Cape Ann Symphony Kicks Off 73rd Season This Month

Cape Ann Symphony will kick off the 73rd season at 2:00 PM on September, 29 2024 with an Orchestral Spectacular featuring music from Leonard Bernstein, George Gershwin and Ottorino Respighi. The orchestra opens the concert with An American in Paris by George Gerswhin, followed by  Symphonic Dances from West Side Story and the Candide Overture by Leonard Bernstein and closes the concert with The Pines of Rome by Ottorino Respighi. The Cape Ann Symphony performs at Manchester-Essex High School Auditorium on 36 Lincoln Street, Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA. For tickets or information, call 978-281-0543 or visit www.capeannsymphony.org"

"The orchestra will play four timeless pieces by three brilliant composers! All these pieces are colorful, sparkling creations brimming with life and feeling" says CAS Conductor and Music Director Maestro Yoichi Udagawa, "We will  take our audience on a musial journey around the world to Gershwin's Paris, Bernsteins's New York City, Bernstein's stirring interpretation of Candide's adventures through Europe and Latin America and finally, Respighi's Rome. What an afternoon of unforgettable music ! The musicians and I can't wait to go on this journey with our audience!"

George Gershwin's An American in Paris (a jazz-influenced symphonic tone poem) for orchestra was first performed in 1928 and inspired by the time Gershwin spent in Paris and his love for the city. It brings to mind the sights and energy of the French capital during the Années folles or, in America, the Roaring Twenties. Gershwin scored the piece for the standard instruments of the symphony orchestra plus saxophones and automobile horns commonly used on autos in the 20s. He even brought back four Parisian taxi horns for the New York premiere of the composition, which took place on December 13, 1928, in Carnegie Hall, with the New York Philharmonic.

Born in Lawrence MA, Leonard Bernstein was a conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian.  Symphonic Dances from West Side Story is an orchestral suite in nine movements by Leonard Bernstein and adapted from his hit Broadway musical, West Side Story, an adaptation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet set on the Upper West Side in 1950's New York City. Bernstein selected 9 excerpts and put them together into a single piece titled Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. 

The nine movements are:

1."Prologue": Tensions grow between the two gangs in the musical.

2."Somewhere": In a dream, friendship unites the two gangs.

3."Scherzo": In the dream, the gangs leave the city and find themselves in a "playful world of space, air, and sun"

4."Mambo": Returning to the real world, the gangs participate in a competitive dance at the gym.

5."Cha cha": Maria and Tony first meet and dance together.

6."Meeting scene": They speak their first words to each other.

7."Cool": Riff, the leader of the Jets, encourages his gang to harness their impulsive hostility.

8."Rumble": In a gang battle, Riff, Bernardo (the leader of the Sharks), and Tony are killed.

9. "Finale": The two gangs, realizing that violence is no solution, reconcile and unite, fulfilling the vision of "Somewhere.

Bernstein's Overture to Candide is  from his musical Candide. In 1953 playwright Lillian Hellman suggested that they adapt Voltaire's 1758 novella Candide for the stage.  The musical premiered on Broadway in 1956 to mixed reviews and closed in 1957. In 1959 a full-scale production of Candide with a revised book opened in London's West End at the Saville Theater. In 1966 Candide was performed at the Center Theatre Group at the University of California in Los Angeles. In 1971 the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera Association mounted a production which included a complete revision of Hellman's book and a substantial shuffling of musical numbers.In 1973 Harold Prince and Hugh Wheeler devised a new version which opened at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Chelsea Theater in December. This  single-act production wasCandide's first critical and popular success. In 1982  New York City   Opera produced Candide in its original version, a full length two-act production. In 1988  the Scottish Opera in Glasgow, produced a new version which included even more music. In 1989  Bernstein decided it was time for him to re-examine Candide. His revised version of Candide was presented by the London Symphony Orchestra. In the Spring of 1997 Candide's 1982 version was performed on Broadway. It had been more than twenty years since Candide had a Broadway production. During the Leonard Bernstein Centennial in 2017, Candide received 342 performances in 25 countries. According to a 2018 surveyCandide has become became one of the most performed operas world-wide.

Ottorino Respighi was an Italian composer, violinist, teacher, and musicologist and one of the leading Italian composers of the early 20th century. Respighi's Pines of Rome, tone poem for orchestra in four movements premiered in 1924 in Rome. It is the Italian composer’s tribute to scenes around his country’s capital, some contemporary and some recalling the glory of the Roman Empire. It is Respighi’s most frequently performed work. Pines of Rome is the second in a series of three tone poems by Respighi known as the Roman trilogy. It was preceded by Fountains of Rome (1914–16) and followed by Roman Festivals (1929). 

Founded in Gloucester in 1951, the Cape Ann Symphony is a professional orchestra of over 70 players from throughout the New England area. They perform a subscription season of four concerts per year plus several Pops and youth concerts. The Symphony Board of Directors named Yoichi Udagawa the Music Director and Conductor of the Cape Ann Symphony in the summer of 2000 after a yearlong search. In addition to his leadership of Cape Ann Symphony, he is Music Director and Conductor of the Melrose Symphony Orchestra, and the Quincy Symphony Orchestra and a cover conductor at the Boston Pops Orchestra.  Frequently invited to guest conduct, Maestro Udagawa has worked with many different orchestras including the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra, Nobeoka Philharmonic Orchestra, the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston, the University of Texas Symphony Orchestra, the Indian Hill Symphony, the Garden State Philharmonic, the Brown University Orchestra, the Syracuse Society for New Music, the Boston Conservatory Orchestra, the Midcoast Symphony Orchestra, the Newton Symphony, the Austin Civic Orchestra, and the Mid-Texas Symphony. Maestro Udagawa is at home in popular and contemporary music as well as the standard symphonic repertoire. He is known for his relaxed manner and ability to speak from the podium which has helped new audiences as well as enthusiasts gain a greater appreciation for symphonic music. His programs often include premieres of new works – some specially commissioned for the orchestra — as well as great orchestral works across the symphonic repertoire and lively Pops programs. He is also an integral part of the Cape Ann Symphony Youth Initiative.

Yoichi Udagawa, the son of a nuclear physicist father and singer/artist mother, was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. His family immigrated to the United States soon thereafter. He began playing the violin at age four and made his conducting debut at age fifteen. After receiving a music degree from the University of Texas at Austin, he continued advanced studies in conducting with Gunther Schuller, Seiji Ozawa, Morihiro Okabe, and Henry Charles Smith. A fan of many different styles of music, Mr. Udagawa also enjoys performing gospel music in addition to his conducting activities. He is also an accomplished violinist and an avid fan of exercise and yoga.

The Cape Ann Symphony’s 73rd Season Opening Concert, Orchestral Spectacular, is Sunday, September 29, 2024 at 2:00 pm at the Manchester-Essex High School Auditorium on 36 Lincoln Street, Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA. Manchester-Essex High School Auditorium is handicapped accessible. Ticket prices are $50 for adults, $45 for senior citizens, $20 for Students of any age with a valid student ID, $5 for Youth (12 years old and under). For information, call 978-281-0543 or visit www.capeannsymphony.org

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