The 53rd Season Features the Piano Forte Series with András Schiff, Ivo Pogorelich, and Ivan Moravec; Jordi Savall in Two Concerts; Bach's Mass in B Minor and Handel's Acis and Galatea; Anoushka Shankar, Richie Havens, and Patti Smith; and a Season Opening Concert by Orpheus in the Great Hall
The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents the 53rd season of Metropolitan Museum Concerts, its acclaimed concert series, in 2006-07, 75 events that launch with a concert by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in the Museum's Great Hall. The season's events range from two piano series; a series of choral and vocal events including performances of Bach's Mass in B Minor, the world premiere of a new work for Chanticleer, and Handel's opera Acis and Galatea; the return of Jordi Savall; and a wide variety of chamber ensembles; to music in an array of styles from Steve Ross, Anoushka Shankar, Richie Havens, and Patti Smith. The 2006-07 season is the 38th programmed by Concerts & Lectures General Manager Hilde Limondjian.
"I am always impressed at how fluidly Hilde Limondjian shapes the continuum of her concert series from year to year so that its tradition is refracted anew," said the Metropolitan's Director, Philippe de Montebello. "The piano tradition that had taken the form of a festival of young competition winners two seasons ago will this season be a group of the most esteemed and interesting keyboard artists before the public, paired with a series of young pianists. Choral music, which has a memorable place in our concert history, steps into the spotlight during the coming season. We are delighted to have Jordi Savall back for his third annual appearances; and we welcome folk performers from Africa, Hungary, and the Philippines – and we start it all off with another Metropolitan Museum tradition, a concert in the Great Hall."
The Piano Forte series, a major highlight of the 2005-06 season, returns with an exemplary assemblage of nine pianists, including the only New York recital of the season of András Schiff, the first New York performance in a decade of Ivo Pogorelich, and Leon Fleisher performing a Mozart piano concerto. Mirroring this, the annual Accolades young artists series will present four up-and-coming pianists in recital. Steinway & Sons will once again make three pianos available to the artists to choose from.
Having celebrated the 50th anniversary season of Metropolitan Museum Concerts with a concert in the Museum's Great Hall, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra returns to that hall to open the 2006-07 season on September 18 with a concert of music by Vivaldi and Bach with guest soloist violinist Janine Jansen. Orpheus also continues its popular Bach cantatas series in the galleries in a season rich in choral and vocal highlights that also includes the Aulos Ensemble performing a concert version of Handel's opera Acis and Galatea in the Medieval Sculpture Hall; the Netherlands Bach Society performing Bach's Mass in B Minor; a program by the Rias Kammerchor Berlin; and the world premiere of And on Earth, Peace: A Chanticleer Mass, a work by five composers, performed by Chanticleer at The Temple of Dendur in The Sackler Wing.
Viola da gamba master Jordi Savall returns to the Museum for the third season in a row with two programs, his only New York appearances of the season. The chamber music palette features resident ensembles the Beaux Arts Trio, Guarneri String Quartet, and Metropolitan Museum Artists in Concert; the return of Paula Robison's Vivaldi series and Musicians from Marlboro; and visiting ensembles including the Takács Quartet, the Miró Quartet with guitarist Eliot Fisk and a quartet consisting of violinists Robert Mann and Geoff Nuttall, violist Nicholas Mann, and cellist Bonnie Hampton.
Four orchestras visit the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium this season. On the Piano Forte series, Menahem Pressler is soloist with the Prague Chamber Orchestra, and Leon Fleisher is soloist and conductor of the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra. In addition, the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, led by Andrey Boreyko, is joined by violinist Robert McDuffie; and the Orquestra de São Paulo, led by John Neschling, has as its guest artist the cellist and Beaux Arts Trio member Antonio Meneses.
Sitarist Anoushka Shankar and pop legend Patti Smith each makes her third appearance at the Museum, and New Orleans pianist Henry Butler returns after his success last season with a program featuring Papa Henry Butler's Steamin' Syncopaters. The season also features the legendary singer Richie Havens, and three visiting folk ensembles: the Bayanihan Philippine National Dance Company, The Royal Drummers of Burundi, and the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble. Cabaret artist Steve Ross performs two programs, and the Blue Hill Troupe makes its annual Gilbert & Sullivan visit.
