Executive Director/CEO

The Wortham Foundation Classical Series Fund in memory of Gus S. and Lyndall F. Wortham

Legacy Society

The Legacy Society honors those who have included the Houston Symphony Endowment in their long-term estate plans through a bequest in a will, life-income gifts, or other deferred-giving arrangements.

For more information, please contact Hadia Mawlawi, Senior Associate, Endowment and Planned Giving, at hadia.mawlawi@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8532.

CRESCENDO CIRCLE $100,000+ (as of April 30, 2023)

Dr. and Mrs. George J. Abdo

Priscilla R. Angly

Jonathan and Ann Ayre

Myra W. Barber

Janice Barrow*

Jim Barton

James Bell

Joe Anne Berwick*

Joan H. Bitar, MD

James and S. Dale Brannon

Walter and Nancy Bratic

Joe Brazzatti

Terry Ann Brown

Mary Kathryn Campion and Stephen Liston

Drs. Dennis and Susan Carlyle

Janet F. Clark

Virginia A. Clark

Mr. William E. Colburn

Elizabeth DeWitts

Farida Abjani

Dr. Antonio Arana*

Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey B. Aron

George* and Betty Bashen

Dorothy B. Black*

Kerry Levine Bollmann

Ermy Borlenghi Bonfield

Zu Broadwater

Dr. Joan K. Bruchas* and Mr. H. Philip Cowdin*

Mr. Christopher and Mrs. Erin Brunner

Eugene R. Bruns

Cheryl and Sam* Byington

Sylvia J. Carroll

Dr. Robert N. Chanon

William J. Clayton and Margaret A. Hughes

Mr. and Mrs. Byron Cooley

The Honorable* and Mrs. William Crassas

Dr. Lida S. Dahm

Leslie Barry Davidson

Susan Feickert

Ginny Garrett

Mr. and Mrs. Harry H. Gendel

Michael B. George

Mauro H. Gimenez and Connie A. Coulomb

Bill Grieves*

Mr. Robert M. Griswold

Randolph Lee Groninger

Andria N. Elkins

Jean and Jack* Ellis

The Aubrey* and Sylvia Farb Family

Helen Hudspeth Flores*

Eugene Fong

Mrs. Aggie L. Foster

Stephen and Mariglyn Glenn

Evan B. Glick

Jo A. and Billie Jo Graves

Mario Gudmundsson

Deborah Happ and Richard Rost

Marilyn and Bob Hermance

Dr. Charles and Tammie Johnson

Dr. Rita Justice

Mr. and Mrs. U. J. LeGrange

Joella and Steven P. Mach

Martha and. Alexander Matiuk

Michelle and Jack Matzer

Claudio J. Gutiérrez

Mr. and Mrs. Jerry L. Hamaker

Gloria L. Herman*

Timothy Hogan and Elaine Anthony

Dr. Gary L. Hollingsworth

Dr. Edward J. and Mrs. Patti* Hurwitz

Dr. Kenneth Hyde

Brian and Catherine James

Barbara and Raymond Kalmans

Dr. James E. and Betty W. Key

Dr. and Mrs. I. Ray Kirk

Mrs. Frances E. Leland

Samuel J. Levine

Mrs. Lucy Lewis

Sandra Magers

David Ray Malone and David J. Sloat

Mr. and Mrs. Rodney H. Margolis

Jay and Shirley* Marks

James G. Matthews

Mary Ann and David McKeithan

Dr. Tracey Samuels and Mr. Robert McNamara

Mr. and Mrs. D. Bradley McWilliams

Dr. and Mrs. Malcolm L. Mazow

Bill and Karinne McCullough

Muffy and Mike McLanahan

Dr. Georgette M. Michko

Dr. Robert M. Mihalo*

Mr. and Mrs. Marvin H. Mueller

Drs. John and Dorothy Oehler

Gloria G. Pryzant

Constance E. Roy

Donna Scott

Charles and Andrea Seay

Mr. and Mrs. James A. Shaffer

Michael J. Shawiak

Jule* and Albert* Smith

Louis* and Mary Kay Snyder

Ronald Mikita* & Rex Spikes

Catherine Jane Merchant*

Marilyn Ross Miles and Stephen Warren Miles Foundation

Sidney and Ione Moran

Janet Moynihan*

Richard and Juliet Moynihan

Gretchen Ann Myers

Patience Myers

John N. Neighbors* in memory of Jean Marie Neighbors

Mr.* and Mrs. Richard C. Nelson

Bobbie Newman

John and Leslie Niemand

Leslie Nossaman

Dave G. Nussmann*

John Onstott

Macky Osorio

Edward C. Osterberg Jr.

