Non-Profit Organization US Postage PAID Ann Arbor, MI Permit No. 27
Burton Memorial Tower 881 North University Avenue Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1011
133rd
ums season
Postmaster: Please deliver August 17-24, 2011.
Connecting Audiences and Artists in Uncommon and Engaging Experiences
University of Michigan / Ann Arbor
Publication Date: August 2011
www.ums.org
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Graphic Design: Margot Campos
All Monday-Thursday performances begin at 7:30 pm.
September 2011 Sat 17 An Evening with Ahmad Jamal Sun 18 Emerson String Quartet Fri-Sat 23-24 Mark Morris Dance Group Sun 25 ADDED EVENT: Dan Zanes & Friends October 2011 Sat 1 John Malkovich and Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra The Infernal Comedy: Confessions of a Serial Killer Sun 9 Yuja Wang piano Sun 9 National Theatre Live: One Man, Two Guvnors Thu 13 State Symphony Capella of Russia Sat 15 Goran Bregovic and His Wedding and Funeral Orchestra Fri-Sat 21-22 Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan Thu 27 Schola Cantorum de Venezuela Thu-Sat 27-29 Gate Theatre of Dublin: Beckett’s Endgame and Watt Sun 30 National Theatre Live: The Kitchen November 2011 Thu 3 Apollo’s Fire and Philippe Jaroussky countertenor Jeannette Sorrell conductor Fri 4 Audra McDonald Sat 5 Diego El Cigala Wed 9 AnDa Union Fri 11 A Night in Treme: The Musical Majesty of New Orleans Sat 12 St. Lawrence String Quartet Sun 20 Beijing Guitar Duo with Manuel Barrueco Sun 27 Canadian Brass December 2011 Sat-Sun 3-4 Handel’s Messiah Tue 6 London Philharmonic Orchestra Vladimir Jurowski conductor Janine Jansen violin Wed 7 Stile Antico
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January 2012 Sun 8 National Theatre Live: The Collaborators Fri-Sun 20-22 Einstein on the Beach Mon 23 Denis Matsuev piano [NOTE DATE CHANGE] Sat 28 Les Violons du Roy with Maurice Steger recorder Sun 29 Hamburg Symphony Orchestra Messiaen’s From the Canyons to the Stars Jeffrey Tate conductor Francesco Tristano piano Daniel Landau filmmaker February 2012 Sat 4 Sabine Meyer and the Trio di Clarone Fri 10 Chamber Ensemble of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra Sun 12 Michigan Chamber Players (free admission) Thu 16 The Tallis Scholars Fri 17 Sweet Honey In The Rock Sat 18 Random Dance Sun 19 Fela! (at Music Hall, Detroit) Sun 19 National Theatre: Title TBA Wed 22 Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis Thu 23 Hagen Quartet March 2012 Fri 9 Chicago Symphony Orchestra Riccardo Muti conductor Pinchas Zukerman violin Sat 10 Max Raabe & Palast Orchester Thu-Sat 15-17 The Andersen Project Ex Machina Written and directed by Robert Lepage Sun 18 National Theatre Live: The Comedy of Errors Thu-Sun 22-25 San Francisco Symphony: American Mavericks Michael Tilson Thomas conductor April 2012 Thu 12 Zakir Hussain and Masters of Percussion Fri 13 Cheikh Lô Sat 14 Charles Lloyd New Quartet Wed 18 Pavel Haas Quartet Thu-Sat 19-21 Ballet Preljocaj: Snow White Sun 22 Ford Honors Program Joshua Bell director and violin Academy of St. Martin in the Fields 2 | 3
Added Family Performances!
Sunday \ September Power Center
25 \ 1 pm & 4 pm
Our popular media culture and politics have been awash for the last few years in a tidal wave of rhetoric privileging ideas and personalities that yearn to break with the past — to change, sometimes radically, the way we function, to re-imagine and reshape the way we do things. In a word: to innovate. People seem to be looking in all sectors of life for a new creativity that maps a pathway to a new frontier. Looking at reality differently…Breaking with or reinterpreting “the canon”…(Maybe even ignoring it!?) Creating something new that we could never imagine…and, once realized, never live without? The most basic artistic impulse can encompass all these ideas. And so UMS has designed a 10-week, 10- performance journey to showcase some of these ideas as expressed through the performing arts — both historically and in the present. These performances from January through March 2012 operate as a window into artistic innovation and experimentation with real staying power: Einstein on the Beach Fri-Sun Jan 20-22 Hamburg Symphony Orchestra/ Sun Jan 29 Messiaen’s From the Canyons to the Stars The Tallis Scholars: Renaissance Mavericks Thu Feb 16 Random Dance: FAR Sat Feb 18 Hagen Quartet: Beethoven Thu Feb 23 Ex Machina: The Andersen Project Thu-Sat Mar 15-17 San Francisco Symphony: American Mavericks Thu-Sun Mar 22-25 (4 different programs) We struggled with finding a word that helped frame this experience. Our conversations crystallized around the word Renegade: a rebel, someone who breaks with customs. This task of naming has generated much discussion and debate and even made some feel uncomfortable. Maybe that’s the point. Renegades have a way of bringing out the extremes of our humanity. You may, at times find yourself experiencing a complex set of reactions: confusion/delight, wonder/rage, thrill/boredom... But, in the end, we hope that your own way of seeing and experiencing reality changes, and, maybe, you’ll find a little bit of the renegade spirit within yourself.
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Dan Zanes & Friends are releasing Little Nut Tree, the group’s first album in five years — and Ann Arbor is celebrating, with two performances by the wild, crazy, and popular ensemble that has “charged to the rescue of beleaguered parents everywhere.” (The Washington Post) Zanes’ live concerts are “a dance party hootenanny for the 21st- century” (Los Angeles Times), appealing to all ages from toddlers to grandparents. Zanes abandoned a pop music career as leader of the Del Fuegos after his daughter was born in 1994. Though she is now 16, he continues to pursue handmade family music full time, with music videos airing on “Sesame Street” and “Playhouse Disney.” Of his first CD, Rocket Ship Beach (2000), The New York Times Magazine said, “Zanes’ kids’ music works because it is not kids’ music; it’s just music — music that’s unsanitized, unpasteurized, that’s organic even.” That assessment certainly hasn’t changed over the past decade; his albums and performances are hip but accessible, bringing a multicultural, musical “mixed bag” approach that has earned Zanes his place at the forefront of the family music movement. “When I started making family music, or 21st- century all-ages social music, I wanted to try and create the updated version of the Folkways records I grew up with,” Zanes says. “They had a homespun mix of old and new songs from a variety of traditions that sounded like they were recorded on someone’s farm… Little Nut Tree is the grooviest of the Dan Zanes & Friends family series CDs — although you could still nap to it if you needed to.” Sponsored by Rachel Bendit and Mark Bernstein.
4 | 5
Added Events!
The 11/12 National Theatre Live Series includes: One Man, Two Guvnors
The Collaborators
By Richard Bean Directed by Nicholas Hytner
Sunday
By John Hodge Directed by Nicholas Hytner
\October 9 \ 7 pm
Sunday
Based on Goldoni’s The Servant of Two Masters (which UMS presented in the 05/06 season with Piccolo Teatro di Milano), Richard Bean’s One Man, Two Guvnors is directed by National Theatre artistic director Nicholas Hytner. Starring James Corden, this entertaining comedy is set in 1963 Brighton (UK), with sex, food, and money high on the agenda. Early reviews in London hailed it as “one of the funniest productions in the National’s history” (Daily Telegraph) and “the feel-good hit of the summer.” (The Telegraph) This production has already sold out every performance through September in London.
This new play by John Hodge (screenwriter of Trainspotting, Shallow Grave, and The Beach) centers on an imaginary encounter between Joseph Stalin and the playwright Mikhail Bulgakov (best known for his novel The Master and Margarita). Stars Alex Jennings (The Habit of Art) as Bulgakov and Simon Russell Beale (London Assurance) as Stalin.
Title TBA Sunday
By Arnold Wesker Directed by Bijan Sheibani
High-Definition Broadcasts from the National Theatre, London A Partnership between UMS and the Michigan Theater
UMS and the Michigan Theater join forces to bring high-definition screenings of live theater broadcasts by the National Theatre, London. These broadcasts feature plays produced by the National Theatre on cinema screens worldwide. In the US, these “live” screenings are delayed to accommodate the time difference. Broadcasts feature behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with actors. Detailed running times are posted on the UMS website approximately 7-14 days before each screening. Tickets for each National Theatre Live event may be purchased at the UMS Ticket Office or online at www.ums.org. Tickets will be sold at the Michigan Theater beginning 90 minutes before each broadcast. Season tickets for the entire series are available through Friday, September 30, 2011. UMS donors and Michigan Theater members receive discounted prices. We anticipate that the National Theatre will add additional broadcasts to its 11/12 schedule; details to be announced. www.ums.org
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\February 19 \ 7 pm
We don’t know what performance the National Theatre will be dishing up quite yet, but we do expect it to be incredible. Stay tuned to www.ums.org for updates.
The Kitchen Sunday
\January 8 \ 4 pm
\October 30 \ 4 pm
The Comedy of Errors
In the kitchen of an enormous West End restaurant in 1950s London, the orders are piling up: a post-war feast of soup, fish, cutlets, omelets, and fruit flans. Thrown together by their work, chefs, waitresses, and porters from across Europe — English, Irish, German, Jewish — argue and flirt as they race to keep up. Peter, a high-spirited young cook, seems to thrive on the pressure. In between preparing dishes, he manages to strike up an affair with a married waitress while dreaming of a better life. But in the all-consuming clamor of the kitchen, nothing is far from the brink of collapse. Arnold Wesker’s extraordinary play premiered at the Royal Court in 1959. It features an ensemble of 30 people and is set in a kitchen, using real food and actors actually cooking and preparing food on stage. This tour-de-force spectacle is a blackly funny and furious examination of life lived at breakneck speed, when work threatens to define who we are.
By William Shakespeare Directed by Dominic Cooke
Sunday
\March 18 \ 7 pm
Dominic Cooke, director of the Royal Court Theatre in London, comes to the National for the first time to direct Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors. UK comedian and actor Lenny Henry makes his National Theatre debut as Antipholus of Syracuse.
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Mozart’s Late Quartets: “King of Prussia”
Sunday \ September Rackham Auditorium
18 \
4 pm
Ahmad Jamal piano James Cammack bass Herlin Riley drums Manolo Badrena percussion Saturday \ September Hill Auditorium
17 \ 8 pm
“Ahmad Jamal is not just a living legend of jazz; he is one of the most inspired and inspiring artists in music today.” (AllAboutJazz.com) A pivotal influence on Miles Davis and countless others, the NEA Jazz Master incorporates a unique sense of space in his music — his musical concepts are exciting while confidently understated. Like Louis Armstrong, Jamal is an exemplary ensemble player, someone who listens and responds with total command of the keyboard. His charismatic swing and daringly inventive solos always tell a story. Born in Pittsburgh 81 years ago, Jamal is playing better than ever, with lifetime achievement awards feeling premature given his ongoing desire to push the genre forward. He returns after his UMS debut in 2008 with the ensemble from his 2010 release, A Quiet Time, which features drummer Herlin Riley, who was for many years the drummer in the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Funded in part by NEA Jazz Masters Live, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. Media Partners WEMU 89.1 FM, Metro Times, and The Michigan Chronicle.
www.ums.org
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Formed in the bicentennial year of the United States, the Emerson String Quartet took its name from the great American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson. The group made its Ann Arbor debut in 1989, and in 14 appearances since has performed with the integrity, energy, and commitment that it has demonstrated throughout more than 30 years of extensive touring and recording. The Emerson’s unparalleled achievements over the past three decades include nine Grammy awards (two for “Best Classical Album,” an unprecedented honor for a chamber music group), three Gramophone Awards, the coveted Avery Fisher Prize, membership in the American Classical Music Hall of Fame, and cycles of the complete string quartets of Beethoven, Bartók, Mendelssohn, and Shostakovich in the world’s music capitals. This return appearance features the Quartet in an all-Mozart program, performing three quartets commissioned by the King of Prussia, Friedrich Wilhelm II. “With musicians like this, there must be some hope for humanity.” (The Times, London) Program
Mozart Mozart Mozart Mozart
Quartet No. 21 in D Major, K. 575 (1789) Quartet No. 22 in B-flat Major, K. 589 (1790) Adagio and Fugue in c minor, K. 546 (1788) Quartet No. 23 in F Major, K. 590 (1790)
Sponsored by Linda and Maurice Binkow Philanthropic Trust Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.