The beloved Metropolitan Museum tradition of Christmas concerts in front of the tree in the Medieval Sculpture Hall continues with performances by Chanticleer, Parthenia, The Choral Society of Grace Church, and The Trinity Choir.
In cooperation with the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Museum will present an evening of talk and performance focusing on the life and work of Johannes Brahms with Philharmonic guest artist Emanuel Ax and concertmaster Glenn Dicterow. Pianist Frederic Chiu returns to the Museum to lead a master class based upon his approach to music-making, "Deeper Piano Studies." Pianist, teacher, writer, and broadcaster David Dubal gives three lectures on 19th-century composers, June LeBell continues her salute to American musical theater with two lectures, and New York Times reporter James Barron gives a talk about his nine-part Times series about the building of a Steinway piano – which is now one of the instruments in residence at the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium.
The programs of the Concerts & Lectures series are held primarily in the Museum's Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium (opened in 1954), which seats 708, as well as in Museum galleries such as the Medieval Sculpture Hall and The Temple of Dendur in The Sackler Wing.
Tickets to the concert series are available by calling the Concerts & Lectures Department at (212) 570-3949. Updated schedules and programs are available on the Museum's website, www.metmuseum.org.
A GREAT HALL OPENING
The opening event of the 2006-07 season combines two Metropolitan Museum traditions: concerts in the Great Hall, which began in the 1920s and continued through World War II, and an appearance by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, whose very first concert series was presented by the Museum in 1976. Orpheus opened the concert series' 50th anniversary season in September 2003 with a Great Hall concert, and returns for a program of excerpts from Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and two works by Bach: the Violin Concerto in E Major; and the Double Concerto in D Minor for Two Violins. Violinist Janine Jansen is the program's guest artist, making her first appearance with chamber orchestra in the U.S.; she will perform the Violin Concerto, and be one of the soloists in the Double Concerto. Monday, September 18, 2006, at 7:00 p.m.
PIANO FORTE AND MORE
The Piano Forte series continues as a centerpiece of the season with seven recitals and two orchestral appearances by a glittering selection of the world's finest pianists. Steinway & Sons will again provide the Museum with three pianos: the "CD-60," which was celebrated during the 150th anniversary of Steinway & Sons New York in 2003; a Hamburg Steinway constructed in honor of the 125th anniversary of Steinway & Sons Hamburg; and the beloved New York Steinway piano, the "CD-212," that has been in residence at the Metropolitan Museum for the past several years. The pianists performing at the Met during the season will be able to choose among the three instruments.
- András Schiff, who made his New York recital debut at the Metropolitan Museum in 1982, makes his 21st appearance there with his only New York recital of the season, an all-Mozart program featuring the Sonata in A Major, K. 331"Alla Turca"; Fantasy in D Minor, K. 397; Adagio in B Minor, K. 540; Rondo in D Major, K. 485; Sonata in A Minor, K. 310; Sonata in C Major, K. 511; and Variations in G Major, K. 455, on "Unser dummer Pöbel meint." Wednesday, October 25, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- Ivo Pogorelich's first appearance in New York in a decade is his Metropolitan Museum debut and only New York recital of the season, a program of works by Schumann: Five Variations, Op. Posth, and Symphonic Etudes in Form of Variations; and Chopin: Nocturne in E Major, Op. 62, No. 2; Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 55, No. 2; and Sonata No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 58. Thursday, October 26, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- Menahem Pressler steps out of the Beaux Arts Trio to appear as soloist with the Prague Chamber Orchestra in their only New York appearance together, performing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat Major, K. 595, on a program also featuring Mozart's Symphony No. 40 in G Minor; Barber's Adagio for Strings; and Schubert's Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major. Sunday, October 29, 2006, at 7:00 p.m.
