Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival 2017 to Close with Budapest Festival Orchestra's DON GIOVANNI

Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival concludes its 51st season with a revival of the acclaimed Budapest Festival Orchestra production of Don Giovanni, directed and conducted by Iván Fischer, with a cast led by baritone Christopher Maltman; Renée and Robert Belfer Music Director Louis Langrée leading two Festival Orchestra programs featuring pianist Kirill Gerstein in his Mostly Mozart debut and violinist Gil Shaham; a special appearance by Langrée on piano in a pre-concert recital with Susanna Phillips; and Mostly Mozart artists-in-residence International Contemporary Ensemble performing a nature-inspired program by three pioneering female composers and featuring Wu Wei in his festival debut.

The final week of the 2017 Mostly Mozart season also includes two late-night recitals: first by Trio Solisti, which, in its Mostly Mozart debut, continues the festival's exploration of Schubert's genius, and then by Kirill Gerstein, who caps an evening-long look into the relationship between Robert Schumann, his wife, Clara, and their dear friend Johannes Brahms.

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INTERNATIONAL CONTEMPORARY ENSEMBLE: HOW FORESTS THINK
Monday, August 14, 7:30 pm
Merkin Concert Hall
International Contemporary Ensemble
Baldur Brönnimann, conductor
Wu Wei, sheng (Mostly Mozart debut)

OLIVEROS: Earth Ears
ANNA THORVALDSDOTTIR: Aequilibria (U.S. premiere)
LIZA LIM: How Forests Think (U.S. premiere)

Schubert and his fellow Romantic-era composers were fascinated with the natural world. Taking their obsession as a starting point, ICE performs a trio of works that similarly find inspiration in nature. Pauline Oliveros's Earth Ears, which she called a sonic ritual, cycles through prescribed patterns, transitions, and changes that echo the environment. The Icelandic sky provided a stimulus for Anna Thorvaldsdottir to create her ethereal Aequilibria. The program ends with Liza Lim's How Forests Think, based on the groundbreaking studies of anthropologist Eduardo Kohn, who has written about interconnected networks of forest ecologies.

Post-concert talk: Claire Chase will lead a discussion following the performance.

BRAHMS AND SCHUMANN
Tuesday, August 15 and Wednesday, August 16, 7:30 pm
David Geffen Hall
Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra
Louis Langrée, conductor
Kirill Gerstein, piano (Mostly Mozart debut)

BRAHMS: Variations on a Theme by R. Schumann
SCHUMANN: Piano Concerto in A minor
BRAHMS: Symphony No. 1 in C minor

The relationship between piano virtuoso Clara Schumann, her husband, Robert, and Johannes Brahms inspires this romantic program. In his Mostly Mozart debut, the expressive Kirill Gerstein performs Brahms's tribute to his mentor, Robert, followed by the ravishing piano concerto that Robert wrote for his wife. Brahms's First Symphony, containing a theme that the composer famously sent to Clara Schumann with the note, "Thus blew the shepherd's horn today!," concludes the program.

Pre-concert recital at 6:30 pm: In a special pre-concert recital, Louis Langrée, piano, joins soprano Susanna Phillips in a performance of Schumann's "Frauenliebe und -leben," written during the composer's tumultuous courtship of Clara.

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC: TRIO SOLISTI (Mostly Mozart debut)
Tuesday, August 15, 10:00 pm
Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse

SCHUBERT: Piano Trio in B-flat major

Violinist Maria Bachmann, cellist Alexis Pia Gerlach, and pianist Fabio Bidini of Trio Solisti continue the festival's Schubert thread with a performance of his towering Piano Trio in B-flat major. Written at the same time as Winterreise, this piece was never performed during Schubert's lifetime. However, Robert Schumann said of it: "One glance at Schubert's Trio and the troubles of our human existence disappear and all the world is fresh and bright again."

A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC: KIRILL GERSTEIN
Wednesday, August 16, 10:00 pm
Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse

BRAHMS (arr. BUSONI): Two Chorale Preludes
CLARA SCHUMANN: Variations on a Theme by R. Schumann
BRAHMS: Sonata No. 2 in F-sharp minor

An intimate counterpoint to Gerstein's performance of Schumann's First Piano Concerto, this concert continues to explore the relationship between Clara and Robert Schumann and their protégé Johannes Brahms through their music, including Brahms's Piano Sonata No. 2, dedicated to Clara, and Clara's own Variations on a Theme by R. Schumann.