Mr. and Mrs. Edmund and Megan Pantuliano

Christine and Red Pastorek

Peter* and Nina Peropoulos

Linda Tarpley Peterson

Sara M. Peterson

Jenny and Tadjin* Popatia

Geraldine Smith Priest

Dana Puddy

Patrick T. Quinn

Lila Rauch

Frank Shroeder Stanford in memory of Dr. Walter O. Stanford

Mike and Anita* Stude

Mr. and Mrs. Jesse B. Tutor

Elba L. Villarreal

Margaret Waisman, M.D. and Steven S. Callahan, Ph.D.

Mr. and Mrs. Fredric A. Weber

Robert G. Weiner & Toni Blankmann

Vicki West in honor of Hans Graf

Susan Gail Wood

Jo Dee Wright

Ellen A. Yarrell

Anonymous (2)

Ed and Janet Rinehart

Mr. Floyd W. Robinson

Walter Ross

Dr. and Mrs. Kazuo Shimada

Lisa and Jerry Simon

Tad and Suzanne Smith

Sherry Snyder

Marie Speziale

Emily H. and David K. Terry

Stephen G. Tipps

Steve Tostengard*, in memory of Ardyce Tostengard

Jana Vander Lee

Bill and Agnete Vaughan

Dean B. Walker

Stephen and Kristine Wallace

Geoffrey Westergaard

Nancy B. Willerson

Jennifer R. Wittman

Lorraine and Ed* Wulfe

David and Tara Wuthrich

Katherine and Mark Yzaguirre Anonymous (8)

Musician Sponsorships

Donors at the Sponsorship Circle level and above are provided the opportunity to be recognized as sponsoring a Houston Symphony Musician.

For more information, please contact Alexa Ustaszewski, Major Gifts Officer, at alexa.ustaszewski@houstonsymphony.org or 713.337.8534.

(As of April 30, 2023)