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Mark Morris artistic director Friday \ September 23 \ 8 pm Saturday \ September 24 \ 8 pm Power Center
The Washington Post called Mark Morris “our Mozart of modern dance. There is that same sense of easy fecundity, his air of an aging, congenial enfant terrible, the sheer brilliance and wealth of his choreographic invention.” Morris has changed the way that audiences see modern dance, with unique artistry that reflects a profound and sophisticated love of music. His company of exuberant dancers lives up to its reputation of wit, grace, and a refined musicality that is further reinforced by Morris’s use of live musicians in every performance. Of Socrates, the San Francisco Chronicle enthused, “What Morris captures…is a mood that evolves from jubilant to resigned. This may be his most elegiac work, and it will always seem like a special event.” The New York Times added, “Socrates, though not simple, is simply beautiful.” Program
Excursions (2008) Barber’s Excursions for Piano, Op. 20 Festival Dance (2011) Hummel’s Piano Quartet in G Major, Op. posth. 4 Socrates (2010) Satie’s Socrates for tenor and piano Sponsored by
The Saturday performance is co-sponsored by Richard and Linda Greene and Ken and Penny Fischer. Media Partners Between the Lines, Metro Times, and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
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The Infernal Comedy: Confessions of a Serial Killer
and musica angelica baroque orchestra
Sunday \ October Hill Auditorium
9 \ 4 pm
Sophie Klussmann and Claire Meghnagi sopranos Martin Haselböck conductor
Saturday \ October Hill Auditorium
1\
8 pm
John Malkovich makes his UMS debut portraying a dead serial killer who returns to the stage to present his autobiography in a public reading. As part of a theatrical opera of sorts, Malkovich, a 40-piece chamber orchestra, and two sopranos tell the real-life story of Jack Unterweger, a convicted murderer and acclaimed prison poet. Pardoned by the Austrian president Kurt Waldheim in 1990 at the behest of the Viennese literati, Unterweger’s public “rehabilitation” was anything but — within two years, he had been arrested and convicted for the brutal murder of 11 prostitutes in three countries. This gripping performance features arias and music by Gluck, Vivaldi, Mozart, Beethoven, Boccherini, and Haydn as the counterpoint to Malkovich’s chilling monologue, which shifts between reality and delusion. A Prelude Dinner precedes the performance, with talk by Frank Beaver, U-M Professor Emeritus in Film & Video. Sponsored by Jane and Edward Schulak
Twenty-four-year-old Chinese pianist Yuja Wang is widely recognized for playing that combines the spontaneity and fearless imagination of youth with the discipline and precision of a mature artist. Regularly lauded for her controlled and prodigious technique, her command of the piano has been described as “astounding” and “superhuman.” She has been praised for her authority over the most complex technical demands of the repertoire, the depth of her musical insight, her fresh interpretations, and her graceful, charismatic stage presence. Following her San Francisco recital debut, the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “The arrival of Chinese-born pianist Yuja Wang on the musical scene is an exhilarating and unnerving development. To listen to her in action is to re-examine whatever assumptions you may have had about how well the piano can actually be played.” She made her UMS debut in January 2008, just months after graduating from the Curtis Institute of Music, and since then has spent each year criss-crossing the globe with a cavalcade of impressive debuts and awards, including the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, given to select musicians destined for bright solo careers. Program [NOTE NEW PROGRAM]
Brahms Fantasies, Op. 116 (1892) Scriabin Sonata No. 5, Op. 53 (1907) Debussy “La soirée dans Grenade” from Estampes (1894-1903) Albéniz “Triana” from Iberia (Book II) (1905-09) Ravel “Alborada del gracioso” from Miroirs (1905) Fauré Ballade in F-Sharp Major, Op. 19 (1877-79) Supported by Donald Morelock.
Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM, Ann Arbor’s 107one, Between the Lines, and Metro Times.
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Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.
12 | 13
Valery Polyansky conductor Thursday \ October 13 \ 7:30 pm St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church
and his wedding and funeral orchestra Saturday \ October Hill Auditorium
Featuring 50 glorious voices, the State Symphony Capella of Russia was founded in 1991 as a result of a merger of the USSR State Chamber Choir and the State Symphony Orchestra of the USSR Ministry of Culture. Specialists admire the strict performing discipline that reigns in the collective, which results in beautiful phrasing, a rich and warm sound, noble expression, and skillful balance. Their flawless vocal and choral technique, crystal-clear and precise intonation, and unfailing attention to poetic words has led to captivating reviews, including this one from Le Monde de la Musique in France: “What a choir! Beautiful, noble, ideally balanced, diversity of timbres, flawless, clear intonation…We can only dream about such a choir.” The Capella’s program will include Russian choral works of Bortniansky, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff, Taneyev, and Schnittke, as well as works of Manuel de Falla, Anton Bruckner, and Russian folk songs. Media Partner WRCJ 90.9 FM.
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15 \ 8 pm
“Bregovic is both the catalyst and ringmaster for a musical spectacle unlike anything else on North American stages.” (San Francisco Chronicle) “It was party time…a Balkan freefor-all, and the jam-packed auditorium went wild.” (The Jerusalem Post) Goran Bregovic is a Balkan music superstar known for fusing fresh, modern influences with traditional ethnic sound. Touring with a wild 20-piece ensemble consisting of a brass band, a classical string ensemble, an all-male choir, and two Bulgarian female singers, Bregovic blends raucous Gypsy dance tunes with traditional Eastern European Orthodox choral music, spinning it all through a rock-and-roll cycle. The result is nothing short of a dizzying, symphonic world music whirlwind, cathartic and delirious. Ann Arbor is one of only a handful of cities in the United States that will present Goran Bregovic this year. “Bregovic makes a music that runs the spectrum from ecstatic, robustly earthy dance music, to naughty pop tunes, to vocal and string arrangements ripe with sentimentality.” (Daily Star, Lebanon) Media Partner Michigan Radio 91.7 FM.
14 | 15
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Water Stains on the Wall
of taiwan
Lin Hwai-min artistic director Friday \ October 21 \ 8 pm Saturday \ October 22 \ 8 pm Power Center
The virtuosity of the dancers from the Taiwanese company Cloud Gate has caused critics to rave that they “possess a control and articulation that verge on the superhuman.” (Chicago Sun-Times) Trained in tai chi, meditation, Chinese opera movement, modern dance, and ballet, the company performs a rich repertoire with roots in Asian myths, folklore, and aesthetics, all infused with a contemporary perspective. For this long-awaited UMS debut, Cloud Gate presents Lin Hwai-min’s newest work, Water Stains on the Wall. The white set looks like a blank piece of rice paper traditionally used by Chinese calligraphers and painters, onto which images of drifting clouds in different degrees of blackness are projected, with dancers grounded on a tilted floor yet appearing to float. Like flowing ink, the dancers create exquisite spaces that are constantly shifting, reminding one of Chinese classical landscape painting. Luxuriating in the sheer joy of movement, these remarkably fluid performers make stillness every bit as breathtaking as action. “Water stains on the wall” is a popular metaphor that represents the highest state in the aesthetics of Chinese calligraphy. Extending this metaphor, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre creates an abstract work of beauty and magic that stands sublimely on its own. Sponsored by the Center for Chinese Studies at the University of Michigan. Supported by Rani Kotha and Dr. Howard Hu. Media Partners Between the Lines and Metro Times.
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16 | 17
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Beckett’s Endgame and Watt
Michael Cogan artistic director Featuring Barry McGovern and Rosaleen Linehan Thursday \ October 27 \ 7:30 pm Friday \ October 28 \ 8 pm Saturday \ October 29 \ 8 pm Power Center
Straight from Ireland’s acclaimed Gate Theatre is a double-bill of two one-act plays by the great Irish modernist writer, playwright, and humorist Samuel Beckett. The Gate is largely considered the leading interpreter of Beckett in the world; it’s like seeing the Maly Drama Theatre perform Chekhov or The Globe perform Shakespeare. Endgame, like Waiting for Godot, is considered one of Beckett’s most important works, written in a style associated with the Theatre of the Absurd. Watt, a novel written while Beckett was in hiding during World War II, is the extraordinary story of an itinerant character who one day walks from a train station to the home of a Mr. Knott, whom he will serve. The bizarre adventures of Watt and his struggles to make sense of the world around him are told with elegant simplicity, immense pathos, and explosive humor. Barry McGovern, who performs the role of Watt, selected the texts from the novel for this one-man performance. “Quite simply outstanding...I got an almost delirious joy from hearing, and seeing, an hour-long distillation of Beckett’s novel, Watt.” (Guardian) Individual performances are sponsored by the Herbert S. and Carol L. Amster Fund and the Charles H. Gershenson Charitable Trust, Maurice Binkow, Trustee. Hosted by Dody Viola. Funded in part by the Wallace Endowment Fund. Media Partners Between the Lines, Michigan Radio 91.7 FM, and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
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Handel and Vivaldi Fireworks
María Guinand conductor
Jeannette Sorrell music director
Thursday \ October 27 \ 7:30 pm St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church
What does joy sound like? Schola Cantorum de Venezuela is one of the most important choral societies from the growing choral movement in Venezuela. With a repertoire of more than 50 major symphonic-choral works, the 45-voice SCV is beloved by highlyacclaimed conductors and composers alike. The group has performed several premières by Osvaldo Golijov and John Adams and has appeared on over 35 recordings. The premier touring chorus of Latin America, the Schola Cantorum has a breathtaking range of repertoire, from sacred hymns and motets to propulsive rhythms and tuneful popular idioms of their rich Latin American culture. Every SCV concert is a vivid cultural and joyful experience. They bring infectious passion to each work they sing. Their Ann Arbor debut program, Water and Fiesta, features songs by composers from Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Uruguay, Cuba, Mexico, and the US. Complete program details available at www.ums.org. Media Partner WRCJ 90.9 FM.
