Regional Premiere November 13
NEWS CONTACT:
Jennifer Brink, Executive Director
Phone: (518) 793-1348
E-mail: exdir@gfso.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 28, 2022
Glens Falls Symphony to Present Regional Premiere of New Work by Pulitzer and Grammy-Winning Composer Jennifer Higdon
After a jubilant opening concert on October 9 to the 2022-23 Season, the Glens Falls Symphony will present an evening of music from the opera stage, including the regional premiere of Cold Mountain Suite by renowned composer Jennifer Higdon on November 13, 2022 at 4pm. The piece was co-commissioned by the Glens Falls Symphony with the ‘New Music for America’ consortium of 36 orchestras. Ms. Higdon will be in residency during rehearsals and performance of Cold Mountain Suite, and will be presenting the pre-concert talk at 3pm. The work is based on Higdon’s opera Cold Mountain, which in turn is based on the New York Times best-selling novel Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier. The novel tells the story of a deserter of the confederate army named W.P. Inman, and chronicles his journey back home to find the love of his life.
In inviting Ms. Higdon to Glens Falls for a work that the Symphony co-commissioned, Music Director Charles Peltz says, “More than twenty years ago the Glens Falls Symphony was embracing its visionary role as not only a leading orchestra amongst its peers, but one devoted to moving ahead the art of concert music. In 2005, the then Executive Director Robert Rosoff spearheaded a nationwide project to create new music for orchestras and we gave the world premiere of the first work in that project - Made in America – a work by celebrated composer Joan Tower. This world premiere was covered by the national media here in Glens Falls before the piece went on to be performed by orchestras in every state in the union.
“In a few short weeks, the orchestra welcomes back Jennifer Higdon as she returns to shepherd the regional premiere of the orchestral suite from her opera Cold Mountain. To work with this world-class composer - and extraordinarily gracious person - is a delight for the musicians and a gift to our audience. Nothing brings greater joy than bringing art to life in collaboration with a gifted creator - we invite you to join us as we do just that on November 13.”
The concert will open with the Toccata and Intermezzi movements from Claudio Monteverdi’s 1607 opera, L’Orfeo, considered by many to be the earliest-composed work of opera that is still regularly performed. The orchestral Higdon work, Cold Mountain Suite, will follow. After a brief intermission, the orchestra will continue the celebration of musical drama with musical selections from both suites of music from the opera, “L’Arlesienne,” by Georges Bizet. Bizet originally composed the music for Alphonse Daudet's drama of the same name, which at the time received poor reviews. Despite this setback, Bizet was convinced that much of the music would be successful on the concert stage for a full Symphony orchestra, and thus prepared a 5-movement suite from the music.
The Symphony will close the evening with evocative Four Sea Interludes from the opera Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten. The Suite was published separately from Peter Grimes and has become a popular orchestral piece, given its reflective and evocative colors that portray the North Sea in its ever-changing and often dark moods.
Concert #2: November 13, 2022
Claudio Monteverdi – L’Orfeo - Toccata and Intermezzi
Jennifer Higdon - Cold Mountain Suite (composer in residence)
INTERMISSION
Georges Bizet – Selections from Suites 1 and 2 from the opera L’Arlesienne
Benjamin Britten – Four Sea Interludes from the opera Peter Grimes
About Jennifer Higdon
Pulitzer Prize and three-time Grammy-winner Jennifer Higdon (b. Brooklyn, NY, December 31, 1962) taught herself to play flute at the age of 15 and began formal musical studies at 18, with an even later start in composition at the age of 21. Despite these obstacles, Jennifer has become a major figure in contemporary Classical music. Her works represent a wide range of genres, from orchestral to chamber, to wind ensemble, as well as vocal, choral and opera. Her music has been hailed by Fanfare Magazine as having "the distinction of being at once complex, sophisticated but readily accessible emotionally", with the Times of London citing it as "…traditionally rooted, yet imbued with integrity and freshness." The League of American Orchestras reports that she is one of America's most frequently performed composers.
About Glens Falls Symphony
Since Maestro Charles Peltz’ arrival in 2000, the fully professional Glens Falls Symphony has performed a dynamic repertoire, regularly including musical premieres and world-renowned guest artists while expanding musical offerings to include family concerts, summer pops programs and more. Cited as “one of the great orchestras of our country” by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Joseph Schwantner, the orchestra comprises professional musicians who come from all over the Northeast to perform.
Glens Falls Symphony
2022-23 Season
All concerts on Sunday at 4pm
Glens Falls High School Auditorium
Free Pre-Concert Talk at 3pm
TICKETS
Season and single tickets are priced in three tiers:
Adult: $38/$32/$25
Student: $10
Four-Concert Season tickets (November 13, December 18, March 19, 2023 and May 7: $132/$112/$92
Student Season Tickets: $40
Location: Glens Falls High School Auditorium, 10 Quade St, Glens Falls, NY 12801
For information regarding ticket pricing and seating for season, visit www.theglensfallssymphony.org, call the Symphony office at (518) 793-1348 or stop by the office, upstairs in the LARAC Gallery building: 7 Lapham Place in Glens Falls. Office hours are Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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