Dr. Angela Apollo

Scott Holshouser, Principal Keyboard

Dr. Saúl and Ursula Balagura

Charles Seo, Cello

Janice Barrow*

Sophia Silivos, First Violin

Gary and Marian Beauchamp/ The Beauchamp Foundation

Martha Chapman, Second Violin

Nancy and Walter Bratic

Christopher Neal, First Violin

Mr. Gordon J. Brodfuehrer

Maki Kubota, Cello

Mr. Robert Bunch and Ms. Lilia Khakimova

Alexander Potiomkin, Bass Clarinet and Clarinet

Ralph Burch

Robin Kesselman, Principal Double Bass

Barbara J. Burger

Andrew Pedersen, Double Bass

Mary Kathryn Campion, PhD Rodica Gonzalez, First Violin

Drs. Dennis and Susan Carlyle

Louis-Marie Fardet, Cello

Jane Cizik

Qi Ming, Assistant Concertmaster

Janet F. Clark

MuChen Hsieh, Principal Second Violin

Michael H. Clark and Sallie Morian Assistant Principal Viola

Virginia A. Clark

Christian Harvey, Shepherd School-Houston

Symphony Brown Foundation CommunityEmbedded Fellow

Roger and Debby Cutler

Tong Yan, First Violin

Mike and Debra Dishberger

Phillip Freeman, Bass Tombone

Joan and Bob Duff

Robert Johnson, Associate Principal Horn

Steve and Mary Gangelhoff

Judy Dines, Flute

Stephen and Mariglyn Glenn

Christian Schubert, Clarinet

Evan B. Glick

Tong Yan, First Violin

Suzan and Julius Glickman

Thomas LeGrand, Associate

Principal Clarinet and E-flat Clarinet

Mr. and Mrs. Fred L. Gorman

Christopher French, Associate Principal Cello

Mark and Ragna Henrichs

Donald Howey, Double Bass

Gary L. Hollingsworth and Kenneth J. Hyde

Robert Walp, Assistant Principal Trumpet

Mrs. James E. Hooks

Burke Shaw, Double Bass

Drs. M.S. and Marie-Luise

Kalsi

Eric Halen, Co-Concertmaster

Joan Kaplan

Mark Nuccio, Principal Clarinet

Dr. Sippi and Mr. Ajay Khurana

David Connor, Double Bass –Community-Embedded

Musician

Dr. and Mrs. I. Ray Kirk

John C. Parker, Associate

Principal Trumpet

Rochelle* and Max Levit

Sergei Galperin, First Violin

Cora Sue and Harry* Mach

Joan DerHovsepian, Acting Principal Viola

Joella and Steven P. Mach

Eric Larson, Double Bass

Mrs. Carolyn and Dr. Michael Mann

Ian Mayton, Horn

Mr. and Mrs. Rodney H.

Margolis

Eric Halen, Co-Concertmaster

Mr. and Mrs. J. Stephen Marks

Brian Del Signore, Principal Percussion

Mr. Jay Marks

Sergei Galperin, First Violin

Michelle and Jack Matzer

Kurt Johnson, First Violin

Barbara and Pat McCelvey

Adam Dinitz, English Horn

Muffy and Mike McLanahan

William VerMeulen, Principal Horn

Dr. Eric McLaughlin and Mr. Eliodoro Castillo

Jonathan Fischer, Principal Oboe

Martha and Marvin McMurrey

Rodica Gonzalez, First Violin

Rita and Paul Morico

Elise Wagner, Bassoon

Scott and Judy Nyquist

Sheldon Person, Viola

Dr. Susan Osterberg and Mr. Edward C. Osterberg Jr.

MiHee Chung, First Violin

Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan E. Parker

Jeffrey Butler, Cello

Gloria and Joe Pryzant

Matthew Strauss, Percussion

Allan and Jean Quiat

Richard Harris, Trumpet

Laurie A. Rachford

Timothy Dilenschneider, Associate Principal Double Bass

Ron and Demi Rand

Annie Chen, Second Violin

Ed & Janet Rinehart

Amy Semes, Associate Principal Violin

Mrs. Sybil F. Roos

Mark Hughes, Principal

Trumpet

Mr. Glen A. Rosenbaum

Aralee Dorough, Principal Flute

John and Lindy Rydman / Spec’s Wines, Spirits & Finer Foods

Anthony Kitai, Cello

Kathy and Ed Segner

Kathryn Ladner, Flute & Piccolo

Mr. and Mrs. James A. Shaffer

Eric Halen, Co-Concertmaster

Margaret and Joel Shannon

Rainel Joubert, Violin–Community-Embedded Musician

Tad and Suzanne Smith

Marina Brubaker, First Violin

Alana R. Spiwak and Sam L. Stolbun

Wei Jiang, Acting Associate Principal Viola

Mike Stude

Brinton Averil Smith, Principal Cello

Bobby and Phoebe Tudor

Bradley White, Acting Principal Trombone

Judith Vincent

Matthew Roitstein, Associate Principal Flute

Margaret Waisman, M.D. and Steven S. Callahan, Ph.D.

Mark Griffith, Percussion

Stephen and Kristine Wallace

Rian Craypo, Principal Bassoon

Mr. & Mrs. Fredric A. Weber

Position Open, Harp

Robert G. Weiner and Toni Blankman

Anastasia Ehrlich, Second Violin

Vicki West

Rodica Gonzalez, First Violin

Steven and Nancy Williams

MiHee Chung, First Violin

Jeanie Kilroy Wilson and Wallace S. Wilson

Xiao Wong, Cello

Nina and Michael Zilkha

Kurt Johnson, First Violin

DID YOU KNOW?

The Houston Symphony relies on gifts from donors like you for more than ⅔ of our annual operating budget.

Through your donation to the Annual Fund, your Houston Symphony can:

Employ 90 full-time orchestra musicians.