Thursday \ November Hill Auditorium
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7:30 pm
“When I heard Philippe Jaroussky for the first time, I was struck by his musicality and sensibility,” Cecilia Bartoli told The New York Times Magazine for a profile last November. “There is a beauty in his phrasing and a delicacy, if not fragility, in his soul that touches the listener profoundly.” UMS is delighted to welcome French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky in his UMS debut for this performance with Apollo’s Fire, “one of the nation’s leading baroque orchestras.” (The Boston Globe) Together they explore the full dramatic range of Handel and Vivaldi arias written for the virtuosi castrati singers of the 18th century. “Apollo’s Fire has forged a vibrant, life-affirming approach to the re-making of early music…Their seductive vision of musical authenticity is guided by a shared commitment to honest emotional expression, rooted in period style yet never its slave.” (BBC Music Magazine) Program
Handel Handel Vivaldi Vivaldi Vivaldi Vivaldi/Sorrell Vivaldi Vivaldi
“Disperato il mar turbato” from Oreste (1734) “Con l’ali di costanza” from Ariodante (1735) Concerto for Four Violins in b minor (1711) “Se in ogni guardo” from Orlando Finto Pazzo (1714) “Se mai senti spirati sul volto” from Catone in Utica (1737) La Folio (“Madness”) (1705) “Vedrò con mio diletto” from Giustino (1724) “Nel profondo” from Orlando Furioso (1727)
Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM and Between the Lines.
www.ums.org
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20 | 21
Cigala & Tango
Saturday \ November Michigan Theater
5\
8 pm
Andy Einhorn piano Mark Vanderpoel bass Gene Lewin drums Friday \ November Hill Auditorium
4\
8 pm
A Juilliard-trained, four-time Tony Award-winning singer and actress who has released four solo albums and performed with every major orchestra in the US, Audra McDonald is not one to rest on her laurels — which also include two Grammy awards and two prime-time Emmy Award nominations. The vivacious actress is a restlessly creative spirit who is reluctant to be typecast strictly as a musical theater artist, despite her enormous success in that genre. Since her last UMS appearance in 2005, McDonald has made her Houston Grand Opera debut, won her fourth Tony (for A Raisin in the Sun), played Olivia in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night at The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park, performed at the White House for President Obama, and spent four years on the ABC series “Private Practice.” She now returns to her musical theater roots, including both this Hill Auditorium concert and performing the role of Bess in Porgy and Bess for American Repertory Theater and on Broadway. A Prelude Dinner precedes the performance, with talk by Brent Wagner, Chair of the Musical Theatre Department at the University of Michigan. Sponsored by Supported by Robert and Pearson Macek in memory of Shirley Verrett. Media Partners Metro Times, The Michigan Chronicle, Ann Arbor’s 107one, and WEMU 89.1 FM.
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“Flamenco has to be suffered,” Diego El Cigala asserted in a New York Times interview. “How do you convey emotions from within your heart if you don’t know what suffering is? If there is no evidence of pain in your heart, there is no song.” Nicknamed “El Cigala” (Norway Lobster) for his thin frame and strong voice, Diego is an internationally celebrated Gitano flamenco singer and one of contemporary flamenco’s most compelling voices, making a rare visit to the United States this season. His mother and father were both accomplished practitioners of flamenco, as were his grandparents. He started off singing for well-known flamenco dancers but has since “moved to the front,” which in flamenco slang means to sing on one’s own instead of accompanying a dancer. He is noted for being a pioneer in fusing flamenco with other Latin American music forms such as the bolero, Afro-Caribbean jazz, and tango. His latest project, Cigala & Tango, is the musical testimony to his concert at the Teatro Gran Rex in Buenos Aires in April 2010. The legendary Paco de Lucía says, “Diego has one of the most beautiful flamenco voices of our time, a voice of sweetness that flows over everything. When I listen to him, it warms my heart.” The New York Times adds, “He radiates a magnetic mix of winking charm and unpredictable vitriol reminiscent of a singer from an entirely different milieu, Frank Sinatra.” Media Partner WEMU 89.1 FM.
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Wednesday \ November Michigan Theater
9 \ 7:30 pm
the musical majesty of new orleans
Rebirth Brass Band Donald Harrison, Jr. saxophone Christian Scott trumpet Glen David Andrews trombone Dr. Michael White clarinet
Friday \ November Hill Auditorium
11 \ 8 pm
Formed in 2003, AnDa Union is part of a musical movement that is finding inspiration in old and forgotten folk music from the nomadic herdsman cultures of Inner and Outer Mongolia, drawing on a repertoire of music that all but disappeared during China’s recent tumultuous past. The group’s 14 members all hail from the Xilingol Grassland area of Inner Mongolia, a semi-autonomous region of China. They describe themselves as “music gatherers” who dig deep into Mongol traditions to unearth forgotten music — music as it might have been played late into the evening in the camps of Genghis Khan. Its members are accomplished singers and instrumentalists, performing on the traditional horse-head fiddle (tsuur), a three-holed flute (maodun chaoer) as well as Mongolian versions of the dulcimer, zither, lute, and mouth harp. The main singing style is khoomii, commonly referred to as throat singing, a traditional type of Mongolian overtone singing that replicates the sounds of nature. The performance is accompanied by a captivating documentary film that follows the group on a journey through the vibrant capital of Hohhot and the wild and varied landscapes of the Inner Mongolian grasslands and mountains, where they discover the secrets of their haunting and beautiful music. While wholeheartedly embracing modern society in all its facets, the Mongolian people are a culture fighting for survival in an increasingly industrialized world.
The Treme (pronounced truh-MAY) neighborhood of New Orleans has been a source of AfricanAmerican music and culture for as long as cooks in the Crescent City have been serving red beans and rice on Monday nights. Birthplace of the great New Orleans brass band tradition and one of the first black neighborhoods in America, Treme is the heartbeat of New Orleans and home to Congo Square. This concert features the Rebirth Brass Band, known both for combining traditional brass band sound with funk, jazz, soul, and hip-hop and for embracing the quintessential New Orleans art form “second line,” whereby the band is followed by jubilant dancing. In addition to being a pillar of the New Orleans music scene, the Rebirth Brass Band was featured in the opening scene and on the Grammy-nominated soundtrack of David Simon’s hit HBO series “Treme,” which follows a group of New Orleaneans who are rebuilding their lives after Hurricane Katrina. The concert takes place in conjunction with the HBO show’s second season. Donald Harrison, Jr., Christian Scott, Glen David Andrews, and Dr. Michael White join the Rebirth Brass Band in this personal celebration of New Orleans music and heritage.
Sponsored by the Confucius Institute of the University of Michigan.
Co-sponsored by Anne and Paul Glendon and Comerica Bank.
Funded in part by Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund.
Media Partners WEMU 89.1 FM, Metro Times, The Michigan Chronicle, and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
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Sunday \ November Rackham Auditorium Saturday \ November Rackham Auditorium
12 \
8 pm
One of the great finds of the 09/10 season was the St. Lawrence String Quartet, which made its UMS debut in a stellar program of Haydn, Ravel, and John Adams. Haydn returns to the program for this appearance, which is bookended with the composer’s quartets. In between, the ensemble performs a new work by Osvaldo Golijov, the Argentinean composer who has worked with the SLSQ since the early 1990s. The SLSQ appears twice with UMS in the 11/12 season; they also perform a new work by John Adams with the San Francisco Symphony as part of the American Mavericks concerts in March. Program
Haydn R.M. Schafer Golijov Haydn
20 \ 4 pm
Quartet No. 57 in C Major, Op. 74, No. 1 (1793) Quartet No. 3 (1981) New Work (composed for SLSQ) (2011) Quartet No. 61 in d minor, Op. 76, No. 2 (“Quinten”) (1796-97)
Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.
www.ums.org
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Meng Su and Yameng Wang are widely noted for their outstanding technique and musicality. They first met as children at the Central Conservatory in Beijing, where they studied with the acclaimed professor Chen Zhi. Both women have won the Tokyo International Guitar Competition (Yameng Wang won it at age 12), and have received heaps of acclaim and recognition at international guitar events and from other seasoned guitarists. In 2008, they went to study with Manuel Barrueco at the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore and officially established themselves as the Beijing Guitar Duo. Their impressive talents come together to create one of the most exciting guitar duos on the scene today. Barrueco joins them for this debut performance, which will feature both individual and ensemble work for classical guitar. “It was clear from the evening that both women are incredibly gifted, and together, with their ability to fuse technical skill effortlessly with their depth of musicality, they have the star potential to serve as inspiration for new generations of guitarists to come.” (Classical Guitar) Program
Diabelli Trio in F Major, Op. 62 (b.1781) Torroba Estampas (b.1891) Tan Dun Eight Memories in Watercolor (US premiere) (1978) Tarrega Capricho Arabe (Serenata) (1892) Malats Serenata Andaluza (b. 1872) Serenata Espanola S. Assad The Enchanted Island Piazzolla L’Evasion (1974) Fuga y Misterio (1968) Revirado (1963)
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Sunday \ November Hill Auditorium
27 \
4 pm
Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra UMS Choral Union Jerry Blackstone conductor Mary Wilson soprano Meg Bragle mezzo-soprano Colin Balzer tenor Joshua Hopkins baritone Edward Parmentier harpsichord Saturday \ December 3 \ 8 pm Sunday \ December 4 \ 2 pm Hill Auditorium
Five tremendous brass musicians — each a virtuoso in his own right — form the legendary Canadian Brass. With an international reputation as one of the most popular brass ensembles today, Canadian Brass performs brass standards as well as a wide-ranging library of original arrangements created especially for them, including the works of Renaissance and Baroque masters, classical works, marches, holiday favorites, ragtime, Dixieland, big band, Broadway, and popular songs and standards. Canadian Brass came about when friends Chuck Daellenbach (tuba, the only original member still playing with the group) and Gene Watts (trombone) got together to form a brass quintet in 1970. At the time, brass quintets were not entirely new, but they had never garnered the huge success that Canadian Brass has since made possible. Masters of concert presentation — from formal classical concerts to music served up with lively dialogue and theatrical effects — Canadian Brass has developed a uniquely engaging stage presence and rapport with audiences. The hallmarks of any Canadian Brass performance are entertainment, spontaneity, virtuosity, and, most of all, fun. This Thanksgiving-weekend concert is sure to start your holidays off with a bang. Sponsored by
The Grammy Award-winning UMS Choral Union (2006 “Best Choral Performance” for William Bolcom’s Songs of Innocence and of Experience) launches the holiday season with its signature work, Handel’s Messiah. An Ann Arbor tradition in the beautiful surroundings of Hill Auditorium, these performances are ultimately the heart and soul of UMS, connecting audiences not only with the talented people on stage, but also with the friends and family who attend each year. Start off your holiday season with a spirited “Hallelujah!” Sunday, December 4 marks the 75th anniversary of the dedication of the Baird Carillon. Stay tuned for details about a special commemoration of this anniversary. Sponsored by the Carl and Isabelle Brauer Fund. Media Partners Michigan Radio 91.7 FM and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
Media Partner WRCJ 90.9 FM.
28 | 29 www.ums.org
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Puer Natus Est
Wednesday \ December 7 \ 7:30 pm St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church [note venue]
Vladimir Jurowski conductor Janine Jansen violin Tuesday \ December Hill Auditorium
6\
7:30 pm
The London Philharmonic returns for its first appearance since November 2006, this time under the direction of the exciting young conductor Vladimir Jurowski, who succeeded Kurt Masur as the orchestra’s principal conductor in 2007. Jurowski conducts Tchaikovsky’s rarely-performed Manfred Symphony, which is based on a poem by Lord Byron and the only one of Tchaikovsky’s symphonies that is not numbered. Janine Jansen, a 23-year-old violinist who has been a huge star in her native Holland ever since her Concertgebouw debut at the age of 10, makes her UMS debut. Program
Pintscher Mozart Tchaikovsky
Towards Osiris (2005) Violin Concerto No. 5 in A Major, K. 219 (1775) Manfred Symphony, Op. 58 (1885)
A Prelude Dinner precedes the performance, with talk by Timothy Walker, Chief Executive and Artistic Director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM, WRCJ 90.9 FM and Detroit Jewish News.
www.ums.org
| 734-764-2538
One of the most talked-about UMS events two years ago was the debut of the young British ensemble Stile Antico, which is now firmly established as one of the most original and exciting new groups in the choral music world. Working without a conductor, the 12 members of Stile Antico rehearse and perform as chamber musicians, each contributing artistically to the end result. Their performances have been repeatedly praised for their vitality and commitment, expressive lucidity, and imaginative response to text. For this return engagement, Stile Antico moves across town to the beautiful sanctuary of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, where they will perform a program of Tudor music for Christmas and Advent. The program is centered on Thomas Tallis’s magnificent seven-part “Christmas” mass, written for the combined choirs of the Spanish and English Chapels Royal and first performed in December 1554. The mass is interspersed with contemporaneous liturgical settings for Advent and Christmas, from the perfect miniatures of William Byrd’s exquisite Propers for the Fourth Sunday of Advent to Robert White’s exuberant setting of the Magnificat and John Sheppard’s extraordinary Verbum Caro. This concert is one of those performances where you can just float in an ocean of unearthly sound. Complete program details at www.ums.org. Sponsored by Gary Boren. Media Partner WRCJ 90.9 FM.
