CSO Opens the Blockbuster 2008-2009 Season

WITH LEGENDARY PIANIST ANDRÉ WATTS

Paavo Järvi leads the “Mega-Watt” opener featuring music by Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
Paavo Järvi, conductor
André Watts, piano
Friday, September 12, 8 p.m.
Saturday, September 13, 8 p.m.

Music Hall

Tickets:
Call (513) 381-3300 or www.cincinnatisymphony.org

Program:
TCHAIKOVSKY: Festival Coronation March
RACHMANINOFF: Piano Concerto No. 2
RACHMANINOFF: Symphonic Dances

Sponsor:
U.S. Bank

CINCINNATI—The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra is rolling out the red carpet for the “Mega-Watt” opening of its blockbuster 2008-2009 season at historic Music Hall on Friday, September 12 and Saturday, September 13 at 8 p.m. Fresh off a phenomenal season and hugely successful European tour in April that saw sold-out concert halls in Paris, Madrid, Vienna, Munich and Amsterdam, Music Director Paavo Järvi kicks off the new season with works by celebrated composers Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff and the return of legendary pianist André Watts to the Music Hall stage.  According to The New York Times, Mr. Watts “can actually make the piano roar, sob, even giggle when the mood so demands. It is an impressive gift.”  A post-concert “Afterglow” party will be held in the lobby following both performances.

“I am so thrilled to be back in Cincinnati, and I’m very much looking forward to this season,” said CSO Music Director Paavo Järvi.  “We have a fantastic roster of guest artists and conductors joining us throughout the season, and we begin with a program showcasing the tremendous talent of André Watts.”

The concerts open with Tchaikovsky’s Festival Coronation March, followed by Mr. Watts performing Rachmaninoff’s hugely popular Piano Concerto No. 2, a work celebrated for its soaring melodies, lush orchestration and exceedingly difficult piano part.  

“I have a very strong weakness for Rachmaninoff’s music.  I love the language – I love the sentiment of it. I love the kind of directness and type of beauty that is not suppressed.  It is a beauty that just oozes out of you,” said Mr. Järvi.

This exciting concert program closes with Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances, a work Mr. Järvi regards as a 20th century masterpiece.  Symphonic Dances is the Russian master’s final composition, and ultimately evokes the struggle between death and everlasting life.

A “First Notes” video featuring Mr. Järvi discussing the concert program can be viewed on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSgYfeWkI40

The CSO is rolling out the red carpet for both opening weekend performances complete with pre-concert strolling violinists, paparazzi, and a post-concert “Afterglow” celebration with live jazz music, “Afterglow Joe” coffee drinks, electrifying prizes and Paavo Järvi signing CD’s.  Commemorative magnets will also be passed out to audience members after each performance and an enhanced Bravo Shop will be introduced in the lobby with more recordings available, CSO musicians’ picks and new merchandise.

The CSO thanks U.S. Bank for its generous sponsorship of these concerts.

André Watts, piano
André Watts burst upon the music world at the age of 16 when Leonard Bernstein chose him to make his debut with the New York Philharmonic in their Young People's Concerts, broadcast nationwide on CBS-TV.  Only two weeks later, Bernstein asked him to substitute at the last minute for the ailing Glenn Gould in performances of Liszt's E-flat Concerto with the New York Philharmonic, thus launching his career in storybook fashion.  More than 45 years later, André Watts remains one of today's most celebrated and beloved superstars.

A perennial favorite with orchestras throughout the US, Mr. Watts is also a regular guest at the major summer music festivals including Ravinia, the Hollywood Bowl, Saratoga, Tanglewood and the Mann Music Center. Recent and upcoming orchestral engagements include appearances with the Philadelphia and Minnesota Orchestras, New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, and the St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Detroit, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Dallas, Seattle and National symphonies. Mr. Watts also made an eleven city East Coast tour with the Bergen Philharmonic which included a performance at Carnegie Hall and was inducted into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of his debut (with the Philadelphia Orchestra).

André Watts has had a long and frequent association with television, having appeared on numerous programs produced by PBS, the BBC and the Arts and Entertainment Network, performing with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center among others.  His 1976 New York recital, aired on the program Live From Lincoln Center, was the first full length recital broadcast in the history of television and his performance at the 38th Casals Festival in Puerto Rico was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Individual Achievement in Cultural Programming. Mr. Watts’ most recent television appearances are with the Philadelphia Orchestra on the occasion of the orchestra’s 100th Anniversary Gala and a performance of the Brahms Concerto No.2 with the Seattle Symphony, Gerard Schwarz conducting, for PBS.

Mr. Watts’ extensive discography includes recordings of works by Gershwin, Chopin, Liszt and Tchaikovsky for CBS Masterworks; recital CD’s of works by Beethoven, Schubert, Liszt and Chopin for Angel/EMI; and recordings featuring the concertos of Liszt, MacDowell, Tchaikovsky and Saint-Saens on the Telarc label. He is also included in the Great Pianists of the 20th Century series for Philips.

A much-honored artist who has played before royalty in Europe and heads of government in nations all over the world, André Watts was selected to receive the Avery Fisher Prize in 1988.  At age 26 he was the youngest person ever to receive an Honorary Doctorate from Yale University and he has since received numerous such honors from highly respected schools including the University of Pennsylvania, Brandeis University, Trinity College and The Juilliard School of Music.  In 1984, his Alma Mater, the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University, honored Mr. Watts with its Distinguished Alumni Award and in May, 1997 Peabody again recognized his accomplishments by presenting him with an Honorary Doctorate degree. Previously Artist-in-Residence at the University of Maryland, Mr. Watts was appointed to the newly created Jack I. and Dora B. Hamlin Endowed Chair in Music at Indiana University in May, 2004.

Mr. Watts’ biography and photos are available at the CM Artists New York website:
http://www.cmartists.com/artists/andre_watts.htm