May 2015 programs on the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra

Miniature Art-Little Girl’s Dream

The Pittsburgh Symphony, led by Manfred Honeck, brought a bundle of new works to Chapel Hill, including The Elements. Clockwise from top left, Rosenblum, Vali, Williams, Jang and Burke.

Miniature Art-Little Girl’s Drea

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The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra takes the goal of commissioning new works seriously. Last season, the PSO engaged eight Pittsburgh area composers, five of whom contributed sections to a collective piece, The Elements, inspired by Pittsburgh’s history and environment. The five pieces are about five minutes each and are essentially sound portraits.

5/4       Burke/Jang/Rosenblum/Vali/Williams: The Elements Holst: The Planets (Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh; Betsy Burleigh, dir; Manfred Honeck, cond)
5/11      Handel: Messiah (Lisa Saffer, s; Margaret Lattimore, ms; Philippe Castagner, t; Sanford Sylvan, bs; Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh; Betsy Burleigh, cond)
5/18      Hersch: Ashes of Memory Sibelius: Symphony No. 2 Sibelius: Valse Triste (Leif Ove Andsnes, p; Mariss Jansons, cond)
5/25      Casella: Symphonic Fragments from La donna serpente Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 5 Schumann: Symphony No. 2 (Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, p; Gianandrea Noseda, cond)