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An Opera in Four Acts by Robert Wilson – Philip Glass
Preview Performances: Friday \ January 20 \ 7 pm Saturday \ January 21 \ 7 pm Sunday \ January 22 \ 2 pm Power Center
with choreography by
Lucinda Childs
Widely credited as one of the greatest artistic achievements of the 20th century, this rarelyperformed and revolutionary work launched director Robert Wilson and composer Philip Glass to international success when it was first produced in Avignon, France in 1976, with subsequent performances in Europe and at the Metropolitan Opera. It is still recognized as one of their greatest masterpieces. Now, nearly four decades after it was first performed and 20 years since its last production, Einstein on the Beach will be reconstructed for a major international tour, including the first North American presentations ever held outside of New York City. Einstein on the Beach breaks all of the rules of conventional opera. Instead of a traditional orchestral arrangement, Glass composed for the synthesizers, woodwinds, and voices of the Philip Glass Ensemble. Non-narrative in form, the work uses a series of powerful recurrent images as its main dramatic device, shown in juxtaposition with abstract dance sequences created by American choreographer Lucinda Childs. There are no traditional intermissions; audiences are free to wander in and out at liberty during the five-hour performance. The New York Times critic John Rockwell said, “Einstein was like nothing I had ever encountered…Its very elusiveness radiated richly, like some dark star whose effects we can only feel…Einstein on the Beach, perhaps like Einstein himself, transcended time. It’s not (just) an artifact of its era, it’s timeless…an experience to cherish for a lifetime.” Prior to the production’s final technical rehearsals and world première in Montpelier, France, UMS will host the production’s creators, musicians, performers, and crew for three weeks as they reconstruct and rehearse the work for what is likely to be the final world tour designed and led by its original creative team. A rare chance to see a work of this scale in progress, these preview performances will be the only opportunity to see Einstein on the Beach in the Midwest. For hotel/performance packages, please contact the UMS Group Sales Office at 734-763-3100. Residency Sponsor
Sponsored by
Sponsored by Mary and Brian Campbell in memory of Herbert Amster. Hosted by the Herbert and Junia Doan Foundation, Susan and Richard Gutow, Carl and Charlene Herstein, David and Phyllis Herzig, Stephen and Barbara Munk, and Prue and Ami Rosenthal. Funded in part by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works.
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.” Albert Einstein
Media Partners Michigan Radio 91.7 FM, Between the Lines, WDET 101.9 FM, Ann Arbor’s 107one, and Detroit Jewish News.
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Monday \ January Hill Auditorium
23 \ 7:30 pm [NOTE DATE CHANGE] Bernard Labadie conductor Maurice Steger recorder Saturday \ January Rackham Auditorium
Anyone who attended last season’s concert by the Mariinsky Orchestra came away talking about one thing: the astonishing piano soloist Denis Matsuev, whose extraordinary performance of Rachmaninoff’s third piano concerto had the audience buzzing in the lobby at intermission, immediately after the performance, and for weeks beyond the concert. UMS immediately pursued a date for a solo recital and is pleased to deliver what is sure to be one of the most talked-about events of the season. “[The] Russian pianist Denis Matsuev brought…legendary Herculean strength and terrifying technique that Rachmaninoff and his famous octave-and-a-half hand span was said to have embodied. Matsuev was up to the task. Not only did he throw down thunderous octaves and navigate flurries of notes and trills, he had the endurance to consider the greater picture of the work at all times…It was a performance of formidable dexterity and structural clarity.” (Pittsburgh) Program [Note New Program]
Schubert Beethoven Grieg Stravinsky
Sonata in a minor, Op. 14, D. 784 (1823) Sonata in f minor, Op. 57 (“Appassionata”) (1804) Sonata in e minor, Op. 7 (1865) Three Movements from Petrushka (1921)
Sponsored by the Catherine S. Arcure and Herbert E. Sloan Endowment Fund. Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.
www.ums.org
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28 \
8 pm
The chamber orchestra Les Violons du Roy borrows its name from the renowned string orchestra of the court of the French kings. Based in Québec City, the 15-member group was brought together in 1984 by music director Bernard Labadie. They specialize in the vast repertoire of music for chamber orchestra, performed on modern instruments in the stylistic manner most appropriate to each era. The ensemble appeared with countertenor David Daniels for a Chamber Arts concert in St. Francis church in 2001; now it returns with Swiss recorder virtuoso Maurice Steger, a “wonderfully deft player, with absolute clarity of note and line, even in the most virtuosic variations.” (Fanfare) Program
Handel Telemann Sammartini Geminiani Geminiani
Concerto Grosso in B-flat Major, Op. 6, No. 7 (“Hornpipe”) HWV 325 (1739) Suite in a minor for Alto Recorder, Strings, and Basso Continuo, (b.1681) Concerto in F Major for Soprano Recorder and Strings (b.1700) Concerto Grosso No. 12 in d minor, “La Folia” (after Corelli) (1726-29) Concerto in F Major for Flute, No. 10 (b.1687)
Sponsored by Jerry and Gloria Abrams. Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM and WRCJ 90.9 FM.
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Messiaen’s From the Canyons to the Stars
Saturday \ February Rackham Auditorium
4 \ 8 pm
Jeffrey Tate conductor Francesco Tristano piano Daniel Landau filmmaker Sunday \ January Hill Auditorium
29 \
4 pm
In 1971, French composer Olivier Messiaen was commissioned by Alice Tully, the New York philanthropist most widely known for her contribution to Lincoln Center, to write a piece commemorating America’s bicentennial. Messiaen was inspired and fascinated by the natural wonder he found in the landscapes of the American West. Des canyons aux étoiles (From the Canyons to the Stars) represents his sonic impressions of America’s last untouched frontier. Conductor Jeffrey Tate and the Hamburg Symphony, in collaboration with Israeli filmmaker Daniel Landau, bring the piece alive in a new cinematic installation, where images of man’s impact on the environment create a counterpoint to sounds of untouched nature. Through film images projected on multiple screens, Hill Auditorium will be turned into a multi-sensory experience celebrating the beauty of the earth and our unaltered landscapes.
Sabine Meyer was solo clarinetist with the Berlin Philharmonic, a position she left as she became increasingly in demand as a solo artist. Today, in addition to her recital and concerto appearances, she performs in two chamber ensembles, including the Trio di Clarone, whose other members are her husband and her brother. Trio di Clarone began in part because of their shared interest in the basset horn, a rare instrument in the clarinet family that was used in Mozart’s Requiem and in his five divertimenti written for a trio of basset horns. “The evening was one of those absolute godsends in musical experience that cannot be fathomed — simply a gift.” (Rems Zeitung) Program
Funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works.
Mozart Three Arias from The Marriage of Figaro (1786) Poulenc Sonata for Two Clarinets (1918) Stravinsky Three Pieces for Clarinet Solo (1918) J.S. Bach French Suite No. 5 for Two Clarinets and Basset Horn (1723) Mozart Divertimento No. 1 for Three Basset Horns, K. 439b (1783) C.P.E. Bach Duo for Two Clarinets in C Major, Wq. 142 (b.1714) Mozart Four Arias from Cosi fan tutte for Three Basset Horns (1789)
Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM and WDET 101.9 FM.
Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.
Program
Messiaen
Des canyons aux étoiles (From the Canyons to the Stars) (1971-74)
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Peter Phillips director Thursday \ February 16 \ 7:30 pm St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church
Wang Fujian artistic director Friday \ February 10 Rackham Auditorium
\
8 pm
The 20 members of the Chamber Ensemble of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra are drawn from the first large-scale modern orchestra of traditional instruments in China. The Chamber Ensemble performs music that represents the gallant warriors of the past, the happy days of childhood, a foggy spring morning after a night of rain, and other poetic images brought to life by these iconic musicians. They perform on the zheng, dizi, erhu, pipa, and other Chinese instruments seldom featured in the West. While Chinese stars such as Lang Lang have brought new attention to Western classical music in China, this ensemble provides a window into the traditional Chinese classical music that dates back many centuries. Program
Wang Fujian Relic Xie Ping Drum Fantasia Wang Fujian In the Still of the Night Hua Yanjun Moon’s Reflection on Er-Quan Jiang Ying Sword Dance Luo Xiaoci Like a Dream Unknown The Rainbow Skirt and the Feathered Coat Tang Jianping Jijiruling Unknown Moonlight on the Spring River Sponsored by the Confucius Institute of the University of Michigan. The 2012 national tour of the Chamber Ensemble of the Chinese Orchestra is part of a major, multi-year cultural exchange with Minneapolis-based Arts Midwest, the Chinese Ministry of Culture, and the US Major University Presenters’ Consortium. Support for this tour has been provided by the Ministry of Culture, People’s Republic of China. Special support for this residency is from Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund. Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.
www.ums.org
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The Tallis Scholars add a new dimension to UMS’s 11/12 focus on artistic renegades, presenting music of the wealthy Italian prince Carlo Gesualdo (b.1566). Gesualdo’s infamy relates to his obsessive double murder of his wife and her lover, but he was also a maverick Renaissance composer whose eccentric approach to creating music — and whose colorful life story — inspired both Nadia Boulanger and Igor Stravinsky several hundred years later. His music contains wild gesticulations and abrupt surprises, and contemporary Renaissance scholars now regard him as perhaps the most forwardthinking, expressive, and sensual composer of his time. Consumed by guilt after murdering his wife, Gesualdo devoted himself to composing church music. At the centerpiece of this program is the Tenebrae Responses for Holy Saturday, part of the liturgy for the final three days of Holy Week. Works by other “maverick” Renaissance composers round out the program; complete details at www.ums.org. A Prelude Dinner precedes the performance, with talk by Peter Phillips, director of the Tallis Scholars. Funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works. Media Partners WRCJ 90.9 FM and WDET 101.9 FM.
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Wayne McGregor artistic director Saturday \ February Power Center Friday \ February Hill Auditorium
18 \
8 pm
17 \ 8 pm
Sweet Honey In The Rock focuses on music that challenges, inspires, teaches, encourages, and empowers audiences from all walks of life to become interested and involved in issues that are central to their lives. For over three decades, Sweet Honey In The Rock has celebrated our collective humanity, singing about the challenging issues of racism; social, economic, and environmental injustice; equal rights; and the greed that seems to be pulling our nation apart. The group has built a distinguished legacy as one of the most celebrated ambassadors of a cappella music, fusing five scintillating and soulful voices with the texture, harmonic blend, and raw quality that is indigenous and true to authentic a cappella music. They take audiences on journeys that span centuries of AfricanAmerican history and culture — sound journeys that nurture and heal. In the tradition of artists in action — this is the group that sang at the rally when the University of Michigan defended its affirmative action position before the Supreme Court — Sweet Honey taps the spirit, encourages audiences to think, asks them to reflect, and inspires them to make a difference in their communities. Sign language interpreted. A special block of tickets is being held in the front of the main floor for people with hearing impairments. Sponsored by
“If any artist has defined the decade, it’s Wayne McGregor.” (The Times, London) Random Dance was founded in 1992 and became the instrument upon which McGregor evolved his drastically fast and articulate choreographic style. The company became a byword for its radical approach to new technology, incorporating animation, digital film, 3-D architecture, electronic sound, and virtual dancers into the live choreography. McGregor, an award-winning British dancemaker who serves as resident choreographer of The Royal Ballet, Covent Garden, is renowned for his physically taxing movement style and ground-breaking collaborations across dance, film, music, visual art, and science. Specifically, he researches the relationship between dance and the mind as artist-inresidence at the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Cambridge. In addition, he is organizing a dance for 2,000 people in Trafalgar Square in London as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Wayne McGregor is “doing some of the most exciting work in ballet on the planet.” (The New York Times) Funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works.
