Boston Landmarks Orchestra Announces Summer 2023 Performances

Boston Landmarks Orchestra, under the direction of Music Director Christopher Wilkins, brings its annual summer series of free, live orchestral concerts to the iconic DCR Hatch Memorial Shell on the Esplanade, with a special focus on concerts in Dorchester, Roxbury, Hyde Square, and Chelsea.

Rooted in the mission "we build community through great music," Landmarks Orchestra is thrilled to present a concert series of free events which showcase a diversity of music and cultures. Programming this summer celebrates an increased commitment to programming music by underrepresented composers and artists.

Music Director Christopher Wilkins says, "The 2023 season is filled with music everyone can enjoy. On the Hatch Shell series, we're thrilled to work with Grammy Award-winning drummer and composer Terri Lyne Carrington, celebrating the symphonic legacy of Black American women during the NAACP's national convention. With the Landmarks Orchestra's Artist-in-Residence Fabiola Méndez, we continue our fruitful partnership with the Hyde Square Task Force. Other highlights include the premiere of a co-commissioned work by Brian Raphael Nabors on our annual "Green" Concert; George Gershwin's An American in Paris; Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez for guitar and orchestra; and Violin Concerto in G composed by Joseph Bologne, subject of the new film, Chevalier. Most importantly, performing in Boston's neighborhoods brings our mission front and center, celebrating Boston's diverse culture and history through live orchestral performances."

2023 Summer Concerts and Events

ASL interpreters will be present at many performances; see the website for current details.

COMMUNITY CONCERT-JUNETEENTH
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 4 PM EST | The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center, Boston
RSVP: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/community-concert-juneteenth-tickets-637588914607

The opening concert on June 17 celebrates Juneteenth and marks Landmarks' debut performance at the Kroc Center in the Roxbury-Dorchester neighborhood. Soloists include Mariana Green-Hill, violin, Sirgourney Cook, soprano, and Ade Solanke, narrator.

*****

GREEN CONCERT
Wednesday, July 19, 2023, 7pm ET | Hatch Shell

July 19th at the Hatch Shell is the annual "Green Concert" with works celebrating nature, including "Appalachian Spring" and a new piece from Brian Nabors, "Upon Daybreak", co-commissioned by Landmarks Orchestra.

Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Christopher Wilkins, conductor

Ludwig van Beethoven The Creatures of Prometheus: Overture Op. 43
Lili Boulanger On a Spring Morning
Aaron Copland Appalachian Spring
Ethel Smyth On the Cliffs of Cornwall
Brian Raphael Nabors Upon Daybreak (Landmarks Orchestra co-commission)
Franz Liszt Les Préludes

*****

SEEN/UNSEEN: The Symphonic Legacy of Black American Women
Featuring Terri Lyne Carrington, guest artist and co-curator
Wednesday, July 26, 2023, 7pm ET | Hatch Shell

Coinciding with the NAACP's conference in Boston, the July 26 concert at the Hatch Shell brings a special focus to celebrating the symphonic legacy of Black American women and their compositions. GRAMMY award-winning drummer, producer and educator, Terri Lyne Carrington joins Landmarks as a guest curator and performer.

Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Christopher Wilkins, conductor
Louise Toppin, soprano

Shirley Graham Tom-Tom: Overture and Excerpts, orchestrated David Kempers
Florence Price Dances in the Canebrakes, orchestrated William Grant Still
Undine Smith Moore Three Love Songs from Scenes from the Life of a Martyr, To the Memory of Martin Luther King Jr.
Mary Lou Williams Zodiac Suite (excerpts)
Nkeiru Okoye Voices Shouting Out
Valerie Coleman Umoja: Anthem of Unity
Courtney Bryan Footsteps of a Queen
Terri Lyne Carrington Seen/Unseen

*****

COMMUNITY DAY IN CHELSEA
Saturday, July 29, 2023,1pm - 4pm | PORT Park 99 Marginal St, Chelsea

Join Landmarks Orchestra for a day of family fun! We're hosting a Community Day in Chelsea at PORT Park on July 29th. Hosted by José Massó, this will be a family-friendly event featuring music, entertainment, family-friendly activities and more.

