New Jersey Symphony Orchestra NJPAC Series 8

NJPAC Series 8
Prudential Hall, NJPAC in Newark
4 concerts, Saturday at 8 pm

PAMELA ARMSTRONG soprano

MAJESTY & MISCHIEF
Paris: Fantasy & Discovery, week 2

Saturday, January 17 at 8 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.

ARNALDO COHEN
piano

SLAVIC FIRE

Saturday, March 21 at 8 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.

LOS ANGELES GUITAR QUARTET

TCHAIKOVSKY’S PATHÉTIQUE

Saturday, April 4 at 8 pm

ANDREW GRAMS conductor
LOS ANGELES GUITAR QUARTET

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Serenade to Music

ASSAD Interchange for Guitar Quartet and Orchestra

TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6, “Pathétique”

Enjoy the New York City-area premiere of Brazilian composer Sergio Assad’s new piece written specifically for the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet. Tchaikovsky’s “Pathétique” Symphony is an unforgettable experience of human triumph and loss. The composer himself said, “I have put my whole soul into this work.” Hear Tchaikovsky’s final orchestral statement for yourself and discover what some consider to be his most autobiographical work.

NEEME JÄRVI
conductor

JÄRVI’S FAREWELL

Saturday, May 2 at 8 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.