Media Partners Metro Times, Between the Lines, and WEMU 89.1 FM.
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734-764-2538
Media Partners Metro Times, Between the Lines, and WDET 101.9 FM.
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Music of Marsalis 50th Birthday
Thursday \ February Rackham Auditorium
Wednesday \ February Hill Auditorium
23 \ 7:30 pm
22 \ 7:30 pm
Under Wynton Marsalis’ direction, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (JLCO) performs a repertoire across the full jazz spectrum — from the music’s New Orleans roots to bebop to modern jazz. By creating and performing an expansive range of brilliant new music for quartets to big bands, chamber music ensembles to symphony orchestras, tap dance to ballet, Wynton has expanded the vocabulary for jazz and created a vital body of work that places him among the world’s finest musicians and composers. On this new tour and to celebrate Wynton’s 50th birthday, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra will showcase a retrospective of Wynton’s music written for big band. The JLCO may also perform the unique repertoire for which it is renowned worldwide: modern jazz renditions of traditional favorites, including tunes by Thelonious Monk; classic Blue Note Records selections by Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Jackie McLean, Lee Morgan, and Joe Henderson; and modern compositions and arrangements by jazz contemporaries. “The audience was weak from applauding and shouting and jumping up and down with the joy of the great music it had heard.” (El Universal/The Herald) Media Partners WEMU 89.1 FM, Metro Times, The Michigan Chronicle, Detroit Jewish News, and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
www.ums.org
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“Their performance was filled with subtlety and wonder… the playing was breathtaking in its precision, dynamism, and agility…a thrilling encounter.” (The Independent) Regarded internationally as one of the foremost string quartets of the day, the Hagen Quartet consists of the two brothers Lukas (violin) and Clemens (cello) and their sister Veronika Hagen (viola), along with violinist Rainer Schmidt, who has been with the group for more than 20 years. For this return performance — they last appeared in Ann Arbor in 1998 — the Hagen Quartet presents a program of Beethoven quartets as part of UMS’s focus on musical renegades. Program
Beethoven Beethoven Beethoven
String Quartet in F Major, Op. 18, No. 1 (1801) String Quartet in f minor, Op. 95 (1810) String Quartet in E-flat Major, Op. 74 (1809)
Sponsored by Funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works. Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM and WDET 101.9 FM.
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Berlin Nocturne
Riccardo Muti conductor Pinchas Zukerman violin Friday \ March Hill Auditorium
Riccardo Muti, the Chicago Symphony’s new music director, makes his first UMS appearance since 2006, conducting an all-Brahms program. Violinist Pinchas Zukerman, recognized as a phenomenon for nearly four decades, returns to UMS for a performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto. “Youth sticks with some people… Zukerman seems the forever-young virtuoso: expressively resourceful, infectiously musical, technically impeccable, effortless. As usual, it was a joy to be in his musical company.” (Los Angeles Times) Program
Brahms Brahms
Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 77 (1878) Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73 (1877)
A Prelude Dinner precedes the performance, with talk by Mark Clague, U-M Associate Professor of Music. Sponsored by
9 \ 8 pm
Saturday \ March Hill Auditorium
“Max Raabe and his 12-piece Palast Orchester are re-creating the music of the Weimar era with verve and class.” (Time Out New York) A nostalgic homage to the legendary nocturnal flair of the Weimar era, Max Raabe and Palast Orchester embody the high style and music glory of the 1920s and 1930s. The debonair Raabe has a singular ability to capture the cunning rasp of the cabaret singer, the confident bel canto hero, the oily melodiousness of the revue beau, the carefree timbre of early jazz, and the falsetto of ragtime, all backed by his stellar 12-member band. His art lies in revealing the enigmatic intelligence, ambiguity, musical power and complexity of the “German chansons” from the turbulent Weimar Republic — and then shaking it up with a completely unexpected cover from the contemporary pop realm. In his amazing and simply fun performances, he keenly reminds us that between melancholy and irony, rebellion and resignation, elegy and slapstick, there is often only half a measure, sometimes just a single note, or a mere word. Max Raabe will surely “disarm and charm with impeccable glamour.” (The Boston Globe) “Fascinating. A born crooner.” (The Washington Post)
Co-sponsored by Robert and Marina Whitman, Clayton and Ann Wilhite, James and Nancy Stanley, and Jay Zelenock in memory of Mary Kate Zelenock.
Sponsored by
Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM, WRCJ 90.9 FM, and Detroit Jewish News.
Media Partner Michigan Radio 91.7 FM.
www.ums.org
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10 \ 8 pm
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The Andersen Project
Written and directed by Robert Starring Yves Jacques
Lepage
Thursday \ March 15 \ 7:30 pm Friday \ March 16 \ 8 pm Saturday \ March 17 \ 8 pm Power Center
Filled to the brim with his trademark humor and visual and technological brilliance, this off-the-wall masterpiece by Canadian theater visionary Robert Lepage stars Yves Jacques (Far Side of the Moon) in a one-man tour-de-force about a Canadian writer from the rock-and-roll milieu who is unexpectedly commissioned by the Opera Garnier to write a libretto for a children’s opera. Arriving in Paris, he finds that his living quarters for the next three months, which he acquired through an apartment swap with a friend, are in a building that is also home to a peep show in the city’s red light district. Freely inspired by the timeless fables written by Hans Christian Andersen who, as it turns out, didn’t really like children, as well as anecdotes from his Parisian travel diaries, The Andersen Project keenly explores unraveling relationships, personal demons, the thirst for recognition, and compromise that comes too late. The piece was commissioned by the Danish government in 2005 to mark the bicentennial of the birth of that country’s most beloved writer. “A theatrical conjurer, whose dazzling shows have captivated audiences around the world with their mixture of storytelling and stunning imagery.” (Guardian, London, on Robert Lepage) Content appropriate for mature audiences only. Performed in English and French (with projected titles). A strobe light is used in this performance. Funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works. Media Partners Michigan Radio 91.7 FM, Between the Lines, WDET 101.9 FM, and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
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Michael Tilson Thomas conductor Four Different Programs in Hill Auditorium and Rackham Auditorium
American Mavericks in Hill Auditorium Paul Jacobs organ Jeremy Denk piano Mason Bates electronica University of Michigan Chamber Choir Thursday
\ March 22 \
7:30 pm
Program
Aaron Copland Orchestral Variations (1930, orchestrated in 1957) Henry Cowell Piano Concerto (1928) Mason Bates Mass Transmission (2010, SFS commission) Lou Harrison Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra (1973)
Jessye Norman soprano Joan La Barbara and Meredith Monk vocalists St. Lawrence String Quartet Friday
As part of its centennial season, Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony will present the second American Mavericks Festival, which will tour in its entirety to only two US venues: Hill Auditorium and Carnegie Hall. The 2012 festival celebrates the creative pioneering spirit and the composers who created a new American musical voice for the 20th century and beyond. These concerts will examine the music of iconoclastic, revolutionary composers championed by MTT and the SFS, such as John Cage, Morton Feldman, Carl Ruggles, Edgard Varèse, and Charles Ives, and expand the maverick roster through two commissions by Bay Area composers John Adams and Mason Bates. Concerts will feature performances by longtime SFS collaborators Jessye Norman, Emanuel Ax, Meredith Monk, Jeremy Denk, and the St. Lawrence String Quartet, among others. A Prelude Dinner precedes the Friday performance, with talk by Brent Assink, Executive Director of the San Francisco Symphony.
The San Francisco Symphony residency is made possible with support from the Maxine and Stuart Frankel Foundation and the UMS Creative Ventures Leadership Fund. Please see page 64 for more information. The Saturday performance is sponsored by the Medical Community Endowment Fund. Funded in part by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works. Related education programs are funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Media Partners WGTE 91.3 FM, Ann Arbor’s 107one, WDET 101.9 FM, and Detroit Jewish News.
\ March 23 \
8 pm
Program
Henry Cowell John Adams John Cage Edgard Varèse
Synchrony (1929-30) Absolute Jest (2011, SFS commission) Selections from Song Books (1970) Amériques (1918-21, revised 1927)
Emanuel Ax piano Saturday
\ March 24 \ 8 pm
Program
Carl Ruggles Morton Feldman Charles Ives
Sun-Treader (1931) Piano and Orchestra (1975) A Concord Symphony (1916-19 for piano; orchestration by Henry Brant premiered1995)
Mavericks Chamber Concert in Rackham Michael Tilson Thomas conductor Laura Claycomb soprano Joan La Barbara vocalist Jeremy Denk piano Members of the San Francisco Symphony Sunday
\ March 25 \
4 pm
Program
Meredith Monk New Work (commissioned for this program) Lukas Foss Echoi (1963) Morton Subotnick Jacob’s Room: Monodrama (1985) David Del Tredici Syzygy (1966)
48 | 49 www.ums.org
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Friday \ April 13 Michigan Theater
\ 8 pm
Zakir Hussain tabla Fazal Qureshi tabla and kanjira Rakesh Chaurasia bansuri T.H.V. Umashankar ghatam Dilshad Khan sarangi Navin Sharma dholak Abbos Kosimov doyra Meitei Pung Cholom dancing drummer of Manipur Thursday \ April Hill Auditorium
12 \
7:30 pm
The pre-eminent classical tabla virtuoso of our time, Zakir Hussain delivers brilliant performances that have established him as a national treasure in his native India and one of the world’s most esteemed and influential musicians, renowned for his genre-defying collaborations. His playing is marked by uncanny intuition and masterful improvisational dexterity, founded in formidable knowledge and study. Masters of Percussion, an outgrowth of Hussain’s memorable tours with his father, the legendary Ustad Allarakha, has enjoyed successful tours in the West since 1996. Joining the 2012 tour will be Fazal Qureshi, tabla & kanjira; Rakesh Chaurasia, bansuri (bamboo flute); T.H.V. Umashankar, ghatam; Dilshad Khan, sarangi; Navin Sharma, dholak; Abbos Kosimov, doyra; and the Meitei Pung Cholom (dancing drummer of Manipur). Hosted by Rani Kotha and Dr. Howard Hu. Media Partners WEMU 89.1 FM, Ann Arbor’s 107one, and Metro Times.
www.ums.org
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Cheikh Lô is one of the great mavericks of African music. A superb singer and songwriter, as well as a distinctive guitarist and drummer, he has personalized and distilled a variety of influences from West and Central Africa to create a style that is uniquely his own. Lô dedicates both his life and music to Bave Fall, a Senegalese form of Islam and part of the larger Islamic brotherhood of Mouridism, which emerged at the end of the 19th century from opposition to French colonialism. Bave Fall is distinguished visually by patchwork clothing and long dreadlocks that lead some to confuse it with Rastafarianism. Born to Senegalese parents in Burkina Faso near the Malian border, Lô was interested in music from an early age, running away from school to teach himself guitar and percussion on borrowed instruments. As a teenager, he was influenced by Cuban music, which was all the rage in West Africa at the time. After emigrating to Paris and then returning to Senegal in the late 1980s, Lô attracted both the attention of and comparisons to Youssou N’Dour, who produced two of his early albums. His signature sound, based on the popular national mbalax style, was an instant success in Senegal and prompted rave reviews on his European tour: “a compelling performer with energy and personality to match that of the early Bob Marley.” (The Guardian, London) More recently, Lô has immersed himself in the Dakar scene, and his return home is reflected in his new album, Jamm. His blend of semi-acoustic flavors — West and Central African, funk, Cuban, flamenco — has been distilled into his most mature, focused, yet diverse statement today, with his husky, sensual voice sounding better than ever. Media Partners WEMU 89.1 FM and The Michigan Chronicle.