BUDAPEST FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA: DON GIOVANNI
Thursday, August 17 and Saturday, August 19, 7:00 pm; Sunday, August 20, 5:00 pm
Rose Theater, Jazz at Lincoln Center's Frederick P. Rose Hall
Budapest Festival Orchestra
Iván Fischer, conductor and director
Christopher Maltman, Don Giovanni
Laura Aikin, Donna Anna
Zoltán Megyesi, Don Ottavio
Lucy Crowe, Donna Elvira
José Fardilha, Leporello
Sylvia Schwartz, Zerlina
Kristinn Sigmundsson, Commendatore
Matteo Peirone, Masetto

The innovative Budapest Festival Orchestra and music director Iván Fischer return to Mostly Mozart with their acclaimed staged concert of Don Giovanni, a standout of the 2011 festival, selling out all of its performances. Baritone Christopher Maltman takes on the title role, while soprano Laura Aikin reprises the part of Donna Anna, one of his conquests. Tenor Zoltán Megyesi, soprano Lucy Crowe, baritone José Fardilha, bass Kristinn Sigmundsson, soprano Sylvia Schwartz, and bass Matteo Peirone round out the stellar cast. This production of Don Giovanni was co-produced by the Budapest Festival Orchestra and Müpa Budapest.

Pre-performance talk: Director and conductor Iván Fischer speaks with Jane Moss on Saturday, August 19, at 6:00 pm in the Agnes Varis and Karl Leichtman Studio.

TCHAIKOVSKY, PROKOFIEV, AND MOZART
Friday, August 18 and Saturday, August 19, 7:30 pm
David Geffen Hall
Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra
Louis Langrée, conductor
Gil Shaham, violin

PROKOFIEV: Symphony No. 1 in D major ("Classical")
MOZART: Symphony No. 25 in G minor
TCHAIKOVSKY: Violin Concerto in D major

Mozart's "Little G minor" symphony is bookended by two masterpieces of Russian music. Prokofiev's "Classical" Symphony looks to Mozart's friend and mentor, Haydn, whose work is also referenced in Mozart's Symphony No. 25. Virtuoso Gil Shaham, known for his flawless technique, closes the program with Tchaikovsky's magnificent Violin Concerto.

Pre-concertrecital at 6:30 pm: Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony will perform Prokofiev's Sonata for Two Violins.

Tickets can be purchased online at MostlyMozart.org, by phone via CenterCharge at 212.721.6500, or in person by visiting the David Geffen Hall or Alice Tully Hall Box Office.

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ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

IVÁN FISCHER, CONDUCTOR AND DIRECTOR
Artist Website
Iván Fischer is founder and music director of the Budapest Festival Orchestra, as well as music director of the Konzerthaus and Konzerthausorchester Berlin. In recent years he has also gained a reputation as a composer, with his works being performed in the United States, the Netherlands, Belgium, Hungary, Germany, and Austria. He has also directed a number of successful opera productions. The BFO's frequent worldwide tours and a series of critically acclaimed records, released first by Philips Classics and later by Channel Classics, have contributed to Fischer's reputation as one of the world's most high-profile music directors.

BUDAPEST FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
Artist Website
The Budapest Festival Orchestra is one of the major success stories of the international music scene, being rated among the world's top ten orchestras. Both audiences and critics alike acknowledge the quality in the ensemble's captivating chamber music performances, as well as the all-pervasive dynamism with which it shares the joy of music-making with the audience. The orchestra is a regular guest at the world's most important music venues and concert halls, including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center in New York, Vienna's Musikverein, the Royal Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, and London's Royal Albert Hall. It has regularly been invited to perform at international music events such as the Mostly Mozart Festival, the Salzburger Festspiele, and the Edinburgh International Festival. The Association of Music Critics of Argentina awarded BFO as the Best Foreign Symphonic Orchestra in 2016.

Christopher Maltman (DON GIOVANNI)
Artist Website
Winner of the Lieder Prize at the 1997 Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, Christopher Maltman studied singing at the Royal Academy of Music. A renowned Don Giovanni, he has sung the role at the Salzburg Festival, in Berlin, Munich, Cologne, and at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, where he has also sung Papageno, Guglielmo, Lescaut, Forester, Marcello, and Ramiro. At the Vienna State Opera, his roles include Siskov (Aus einem Totenhaus), Onegin, Figaro, and Prospero (The Tempest). Increasingly in demand for Verdi roles, he has sung Simon Boccanegra in Frankfurt, Post (Don Carlos) in Amsterdam and Frankfurt, and this season sings Conte di Luna (Il Trovatore ) at Covent Garden. Other operatic appearances include Il Conte in Paris, Alfonso in Munich, Friedrich (Das Liebesverbot) in Madrid, and Figaro (IL Barbiere di Siviglia), Papageno, and Silvio at the Metropolitan Opera.

