New Brunswick Series 1 State Theatre 8 concerts, Saturday / Sunday at 8 pm     SIMONE DINNERSTEIN piano CLASSICAL VARIATIONS   Saturday, November 29 at 8 pm THIERRY FISCHER conductor SIMONE DINNERSTEIN piano PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 1, “Classical” BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 2 SCHUBERT Symphony No. 4, “Tragic” Hailed by The Philadelphia Inquirer as being “in a league with any of the great Beethoven pianists of our time,” Simone Dinnerstein will captivate you with her brilliance in Beethoven’s Second Piano Concerto. Enjoy contrasts of mood and style with Prokofiev’s “Classical” Symphony and Schubert’s Fourth Symphony. The Prokofiev is full of youthful energy, mischief and humor, while the Schubert, subtitled “Tragic,” is a mature statement by the then-19-year-old composer that revels in its own contrasts between dark and light.   MARC-ANDRÉ HAMELIN piano JÄRVI AND THE KEYBOARD Paris: Fantasy & Discovery, week 1 Saturday, January 10 at 8 pm NEEME JÄRVI conductor MARC-ANDRÉ HAMELIN piano POULENC Les biches RAVEL Piano Concerto for the Left Hand SAINT-SAËNS Africa Fantasy SAINT-SAËNS Symphony No. 3, “Organ” Celebrate the French joie de vivre in the opening program of the 2009 Winter Festival. Applauded by The San Francisco Chronicle for his “breathtaking display of fiery virtuosity and interpretive subtlety,” Marc-André Hamelin treats you to a double bill of Ravel’s awe-inspiring Concerto for the Left Hand and Saint-Saëns’s Africa Fantasy, which offers an exciting tour of exotic lands and oriental undertones. Finally, Saint-Saëns’s “Organ” Symphony will blow the roof off with its sheer power and exploding colors.   PAMELA ARMSTRONG soprano MAJESTY & MISCHIEF Paris: Fantasy & Discovery, week 2 Sunday, January 18 at 3 pm NEEME JÄRVI conductor PAMELA ARMSTRONG soprano DUKAS The Sorcerer’s Apprentice FAURÉ Pavane RAVEL Shéhérazade FRANCK Symphony in D Minor In the second week of the 2009 Winter Festival, Paul Dukas’s Sorcerer’s Apprentice will amuse you with images of magical mischief and themes you will remember from Disney’s Fantasia. Fauré’s Pavane is a serene palate-cleanser that will provide a pleasant contrast. Ravel’s Shéhérazade casts a sensuous spell and takes you to a world of exotic fantasy and mystery. Finally, César Franck’s Symphony in D Minor evokes the grandeur of European tradition.   JOANN FALLETTA conductor AMERICA AND BEYOND   Sunday, February 1 at 3 pm JOANN FALLETTA conductor BRITTANY SKLAR violin KODÁLY Dances of Marosszék COPLAND Appalachian Spring BARBER Violin Concerto DVOŘÁK Czech Suite American conductor and soloist join forces to capture the essence of our homeland with works by two American composers. Copland’s Appalachian Spring evokes an ideal America—one of open fields, endless possibilities and freedom. Barber’s Violin Concerto shows both sides of the composer: delicate and refined, but also stormy and complex. Kodály and Dvořák round out the program and paint a vivid picture of their homelands with brushstrokes of lively folk dances, Slavic rhythms and gypsy melodies. Sponsored by Herbert and Evelyn Axelrod   ARABELLA STEINBACHER violin RUSSIAN PASSION   Saturday, March 7 at 8 pm ROSSEN MILANOV conductor ARABELLA STEINBACHER violin GLAZUNOV Concert Waltz No. 1 PROKOFIEV Violin Concerto No. 2 RACHMANINOFF Symphonic Dances According to The Chicago Tribune, Rossen Milanov is “one who bears watching by anyone who cares about the future of music.” In this program of Russian dance music, Glazunov’s delightful Concert Waltz will leave you dancing in the aisles, while Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances will grab you with its pulsing drive, assertive rhythms and animated waltzes. With an undeniably Russian flare, Prokofiev’s magical violin concerto rounds out this celebration of Russian passion.   ARNALDO COHEN piano SLAVIC FIRE   Sunday, March 22 at 3 pm JAMES GAFFIGAN conductor ARNALDO COHEN piano SMETANA Má vlast: "Vyšehrad" ("The High Castle") BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 7 “The High Castle” from Smetana’s Má vlast sets the tone for this program of intense Czech flavor. From the meandering currents of the Vltava River and the chatty salons of Prague to the folk spirit of Bohemia and the stubborn civilian resistance to political oppression, Dvořák’s Seventh captures the true essence of the Czech experience. The centerpiece of the program is Beethoven’s magnificent Fourth Piano Concerto—the most popular of his five concertos among pianists—which reveals a more tender side of Beethoven, one of geniality and sensitivity.   ERIC WYRICK violin VIVA ITALIA!   Saturday, April 25 at 8 pm NEEME JÄRVI conductor ERIC WYRICK violin RACHMANINOFF Variations on a Theme of Corelli BUSONI Violin Concerto MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4, “Italian” Rachmaninoff’s tribute to Arcangelo Corelli opens this celebration of Italy. Then, concertmaster Eric Wyrick will thrill you with Italian composer Ferrucio Busoni’s romantic Violin Concerto. Finally, take a trip with Mendelssohn through the Italian countryside and enjoy the playfulness and joviality of his musical depictions of Italy.   NEEME JÄRVI conductor JÄRVI’S FAREWELL   Sunday, May 3 at 3 pm NEEME JÄRVI conductor DENIS MATSUEV piano BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor” BRUCKNER Symphony No. 7 Don’t miss your chance to bid Neeme Järvi farewell as he conducts his final subscription program as music director of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra! This glorious season finale opens with Beethoven’s “Emperor” Concerto, a work of heroic spirit that marks the highest peak of Beethoven’s lifelong relationship with the piano. Then, Maestro Järvi leads the NJSO in Bruckner’s Seventh—a monumental work composed at the height of the composer’s genius and the most popular and well-loved of all his symphonies.

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