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Joseph Gramley percussion Wednesday \ April 18 \ 7:30 pm Rackham Auditorium
Charles Lloyd saxophones and flute Jason Moran piano Reuben Rogers bass Eric Harland drums Saturday \ April 14 Michigan Theater
\ 8 pm
Forty years ago, saxophonist Charles Lloyd was a pop star; his 1966 album, Forest Flower, sold a million copies. Four years ago, at 69, when most individuals are thinking of ways to slow down and kick back, Lloyd shifted to a higher gear and formed a new quartet. Lloyd has always led exceptional bands, and this is perhaps the best. With MacArthur fellow Jason Moran on piano, Reuben Rogers on bass, and Eric Harland on drums, the Quartet’s concerts are events of pristine beauty and elegance, full of intensely-felt emotion and passion that touches deep inside the heart. This is not entertainment, but the powerful uncorrupted expression of beauty through music. Lloyd’s latest release, Mirrors, “sees him attaining jazz nirvana, calling numbers that channel his love of Monk, eastern spiritualism, California, and traditional gospel music. Listening is like a meditation, and the sparse, taut accompaniment of the quartet keeps everything in focus.” (Jazz Choice) Media Partners WEMU 89.1 FM, Metro Times, The Michigan Chronicle, and Ann Arbor’s 107one.
“The world’s most exciting string quartet? Well, they suit the tagline better than most. Their tone is large, quasi-orchestral. They take risks. Above all, they play with passion.” (The Times, London) Based in Prague, the Pavel Haas Quartet is named for Czech composer Pavel Haas, who was imprisoned at Theresienstadt and died at Auschwitz in 1944. While the Quartet is passionately committed to the Czech repertoire, and particularly the three wonderful string quartets that Haas composed (including the one on this program, scored for string quartet and percussion), all of their performances receive extraordinary acclaim. “In a class of their own…” (The Strad) Program
Tchaikovsky Pavel Haas Smetana
Quartet No. 1 in D Major, Op. 11 (1871) Quartet No. 2, Op. 7 (“From the Monkey Mountains” (1925) Quartet No. 1 in e minor (“From My Life”) (1876)
Sponsored by Media Partner WGTE 91.3 FM.www.ums.org
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Download a free QR Scanner App for your smart phone, then scan this code to see a video of this event.
Snow White
Angelin Preljocaj artistic director John Paul Gaultier costume designer Thursday \ April 19 \ 7:30 pm Friday \ April 20 \ 8 pm Saturday \ April 21 \ 8 pm Power Center
It’s been more than a decade since Ballet Preljocaj (pronounced prezh-oh-kahzh) made its UMS debut, but this production of Snow White, created in 2008, will be well worth the wait. Angelin Preljocaj has created a work for all 26 dancers of his contemporary ballet company, setting the Grimm brothers’ version of the fairytale to the most beautiful scores of Gustav Mahler’s symphonies. With costumes designed by Jean Paul Gaultier, this production of Snow White is sure to shake up those who have grown up with only the Disney version at their disposal. “I was very keen to tell a story, offer something magical and enchanted,” says Preljocaj. At the same time, he approaches Snow White’s stepmother, the Queen, as the centerpiece of the story, representing the conflict of her own longing to be desirable and seductive while watching her daughter grow up. Sponsored by Gil Omenn and Martha Darling. Media Partners Metro Times and Between the Lines.
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Recipients of the 2012 UMS Distinguished Artists Award
leader and violin Sunday \ April Hill Auditorium
22 \
4 pm
17th Annual Ford Honors Program
Sir Neville Marriner says that the small ensemble he founded in 1958 “had no intention of giving any concerts or continuing forever.” Happily, whatever the initial intention, the Academy is firmly established more than 50 years later as one of the world’s leading chamber orchestras. Formed from a group of London musicians and working without a conductor, the Academy gave its first performance in its namesake church in November 1959. For its first UMS appearance in 11 years, the Academy brings its highly lauded sound to an exquisite all-Beethoven program. Superstar violinist Joshua Bell attacks the stunning Beethoven Concerto with his breathtaking virtuosity and sumptuous tone and leads the rest of the program from the concertmaster’s chair. Program
Beethoven Beethoven Beethoven
Coriolan Overture, Op. 62 (1807) Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61 (1806) Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 (1811-12)
Media Partners WGTE 91.3FM, WRCJ 90.9 FM, and Detroit Jewish News.
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Joshua Bell and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields will receive the 2012 UMS Distinguished Artist Award in a brief ceremony as part of their season-ending concert. The day also includes a Gala event, including the presentation of the DTE Energy Foundation Educator and School of the Year Awards, to raise funds for UMS’s Education and Community Engagement Programs. Tickets for the concert are available now; information about purchasing tickets for the Gala will be available later this fall at www.ums.org. The Ford Honors Program recognizes the longtime generous support of UMS’s Education Program by Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services
DTE Energy Foundation Educator and School of the Year Awards are sponsored by Concertmasters Bank of Ann Arbor University of Michigan Health System Leader Mainstreet Ventures
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In partnership with Detroit’s Music Hall Sunday \ February Music Hall • Detroit
19 \ 3 pm The 15th Annual
UMS Choral Union
for Young Black and Latino String Players
The UMS Choral Union, UMS’s Grammy Awardwinning chorus, is best known locally for its annual performances of Handel’s Messiah. The volunteer ensemble also performs throughout southeastern Michigan each year under the direction of Jerry Blackstone and other guest conductors.
Sphinx Competition The Sphinx Competition showcases many of the best young Black and Latino string players in America. Each year, 18 semifinalists come to southeastern Michigan to compete for cash prizes and scholarships totaling over $100,000. Both concerts are accompanied by the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Michael Morgan. Presented by DTE Energy Foundation.
His story inspired a nation. His music inspires the world. FELA! tells the true story of the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti, whose soulful Afrobeat rhythms ignited a generation. Motivated by his mother, a civil rights champion, he defied a corrupt and oppressive military government and devoted his life and music to the struggle for freedom and human dignity. FELA! is a triumphant tale of courage, passion, and love, featuring Fela Kuti’s captivating music and the visionary direction and choreography of Tony Award-winner Bill T. Jones. UMS is delighted to work in partnership with Music Hall in Detroit to bring the Tony Awardwinning, critically acclaimed musical FELA! to UMS audiences. The production had a successful 18-month run on Broadway and is currently in an open-ended run in London, with a multi-city American tour in 2012. For one performance in this three-week Detroit run, Music Hall is offering UMS audiences the very best seats on the main floor and in the mezzanine. Tickets are $75 (Main Floor Ann Circle and Front Mezzanine) and $50 (Main Floor Front Center) each. UMS is also arranging luxury coach transportation for an additional $10 per person from a location in Ann Arbor to Detroit. To order, call the UMS Ticket Office at 734-763-3100 or visit www.ums.org. UMS subscribers and donors may order by phone, in person, or online now; all other seats are available for purchase beginning Saturday, October 1, 2011. Please Note: UMS Is only holding tickets for the Sunday, February 19 matinee; all other performances will be available through Music Hall beginning October 1.
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Junior Division Honors Concert Friday \ February 10 \ 12 noon Hill Auditorium This free performance features the three Junior Division finalists (under age 18) competing for their final placement. This concert encourages participation by young audiences from around Michigan. For tickets, contact the UMS Education Department at 734-615-0122 or umsyouth@umich.edu. Senior Division Finals Concert Sunday \ February 12 \ 2 pm Orchestra Hall, Detroit This concert, which is broadcast nationally, features the three Senior Division Laureates (ages 18-26) competing for their final placement and the $10,000 first prize. The Junior Division Laureate also performs. For information on admission to the Finals Concert, please visit www.sphinxmusix.org or call 313-877-9100 x714.
To audition for this celebrated ensemble, contact 734-763-8997 or choralunion@umich.edu.
UMS Ann Arbor Performances Tickets: 734-764-2538 or www.ums.org Handel’s Messiah Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra Jerry Blackstone conductor Saturday \ December 3 \ 8 pm Sunday \ December 4 \ 2 pm Hill Auditorium
Detroit Symphony Orchestra Performances Tickets: 313-576-5111 or www.detroitsymphony.com Handel’s Messiah Christopher Warren Green conductor Saturday \ December 10 \ 3 pm Sunday \ December 11 \ 3 pm Orchestra Hall, Detroit Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem and John Adams’ On the Transmigration of Souls Leonard Slatkin conductor Friday \ February 24 \ 8 pm Sunday \ February 26 \ 3 pm Orchestra Hall, Detroit Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy and Bolcom’s Prometheus Leonard Slatkin conductor Friday \ April 20 \ 8 pm Saturday \ April 21 \ 8 pm Orchestra Hall, Detroit
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Education Program Supporters
UMS on Film
Performing Arts = You. You conduct symphonies in your car. You sing in the shower. You have a happy dance. You are more than ready to take the plunge and immerse yourself in the performing arts, to blur the boundaries between patron and participant, consumer and creator.
Reflects gifts made during fiscal year 2011 as of June 30, 2011.
These films expand our understanding of the artists and cultures represented on the UMS season and reveal the emotions and ideas behind the creative process. Films are screened in the U-M Museum of Art Stern Auditorium (525 S. State Street) and introduced by a cultural expert.
Faubourg Tremé: The Untold Story of Black New Orleans (2008, Dawn Logsdon, 69 min.) Tuesday \ October 11 \ 7 pm
To add fuel to your creative fire, UMS has a truly fantastic line-up of workshops, screenings, conversations, and interactive experiences designed to draw you in and out of your comfort zone, connect you to interesting people and unexpected ideas, and bring you closer to the heart of the artistic experience. Read on for a sampling of what’s coming this fall.
During slavery, Faubourg Tremé was home to the largest community of free Black people in the Deep South and a hotbed of political ferment. The film follows New Orleans’ Times Picayune columnist Lolis Eric Elie as he begins to renovate an historic house in Tremé. Executive producer Wynton Marsalis.
Why Renegade?
AnDa Union: From the Steppes to the City
Monday \ November 14 \ 7-9 pm Ann Arbor District Library Multipurpose Room (343 S. Fifth Avenue, Ann Arbor) Renegade: a rebel, someone who breaks with customs — and the idea behind UMS’s 10-week, 10-performance winter series focusing on innovation and experimentation in the performing arts. UMS artistic programming director Michael Kondziolka and a panel of special guests will lead a conversation about UMS’s “Renegade” series and the significance of artistic renegades.
Gate Theatre of Dublin Artist Interview: Barry McGovern, actor and renowned Beckett Performer, Gate Theatre of Dublin Sunday \ October 23 \ 5 pm Ann Arbor District Library Multipurpose Room Actor Barry McGovern, one of the world’s leading interpreters of Samuel Beckett, will be interviewed by U-M Professor Enoch Brater. McGovern will discuss his work with the Gate Theatre and his solo performance adaptation of Beckett’s novel Watt. The Essential Samuel Beckett Tuesday \ October 25 \ 7 pm Ann Arbor District Library Multipurpose Room Theater historian and Samuel Beckett specialist Enoch Brater presents an overview of the life and works of playwright Samuel Beckett, his influence upon modern theater, and the landmark productions of Beckett’s works staged by the Gate Theatre of Dublin.