LAURA AIKIN (DONNA ANNA)
Artist Website
World-renowned American soprano Laura Aikin is a familiar presence in the world's great opera houses and concert halls, performing with many of the greatest conductors of our time, including Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, Sylvain Cambreling, William Christie, Christoph von Dohnányi, Daniele Gatti, Michael Gielen, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, René Jacobs, Fabio Luisi, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Helmuth Rilling, Donald Runnicles, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Markus Stenz, and Franz Welser-Möst. Possessing a range of more than three octaves and an arresting stage presence, her repertoire embraces works from the Baroque to the contemporary.

LUCY CROWE (DONNA ELVIRA)
Artist Website
Described as having a voice of bell-like clarity with an impeccable vocal technique and powerful stage presence, Lucy Crowe has established herself as one of the leading lyric sopranos of her generation. With repertoire ranging from Purcell, Handel, and Mozart to Donizetti's Adina and Verdi's Gilda, she has sung with opera companies throughout the U.K. and Europe, including the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, the Glyndebourne Festival, English National Opera, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, and the Bavarian State Opera. She made her U.S. operatic debut as Iole (Handel's Hercules) at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, reprising the role at Canadian Opera Company, and she made her debut with the Metropolitan Opera as Servilia (La Clemenza di Tito ), returning last season as Adele (Die Fledermaus).

JOSÉ FARDILHA (LEPORELLO)
Artist Website
Born in Lisbon, Portuguese baritone José Fardilha made his Royal Opera House debut in the 2016/17 season as Bartolo (IL Barbiere di Siviglia). After winning the Toti dal Monte Competition he went on to make his professional debut as Leporello (Don Giovanni) in Treviso, Strasbourg, and Trieste. He has since performed for leading international opera houses and festivals, including La Scala, Milan, Vienna State Opera, Salzburg Festival, Barbican Centre, Paris Opera, Berlin State Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Zürich Opera House, Teatro Regio Torino, Rome Opera, La Fenice, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Sferisterio di Macerata, Festival della Valle d'Itria, Martina Franca, Teatro Nacional de São Carlos, Lisbon, and the Israeli Opera.

ZOLTÁN MEGYESI (DON OTTAVIO)
Artist Website
Hungarian-born tenor Zoltán Megyesi performs operatic and concert repertoire ranging from Monteverdi to Donizetti; song cycles by Schubert, Schumann, and Britten; as well as works from the 20th and 21st centuries. He has appeared internationally in concerts at Philharmonie Köln, Brugge Concertgebouw, Wiener Konzerthaus, and the Auditorium of the Danish Radio with conductors including Helmuth Rilling, Ádám Fischer, and Iván Fischer. He performs regularly at the Hungarian State Opera in roles such as Ferrando (Così fan tutte), Don Ramiro (La Cenerentola), Count Almaviva (IL Barbiere di Siviglia), Orfeo (Orfeo ed Euridice), and Aceste (Ascanio in Alba). Megyesi reprises his role as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, which he sang with the Budapest Festival Orchestra at the 2011 Mostly Mozart Festival.

MATTEO PEIRONE (MASETTO)
Artist Website
Born in Savona, Italy, Matteo Peirone initially studied ancient Greek literature before training as a singer with Franca Mattiucci, Paolo Montarsolo, and Renata Scotto. Among the competitions he has won are ASILICO in Milano and the Verdi in Parma. He has already sung in the most important opera houses in Italy and abroad, specializing as an interpreter of the principal roles of Basso Buffo or Brillante and in other character roles. He is regularly invited to perform at Teatro alla Scala, where has sung under the direction of Riccardo Muti. He has also performed at the Ravenna Festival with Maestro Muti and the Wiener Philarmoniker. Peirone is founder and artistic director of the Noli Musica Festival.

Sylvia Schwartz (ZERLINA)
Artist Website
Spanish soprano Sylvia Schwartz is one of the most exciting lyric singers of her generation. She has appeared at many of the world's finest opera houses and festivals, including La Scala, Berlin Staatsoper, Wiener Staatsoper, and Bayerische Staatsoper, the Bolshoi Theatre, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, and the Edinburgh, Baden Baden, Salzburg, and Verbier festivals. Schwartz is also in demand in concert and is a celebrated recitalist. She has worked with
pianists such as Wolfram Rieger, Charles Spencer, and Malcolm Martineau; and with conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim, Philippe Jordan, René Jacobs, Fabio Luisi, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Sir Colin Davis, Gustavo Dudamel, Patrick Fournillier, Marc Minkowski, Ivor Bolton, Yves Abel, Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Helmut Rilling, and Christopher Hogwood.