Perform 117 orchestral concerts in Jones Hall annually featuring outstanding artistic programming, superstar guest artists, and guest conductors.

As we near the end of our fiscal year, please consider making a gift to the Annual Fund before our May 31 deadline. When you buy tickets to a Symphony concert, know that your subscription is crucial in ensuring that ⅓ of the Symphony’s operating budget is secure. But if every subscriber and ticket buyer gave a one-time gift of $360, or a recurring monthly donation of $30, your generosity would go a long way in providing world-class performances and community engagement programs in Houston.

To donate to the Annual Fund, visit houstonsymphony.org/donate or call:

Zitlaly Jimenez, Annual Fund Manager 713.337.8559.

Serve more than 60,000 Houstonians through our free and low-cost Community Concerts—including Neighborhood Concerts and Chevron’s Fiesta Sinfónica—and our Community-Embedded Musician (CEM) activities, including hospital and dementia center visits, community-based music education programs, and high school residencies.

Engage 43,537 students and educators in the Greater Houston area through our Student Concert Series.

Ticket and Subscription Sales

Contribution from the Houston Symphony Endowment

This is our 2022–23 Fundraising Goal!

THE HOUSTON SYMPHONY’S TOTAL ANNUAL OPERATING BUDGET IS $33 MILLION

NEW SEASON, NEW GREEN ROOM, NEW DONOR BENEFITS!

Jones Hall, the iconic home of the Houston Symphony, is undergoing a series of renovations to improve the concert experience for both the performers and the audience. During the 2023–24 Season, patrons can look forward to several improvements to Jones Hall, including brand new seats, an increase in the number of restroom facilities, and a new orchestra shell. The Toomim Family Green Room at Jones Hall—open to donors at the Conductor's Circle Level and above—is also getting a facelift! The larger and enhanced Green Room has new features, including:

• A new, sleek modern design (twice the size)

• Additional built-in seating options

• Complimentary drinks and food

• Two private restrooms

• And more!

Next season, Houston Symphony donors will also have access to a variety of new benefits. In addition to access to the Green Room, donors at the Conductor's Circle Level ($10,000) and above will also enjoy complimentary valet parking at every show.

If you would like to secure your spot in the newly renovated Green Room, contact Major Gifts Officers:

Amanda Dinitz

amanda.dinitz@houstonsymphony.org

Alexa Ustaszewski

alexa.ustaszewski@houstonsymphony.org

Scan here to join the Conductor's Circle by giving a $10,000 gift:

1. RIBONI VIOLIN CASE: A Christmas gift from my husband. It has stickers from my recent trip to Taiwan to visit my parents, and signatures from Jan Lisiecki, Hélène Grimaud, and Augustin Hadelich. 2. SHEET MUSIC: A Ravel Violin Concerto that I’m currently working on for an upcoming party.

3. MEMENTOS: Family Christmas cards and photos of my husband, son, parents, and brother. 4. SHOULDER PADS: These go between my shoulder and the violin for extra padding. 5. VIOLIN STRINGS: These strings are still on trial and not available to the public, and I really liked them.

6. LAVENDER SACHET: From a lavender farm in Walla Walla, Washington. 7. VIOLIN CLEANING CLOTHS 8. ROSIN: Goes on top of the violin bow to give it more resistance on the strings.

9. HANDY ITEMS: Practice mute, orchestra mute, nail clippers, peg paste, alcohol wipes, eye drops, pencil sharpener, and pencils. 10. SPARE STRINGS 11. BOW: Commissioned from French violin bow maker Benoît Rolland in 2014. MuChen Hsieh, principal second violin, has a commissioned bow from the same maker! 12. VIOLIN: Purchased from a violinist in the New York Philharmonic in 2007. Made by Italian violin maker Giuseppe Dollenz in 1881. 13. SILK SCARF: I got this from my guardian in high school who had lots of silk scarves. I wrap this around my violin inside the case to keep the humidity inside and protect it.

WHAT’S IN MY CASE WITH ANNIE CHEN

Jones Hall – 615 Louisiana Street

houstonsymphony.org