- Till Fellner, 1993 winner of the Clara Haskil Competition and pupil of Alfred Brendel performs his only New York recital of the season, a program of Bach's Three-Part Inventions; Beethoven's Sonata No. 6 in F Major, Op. 10, No. 2; Kurtág's Selection from Játékok (Games); and Schubert's Four Impromptus, D. 899. Thursday, February 8, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Angela Hewitt, renowned for her renditions of Bach, makes her only New York recital appearance of the season with a program of Rameau's Suite in A Major; Beethoven's Sonata in C Major, Op. 2, No. 3; and Schumann's Novellette, Op. 21, No. 8; and Sonata in F-sharp Minor, Op. 11. Thursday, February 15, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Jonathan Biss returns to the Metropolitan Museum for his only New York recital of the season, a program of Mozart's Sonata in F Major, K. 533/494; Webern's Variations for Piano, Op. 27; Beethoven's Sonata in C Minor, Op. 13, "Pathétique"; and Schumann's Kreisleriana, Op. 16. Thursday, March 15, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Ivan Moravec makes a welcome return to the Metropolitan Museum with his only New York recital of the season, a program of Mozart's Fantasia in C Minor, K. 475, and Sonata in B-flat Major, K. 333; selections from Debussy's Images, Book I; and Chopin's Barcarolle in F-sharp Major, Op. 60; Two Nocturnes; and Scherzo No. 2 in B-flat Minor, Op. 31. Friday, March 16, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Leon Fleisher, whose first Metropolitan Museum appearance was on the Young Artists series in 1956-57, has made a recent, acclaimed return to the two-hand piano repertoire, and appears here with the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra (in their only New York appearance together) as conductor, and soloist in a program of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major, K. 414; Boccherini's Symphony in D Minor; Mendelssohn's String Symphony No. 10 in B Minor; and Bartók's Divertimento for String Orchestra. Thursday, March 29, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Nelson Freire, a frequent chamber music collaborator with pianist Martha Argerich, makes a rare solo recital appearance, his only in New York this season, to perform the Bach/Busoni Chaconne; Beethoven's Sonata No. 31 in A Major, Op. 110; Chopin's Polonaise in A-flat Major, Op. 53, Fantasy in F Minor, Op. 49, Mazurkas in C-sharp Minor, Op, 41, No. 1, and B-flat Minor, Op. 24, No. 4, and Scherzo No. 4 in E Major, Op. 54; Villa-Lobos's Piano Pieces; and Albéniz's "Evocation" and "Triana" from Iberia. Thursday, April 19, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
As a complement to the Piano Forte series, the annual Accolades series this season presents four of the most promising young pianists performing today. This series has been made possible by the Xerox Foundation.
- Benjamin Hochman makes his New York recital debut with a program of Bach's Partita No. 5 in G Major; Berg's Sonata, Op. 1; the world premiere of a work by Menachem Wiesenberg; and Schubert's Sonata in C Minor, D. 958. Sunday, October 29, 2006, at 3:00 p.m.
- Simone Dinnerstein performs her only New York recital of the season, a program of Copland's Piano Variations; Schumann's Kinderszenen, Op. 15; and Beethoven's Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, Op. 111. Sunday, November 19, 2006, at 3:00 p.m.
- Kirill Gerstein performs his only New York recital of the season, a program of Haydn's Sonata in D Major, Hob. XVI 37; Schumann's Humoresque; Schubert/Liszt songs; Ligeti's Etudes; Busoni's Sonatina No. 6, "Carmen Fantasy" after Bizet; and Tchaikovsky's Scherzo from Symphony No. 6 (arr. Samuel Feinberg). Sunday, January 21, 2007, at 3:00 p.m.
- Inon Barnatan performs his only New York recital of the season, a program of Schubert's Four Impromptus, D. 935; the premiere of a solo piano work by Avner Dorman; and Ravel's Gaspard de la nuit. Sunday, March 18, 2007, at 3:00 p.m.
CHORAL AND OPERA
Five distinguished ensembles bring programs of choral music and one opera-in-concert to the Museum, four of them in gallery spaces:
- Orpheus continues its series of Bach cantatas at the Museum with two programs: the Cantatas No. 133, Ich freue mich in dir; and No. 40, Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes in the Medieval Sculpture Hall at Christmastime (Thursday, December 14, 2006, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.); and the Cantatas No. 42, Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats>; and No. 134, Ein Herz, das seinen Jesum at The Temple of Dendur in The Sackler Wing during the Easter season (Friday, March 23, 2007, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.).