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(2011, Sophie Lascelles and Tim Pearce) Tuesday \ November 8 \ 7 pm
Filmmakers Sophie Lascelles and Tim Pearce preview their workin-progress documentary, which follows AnDa Union, a group of 14 musicians who all hail from the Xilingol Grassland area of Inner Mongolia, a semi-autonomous region of China. Formed in 2003, AnDa Union is part of a musical movement that is finding inspiration in old and forgotten folk music from the nomadic herdsman cultures of Inner and Outer Mongolia, drawing on a repertoire of music that all but disappeared during China’s recent tumultuous past.
Absolute Wilson (2006, Katharina Otto-Bernstein, 105 min.) Tuesday \ January 10 \ 7 pm Absolute Wilson chronicles the epic life, times, and creative genius of theater director Robert Wilson. More than a biography, the film becomes an exhilarating exploration of the transformative power of creativity itself. The narrative reveals the deep connections between Wilson’s childhood experiences and the haunting beauty of his monumental works, which include the theatrical sensations Deafman Glance, Einstein on the Beach and The CIVIL WarS. Just like performances, event details are subject to change. Visit www.ums.org/education for the most up-to-date information. Most events are free and don’t require registration.
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The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation University of Michigan Anonymous Arts at Michigan Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund Association of Performing Arts Presenters Bank of Ann Arbor Rachel Bendit and Mark Bernstein The Dan Cameron Family Foundation/ Alan and Swanna Saltiel CFI Group Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan Confucius Institute at the University of Michigan Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Endowment Fund DTE Energy Foundation The Esperance Family Foundation Jo-Anna and David Featherman Maxine and Stuart Frankel David and Phyllis Herzig Endowment Fund The Japan Foundation JazzNet Endowment W.K. Kellogg Foundation John S. and James L. Knight Foundation Rani Kotha and Howard Hu Mardi Gras Fund Masco Corporation Foundation Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs THE MOSAIC FOUNDATION [of R. & P. Heydon] National Dance Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts National Endowment for the Arts Sarah and Dan Nicoli Quincy and Rob Northrup PNC Bank Prudence and Amnon Rosenthal K-12 Education Endowment Fund Stout Systems Karen and David Stutz Target Toyota UMS Advisory Committee University of Michigan Center for Chinese Studies University of Michigan Credit Union University of Michigan Health System U-M Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs U-M Office of the Vice President for Research Wallace Endowment Fund
UMS Family Programs are made possible by
UMS Kids Club
Family-Friendly UMS Performances
Open to students in grades 3-12 and encompassing the entire UMS season, the UMS Kids Club allows families to purchase up to two kids’ tickets for $10 each with the purchase of at least one adult ticket for $20 beginning two weeks before the performance (opening night for multipleperformance runs). Seating is subject to availability and ticket office discretion. UMS will reserve a limited number of seats (no fewer than 30) for each performance (opening night for multiple-performance runs) — even those that sell out!
While parents are the best judge of their own children’s age appropriateness for UMS events, we offer these recommendations to guide you through our season. If in doubt, feel free to contact the UMS Ticket Office, who will be happy to put you in touch with a staff member with children to discuss whether an event might be appropriate for your family.
Check out our age recommendations to create lasting memories for your family.
UMS Teen Tickets While the UMS Kids Club program is designed for families, we also understand that sometimes teens want to get away from their parents for a bit. Students over age 14 are welcome to purchase rush tickets to most UMS events for $15 at the performance, subject to availability. Just flash your student ID at the Ticket Office, and they’ll set you up with seats!
All Ages Dan Zanes & Friends
Sun, Sep 25
Ages 8 and up (3rd grade) Goran Bregovic and His Wedding Sat, Oct 15 and Funeral Orchestra AnDa Union Wed, Nov 9 A Night in Treme: The Musical Fri, Nov 11 Majesty of New Orleans Canadian Brass Sun, Nov 27 Chamber Ensemble of the Fri, Feb 10 Shanghai Chinese Orchestra Sweet Honey In The Rock Fri, Feb 17 Zakir Hussain and Thu, Apr 12 Masters of Percussion Ages 12 and up (middle school) Mark Morris Dance Group Fri-Sat, Sep 23-24 Yuja Wang piano Sun, Oct 9 Les Violons du Roy Sat, Jan 28 with Maurice Steger recorder Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra Wed, Feb 22 with Wynton Marsalis Ages 14 and up (high school) Cloud Gate Dance Theatre Fri-Sat, Oct 21-22 Audra McDonald Fri, Nov 4 Hamburg State Symphony Sun, Jan 29 Messiaen’s From the Canyons to the Stars Chicago Symphony Orchestra Fri, Mar 9 Cheikh Lô Fri, Apr 13 Ballet Preljocaj: Snow White Thu-Sat, Apr 19-21
from oakland county Pick-Up/Drop-Off Location UMS continues providing luxury coach transportation from Oakland County to Ann Arbor for selected performances. The coaches depart from Oakland Community College (Orchard Ridge campus) approximately 90 minutes before the performance and return to the same location shortly after the houselights come up at the end of the evening. Round-trip cost is only $10 per person. Coaches may be canceled 14 days prior to the performance if at least 10 people have not signed up for the service. For more information about this program or to reserve your seat, contact Sarah Wilber at 734-763-3100. Tickets are also available through the UMS Ticket Office at 734-764-2538 or online at www.ums.org.
Oakland Community College – Orchard Ridge Campus 27055 Orchard Lake Road, Lot 1B Farmington Hills Coach service will be offered for the following performances: The Infernal Comedy: Confessions of a Serial Killer John Malkovich and Musical Angelica Baroque Orchestra Saturday \ October 1 \ 8 pm [coach leaves at 6:30 pm] Yuja Wang piano Sunday \ October 9 \ 4 pm [coach leaves at 2:30 pm] Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan Friday \ October 21 \ 8 pm [coach leaves at 6:30 pm] Canadian Brass Sunday \ November 27 \ 4 pm [coach leaves at 2:30 pm] London Philharmonic Vladimir Jurowski conductor Janine Jansen violin Tuesday\ December 6 \ 7:30 pm [coach leaves at 6 pm] Denis Matsuev piano Monday \ January 23 \ 7:30 pm [coach leaves at 6 pm] Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis Wednesday \ February 22 \ 7:30 pm [coach leaves at 6 pm] Chicago Symphony Orchestra Riccardo Muti conductor Pinchas Zukerman violin Friday \ March 9 \ 8 pm [coach leaves at 6:30 pm] American Mavericks San Francisco Symphony Michael Tilson Thomas conductor Jessye Norman soprano Friday \ March 23 \ 8 pm [coach leaves at 6:30 pm] Joshua Bell violin and Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Sunday \ April 22 \ 4 pm [coach leaves at 2:30 pm]
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Ticket sales cover just half the cost of presenting the very best in world-class music, dance and theater, as well as a wide array of education programs for audiences of all ages. Your gift, of any amount, will help to make the UMS season possible. Please consider making a contribution to support the fabulous programming you enjoy each season. In recognition of their contributions, annual donors of all levels are eligible for a variety of benefits, from advance ticket purchases to complimentary valet parking and First Night Green Room events at higher levels.
The UMS Creative Ventures Leadership Fund The creation of a permanent fund for artistic, innovative, and cutting edge programming is a major goal of the UMS Strategic Plan. By embracing innovation in our programming, we will provide unique, creative, and transformative educational opportunities for U-M students, and place Ann Arbor on the map as a cultural destination. UMS patrons and donors Maxine and Stuart Frankel have established the UMS Creative Ventures Leadership Fund to help make this goal a reality. In addition, the University of Michigan is joining with UMS and the Frankels to bring, from around the world, the very best in the performing arts. This season, the Fund will support the American Mavericks Festival by Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony, a four-day residency highlighting groundbreaking American composers from the 20th century. The residency includes three performances by the San Francisco Symphony, a chamber concert, and a host of educational opportunities that will only take place in San Francisco, Ann Arbor, and New York. You can join the Frankels in support of innovative and transformative programming. Please call the UMS Development Office at 734-764-8489 for more information.
Join us in the Lobby! www.umslobby.org People Are Talking Maxine and Stuart Frankel
On the Road with UMS 2011 Friday \ September 16 \ 6:30 pm A. Alfred Taubman Biomedical Science Research Building (109 Zina Pitcher Place)
Kick off the UMS season with an exciting live and silent auction, dinner, and afterglow as part of the 2011 “On the Road with UMS,” a fun-filled evening organized by the UMS Advisory Committee that benefits the UMS Education and Community Engagement Programs. A complete list of auction items will be available in August at www.ums.org/ ontheroad. For reservations, call 734-764-8489.
Prelude Dinners & Other Special Events Please note that Prelude Dinners and Special Events are listed throughout this brochure. For a complete brochure and registration, contact 734-764-8489.
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ums LOBBY People are Talking.
In February 2010, UMS began a grand experiment: the UMS Lobby, an online platform where you can engage more fully with all that UMS does, gaining access to the behind-the-scenes activities that keep us humming year-round. In the coming months, www.umslobby.org will sport a new design and interface, making information more accessible on our multimedia blog, our 132-year archive, and the popular “People Are Talking” links with comments from audience members after each concert. We hope that you will take a few moments to explore and comment on this interactive site. And we need your help! The 12/13 season is Hill Auditorium Centennial Season (the venue opened in May 1913 with a concert by the Chicago Symphony as part of that year’s May Festival), and we’d like to know how you think we should commemorate the occasion. Is there a particular artist or program you’d like to see? A story of a memorable concert or event at Hill that you’d like to share? We want to know what you find interesting and important about Hill Auditorium. What makes Hill Auditorium HILL AUDITORIUM? Visit www.umslobby. org/hill100 and let us know what you would like to do to celebrate Hill Auditorium’s 100th birthday. UMS is grateful to the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation for supporting the UMS Lobby initiative during the 11/12 season through its Continuing Innovation grant program.
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Important Notes from the Ticket Office
Helpful Tips for a Hassle-Free Performance NOTE: Beginning with the 11/12 season, all Monday-Thursday performances will begin at 7:30 pm. Also please be advised that dance and theater performances often have a “no late seating” policy. UMS often doesn’t learn a specific company’s late seating policy until a couple of weeks before the performance and makes every effort to contact ticketbuyers via e-mail if there will be no late seating. Start Time and Latecomers UMS makes every effort to begin concerts at the published start time. Latecomers will be asked to wait in the lobby and will be seated by ushers at a predetermined time in the program. The late seating break is determined by the artists and will generally occur during a suitable break in the program, designed to cause as little disruption as possible to other patrons and the artists on stage. Please allow extra time to park and find your seats. Access for People with Disabilities Accessible parking is provided in University of Michigan parking structures for those with a state-issued disability permit or a U-M handicap verification permit. There is a drop-off area near Hill Auditorium and Rackham Auditorium, and inside the Power Center structure. For more information, please contact the UMS Ticket Office at 734-764-2538. All UMS venues have barrier-free entrances for persons with disabilities. Patrons with disabilities or special seating needs should notify the UMS Ticket Office of those needs at the time of ticket purchase. UMS will make every effort to accommodate special needs brought to our attention at the performance, but requests that these arrangements be made in advance, if at all possible. Seating spaces for wheelchair users and their companions are located throughout each venue, and ushers are available to assist patrons, if needed. Please explain to the usher how best to assist you. Assistive listening devices are available in Hill Auditorium, Rackham Auditorium, and the Power Center. Earphones may be obtained upon arrival. Please ask an usher for assistance. Parking/Parking Tips Detailed directions and parking information will be mailed with your tickets and are also available at www.ums.org/parking. Smoke-Free University As of July 1, 2011, the smoking of tobacco will no longer be permitted on the grounds of the University of Michigan, including the exteriors of U-M theaters and concert halls. Smoking will be allowed on sidewalks adjacent to public roads. Children and Families Children under the age of three will not be admitted to regular UMS performances (except the designated family performances Dane Zanes & Friends). All children attending UMS performances must be able to sit quietly in their own seats without disturbing other patrons, or they may be asked to leave the auditorium. Please use discretion when choosing to bring a child, and remember that everyone must have a ticket, regardless of age. See page 62 for information about UMS’s Family-Friendly performances and the UMS Kids Club program for students in third grade and older.
