New York Philharmonic Presents THE RUSSIAN STRAVINSKY: A PHILHARMONIC FESTIVAL, 4/21-5/8

The New York Philharmonic will present The Russian Stravinsky: A Philharmonic  Festival conducted by Valery Gergiev on April 21-May 8, 2010. The three-week festival  - one of several initiatives launched during Alan Gilbert's first season as Music  Director - will offer an in-depth look at Stravinsky, exploring how his Russian roots  informed his works, both those with explicit nationalist influences, such as The Firebird  and Les Noces, and those where the Russian element is less apparent. Led by the Russian-  born Mr. Gergiev, the concerts will offer a wide range of works performed by many  Russian soloists and the chorus of the Mariinsky Theatre - the opera house where  Stravinsky's father performed for many years in St. Petersburg. The Festival will feature  eight programs over three weeks, including concerts, lectures, pre-concert talks, radio
broadcasts, podcasts and an Archives exhibit.

As a youth, Igor Stravinsky absorbed many of the ever-present folk traditions of his
native land: although he left Russia in 1910 and lived in Switzerland, France, and finally
the United States, his Russian heritage remained a vital part of his life and creative vision. While his compositional career spanned three stylistic periods - the "Russian"
Period (ca. 1908-19), the Neoclassical Period (ca. 1920-54), and the Serial Period (ca.
1954-68) - his Russian influences were always present, sometimes in the foreground,
other times in the background. "At the end of his life," says Mr. Gergiev, "Igor
Stravinsky was saying, ‘I think in Russian, I hear in Russian, my worth is Russian, my
tongue is Russian.'" For Mr. Gergiev, this "Russian voice" is a key to understanding
Stravinsky's entire output.

Highlights of The Russian Stravinsky will include the ballets The Firebird, Petrushka,
Jeu de cartes, Orpheus, and The Rite of Spring, and the Philharmonic debut of the
Mariinsky Theatre Chorus in the choral masterwork Symphony of Psalms and the dance
cantata Les Noces, based on a Russian folk wedding, which will include soloists from the
Mariinsky Theatre Opera Company. Other soloists in the festival will be Leonidas
Kavakos performing the Violin Concerto (April 28-29); mezzo-soprano Waltraud
Meier, in her New York Philharmonic debut as Jocasta, and tenor Anthony Dean
Griffey, performing the title role, in the opera-oratorio Oedipus Rex (April 28-29);
Russian pianists Denis Matsuev, in his Philharmonic debut in the Capriccio for Piano
and Orchestra (May 5-6), and Alexei Volodin, also in his Philharmonic debut in the
Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments (May 7-8). Emmy Award-winning actor Alec
Baldwin will be The Narrator in L'Histoire du soldat (May 2).

The festival will also include an Insights Series event with Valery Gergiev titled
"Stravinsky's Russian-American Odyssey," Saturday, May 1, 11:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at
Gilder Lehrman Hall, The Morgan Library & Museum, 225 Madison Avenue at 36th
Street. Joseph Horowitz, curator and host, is joined by Mr. Gergiev and pianists from The
Juilliard School and the New York Philharmonic Education Department Teaching Artists
Ensemble for this multimedia event that includes performances of piano and chamber
works, film, and a one-hour colloquy.

Related Events
• Pre-Concert Talks
Composer/conductor Victoria Bond will introduce the program one hour before
performances on April 21-22, May 2, and May 5-6. Pulitzer Prize-winning composer
and University Professor at Adelphi University Paul Moravec will introduce the
program on April 23-24, April 28-29, and April 30-May 1. Author and lecturer
Joseph Horowitz will introduce the program on May 7-8. Tickets are $5 in addition
to the concert ticket. Attendance is limited to 90 people. Information: nyphil.org or
(212) 875-5656

• New York Philharmonic Podcast
The producers and hosts of the award-winning New York Philharmonic Podcast are
Elliott Forrest, Peabody Award-winning broadcaster, producer, and weekend host on
Classical 105.9 FM WQXR, and Mark Travis, a producer for the WFMT Radio
Network since 1999 and the producer of the 52-week-per-year nationally syndicated radio series, The New York Philharmonic This Week. These award-winning previews
of upcoming programs - through musical selections as well as interviews with guest
artists, conductors, and Orchestra musicians - are available at nyphil.org/podcast or
from iTunes.

• National Radio Broadcast
The programs of April 21-22, April 28-29, May 5-6, and May 7-8 will be broadcast
on The New York Philharmonic This Week, a radio concert series syndicated
nationally to more than 295 stations by the WFMT Radio Network.* The 52-week
series, hosted by the Emmy Award-winning actor Alec Baldwin, is generously
underwritten by The Kaplen Foundation, the Audrey Love Charitable Foundation, the
National Endowment for the Arts, and the Philharmonic's corporate partner, MetLife
Foundation. The broadcast will be available on the Philharmonic's Website,
nyphil.org. The program is broadcast locally in the New York metropolitan area on
105.9 FM WQXR on Thursdays at 9:00 p.m.
*Check local listings for broadcast and program information.

Archives Exhibit: Stravinsky at the New York Philharmonic
Bruno Walter Gallery, April-May 2010. The New York Philharmonic Archives will
have on view correspondence, scores, programs, and photographs focusing on
Stravinsky's particular relationship with the Philharmonic as well as on the
conductors who championed his works with the Orchestra over the years.

Tickets
Single tickets for the April 21-22 performances are $39-$119; for April 23-24, $34-
$124; for April 28-29, $31-$109; April 30-May 1, $31-$112; May 2, $29-$72;
May 5-6, $31-$109; May 7-8, $29-$109. Tickets for the May 1 Insights Series event
are $35.

Tickets for Pre-Concert Talks are $5. All tickets may be purchased online at nyphil.org
or by calling (212) 875-5656, 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and
12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets may also be purchased at the Avery Fisher
Hall Box Office or the Alice Tully Hall Box Office at Lincoln Center, Broadway at 65th
Street. The Box Office opens at 10:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday, and at noon on
Sunday. On performance evenings, the Box Office closes one-half hour after
performance time; other evenings it closes at 6:00 p.m. A limited number of $12 tickets
for select concerts may be available through the Internet for students within 10 days of
the performance, or in person the day of. Valid identification is required. To determine
ticket availability, call the Philharmonic's Customer Relations Department at (212) 875-
5656.

For more information, visit http://nyphil.org/

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