American Symphony Orchestra To Perform Saint-Saëns' Organ Symphony & Ethel Smyth's Mass In D, January 27

The American Symphony Orchestra continues its 2022-23 season on January 27 with a program at St. Bartholomew's Church, a New York National Historic Landmark, exploring music for organ and orchestra by Camille Saint-Saëns and Dame Ethel Smyth. It features soloist Paolo Bordignon, organist and choirmaster of the church and harpsichordist of the New York Philharmonic, along with soprano Anya Matanovic, mezzo-soprano Eve Gigliotti, tenor Joshua Blue, and bass Adam Lau.

The next concert takes place at Carnegie Hall on March 23, presenting a rare performance of Richard Strauss' opera Daphne with soprano Jana McIntyre. Described by Opera News as gifted with a "dancer's grace, mercurial wit, and vibrant soprano tone," she was recently named a George London Foundation top prizewinner, as well as a Metropolitan Opera National Council grand finalist. The performance includes the opera's seldom-heard epilogue, an a cappella choral addition sung by the Bard Festival Chorale. Organ + Orchestra Friday, January 27 at 8 pm St. Bartholomew's Church, 325 Park Avenue American Symphony Orchestra Leon Botstein, conductor Paolo Bordignon, organ Anya Matanovic, soprano Eve Gigliotti, mezzo-soprano Joshua Blue, tenor Adam Lau, bass Bard Festival Chorale James Bagwell, choral director Camille Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 Dame Ethel Smyth: Mass in D

The ASO joins St. Bartholomew's Church, a New York National Historic Landmark, to present a performance focusing on organ music. The Orchestra has a particular connection to St. Bart's in that its founder, Leopold Stokowski, began his New York City career as organist and choir director of the church, and played this organ, the largest in New York City. The program opens with Saint-Saëns' popular Symphony No. 3, dedicated to the memory of his friend Franz Liszt. Often referred to as the Organ Symphony, the work's loosely symphonic form includes an organ for two of its four movements, and the composer himself conducted the 1886 premiere in London. British composer and social activist Ethel Smyth was a prominent member of the women's suffragette movement. Although her work was marginalized due to her political stance on the women's vote as well as her gender, she was nonetheless the first female composer to be granted a damehood (1922) and her opera Der Wald, mounted in 1903, was for more than a century the only opera by a woman composer ever produced at the Metropolitan Opera. Smyth's only sacred work, her rarely performed, six-part Mass in D, premiered at Royal Albert Hall in 1893, and is dedicated to her friend Lady Pauline Trevelyan. Of note is Smyth's request to place the Gloria movement at the end, rather than second as ordered in Catholic liturgy, so the work "would finish triumphantly."
Tickets: Priced at $25, tickets are available at americansymphony.org. American Symphony Orchestra Now in its 61st season, the American Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1962 by Leopold Stokowski with the mission of providing music within the means of everyone. Music Director Leon Botstein expanded that mission when he joined the ASO in 1992, creating thematic concerts that explore music from the perspective of the visual arts, literature, religion, and history, and reviving rarely performed works that audiences would otherwise never have a chance to hear performed live.

The ASO's signature programming includes its Vanguard Series, which presents concerts of rare orchestral repertoire, and various other events dedicated to enriching and reflecting the diverse perspectives of American culture. During the summer months, the ASO is the orchestra-in-residence at Bard's SummerScape, performs at the Bard Music Festival, and offers chamber music performances throughout the New York City area. As part of its commitment to expanding the standard orchestral repertoire, the ASO has released recordings on the Telarc, New World, Bridge, Koch, and Vanguard labels, and live performances are also available for digital streaming. In many cases, these are the only existing recordings of some of the forgotten works that have been restored through ASO performances. For more information, please visit americansymphony.org.

Leon Botstein has been music director and principal conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra since 1992. He is also music director of The Orchestra Now, an innovative training orchestra composed of top musicians from around the world. He is co-artistic director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival, which take place at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, where he has been president since 1975. He is also conductor laureate and principal guest conductor of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, where he served as music director from 2003-11. In 2018, he assumed artistic directorship of Campus Grafenegg and Grafenegg Academy in Austria. Mr. Botstein also has an active career as a guest conductor with orchestras around the globe, and has made numerous recordings, as well as being a prolific author and music historian. He is the recipient of numerous honors for his contributions to the music industry. In 2019, The New York Times named Leon Botstein a "champion of overlooked works...who has tirelessly worked to bring to light worthy scores by neglected composers."

More info online at LeonBotstein.com. This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.

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