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Please Make Sure We Have Your E-Mail Address on File! UMS regularly sends updated concert-related parking and late seating information via e-mail a few days before the event. Please be sure that the Ticket Office has your correct e-mail address on file. Ticket Exchanges Subscribers may exchange tickets free-of-charge up to 48 hours before the performance. Non-subscribers may exchange tickets for a $6 per ticket exchange fee. Exchanged tickets must be received by the Ticket Office (by mail or in person) at least 48 hours prior to the performance. You may fax a photocopy of your torn tickets to 734-647-1171, or e-mail a photo to umstix@umich.edu. The value of the ticket(s) may be applied to another performance or will be held as UMS Credit until the end of the 11/12 season. Credit must be redeemed by April 22, 2012. UMS will also accept ticket exchanges within 48 hours of the performance for a $10 per ticket exchange fee (applies to both subscribers and single ticket buyers). Tickets must be exchanged at least one hour before the published start time. Tickets received less than one hour before the performance will be returned as a donation. Ticket Donations/Unused Tickets Unused tickets may be donated to UMS until the published start time of the concert. A receipt will be issued for tax purposes. Please consult your tax advisor. Unused tickets that are returned after the performance are not eligible for UMS Credit or as a contribution/donation. Refunds Due to the nature of the performing arts, programs and artists are subject to change. If an artist cancels an appearance, UMS will make every effort to substitute that performance with a comparable artist. Refunds will only be offered if a substitute cannot be found, or in the event of a date change. Handling fees are not refundable. UMS will not cancel performances or refund tickets because of inclement weather unless the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus closes. An artist may choose to cancel a performance if weather prevents the artist’s arrival in Ann Arbor, but that decision rests with the artist and not with UMS. Ticket Mailing vs. Ticket Pick-Up Any ticket orders received fewer than 10 days prior to the performance will be held at will-call, which opens in the performance venue 90 minutes prior to the published start time. Lost or Misplaced Tickets Call the Ticket Office at 734-764-2538 to have duplicate tickets waiting for you at the venue will-call. Duplicate tickets cannot be mailed.
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UMS Has Converted to a New Ticketing System! On our wish list for the past five years (at least!) was a new ticketing system that allows us to serve you, our loyal patrons, better. The moment has finally arrived! This past summer, we converted to a new ticketing system, Tessitura, which was developed by the Metropolitan Opera and is now used by over 350 performing arts organizations worldwide. Many of the new features will be apparent as we move into the 11/12 season, including: •Select your own seat when ordering online for most performances, with more detailed venue maps •Manage your address, phone, and e-mail contact information online — at any time •Manage the communications you receive from UMS so that you only get those communications you desire •One-stop shopping, so you can take care of performances, special events, and donations in one transaction •And more to come…Rest assured that we have been working hard over the past 18 months to ensure that there will be no disruption to you — or your seats! — as we move forward. As always, if you have any questions, our Ticket Office staff is standing by and ready to help. And we welcome your feedback, comments, and concerns about what is working and where you had difficulties so that we can make it a more seamless experience moving forward.
Hill Auditorium
Michigan Theater
825 North University Avenue
603 East Liberty Street BALCONY
BALCONY
Sec Sec 19 Sec 18 20
Sec 17 Sec 11
Sec 13
Sec 12
Sec 14
Hill Auditorium (H1) Ahmad Jamal Sat Sept 17 John Malkovich/Infernal Comedy Sat Oct 1 Yuja Wang Sun Oct 9 Goran Bregovic/Wedding & Funeral Sat Oct 15 Apollo’s Fire Thu Nov 3 Audra McDonald Fri Nov 4 A Night in Treme Fri Nov 11 Canadian Brass Sun Nov 27 Handel’s Messiah Sat-Sun Dec 3-4 London Philharmonic Tue Dec 6 Denis Matsuev Mon Jan 23 Hamburg State Symphony/Messiaen Sun Jan 29 Sweet Honey In The Rock Fri Feb 17 Jazz at Lincoln Center/Marsalis Wed Feb 22 Chicago Symphony Fri Mar 9 Max Raabe/Berlin Nights Sat Mar 12 San Francisco Symphony Mavericks Thu-Sat Mar 22-24 Zakir Hussain/Masters of Percussion Thu Apr 12 Joshua Bell/Academy of St. Martin Sun Apr 22
Sec 21
Sec 15
Sec 16
MEZZANINE
Sec 6
Sec 8
Sec 7
Sec 9
Sec 10
MAIN FLOOR
Sec 1
Sec 2
Sec 2
Sec 3
Sec 4
Sec 3
Sec 4
Sec 5
Balc Rear Ctr
Balc Rear Right Balc Front Right
Michigan Theater (MT) National Theatre Live: Sun Oct 9 One Man, Two Guvnors National Theatre Live: The Kitchen Sun Oct 30 Diego El Cigala Sat Nov 5 AnDa Union Wed Nov 9 National Theatre Live: Sun Jan 8 The Collaborators National Theatre Live: Title TBA Sun Feb 19 National Theatre Live: Sun Mar 18 The Comedy of Errors Cheikh Lô Fri Apr 13 Charles Lloyd New Quartet Sat Apr 14
Balc Rear Left Balc Front Left
Balc Front Ctr MAIN FLOOR
MF Rear Right
MF Rear Ctr
MF Rear Left
MF Front Right
MF A Front Ctr
MF Front Left
STAGE
Rackham Auditorium
STAGE
915 East Washington Street
Power Center
NOTE: Rackham Section Numbers have changed.
Sec 5
Sec 6
Sec 7 Sec 8
Sec 2 Sec 3
Sec 1 STAGE
Rackham Auditorium (R) Emerson String Quartet Sun Sept 18 St. Lawrence String Quartet Sat Nov 12 Beijing Guitar Duo/Barrueco Sun Nov 20 Les Violons du Roy/Steger Sat Jan 28 Sabine Meyer/Trio di Clarone Sat Feb 4 Shanghai Chinese Chamber Ensemble Fri Feb 10 Hagen Quartet Thu Feb 23 San Francisco Symphony Chamber Sun Mar 25 Pavel Haas Quartet Wed Apr 18
General Admission Venues
Sec 8
Sec 7
c
Se
Sec 9
MAIN FLOOR
6
Sec 3 Sec 2
Sec 4
Power Center (P) Mark Morris Dance Group Fri-Sat Sept 23-24 Dan Zanes & Friends Sun Sept 25 Cloud Gate Dance Theatre Fri-Sat Oct 21-22 Gate Theatre of Dublin Thu-Sat Oct 27-29 Endgame and Watt Einstein on the Beach Fri-Sun Jan 20-22 Random Dance Sat Feb 18 Robert Lepage Thu-Sat Mar 15-17 The Andersen Project Ballet Preljocaj/Snow White Thu-Sat Apr 19-21
Sec 5
Sec 1 STAGE
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (SA) 306 North Division Avenue
St. Francis of Assisi (SF) 2250 East Stadium Boulevard State Symphony Capella of Russia Schola Cantorum de Venezuela The Tallis Scholars
BALCONY
0 c1 Se
Sec 4
121 Fletcher Street
Thu Oct 13 Thu Oct 27 Thu Feb 16
Stile Antico
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All Tickets On Sale Beginning Wednesday, August 24 at 10 am! Donors of $250+ may order tickets beginning Monday, August 15 at 10 am. Internet Sales begin on Monday, August 22 at 10 am at www.tickets.ums.org.
Phone With Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express
734-764-2538
Fax 734-647-1171
Student Tickets
Outside the 734 area code and within Michigan, call toll-free 800-221-1229.
UMS Ticket Office Burton Memorial Tower 881 North University Avenue Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1011
Internet
Hours
www.ums.org In Person
Beginning Tue, Sep 6: Mon-Fri: 9 am to 5 pm Sat: 10 am to 1 pm
Please visit the Ticket Office Before Tue Sep 6: on the north end of the Mon-Fri: 10 am to 5 pm Michigan League building (911 North University Avenue). The Ticket Office also sells tickets for all U-M School of Music, Theatre & Dance productions and the Ann Arbor Summer Festival.
Groups of 10 or More Groups of 10 or more people attending a single event will receive priority over individual event purchasers and save 15-25% off the regular ticket prices to most performances. For more information, contact the UMS Group Sales Office at 734-763-3100 or umsgroupsales@umich.edu. UMS is now accepting group reservations. Plan early to guarantee access to great seats!
www.ums.org
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UMS has several programs offering discounted tickets to high school and college students in accredited degree programs. For information, visit www.ums.org/students.
Fees Service fees of $2.50-$6.00 per ticket apply for all internet and phone orders. There are no fees for tickets purchased at the League Ticket Office or at the venue prior to the performance.
Special thanks to the following supporters: Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund. AnDa Union and the Chamber Ensemble of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra are funded in part by the Performing Arts Fund, a program of Arts Midwest funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional contributions from Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, General Mills Foundation, and Land O’Lakes Foundation. Association of Performing Arts Presenters. UMS is working with the U-M Health System throughout the 11/12 season on the Medical Arts Program, an initiative to help medical students and house officers become more effective and humane physicians through arts experiences. This program is supported in part by the Association of Performing Arts Presenters Creative Campus Innovations Grant program, funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Endowment Fund. Special project support for several components of the 11/12 UMS season is provided by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Endowment Fund, established with a challenge grant from the Leading College and University Presenters Program at the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Special project support for Einstein on the Beach and the San Francisco Symphony, as well as commissioning and associated residency activities, is provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation as part of a multi-year grant to UMS. National Endowment for the Arts. Special project support for the Renegade Series is provided by the National Endowment for the Arts. Art Works. NEA Jazz Masters Live. Ahmad Jamal is funded in part by NEA Jazz Masters Live, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest that celebrates the living legends who have made exceptional contributions to the advancement of jazz. University of Michigan. The University of Michigan provides special project support for many activities in the 11/12 season through the U-M/UMS Partnership Program. Additional support is provided by the University of Michigan Health System, the U-M Office of the Vice President for Research, the U-M Office of the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, Arts at Michigan, the Confucius Institute, and many other individual academic units. Wallace Endowment Fund. Gate Theatre of Dublin is funded in part by the Wallace Endowment Fund, established with a challenge grant from the Wallace Foundation to build public participation in arts programs. Einstein on the Beach. The 2012 production of Einstein on the Beach was commissioned by: University Musical Society of the University of Michigan; BAM; the Barbican, London; Cal Performances University of California, Berkeley; Luminato, Toronto Festival of Arts and Creativity; De Nederlandse Opera/The Amsterdam Music Theatre; Opéra et Orchestre National de Montpellier Languedoc-Rousillon. Produced by Pomegranate Arts, Inc.
UMS is a member of the University of Michigan Public Goods Council, the Arts Alliance, and the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan.
11/12 Season Media Partner
Media Partners The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer and provides programs and services without regard to race, sex, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability.
734-764-2538
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