Marin Alsop to Lead BSO in THE RITE OF SPRING Next Month

Music Director ?Marin Alsop will lead the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) in Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring on Thursday, January 8, 2015 at 8 p.m. at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall and Sunday, January 11, 2015 at 3 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore. Also on the Classical Concert Series program are Barber's Medea's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance and Osvaldo Golijov's Rose of the Winds (BSO premiere). The Rite of Spring is the subject of Maestra Alsop's third Off the Cuff program of the 2014-2015 season, held Friday, January 9 at 8:15 p.m. at Strathmore and Saturday, January 10 at 7 p.m. at the Meyerhoff. Capitalizing on Marin Alsop's charismatic way of illuminating classical music, the Off the Cuff programs focus on one masterwork, allowing the Maestra to discuss the back story of the piece and the composer's life. Please see below for complete program details.

There is no more viscerally thrilling piece of music than Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring, which, though now 100 years old, seems as up-to-date as anything written this year. Vigorous rhythms and violently clashing harmonies portray a primitive Russian world where a chosen maiden dances herself to death. The Rite of Spring was an historic turning point in modern music 100 years ago.

Samuel Barber's Medea's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance also belongs to the world of dance. It is the concert version of the ballet, Cave of the Heart, he wrote in the 1940s for the legendary Martha Graham, and it is based on the mythological sorceress Medea who wreaks a terrible vengeance on her faithless husband, Jason. Barber is generally thought of as a composer of beautiful elegiac music like Adagio for Strings, but this is his most shockingly dramatic work and a good match for Rite of Spring.

Frequently drawing on exotic influences, Argentinian-American composer Osvaldo Golijov writes some of today's most exciting music, heard with his new Rose of the Winds, which makes use of a quartet of colorful ethnic instruments: the Galician bagpipes, the kamancheh, klezmer clarinet and the hyper-accordion.

Marin Alsop, conductor
Marin Alsop is an inspiring and powerful voice in the international music scene, a music director of vision and distinction who passionately believes that "music has the power to change lives." She is recognized across the world for her innovative approach to programming and for her deep commitment to education and to the development of audiences of all ages.

Marin Alsop made history with her appointment as the 12th music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO). With her inaugural concerts in September 2007, she became the first woman to head a major American orchestra. Her success as the BSO's music director has garnered national and international attention for her innovative programming and artistry. Her success was recognized when, in 2013, her tenure was extended to the 2020-2021 season.

Alsop took up the post of principal conductor of the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra in 2012, and became music director in July 2013. There, she steers the orchestra in its artistic and creative programming, recording ventures and its education and outreach activities. She also holds the title of conductor emeritus at the Bournemouth Symphony in the United Kingdom, where she served as the principal conductor from 2002-2008.

In the summer of 2013, Maestra Alsop served her 22nd season as music director of the acclaimed Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in California. In September 2013, she made history as the first female conductor of the BBC's Last Night of the Proms in London. When Musical America named Maestra Alsop the 2009 Conductor of the Year, they commented, "[Marin Alsop] connects to the public as few conductors today can."

Christina Pato, Galician bagpipes
Hailed by The New York Times as "a virtuosic burst of energy," Galician bagpiper, pianist and composer Cristina Pato enjoys an active professional career devoted to Galician popular and classical music, and her dual careers have led to performances on major stages throughout Europe, U.S, Africa, and Asia. Cristina has combined her love of the gaita with an extraordinary blend of jazz and Latin sounds and her touring life includes a passionate commitment to education and cultural exchange.

Cristina Pato was the first female gaita player to release a solo album, and has since collaborated on world stages with Yo-Yo Ma, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Osvaldo Golijov, World Orchestra and Paquito D'Rivera. Pato is a member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble and a founding member of its Leadership Council, collaborating closely in tours and planning residencies. She also is the founder and artistic director of Galician Connection, a world music forum celebrated annually in Galicia.

Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh
Three-time Grammy nominee Kayhan Kalhor is an internationally acclaimed virtuoso on the kamancheh, who has been instrumental in popularizing Persian music in the West and is a creative force in today's music scene. His performances of traditional Persian music and multiple collaborations have attracted audiences around the globe. He has studied the music of Iran's many regions and has toured the world as a soloist with various ensembles and orchestras including the New York Philharmonic and the Orchestre National de Lyon. He is co-founder of the renowned ensembles Dastan, Ghazal: Persian & Indian Improvisations and Masters of Persian Music. Kayhan Kalhor has composed works for Iran's most renowned vocalists, and has also performed and recorded with Iran's greatest instrumentalists. He has composed music for television and film, and was most recently featured on the soundtrack of Francis Ford Copolla's Youth Without Youth in a score that he collaborated on with Osvaldo Golijov.

David Krakauer, klezmer clarinet
Considered among the world's greatest clarinetists, David Krakauer is recognized internationally as a key innovator in modern klezmer as well as a major voice in classical music. He has appeared with the Tokyo, Kronos, and Emerson quartets, plus as soloist with the Dresden, Seattle, and Detroit symphony orchestras, among others.

With his band Ancestral Groove, he has redefined the klezmer genre with major appearances at Carnegie Hall and internationally. His discography contains some of the past decade's preeminent klezmer recordings, notably The Dreams and Prayers of Isaac the Blind (Golijov/Kronos/Krakauer).

Consistently defying categorization, Krakauer has collaborated with Dawn Upshaw, Itzhak Perlman, John Zorn, Fred Wesley, Music from Marlboro, Abraham Inc, the Klezmatics, John Cage, Danny Elfman, and Socalled. His newest project, The Big Picture, explores personal identity by reimagining familiar film themes in a cinematic concert with original visuals.

Krakauer is an avid educator at Mannes (New School), the Manhattan School of Music, NYU, and the Bard Conservatory.

Michael Ward-Bergeman, hyper-accordion
Michael Ward-Bergeman brings the twenty-first century to the accordion through his passion for a wide range of music. From his classical creations on the concert stages of America and Europe to the roots music projects of his trio Groanbox, Mr. Ward-Bergeman brings an extraordinary inventiveness, coupled with deep respect for the past, into all of his creations and collaborations.

Ward-Bergeman started his musical training on piano and violin, but it was his dedication to the accordion that led him to invent a 21st century version of the instrument called the "hyper-accordion." The hyper-accordion extends the acoustic accordion's potential through creative performance technique and digital sound processing.

Michael previously collaborated with Osvaldo Golijov on the soundtrack for Francis Ford Coppola's Youth Without Youth, wrote Damagomi commissioned by Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble and performed at least once a day for a year as part of his GIG 365 project.

COMPLETE PROGRAM DETAILS
Classical Concert
The Rite of Spring
Thursday, January 8, 2015 at 8p.m. - Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall
Saturday, January 11, 2015 at 3p.m. - The Music Center at Strathmore

Marin Alsop, conductor
Christina Pato, Galician bagpipes
Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh
David Krakauer, klezmer clarinet
Michael Ward-Bergeman, hyper-accordion

Barber: Medea's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance
Osvaldo Golijov: Rose of the Winds (BSO Premiere)
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring

Tickets start at $35 and are available through the BSO Ticket Office, 410.783.8000 or BSOmusic.org.

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