- RIAS Kammerchor Berlin, Walter Nussbaum, conductor, and James Wood, choir director, is a 35-voice choir renowned for its performance of a cappella works. The ensemble makes its only New York appearance of the season with an a cappella program: Brahms' Songs, Op. 42 and Op. 104, and In Stiller Nacht; Schubert's Grab und Mond, D. 893, and Die Nacht, D. 983C; Ligeti's Drei Phantasien nach Freidrich Holderlin; Josef Rheinberger's Bleib bei uns; and arrangements of Mahler's Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen and Wagner's Swei Studien zu Tristan und Isolde. The concert takes place at The Temple of Dendur in The Sackler Wing. Saturday, November 18, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- The Netherlands Bach Society, Jos Van Veldhoven, director, is the Netherlands' longest-standing early music organization. The ensemble, making its only New York appearance of the season, performs Bach's Mass in B Minor, with soloists including sopranos Dorothee Mields and Johanette Zomer, alto Matthew White, tenor Charles Daniels, and bass Peter Harvey. Wednesday, April 18, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Chanticleer, in its 16th season at the Museum, performs the world premiere of And on Earth, Peace: A Chanticleer Mass, a work each of whose five movements has a different composer: Canadian Mychael Danna (Kyrie), Turkish-American Kamran Ince (Gloria, with Sufi text), Israeli-born Shulamit Ran (Credo, with Hebrew text), Ivan Moody (Sanctus, in the Greek Orthodox tradition), and Irish folk-influenced composer Michael McGlynn (Agnus Dei). The concert takes place at The Temple of Dendur in The Sackler Wing. Thursday, April 26, 2007, at 8:00 p.m. (Chanticleer also performs its annual Christmas program in December; see below.) This concert is supported by the estate of Kathryn Walter Stein.
- The Aulos Ensemble, one of America's pre-eminent early music ensembles, performs Handel's opera Acis and Galatea, based on Ovid's Metamorphoses, in concert version in the Medieval Sculpture Hall, with a cast featuring tenor John Elwes as Acis, soprano Kendra Colton as Galatea, baritone Curtis Streetman as Polyphemus, and tenor William Hite as Damon. The members of the Aulos Ensemble are Christopher Kruger, flute; Marc Schachman, oboe; Linda Quan, violin; Myron Lutzke, cello; and Arthur Haas, harpsichord. Tuesday, January 23, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.
JORDI SAVALL
Viola da gamba master and early music pioneer Jordi Savall makes his third annual appearance at the Metropolitan Museum with two programs, his only New York appearances of the season, for which he is joined by Pierre Hantai, harpsichord, and Xavier Diaz, theorbo. These concerts are presented in conjunction with the exhibition Barcelona and Modernity: Gaudi to Dali.
- "Folias and Romanescas": Recercadas sobre tenors by Diego Oriz; pieces for the guitar by Santiago de Murcia and Gaspar Sanz; Tobias Hume's Musical Humors; Passacalles by Robert de Visée; and harpsichord sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti. Wednesday, May 9, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- "Marin Marais: La Viole du Roi Soleil": The viol music of 17th-century composer Marin Marais, who was the subject of Alain Corneau's film Tous les matins du monde, dominates this program; his works including La Sautillante, Suite d'un gout etranger, Muzettes, Fantasies, and Preludes are featured, as well as Couperin's Les Barricades misterieuses. Thursday, May 10, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
CHAMBER MUSIC – RESIDENTS AND VISITORS
The Metropolitan Museum's three resident ensembles – Beaux Arts Trio, Guarneri String Quartet, and Metropolitan Museum Artists in Concert – return in 2006-07, as do series regulars Musicians from Marlboro and Paula Robison. Making guest appearances this season are the renowned Takács Quartet, the Miró Quartet with guitarist Eliot Fisk, and a quartet headed by Juilliard String Quartet founder Robert Mann.
