NY Philharmonic Pays Tribute to Dimitri Mitropoulos Throughout the Month of November
By: Leslie Fazin Oct. 06, 2010
The New York Philharmonic will offer a tribute to Dimitri Mitropoulos, its former Music Director and one of the towering musical figures of the 20th century - with concerts, lectures, film screenings, an archival exhibit, and a special radio program - throughout the month of November 2010, commemorating the 50th anniversary of his death. The tribute is sponsored by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.
The events will begin with performances November 10-11 and 13, led by Music Director Alan Gilbert, of Mendelssohn's Elijah - a work that Mitropoulos led in 1952 in a stylized dramatization and which at the time represented the Orchestra's first complete performance of the oratorio in 40 years.
Violinist Leonidas Kavakos, a fellow countryman of the Athens-born Mitropoulos, will play Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto with the Philharmonic, November 26-27. Screenings of "The Anatomy of a Symphony Orchestra," from CBS's See It Now (1954), featuring an interview with Mitropoulous by Edward R. Murrow and the Philharmonic in rehearsal, will take place November 27 and 28 at the Paley Center for Media.
An Insights Series event on November 29 at the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center entitled "Considering Dimitri Mitropoulos," will be moderated by Philharmonic Archivist/Historian Barbara Haws, with a panel comprising composer-conductor Gunther Schuller, documentary filmmaker Valerie Kontakos, and retired Philharmonic Principal Clarinet Stanley Drucker discussing Mitropoulos's life and contributions; included will be excerpts from Ms. Kontakos's forthcoming documentary on Mitropoulos.
During the week of November 1, the Philharmonic's national radio series, The New York Philharmonic This Week, syndicated to more than 300 stations by the WFMT Radio Network and picked up by the European Broadcast Union, will feature works conducted by Mitropoulos between 1949 and 1956. The program will include an interview with Mitropoulos and works by Greek composer Nicos Skalkottas and Morton Gould, as well as Sergei Prokofiev's Third Piano Concerto - with Mitropoulos conducting from the piano - and Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 10, considered one of the finest recordings of this symphony.
In addition, the archival exhibit, Dimitri Mitropoulos: Conducting the Unfamiliar, 1940-1960, currently on view until November 30 in the Bruno Walter Gallery, Orchestra Level of Avery Fisher Hall, focuses on the music that the conductor brought to the Philharmonic's audiences, including his marked score of Mahler's Sixth Symphony, on public view for the first time from a private collection in Iowa.
A featured Mitropoulos page on the New York Philharmonic's Website will include photographs, correspondence, and streamed versions of Mitropoulos's live performances, including Barber's Media's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance, Gould's Dance Variations, Mahler's Symphony No. 10, Poulenc's Concert champêtre, Gunther Schuller's Dramatic Overture, and Shostakovich's Violin Concerto No. 1, with David Oistrakh as soloist. Visit http://nyphil.org/mitropoulos.
Dimitri Mitropoulos, who died on November 2, 1960, was Music Director of the Philharmonic from 1949 to 1958, but first conducted the Orchestra in 1940, and over a 20-year period led some 764 performances around the world, with itineraries that took the maestro and the Philharmonic musicians to South America, Europe, and 40 American cities. For Mitropoulos, the highlight was a visit to his native Athens in 1955, where he had not conducted since 1938. The Athenian reaction was overwhelming, with thousands camped out all night in front of the box office.
A passionate champion of contemporary composers, Mitropoulos conducted nearly 50 world premieres with the Philharmonic and introducEd Mahler's Sixth Symphony to American audiences for the first time as well as major works by Schoenberg, Shostakovich, and Prokofiev. He also presented vocal works and complete operas in concert, which he believed provided an advantage to the audience, "whose eyes are not distracted and whose ears can therefore focus on what they hear without competition or conflict." Admired and loved by the Orchestra members, Mitropoulos, always the risk-taker, led the musicians into the new media of television and film and to different venues, such as the Roxy movie theater, where the Orchestra performed four shows a day.