KRISTINN SIGMUNDSSON (COMMENDATORE)
Artist Website
Icelandic native Kristinn Sigmundsson is one of the world's leading basses on the opera stage. During the 2016/17 season, Sigmundsson performed with Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie as La Roche in Capriccio, returned to the Staatsoper Hamburg to reprise Melchthal in Guillaume Tell, Teatro Regio Torino for Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra for Rocco in Fidelio. He also was engaged as Bartolo in Le Nozze di Figaro with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Commendatore in Don Giovanni with the Budapest Festival Orchestra, and Brahms's Ein Deutsches Requiem with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra.

BALDUR BRÖNNIMANN, CONDUCTOR
Artist Website
Baldur Brönnimann is a conductor of great flexibility with a broad-minded approach to music making and a particular affinity for the most complex contemporary scores. He shares his time between the concert hall and the opera house, and whenever possible seeks out opportunities for educational and outreach work. In January 2015 he became principal conductor of the Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música, following a longstanding relationship with the ensemble, and in September 2016 took up the position of principal conductor with the Basel Sinfonietta.

KIRILL GERSTEIN, PIANO
Artist Website
The multifaceted pianist Kirill Gerstein has rapidly ascended into classical music's highest ranks. With a masterful technique, discerning intelligence, and a musical curiosity that has led him to explore repertoire spanning centuries and styles, he has proven to be one of today's most intriguing and versatile musicians. His early training and experience in jazz has contributed an important element to his interpretive style, inspiring an energetic and expressive musical personality that distinguishes his playing. Gerstein is the sixth recipient of the prestigious Gilmore Artist Award, presented every four years to an exceptional pianist who, regardless of age or nationality, possesses broad and profound musicianship and charisma and who desires and can sustain a career as a major international concert artist.

INTERNATIONAL CONTEMPORARY ENSEMBLE
Artist Website
The International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) is an artist collective committed to transforming the way music is created and experienced. As performer, curator, and educator, ICE explores how new music intersects with communities across the world. The ensemble's 35 members are featured as soloists, chamber musicians, commissioners, and collaborators with the foremost musical artists of our time. Works by emerging composers have anchored ICE's programming since its founding in 2001, and the group's recordings and digital platforms highlight the many voices that weave music's present. A recipient of the American Music Center's Trailblazer Award and the Chamber Music America/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming, ICE was also named the 2014 Musical America Ensemble of the Year. The group currently serves as artists-in-residence at the Mostly Mozart Festival and previously led a five-year residency at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago. ICE has been featured at the Ojai Music Festival since 2015 and has appeared at festivals abroad such as Acht Brücken Cologne and Musica nova Helsinki. Other recent performance stages include the Park Avenue Armory, The Stone, ice floes at Greenland's Diskotek Sessions, and boats on the Amazon River.

GIL SHAHAM, VIOLIN
Artist Website
Gil Shaham is one of the foremost violinists of our time; his flawless technique combined with his inimitable warmth and generosity of spirit has solidified his renown as an American master. The Grammy Award winner is sought after throughout the world for concerto appearances with leading orchestras and conductors, and he regularly gives recitals and appears with ensembles on the world's great concert stages and at the most prestigious festivals. Shaham was awarded an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 1990, and in 2008 he received the coveted Avery Fisher Prize. In 2012 he was named "Instrumentalist of the Year" by Musical America , which cited the "special kind of humanism" with which his performances are imbued. He plays the 1699 "Countess Polignac" Stradivarius.

TRIO SOLISTI
Artist Website
Trio Solisti has forged a reputation as "the most exciting piano trio in America" (The New Yorker), with a passionate performance style that combines exceptional virtuosity and musical insight. Possessing a repertoire that encompasses standard works and pieces by contemporary composers, rave reviews follow the trio throughout its concert tours. Founded in 2001, Trio Solisti-violinist Maria Bachmann, cellist Alexis Pia Gerlach, and pianist Fabio Bidini-has performed on major concert series such as Great Performers at Lincoln Center, People's Symphony Concerts at Town Hall, N.Y., Washington Performing Arts Society at the Kennedy Center, Seattle's Meany Hall, and La Jolla's Revelle Series.

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