- Guitarist Eliot Fisk and the Miró Quartet – violinists Daniel Ching and Sandy Yamamoto, violist John Largess, and cellist Joshua Gindele – perform their only New York concert together, a program of Arriaga's Quartet No. 3 for strings in E-flat Major; Leonardo Balada's Caprichos No. 2 for Violin and String Quartet; Boccherini's Guitar Quintet No. 4 in D Major, "Fandango"; and music for solo guitar. Thursday, November 9, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- "String Quartets with Robert Mann" is an evening of string quartet music performed by violinist Robert Mann, founder of the Juilliard String Quartet; violinist Geoff Nuttall, formerly of the St. Lawrence String Quartet; violist Nicholas Mann; and cellist Bonnie Hampton. This will be Mr. Mann's first performance in New York since he left the Juilliard String Quartet in 1997.The program, the ensemble's only New York appearance of the season, features Robert Mann's Four Bagatelles; Bartók's String Quartet No. 6; and Beethoven's Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 130, with the "Grosse Fuge." Saturday, December 9, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- The Takács Quartet – violinists Edward Dusinberre and Károly Schranz, violist Geraldine Walther, and cellist András Fejér – performs its only New York concert of the season, a program featuring Debussy's Quartet in G Minor, Op. 10; Shostakovich's String Quartet No. 11 in F Minor; and Beethoven's String Quartet in A Minor, Op. 132. Friday, January 19, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- The Beaux Arts Trio – Menahem Pressler, piano; Daniel Hope, violin; and Antonio Meneses, cello – in its 34th season at the Museum, performs two programs, the trio's only New York appearances of the season: Schubert's Nocturne, Op. 148, and Piano Trio in B-flat Major, Op. 99; and Shostakovich's Trio No. 2 in E Minor for piano, violin, and cello, Op. 67 (Friday, October 13, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.); and Dvorák's Piano Trio in E Minor, Op. 90, "Dumky"; and Beethoven's Piano Trio in B-flat Major, Op. 97, "Archduke" (Friday, April 13, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.).
- The Guarneri String Quartet – Arnold Steinhardt and John Dalley, violin; Michael Tree, viola; and Peter Wiley, cello – performs four concerts, each featuring a Beethoven string quartet (E Minor, Op. 59, No. 2; C-sharp Minor, Op. 131; E-flat Major, Op. 74, "The Harp"; and A Major, Op. 18, No. 5) as well as quartets by Debussy, Haydn, Janácek, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Schumann, and Tchaikovsky (Saturdays, November 11 and December 16, 2006; and February 24 and March 24, 2007). The Guarneri String Quartet made its first appearance in the Metropolitan Museum Concerts series in 1965 and has been performing there annually ever since. The spring series of the Guarneri String Quartet is supported by the Grace Jarcho Ross and Daniel G. Ross Concert Fund.
- Metropolitan Museum Artists in Concert, the newest resident ensemble, led by cellist Edward Arron, the artistic coordinator, was created in Metropolitan Museum Concerts' 50th anniversary season, and it is the first ensemble to bear the Museum's name. The ensemble's concert series, praised by Anthony Tommasini in The New York Times as "all that chamber music enthusiasts could hope for," continues into its fourth season with three programs, each featuring contemporary works mirrored in classic repertoire – this season, works of Brahms – with commentary from the musicians. The three Friday evening programs will be introduced onstage by WQXR Morning Host Jeff Spurgeon and will be broadcast live on 96.3 FM WQXR as well as streamed online on www.WQXR.com.
Edward Arron is joined by pianists Andrew Armstrong and Jeremy Denk; violinists Jennifer Frautschi, Laura Frautschi, Colin Jacobsen, and Yosuke Kawasaki; violists Nicholas Cords, Max Mandel, and Mr. Jacobsen; and cellist Raman Ramakrishnan, as well as guest artist mezzo-soprano Mary Nessinger. The programs include Giovanni Sollima's Selections from Viaggio in Italia for String Quartet (2000); Kurtág's 12 Microludes for String Quartet, Op. 13 (1977-78); and Schoenberg's String Quartet No. 2 and Brettl-Lieder (Cabaret Songs) as well as works by Boccherini, Kodály, Purcell, and Schubert, as well as Brahms. Fridays, February 9, March 2, and April 27, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Musicians From Marlboro - In a tradition that began in 1970, both prominent past and recent young alumni of this venerable school and festival will offer a series of three concerts of repertoire by Bartók, Beethoven, Brahms, Dvorák, Harbison, Mozart, Ravel, Schubert, and Shostakovich, performed by violinists Lily Francis, Soovin Kim, Jinyeong Jessica Lee, Miho Saegusa, and Arnold Steinhardt; violists Yu Jin, Kate Kadarauch, Eric Nowlin, and Jonathan Vinocur; cellists Soo Bae, Wendy Law, and Marcy Rosen; pianists Ieva Jokubaviciute and Anna Polonsky; hornist Radovan Vlatkovic; and mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford. Fridays, November 10, 2006, and March 30 and May 11, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Flutist Paula Robison continues in her fourth year of celebrating The Great Vivaldi at The Temple of Dendur in The Sackler Wing, with two programs with chamber orchestra of concertos and Italian folk songs and serenades. Saturdays, November 4, 2006, and March 31, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
