The Orchestra Now Closes NYC Season with 'Debussy & French Painting: Beyond Realism'

Music director Leon Botstein leads The Orchestra Now's (T?N) last New York City concert this season, titled Debussy & French Painting: Beyond Realism, in an afternoon comparing Debussy's Nocturnes and the artwork of the French Impressionists as part of the Orchestra's Sight & Sound series at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The program explores how Debussy's works and those of artists including Monet, Morisot, Pissarro, and Delacroix express different artistic responses to nature in music and painting. As with all Sight & Sound concerts, on-screen artworks are staged in a lively discussion alongside musical excerpts performed by the Orchestra, followed by a full performance and audience Q&A.

T?N's Sight & Sound series' most recent program in February, Shostakovich, Michelangelo & the Artistic Conscience, played to a sold-out audience and was broadcast live on The Met's Facebook page. All Sight & Sound concerts are a co-presentation with MetLiveArts.

SIGHT & SOUND SERIES AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART

The Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium

Debussy & French Painting: Beyond Realism

Sun. May 20, 2018 at 2 pm

Leon Botstein, conductor

Members of the Bard Festival Chorale

Presented in conjunction with the exhibition Public Parks, Private Gardens: Paris to Provence, on view at The Met Fifth Avenue through July 29, 2018.

Tickets from $30, bring the kids for $1. Tickets may be purchased online at metmuseum.org, by calling The Met at 212.570.3949, or in person at The Great Hall box office at The Metropolitan Museum of Art at 5th Ave and 82nd St.

The Orchestra Now

The Orchestra Now (T?N) is a group of some 80 vibrant young musicians from more than 12 different countries around the globe, whose goal is to make orchestral music relevant to 21st-century audiences. They are lifting the curtain on the musicians' experience by sharing their unique personal insights in a welcoming environment. Hand-picked from hundreds of applicants from the world's leading conservatories - including The Juilliard School, Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Royal Conservatory of Brussels, and the Curtis Institute of Music - the members of T?N are not only rousing audiences with their critically acclaimed performances, but also enlightening curious minds by presenting on-stage introductions and demonstrations at concerts, offering program notes written from the musicians' perspective, and connecting with patrons through one-on-one discussions during intermissions.

Conductor, educator, and music historian Leon Botstein founded T?N in 2015 as a master's degree program at Bard College, where he also serves as president. The Orchestra is in residence at Bard's Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, offering multiple concerts there each season as well as participating in the annual Bard Music Festival. The Orchestra also performs numerous concert series at major venues in New York, including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, as well as a schedule of free performances across New York City boroughs. T?N has collaborated with many distinguished conductors, including Fabio Luisi, Neeme Järvi, Gerard Schwarz, and JoAnn Falletta.

For upcoming activities and more detailed information about the musicians, visit theorchestranow.org.

Leon Botstein

Leon Botstein brings a renowned career as both a conductor and educator to his role as music director of The Orchestra Now. He has been music director of the American Symphony Orchestra since 1992, artistic co-director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival since their creation, and president of Bard College since 1975. He was the music director of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra from 2003-2011, and is now conductor laureate. This year, he assumes artistic directorship of Campus Grafenegg and Grafenegg Academy in Austria. Mr. Botstein is also a frequent guest conductor with orchestras around the globe, has made numerous recordings, and is a prolific author and music historian. He is the editor of the prestigious The Musical Quarterly, and has received many honors for his contributions to music. More info online at LeonBotstein.com.