This preview has been provided by the North Carolina Symphony.
The North Carolina Symphony’s 2014-15 classical season continues with performances of Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto, with charismatic pianist Di Wu Thursday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m., in Memorial Hall on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and again on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24-25, at 8 p.m., in Meymandi Concert Hall in downtown Raleigh. The concerts, which will be led by conductor Eugene Tzigane, will also include Don Juan, Op. 20, and Death and Transfiguration, Op. 24, both by Richard Strauss.
Praised in the Wall Street Journal as “a most mature and sensitive pianist” and named one of the “up-and-coming talents” in classical music by Musical America, Chinese-born Di Wu continues to enhance her reputation as an elegant and powerful musician. Her concerts have taken her across the globe, charming audiences from East to West with her “charisma, steely technique and keen musical intelligence” (Philadelphia Inquirer) and her “fire and authority” (Washington Post).
Eugene Tzigane is in his fourth season as Principal Conductor of the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie in Herford. He achieved early recognition in competitions including Second Prize at the 2008 Solti Competition (Frankfurt), First Prize at the 2007 Fitelberg Competition (Katowice) and Second Prize at the 2007 Matacic Competition (Zagreb). Following the Solti Competition, Tzigane was invited to conduct the Deutsches Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Duisburg Philharmonic and Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie which resulted in his appointment as Principal Conductor. After the Fitelberg Competition he conducted extensively in Poland and was subsequently appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Pomeranian Philharmonic.
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 Chapel Hill performance on Oct. 23, Symphony musicians will perform an Evening Overtures program in Gerrard Hall at 6:30 p.m. The program, with generous support provided by The Hulka Fund for Chamber Music, mixes chamber music performances and discussion that allows for a deeper exploration of the music. Before the Friday, Oct. 24, and Saturday, Oct. 25, performances in Raleigh, Dr. Jonathan Kramer of N.C. State University will give pre-concert talks at 7 p.m. in the Swalin Lobby of Meymandi Concert Hall.
Tickets to the Chapel Hill Classical Series performance on Oct. 23 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.
Subscriptions to any of the Symphony’s 2014/15 concert series in Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Fayetteville, New Bern, Southern Pines and Wilmington are currently available online at www.ncsymphony.org/subscriptions or by calling the North Carolina Symphony Box Office at 919.733.2750 or toll free 877.627.6724.
Meymandi Concert Hall is located in the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts, 2 E. South St., in Raleigh. Memorial Hall is located at 114 East Cameron Ave., on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Partners for the 2014/15 Chapel Hill Series include Carol Woods Retirement Community, and The Businesses of Market Street, Southern Village.
Partners for the 2014/15 Raleigh Classical Series include Clancy & Theys Construction; Duke Realty; and Smith Anderson.
These concerts are made possible in part by The Charles E. Potts/Fanny R. Potts Guest Pianist Fund.
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
Thursday, Oct. 23, 2014, 7:30pm
Memorial Hall, UNC-Chapel Hill
Oct. 24-25, 2014, 8 p.m.
Meymandi Concert Hall, Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts, Raleigh
North Carolina Symphony
Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto
Eugene Tzigane, conductor
Di Wu, piano
STRAUSS – Don Juan, Op. 20<
STRAUSS – Tod und Verklärung, Op. 24 [Death and Transfiguration]
TCHAIKOVSKY – Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 23
I. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso
II. Andantino semplice
III. Allegro con fuoco
Di Wu, piano