ORCHESTRAS
In addition to the two orchestras performing with pianists Menahem Pressler and Leon Fleisher, two orchestras, from Germany and Brazil, visit the Museum:
- The Orquestra de São Paulo, led by John Neschling, is joined by cellist and Beaux Arts Trio member Antonio Meneses for a performance, its only New York concert of the season, of Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme for Cello and Orchestra, on a program that also features Shostakovich's Festive Overture, and Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2 in E Minor. Wednesday, November 1, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- The Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, led by Andrey Boreyko, performs its only New York concert of the season, a program with violinist Robert McDuffie as soloist in Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto in D Major; also on the program are Mendelssohn's The Hebrides, and Brahms' Symphony No. 2 in D Major. Friday, January 26, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
FROM THE TRADITIONS OF AFRICA, INDIA, FRANCE, NEW ORLEANS…
The season features artists and ensembles from a wide variety of countries, styles and traditions:
- The Royal Drummers of Burundi - The music and the movement of the Mombasa Party celebrate the sounds and traditions of east Kenyan Taraab artists. One of the world's renowned percussion ensembles, The Royal Drummers of Burundi channel the energy and creative spirit of a nation through drums and their related rituals. Their drum sound, the "Burundi beat," as it has become known, has influenced Western musicians for decades. This is their only New York appearance of the season. Saturday, October 14, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- Anoushka Shankar, sitar virtuoso, performs music from her most recent recording, the Grammy-nominated Rise, which shows her unique voice as sitarist, composer, arranger, and producer, for her only New York concert of the season. Thursday, October 19, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- Patti Smith makes her third Metropolitan Museum appearance with an evening by "Patti Smith and friends" devoted to poetry and song that pays homage to Joan of Arc – and the Jules Bastien-Lepage painting that is part of the Museum's permanent collection – as well as other prominent cultural figures in French history, including Edith Piaf, Charles Baudelaire, Juliet Greco, and Arthur Rimbaud, whose birthday falls on the date of this event. Friday, October 20, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- Bayanihan Philippine National Dance Company, the official national folk dance company of the Philippines, blends the influences of native islanders, Chinese, Spanish, and Islamic traditions. This is the company's only New York appearance of the season. Friday, October 27, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- Steve Ross, who The New York Times has dubbed "the crown prince of New York cabaret," performs two cabaret evenings – one titled "Americans in Paris," featuring songs by Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hart, Yip Harburg, and Vernon Duke (presented in conjunction with the exhibition Americans in Paris, 1860-1900. This exhibition is made possible by Bank of America. Additional support is provided by the Marguerite and Frank A. Cosgrove Jr. Fund. The exhibition was organized by the National Gallery, London, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, in association with The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. It is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.) – and the second featuring the songs of Vincent Youmans. Fridays, January 12, and May 18, 2007, at 7:00 p.m.
- Richie Havens, the legendary soul singer who emerged from the Greenwich Village folk scene in the 1960s and has inspired and electrified audiences from Woodstock in 1969 to that music festival's 30th anniversary, performs an evening with Walter Park on guitar and vocals, and Stephanie Winters, cellist. Friday, February 2, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Blue Hill Troupe, celebrating its 83rd season, returns to the Museum for its annual presentation of Gilbert & Sullivan gems, including favorites from The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado, as well as lesser-known treasures. Sunday, February 11, 2007, at 5:00 p.m.
- Papa Henry Butler's Steamin' Syncopaters is an ensemble devoted to the revival of 1920s steamboat jazz, led by the New Orleans pianist Henry Butler, who performed a solo evening at the Museum in January 2006. The group's members represent lifetimes of New Orleans traditional jazz: trumpeter Mark Braud, clarinetist Tom Fischer, trombonist Freddy Lonzo, drummer Troy Davis, banjoist Amy Sharpe, and bassist Mark Brooks. This is their only New York appearance of the season. Friday, March 9, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
- Hungarian State Folk Ensemble draws on the rich repertoire of folk music that has inspired great composers from Liszt and Kodály to Brahms and Bartók, offering centuries-old dances collected from isolated villages performed to music by the ensemble's renowned Gypsy orchestra. This is the ensemble's only New York appearance of the season. Saturday, March 17, 2007, at 8:00 p.m.
