The Philadelphia Orchestra Dedicates Final Season Subscription Concerts to Wolfgang Sawallisch

The Philadelphia Orchestra will honor its former music director and conductor laureate, Wolfgang Sawallisch-who passed away February 22, 2013-on its closing subscription concerts for the season, May 23-25, 2013.

All three performances, conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, will be dedicated to his memory and feature repertoire that reflects Mr. Sawallisch's indelible artistic imprint on the Orchestra. Scheduled guest artist, violinist Gil Shaham, was a favorite collaborator of the esteemed conductor and will be featured on the concert performing Brahms's Violin Concerto. The remainder of the program will be altered slightly, now opening with the third movement from Schumann's Symphony No. 2 (Adagio espressivo), which will be dedicated specifically to Maestro Sawallisch. Jan??ek's Sinfonietta will be performed as scheduled and the program will conclude with Dvo?ák's Slavonic Dance Nos. 1, 10, and 8-originally slated to open the concerts. The previously scheduled Enescu Romanian Rhapsody will not be performed. A display in the Kimmel Center lobby curated by archival consultant Jack McCarthy will showcase archival materials and memorabilia from Sawallisch's era to commemorate his ten years as the artistic leader of the Orchestra.

As the Orchestra's sixth music director, Mr. Sawallisch fostered the rich tradition of the ensemble's legendary Philadelphia Sound while strengthening and securing its artistic future, hiring 40 musicians into the Orchestra. He made his debut as guest conductor in 1966 and nearly 40 years later made his final appearance leading The Philadelphia Orchestra on March 1, 2005, in a program of Grieg's Piano Concerto with Yundi Li and Schubert's Symphony in C major ("Great"). During his decade-long tenure as music director of The Philadelphia Orchestra, Mr. Sawallisch not only led the ensemble in subscription concerts but also in Family Concerts, at summer residencies at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts and the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, and frequently performed with the musicians of the Orchestra in Chamber Concerts. He also built on the ensemble's nearly century-long tradition of touring by appearing annually with the Orchestra in a series of concerts at Carnegie Hall and conducting the Orchestra in major concert halls throughout the world on five U.S. tours and nine international tours (three to Europe, four to Asia, and two to Central and South America). Mr. Sawallisch became conductor laureate of The Philadelphia Orchestra in September 2003, directly following the conclusion of his tenure as music director.

Tickets to each concert are available for purchase by visiting www.philorch.org or by calling 215.893.1999.