Vail Music Festival launches 25th anniversary season on June 25
Celebrating its 25th anniversary this summer, the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival opens Monday, June 25, offering six weeks of exceptional music-making in the heart of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. To launch this landmark season, returning Artistic Director Anne-Marie McDermott has invited her two esteemed predecessors, flutist Eugenia Zukerman and Festival co-founder violinist Ida Kavafian, to join her on stage for “A Salute to Three Artistic Directors” – an opening-night gala concert of chamber repertory gems. This free and festive evening marks the first of the Festival’s 60-plus performances, presenting chamber music, jazz, more than 30 notable soloists, and 19 orchestral concerts from three world-class resident orchestras: the New York Philharmonic, returning under music director Alan Gilbert for its tenth summer; The Philadelphia Orchestra, whose new music director designate, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, makes his Festival debut; and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and its music director, Jaap van Zweden, Musical America’s Conductor of the Year 2012. It’s no wonder that, as veteran music critic David Patrick Stearns observes, “Few if any classical music institutions west of the Mississippi have flourished as Bravo! has.”
Following the success of last year’s Festival, celebrated pianist Anne-Marie McDermott – called “one of the great pianists of her generation” (Philadelphia Inquirer) – returns for her second term as artistic director. She had this to say about this year’s Festival:
“The 25th anniversary of the Festival has been designed both to honor the past, guided so brilliantly by Executive Director John Giovando, and to embrace the future. The staples of the orchestral repertoire will be stunningly rendered by our three great orchestras, while we continue to introduce audiences to works – old and new – not yet heard in Vail. My goal is to make it all excellent, fun, rich, vital, and infused with passion.”
Programming highlights for this silver anniversary season include numerous Festival premieres; multi-event immersions in the art of Brahms, Mendelssohn, and Gershwin; a series juxtaposing time-honored classics with trailblazing new music; plus chamber music, jazz, and pops galore. New York’s Gabriel Kahane returns for an encore performance of his 2011 Festival commission, while the vocal ensemble Cantus and the Jasper String Quartet serve as 2012’s Young-Professionals-in-Residence. The impressive guest-star roster boasts such soloists as pianists Yefim Bronfman, Kirill Gerstein, Alessio Bax and Benjamin Grosvenor; violinists Joshua Bell, James Ehnes, and Jennifer Koh; cellist Alisa Weilerstein; vocalists Susanna Phillips and Tracy Dahl; and electric guitarist/composer Steven Mackey. Ensembles include the Calder Quartet, Tiempo Libre, and Opus One; with Andrey Boreyko, Stéphane Denève, Bramwell Tovey, and Jeff Tyzik among the guest conductors in the spotlight.
As before, chamber concerts will be held in the intimate Vail Mountain School and the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Beaver Creek; large-scale concerts will take place in Vail’s spectacular Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, which accommodates 1,260 guests in covered seating and an additional 1,300 on the expansive grassy hillside, with its breathtaking view of the Rocky Mountains.
Program details for the 25th anniversary season are provided below, and more information is available at www.vailmusicfestival.org.
About the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival
The Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival was founded in 1987 by John Giovando, an attorney with a love of classical music, with eminent violinist Ida Kavafian. Through world-class performances, dedicated leadership, and generous support from the community, the Festival has grown from attracting a handful of attendees to an annual audience of more than 60,000. More than 30 distinguished soloists visit the Vail Valley to perform in chamber ensembles and as soloists with the three world-class resident orchestras. Running from late June through early August, Vail Music Festival presents the highest level of music-making in spectacular Vail Valley venues, touching the lives of thousands of people – many of whom come to the area specifically to experience the pleasures of the Festival and the beauty of the majestic Rocky Mountains.
Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival 2012 program details
Monday, June 25 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
A 25-Year Salute to Three Artistic Directors
Bach: Partita No. 2 in C minor (selected movements)
Franck: Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major (selected movements)
Elgar: Salut d’amour, Op. 12
Shostakovich: Three Duets for violin and piano
Gershwin: It Ain’t Necessarily So
Doppler: Rondo and Andante
Rachmaninoff/Kreisler: Liebeslied
Liszt: Étude de Paganini No. 6 in A minor
Ida Kavafian, violin
Eugenia Zukerman, flute
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Free
Wednesday, June 27 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Beethoven: Fidelio Overture
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K. 503
Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major
Dallas Symphony Orchestra / Jaap van Zweden
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Thursday, June 28 at 6pm
Concert Hall, Vail Mountain School
Big Music for Little Bands
Mendelssohn: Trio in D minor for piano, violin, and cello, Op. 49
Brahms: Trio No. 1 in B major for piano, violin, and cello, Op. 8
Alisa Weilerstein, cello
Jennifer Koh, violin
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Friday, June 29 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Brahms: Concerto for violin, cello, and orchestra, Op. 102
Schubert: Symphony No. 9 in C major, D. 944 (“Great”)
Dallas Symphony Orchestra / Jaap van Zweden, conductor
Alisa Weilerstein, cello
Jennifer Koh, violin
Saturday, June 30 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
A Salute to George Gershwin
Funny Face Overture, Lullaby, Rialto Ripples, “The Man I Love,” Cuban Overture
Porgy and Bess, Concert Version – Vail Premiere
Dallas Symphony Orchestra / Jeff Tyzik
Evans Chorus / Catherine Sailer
Janice-Chandler Eteme, soprano
Kevin Deas, baritone
Sunday, July 1 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Bach: Keyboard Concerto in F minor, BWV 1056
Bruckner: Symphony No. 8 in C minor
Dallas Symphony Orchestra / Jaap van Zweden
Inon Barnatan, piano
Monday, July 2 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Swingin’ with Curtis Stigers
Dallas Symphony Orchestra / Jeff Tyzik
Curtis Stigers, jazz vocalist (Vail Music Festival Debut)
Wednesday, July 4 at 2pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
A Patriotic Celebration
Dallas Symphony Orchestra / Jeff Tyzik
Friday, July 6 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Brahms: Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 77
Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98
The Philadelphia Orchestra / Yannick Nézet-Séguin
James Ehnes, violin
Saturday, July 7 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74, Pathétique
The Philadelphia Orchestra / Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Kirill Gerstein, piano
Sunday, July 8 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Cirque de la Symphonie
The Philadelphia Orchestra / Cristian Macelaru
Monday July 9 at 6 pm
Vilar Performing Arts Center, Beaver Creek
Big Music for Little Bands
Mendelssohn: Songs
Brahms: Trio for viola (clarinet), cello, and piano in A minor, Op. 114
Brahms: Songs
Mendelssohn: Octet in E-flat major for strings, Op. 40
Susanna Phillips, soprano
Paul Neubauer, viola
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Members of The Philadelphia Orchestra
Cantus Vocal Ensemble
Tuesday, July 10 at 11am
Vail Interfaith Chapel, Vail
Free & Easy
Cantus Vocal Ensemble
Tuesday, July 10 at 6pm
Edwards Interfaith Chapel, Edwards
Free & Easy
Cantus Vocal Ensemble
Tuesday, July 10 at 6pm
Debbie and Jim Schultz Residence, Mountain Star
Soirée
A Gypsy Affair
Susanna Phillips, soprano
Paul Neubauer, viola
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Wednesday, July 11 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Wicked Divas: Selections from Wicked, Carmen, Chicago, Phantom of the Opera, and Ragtime
The Philadelphia Orchestra / Steven Reineke
Stephanie Block, vocalist
Julia Murney, vocalist
Thursday, July 12 at 11am
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Family Youth Concert
Program to include:
Bach: Concerto for two violins in B minor, BWV 1043
National Repertory Orchestra / Carl Topilow