CHRISTMAS CONCERTS
Metropolitan Museum Concerts has long been one of New York's prominent presenters of early music, highlighted by the annual series of Christmas concerts in the unique setting of the Medieval Sculpture Hall, in front of the Museum's Christmas tree and Neapolitan Baroque crèche. In 2006, there are four programs (each of which has multiple performances):
- Chanticleer presents six performances of "A Chanticleer Christmas," a program of medieval and Renaissance sacred works, traditional carols, and spirituals. Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday; December 3, 5, and 6, 2006, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m
- Orpheus continues its series of Bach cantatas at the Museum with two programs, the first of which features the Cantatas No. 133, Ich freue mich in dir; and No. 40, Dazu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes at Christmastime. Thursday, December 14, 2006, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.
- Parthenia, a consort of viols (Rosamund Morley, treble viol; Lawrence Lipnik, tenor viol; Beverly Au and Lisa Terry, bass viol) is joined by soprano Julianne Baird for a program of early English Christmas music: works by William Byrd, Anthony Holborne, Thomas Morley, Tobias Hume, and John Bull. Tuesday, December 19, 2006, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.
- The Choral Society of Grace Church in New York, John Maclay, conductor, performs "Sacred Music from the East," a program of sacred choral music from the Eastern Orthodox tradition, featuring Rachmaninoff's Vespers, Gorecki's Totus Tuus, and other works. Wednesday, December 20, 2006, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.
- The Trinity Choir, Owen Burdick, conductor, performs "An A Cappella Christmas from Trinity Church," a program of a cappella lessons and carols from this renowned choir of Trinity Church Wall Street. Thursday, December 21, 2006, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.
BRAHMS, THE PIANO, AND BROADWAY: LECTURES AND MORE
A piano master class that targets the body, mind, and heart with pianist Frederic Chiu; David Dubal on great composers for the piano; New York Times reporter James Barron on the making of a Steinway piano; and June LeBell saluting American musical theater are highlights of the season's talk/performance and lecture events.
- "Johannes Brahms" – A Lecture-Performance by Emanuel Ax and Glenn Dicterow - In 2006-07 the New York Philharmonic celebrates the orchestral music of Johannes Brahms. This companion event, presented in partnership with the Philharmonic, melds talk and performance to bring further insights into Brahms's life and music from Philharmonic guest artist Emanuel Ax, piano, and New York Philharmonic concertmaster Glenn Dicterow, violin, as they discuss and perform Brahms' Sonata No. 3 for Violin and Piano in D Minor, Op. 108. Friday, February 16, 2007, at 7:00 p.m.
- "Frederic Chiu: Deeper Piano Studies" – The Isabel C. Iverson and Walter T. Iverson Master Class is led by pianist Frederic Chiu, who concluded the 2005-06 season Piano Forte series, leads a master class based upon his approach to practicing that targets the body, mind, and heart – which results in as much of the pianist's work being done away from the instrument as at it. Saturday, March 10, 2007, at 2:30 p.m.
- "The Making of a Steinway" with James Barron – One of the concert grand pianos in residence at the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium made headlines even before it arrived at the Museum: New York Times reporter James Barron had chronicled its journey from lumber to finished instrument at the Steinway & Sons factory in a nine-part series. He will talk about how this mechanically complicated marvel took shape, and surprise guests will play it. Tuesday, October 17, 2006, at 8:00 p.m.
- "Great Composers for the Piano" with David Dubal – Within 18 months of each other, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Chopin, and Liszt were born, each endowed with an amazing gift for exploring the now "modern" piano's resources. In the following two generations, Brahms, and the Russians, including Scriabin and Rachmaninoff, added new dimensions to piano writing. Pianist, teacher, writer, and broadcaster David Dubal will discuss the lives of these composers, perform characteristic works, and further demonstrate with recordings. Wednesdays, November 29, December 6 and 13, 2006, at 2:30 p.m.
- "Famous Songs from Infamous Flops" with June LeBell – Broadcaster and American musical theater aficionada June LeBell continues her tribute to American musical theater with a look at the great songs that came from forgotten shows – including "Autumn in New York," "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart," "April in Paris" and "When I Fall in Love." The two events feature surprise guests, videos, and live performances. Tuesdays, November 7 and 14, 2006, at 2:30 p.m.
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September 8, 2006
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