Semyon Bychkov to Lead Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, Today

Esteemed conductor Semyon Bychkov leads Amsterdam's Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (RCO) in Mahler's Fifth Symphony and contemporary German composer Detlev Glanert's Theatrum bestiarum (New York premiere), presented by Carnegie Hall on Wednesday, November 30 at 8 p.m. This concert follows Mr. Bychkov and the RCO's performances of the program in Amsterdam at the Royal Concertgebouw and Washington, DC at The Kennedy Center.

Tickets, priced at $25.50-$161, are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street, or can be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, carnegiehall.org.

Mr. Bychkov is a leading advocate for Mr. Glanert's music, which he first encountered as chief conductor of the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne from 1997 to 2010. The first work that Mr. Bychkov heard by the composer was Theatrum bestiarum (2004/5), a 22-minute collection of songs and dances for large orchestra that Mr. Bychkov describes as a "tremendously theatrical piece" that "immediately commanded [his] attention." In addition to recording Theatrum bestiarum with WDR in 2007, Mr. Bychkov has conducted numerous performances of the work with major orchestras, including the U.S. premiere in 2010 with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Following the premiere, the Chicago Tribune praised Mr. Bychkov's performance and wrote, "Theatrum bestiarum packs considerable punch with its deft scoring and wild splashes of instrumental color. Bychkov ... made a most passionate champion."

According to Mr. Bychkov, Mr. Glanert, a house composer with the RCO, "writes a great deal of instrumental music, employing sophisticated compositional techniques that the listener is not necessarily aware of-which is the best way. His music has tremendous personality, its own distinctive 'face'... His music makes the interpreter believe that here is something of real value for performers and audience." Last season, Mr. Bychkov conducted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the U.S. premiere of Mr. Glanert'sBrahms-Fantasie, followed by a performance of the work with the New York Philharmonic.

Mr. Bychkov is also known for his interpretations of Mahler, turning now to the Fifth Symphony after a critically acclaimed performance of the Sixth Symphony with the New York Philharmonic last season. Mr. Bychkov has recordEd Mahler's music with WDR, namely the Third Symphony for Avie Records in 2002.

Mr. Bychkov enjoys a long-standing relationship with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, having first conducted the ensemble in 1984. He conducts the upcoming concert as part of his annual tour with the RCO, which this year also includes the DC performance and concerts in Bratislava and Vienna. He has led the RCO in recordings of Tchaikovsky's Sixth Symphony and Strauss's Also sprach Zarathustra and Don Juan. The RCO last performed at Carnegie Hall in 2013.

In addition to performing with the RCO, Mr. Bychkov focuses this season on the launch of his international, multi-season Tchaikovsky project, Beloved Friend, which includes a recording cycle with the Czech Philharmonic for Decca, a Tchaikovsky concert series with the BBC Symphony Orchestra this month, a three-week Tchaikovsky festival, Beloved Friend: Tchaikovsky and His World, with the New York Philharmonic in January and February 2017, and planned residencies in Paris and Vienna.

One of the world's leading conductors, Semyon Bychkov has achieved international recognition for an approach to music making that combines innate musicality with the rigors of Russian music pedagogy. He has conducted virtually all of the major orchestras in the U.S. and Europe and previously served as music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic, Grand Rapids Symphony, and Orchestre de Paris, and chief conductor of the Dresden Semperoper, in addition to the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne. Mr. Bychkov currently holds the Klemperer Chair of Conducting at the Royal Academy of Music and the Günter Wand Conducting Chair with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, with which he appears annually at the BBC Proms. In 2015, the International Opera Awards named him "Conductor of the Year." Website: http://www.semyonbychkov.com/

Wednesday, November 30 at 8 p.m.
Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage

Semyon Bychkov, Conductor
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

DETLEV GLANERT Theatrum bestiarum (New York premiere)
MAHLER Symphony No. 5

Tickets, priced at $25.50-$161, are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street, or can be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800 or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, carnegiehall.org.