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October
4, 2004
THE MARYLAND SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA OPENS ITS 2004-2005 MASTERWORKS
SERIES WITH “A PASSAGE TO RUSSIA”
HAGERSTOWN, MD - - The Maryland Symphony
Orchestra and Music Director Elizabeth Schulze open the 2004-2005
MasterWorks Concert Series on Saturday, October 16 at 8:00 p.m. and
Sunday, October 17 at 3:00 p.m. with “A Passage to Russia.”
The program begins a season of truly exceptional concerts, all of
which invite the listener to travel “Around the World with the
Maryland Symphony Orchestra – A Musical Journey.”
The Orchestra opens the concert with the mysterious tone poem Kikimora
by Anatol Liadov. Born in St. Petersburg in 1855, Liadov is perhaps
best known as the composer originally selected to create The Firebird,
losing that commission to fellow Russian Igor Stravinsky.
Fiery young Russian pianist Vassily Primakov joins the MSO to perform
Sergei Rachmaninoff’s breathtakingly beautiful Piano Concerto
No. 2.
Containing one of the best-known musical themes ever written, the
Concerto
MSO – page two
displays the sumptuous harmonies and lyricism that are the hallmarks
of Rachmaninoff’s music. Thanks to its wealth of melodies, its
emotional sincerity and strong musical architecture, this timeless
composition continues to delight audiences.
Dubbed a “dazzling star” by the Washington Post, Vassily
Primakov won First Prize in the 2002 Young Concert Artists International
Auditions. His numerous awards include the Paul A. Fish Memorial Prize
of YCA, the John and Esther Browning Memorial Prize, the Slomovic
Orchestral Prize, and the Barenreiter Prize for Piano. Mr. Primakov
has performed in Switzerland, Romania, Russia, Japan and Panama, as
well as throughout the U.S. In May of 2004, he made his New York concerto
debut at Alice Tully Hall, performing the Concerto No. 2 with the
Westchester Philharmonic. Mr. Primakov recently recorded an “All
Chopin” CD, which will be released later this year by Tavros
Records.
During the second half of the Russian-inspired concert, the MSO brings
to vivid life Symphony No. 4 by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the composer
that Stravinsky called “the most Russian of us all.” Composed
in the latter half of 1877 - an unusually tumultuous year in Tchaikovsky's
life - Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36 depicts the composer's struggle
to reconcile the extremes of melancholy and frenzied optimism.
“A Passage to Russia” will also be presented at 8:00
pm on Friday, October 15 at the Performing Arts Center at Frostburg
State University. The Saturday and Sunday performances of this MasterWorks
Series opener will be held at the historic Maryland Theatre in downtown
Hagerstown.
MSO – page three
A reception for both New Subscribers and aspiring Student Musicians,
including a behind-the-scenes look at the Orchestra's dress rehearsal,
will be held on Thursday, October 14 at 6:00 p.m. Call 301-797-4000
for information.
Music Director and Conductor Elizabeth Schulze hosts Prelude, a pre-concert
talk about the evening’s composers and their music, beginning
one hour before all MasterWorks concerts. The half-hour presentation
is free for ticket holders.
The Maryland Symphony Orchestra, now in its 23rd season, is the area’s
premiere professional orchestra, dedicated to providing musical performances
and programs that educate and entertain while enhancing the cultural
environment of Western Maryland and the surrounding region.
Tickets and additional information are available at the Maryland
Symphony Orchestra Box Office at 13 S. Potomac Street in Hagerstown,
Maryland, or by calling 301-797-4000, or via the web at www.marylandsymphony.org
Single ticket prices for MasterWorks performances are $18, $30, $35,
and $40, and a 50% discount is offered to full-time students and children
under 12. Discounts for group of 10 or more are also available.
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