Following is a listing of events to be included in the tribute to Dimitri Mitropoulos:
- Mendelssohn's Elijah, conducted by Music Director Alan Gilbert, with soprano Carolyn Sampson*, mezzo-soprano Alice Coote, tenor Allan Clayton*, and bass-baritone Gerald Finley in the title role, joined by the New York Choral Artists, Joseph Flummerfelt, director. Wednesday, November 10, at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, November 11, at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, November 13, at 8:00 pm. Pre-Concert Talk with composer Victoria Bond, one hour before each concert ($7.00). Open Rehearsal on November 10 at 9:45 a.m. ($18). Single tickets start at $32.
- Greek Violinist Leonidas Kavakos performs Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto with the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Friday, November 26, at 8:00 p.m., and Saturday, November 27, at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Program also includes works by Glinka, Debussy, and Stravinsky, and Mozart and Haydn on the Saturday Matinee Concert. Single tickets start at $37.
- Screening: "The Anatomy of a Symphony Orchestra," from CBS's See It Now (1954), featuring Edward R. Murrow interviewing Mitropoulos and the Philharmonic in rehearsal, November 27 and 28 at 1:00 p.m. at the Paley Center for Media, 25 West 52 Street. Suggested donation of $10 for entrance fee to the Center. For information, call (212) 621-6800.
- Insights Series event, "Considering Dimitri Mitropoulos," moderated by Philharmonic Archivist/Historian Barbara Haws, with panelists including composer-conductor Gunther Schuller, who was commissioned to compose Spectra for Mitropoulos in 1960; documentary filmmaker Valerie Kontakos; and retired Philharmonic Principal Clarinet Stanley Drucker discussing Mitropoulos's life and contributions. Excerpts from Ms. Kontakos's forthcoming documentary on Mitropoulos will be screened. November 29, at 6:30 p.m., Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center. Tickets: $20 and available at nyphil.org/insights or call (212) 875-5656.
- National Radio Broadcasts
The New York Philharmonic This Week, a radio concert series syndicated nationally to more than 300 stations by the WFMT Radio Network, hosted by Alec Baldwin, will offer historic performances conducted by Dimitri Mitropoulos the week of November 1, 2010. Included are Four Greek Dances by Nikos Skalkottas (recorded 1956); Morton Gould's Fall River Legend (recorded 1952); Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 3, played and conducted by Mitropoulos (recorded 1949); and Shostakovich's Symphony No. 10 (recorded 1954). Other episodes that are part of the tribute to Dimitri Mitropoulos will feature Mendelssohn's Elijah, conducted by Alan Gilbert, broadcast the week of November 22; and a performance by violinist Leonidas Kavakos of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto on a program that includes Glinka's Overture to Ruslan and Ludmila, Debussy's Nocturnes, and Stravinsky's Suite from The Firebird (1919), conducted by Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, broadcast the week of December 6. [check local listings] The 52-week radio series is generously underwritten by The Kaplen Foundation, the Audrey Love Charitable Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Philharmonic's corporate partner, MetLife Foundation. The broadcasts will be available on the Philharmonic's Website, nyphil.org. The program is broadcast locally in the New York metropolitan area on Classical 105.9 FM WQXR on Thursdays at 9:00 p.m. - Archival Exhibit
Dimitri Mitropoulos: Conducting the Unfamiliar, 1940-1960. The Greek-born conductor (1896-1960), who served as the New York Philharmonic's Music Director at the height of his orchestral career, was a champion of the new and unusual, expanding the Orchestra's repertoire, commissioning new works, and promoting the symphonies of Gustav Mahler. The exhibition, which marks the 50th anniversary of Mitropoulos's death, focuses on his passionate dedication to bringing this music to Philharmonic's audiences. Bruno Walter Gallery, Avery Fisher Hall, through November 30.
*denotes New York Philharmonic debut
The special tribute to Dimitri Mitropoulos is sponsored by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation,
an international philanthropic organization that makes grants in the areas of arts and culture, education, health and medicine, and social welfare. While prominent in its support of Greek-related initiatives, the Foundation's activities are worldwide in scope. The Foundation funds institutions and projects that exhibit strong leadership and sound management and that have the potential to achieve a broad and lasting impact. It encourages grantees to collaborate, and works closely with them to monitor their progress. In addition, the foundation actively seeks to support projects that facilitate the formation of public-private partnerships as effective means for serving public welfare. For more information, go to www.SNF.org.
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