This preview has been provided by the North Carolina Symphony.
The North Carolina Symphony’s 2014-15 classical season continues with “Copland in Mexico,” which showcases Aaron Copland’s transformative experiences in Mexico in the early part of the 20th century, Friday Nov. 7, and Saturday, Nov. 8 at 8 p.m. in Meymandi Concert Hall in downtown Raleigh.
Led by Music Director Grant Llewellyn, the concerts include Copland’s Buckaroo Holiday from Rodeo and El Salón México, as well as Son and Duelo from Homenaje a Federico Garcia Lorca, Sensemayá, and the soundtrack from the film Redes, all composed by the visionary Mexican composer Silvestre Revueltas. Redes will be shown on a giant screen in Meymandi Concert Hall, with live accompaniment by the orchestra. The concerts will also feature actor Matthew Bulluck and narrator Mary Irwin.
“Aaron Copland’s fascination with Mexico and its culture is known about, but has been little appreciated or explored,” Llewellyn said. “Here, we go on an adventure, not only into the bars and dance halls of Mexico City, but more profoundly we see and hear the inner spirit and soul of the country through a reconstruction of Revueltas’ masterful soundtrack to the film Redes.”
“Copland in Mexico” is a symphonic project created by Joseph Horowitz, who will also take part in pre-concert activities on Nov. 7-8. Part of the North Carolina Symphony’s Explorations initiative, which uses thematic programming to increase awareness of how music, art, and literature can provide a tool for examining culture more deeply, the project is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Symphony Scholar-in-Residence William Robin will give a talk on “Copland in Mexico” Monday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m., at Quail Ridge Books & Music in Raleigh. The free talk is part of the Local Arts Series, presented by WCPE and Quail Ridge Books & Music. There will also be a free roundtable discussion on Tuesday, Nov. 4, from 3-4:30 p.m. in Richard White Auditorium on Duke’s East Campus that features Music Director Grant Llewellyn, “Copland in Mexico” project creator Joseph Horowitz, and Duke’s N.C. Latin American Film Festival Director Dr. Miguel Rojas Sotelo.
In addition to stellar performances, North Carolina Symphony concertgoers can enjoy pre-concert talks, post-concert discussions, and “Meet the Artists,” which feature interactive conversations with guest artists and select orchestra members, at many Symphony events. Before the Friday, Nov. 7, and Saturday, Nov. 8 performances in Raleigh, “Copland in Mexico” creator Joseph Horowitz and actors Mary Irwin and Matthew Bulluck will perform excerpts from Aaron Copland’s 1953 testimony before a committee chaired by Sen. Joseph McCarthy.
Tickets to the Raleigh Classical Series performances on Nov. 7-8 range from $18 to $65. Tickets to the Raleigh Classical Series performances on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24-25, range from $18 to $65. Student tickets are $10. Concert tickets at all performances are also available at the door one hour prior to concert start time.
Other 2014-15 season highlights include Handel’s Messiah, and “A Pink Martini Christmas,” in December, the beautiful and romantic film Casablanca that also features a stunning musical score on Valentine’s weekend, and for the season finale in May, a collaboration with Playmaker’s Repertory Company on a new, semi-staged production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Meymandi Concert Hall is located in the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts, 2 E. South St., in Raleigh.
Partners for the 2014/15 Raleigh Classical Series include Clancy & Theys Construction; Duke Realty; and Smith Anderson.
About the North Carolina Symphony
Founded in 1932, the North Carolina Symphony gives more than 200 performances annually to adults and school children in more than 50 North Carolina counties. An entity of the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, the orchestra employs 66 professional musicians, under the artistic leadership of Music Director and Conductor Grant Llewellyn, Resident Conductor William Henry Curry, and Associate Conductor David Glover.
Headquartered in downtown Raleigh’s spectacular Meymandi Concert Hall at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts and an outdoor summer venue at Booth Amphitheatre in Cary, N.C., the Symphony performs about 60 concerts annually in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and Cary metropolitan area. It holds regular concert series in Fayetteville, New Bern, Southern Pines and Wilmington — as well as individual concerts in many other North Carolina communities throughout the year — and conducts one of the most extensive education programs of any U.S. orchestra.
Program Listing
Friday and Saturday, Nov. 7-8, 2014, 8 p.m.
Meymandi Concert Hall, Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts, Raleigh
North Carolina Symphony
“Copland in Mexico”
Grant Llewellyn, conductor
Matthew Bulluck, actor
Mary Irwin, narrator
COPLAND: Buckaroo Holiday from Rodeo
COPLAND: El Salón México
REVUELTAS: Son and Duelo from Homenaje a Federico Garcia Lorca
REVUELTAS: Sensemayá
REVUELTAS: Redes (with film)