*****

AMERICAN VIRTUOSOS: AN AMERICAN IN PARIS & DVOŘÁK CELLO CONCERTO
Wednesday, August 2, 2023, 7pm ET | Hatch Shell

On August 2nd, at the Hatch Shell, this concert features American gems such as George Gershwin's An American in Paris and three dance episodes from Leonard Bernstein's On the Town, along with a special prelude concert with Four Strings Academy.

Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Christopher Wilkins, conductor
Tommy Mesa, cello

Prelude: Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson Sinfonietta: Allegro furioso (3rd movement)
Four Strings Academy

Leonard Bernstein On the Town: Three Dance Episodes
George Chadwick Symphony No. 2: Allegretto scherzando
George Gershwin An American in Paris, critical edition edited Mark Clague
Antonín Dvořák Cello Concerto in B Minor, op. 104, Tommy Mesa, cello

*****

MOZART AND MORE
Thursday, August 10, 2023, venue and time TBA
Friday, August 11, 2023, venue and time TBA
Saturday, August 12, 2023, 7pm ET | Hatch Shell

Two neighborhood concerts will take place on August 10th and August 11th. Both concerts will feature the same program of the August 12th Hatch Shell concert.

These concerts pair Mozart and Joseph Bologne, subject of the new film, Chevalier, and features composers who have overcome challenges in their lives. Featuring a special piece from Artist-in-Residence, Fabiola Méndez and her collaboration with students from Hyde Square Task Force, alongside violinist Mariana Green-Hill, and guitarist Zaira Meneses. Hosted by José Massó.

Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Christopher Wilkins, conductor
José Massó, host
Fabiola Méndez, cuatro and vocalist
Mariana Green-Hill, violin
Zaira Meneses, guitar
Young Musicians and Dancers of the Hyde Square Task Force

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Puerto Rican Overture
Fanny Mendelssohn Overture in C Major
Joseph Boulogne Violin Concerto in G
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Symphony No. 35 "Haffner"
Roberto Sierra "Guaracha" from Serenata for Chamber Orchestra
Fabiola Méndez and students from Hyde Square Task Force
Joaquín Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez

*****

DANCE NIGHT: BEETHOVEN TO GOTTSCHALK
Wednesday, August 23, 2023, 7pm ET | Hatch Shell

The final performance at the Hatch Shell on August 23 is Landmarks Annual "Dance Night" featuring Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 and Tchaikovsky's The Sleeping Beauty, along with performances from Jean Appolon Expressions, Sayat Nova Dance Company, and Principal Dancer of Boston Ballet, Chyrstyn Mariah Fentroy.

Boston Landmarks Orchestra, Christopher Wilkins, conductor

Hector Berlioz Roman Carnival
Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 7 in A major, op. 92
Tchaikovsky, Aurora's Wedding from Sleeping Beauty, danced by by Chyrstyn Mariah Fentroy
Toto Bissainthe Dey
Kareem Roustom Armenian Dances, Jean Appolon Expressions
Hershy Kay Cakewalk: Concert Suite Sayat Nova

About Boston Landmarks Orchestra

Boston Landmarks Orchestra was founded in 2001 by conductor and community advocate Charles Ansbacher. The orchestra is comprised of many of the area's finest professional musicians. In its earliest years, the orchestra performed in such historically important settings as Fenway Park, the USS CONSTITUTION pier, Jamaica Pond, Franklin Park, Copley Square, Boston Common, and other landmark locations. Since 2007, its principal home has been at the DCR's Hatch Memorial Shell. For more history visit landmarksorchestra.org.

Major funders of Boston Landmarks Orchestra include the Free for All Concert Fund, The Boston Foundation, Encore Boston Harbor, Liberty Mutual and the Klarman Foundation. These programs are supported in part by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Massachusetts Cultural Council, the League of American Orchestras, and the Boston Cultural Council, a local agency which is funded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council and administered by the Mayor's Office of Arts + Culture for the City of Boston. WCVB Channel 5 and CRB Classical 99.5 are proud media sponsors.

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