Seattle Symphony Chamber Series | Trois Poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé
by Maurice Ravel
Beethoven’s Piano Trio No. 5 is often called the “Ghost Trio” due to the spectral atmosphere of the second movement. His Oboe Trio, along with Mendelssohn’s String Quartet No. 2, are both early testaments to the precocious composers’ mastery of chamber ensemble writing. Published amid speculation of a rivalry with Debussy, Ravel’s work sets the poetry of Stéphane Mallarmé to a concise yet deeply ethereal score.
Maria Männistö, soprano
Members of the Seattle Symphony
November 15, 2019
Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall, Seattle
Pacific Northwest Ballet | Carmina Burana by Carl Orff
To open the season, Carmina Burana’s 2,500-pound golden wheel rotates above more than 100 dancers, musicians, and singers in PNB’s powerhouse production, paired with Agon, the pinnacle of the legendary collaboration between George Balanchine and Igor Stravinsky.
September 27, 28 and October 5, 6, 2019
McCaw Hall, Seattle
Seattle Symphony [untitled] 3 | Im wunderschönen Monat Mai
by Reinbert de Leeuw
Dutch composer Reinbert de Leeuw reimagines the songs of Schubert and Schumann, infusing them with rawness and danger. Written in the style of 1920s German cabaret, de Leeuw creates a vulnerable, idiosyncratic and ultimately beautiful cycle, a journey through life and tragic love, with all the emotions that accompany it.
Sarah Ioannides, conductor
Maria Männistö, soprano
Members of the Seattle Symphony
June 7, 2019 at 10pm
Benaroya Hall, Seattle (Grand Lobby)
Seattle Symphony | The Eternal Gospel by Leoš Janáček
It’s Ludovic Morlot’s final appearance as Music Director, and he is throwing a party for the ages. In Debussy’s gorgeous Nocturnes, clouds drift off, festivals flash and fade away, and the shimmering sea beckons with the seductive call of the Sirens. For Janáček, the king of Czech opera, composing the choral work The Eternal Gospel offered an outlet for timeless themes of love and peace that transcend any language or faith. Bon voyage, Ludo, and thanks for the inspiration you have brought to us all.
Ludovic Morlot, conductor
Maria Männistö, soprano
Ludovit Ludha, tenor
June 20, 22, 23, 2019
Benaroya Hall, Seattle
Pacific Northwest Ballet | A Midsummer Night's Dream
by Felix Mendelssohn
PNB’s production of Shakespeare’s comedy charms everyone who enters its enchanted realm.
Maria Männistö, soprano soloist
April 13 (7:30pm), 18, 19, and 20 (7:30pm)
McCaw Hall, Seattle
Contemporary Music Marathon
Only the Words Themselves Mean What They Say by Kate Soper
Unisono I by Agata Zubel
Maria Männistö, soprano
Robin Peery, flute
Matthew Decker, percussion
March 23, 2019 at 7pm
Octave 9 Raisbeck Music Center - Benaroya Hall
Seattle Symphony [untitled] 2 | Circles by Luciano Berio
Pierre Boulez and Luciano Berio challenge the boundaries of musical possibility in two works of daring virtuosity. Boulez’s Sur incises is a riot of color, filled with spectacular energy and drama. Berio’s more introspective Circles reaches for new heights of expression, uniting sound and gesture into music of enigmatic beauty.
Maria Männistö, soprano
Valerie Muzzolini, harp
Matthew Decker, percussion
Michael Werner, percussion
March 22, 2019 at 10pm
Benaroya Hall, Seattle (Grand Lobby)
Emerald Ensemble | The Little Match Girl Passion by David Lang
David Lang’s the little match girl passion is regularly hailed as a modern masterpiece for vocal ensemble. It recounts Hans Christian Andersen’s story of a girl who freezes to death while attempting to sell matches on the city streets at New Year’s Eve. We will present this ethereal soundscape in its original version for four vocal soloists also playing percussion.
Gary Cannon, conductor
Maria Männistö, soprano
Kathryn Weld, mezzo-soprano
David Hendrix, tenor
Jonathan Silvia, bass
February 23, 2019
St. Stephen's Episcopal Church