Clara Neubauer, violin
Oliver Neubauer, violin
Free
Friday, July 13 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Elgar: Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47
The Philadelphia Orchestra / Stéphane Denève
Alban Gerhardt, cello
Saturday, July 14 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64
Dvořák: Symphony No. 7 in D minor, Op. 70
The Philadelphia Orchestra / Stéphane Denève
Joshua Bell, violin
Monday, July 16 at 6pm
Vilar Performing Arts Center, Beaver Creek
Big Music for Little Bands
Tiempo Libre – “Bach in Havana”
Tuesday, July 17 at 6pm
Sherry and Jim Smith Residence, Arrowhead
Soirée
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Wednesday, July 18 at 7:30pm
Gypsum Town Hall, Gypsum
Free & Easy
Jasper String Quartet
(J Freivogel, violin; Sae Chonabayashi; violin, Sam Quintal, viola; Rachel Henderson Freivogel, cello)
Friday, July 20 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
De Falla: Danza Ritual del Fuego (Ritual Fire Dance) from El Amor Brujo
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22
Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68
New York Philharmonic / Andrey Boreyko
Benjamin Grosvenor, piano
Saturday, July 21 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Tchaikovsky: Festival Coronation March
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G major, Op. 44
Tchaikovsky: Excerpts from Act IV of Swan Lake
Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture
New York Philharmonic / Bramwell Tovey
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Saturday, July 21 at 8pm
Betty Ford Alpine Gardens, Vail
Under the Silvery Moon
25th Annual Gala
Dinner Dance and Auction
Sunday, July 22 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Copland: Suite from Billy the Kid
Bernstein: Three Dance Episodes from On the Town, “Glitter and be Gay” from Candide
Gershwin: “The Man I Love,” “They Can’t Take That Away From Me,” “A Foggy Day in London Town,” “Fascinatin’ Rhythm,” and An American in Paris
New York Philharmonic / Bramwell Tovey
Tracy Dahl, soprano
Monday, July 23 at 7:30pm
Cordillera Lodge and Spa
Free & Easy
Jasper String Quartet
(J Freivogel, violin; Sae Chonabayashi; violin, Sam Quintal, viola; Rachel Henderson Freivogel, cello)
Tuesday, July 24 at 6pm
Sandi and Greg Walton Residence, Arrowhead
Soirée
Yefim Bronfman, piano
Wednesday, July 25 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Respighi: The Fountains of Rome
Vivaldi: Concerto No. 1 in E major, Op. 8, RV 269, La primavera (Spring)
Vivaldi: Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, L’inverno (Winter)
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36
New York Philharmonic / Alan Gilbert
Sheryl Staples, violin
Thursday, July 26 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Nielsen: Symphony No. 3, Op. 27
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 83
New York Philharmonic / Alan Gilbert
Jennifer Zetland, soprano
Joshua Hopkins, baritone
Yefim Bronfman, piano
Friday, July 27 at 6pm
Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, Vail
Stravinsky: Symphony in Three Movements
Mozart: Mass in C minor, K. 427
New York Philharmonic / Alan Gilbert
Colorado Symphony Orchestra Chorus / Duain Wolfe
Jennifer Zetlan, soprano
Jennifer Johnson Cano, mezzo-soprano
Paul Appleby, tenor
Joshua Hopkins, baritone
Sunday, July 29 at 6pm
Concert Hall, Vail Mountain School
Big Music for Little Bands
Mendelssohn: Trio in C minor for piano, violin and cello, Op. 6
Brahms: Quartet No. 1 in G minor for piano and strings, Op. 25
Opus One Piano Quartet
(Ida Kavafian, violin; Steve Tenenbom, viola; Peter Wiley, cello; Anne-Marie McDermott, piano)
Monday, July 30 at 6pm
Carol and Pat Welsh Residence, Vail
Soirée
Calder Quartet
(Benjamin Jacobson, violin; Andrew Bulbrook, violin; Jonathan Moerschel, viola; Eric Beyers, Cello)
Ida Kavafian, violin
Steven Tenenbom, viola
Monday, July 30 at 7:30pm
Brush Creek Pavilion, Eagle
Free & Easy
Jasper String Quartet
(J Freivogel, violin; Sae Chonabayashi; violin, Sam Quintal, viola; Rachel Henderson Freivogel, cello)
Tuesday, July 31 at 6pm
Donovan Pavilion, Vail
Big Music for Little Bands – Silver Nights at the Donovan (Evening I)
Cosma: Promenade sentimentale from the film Diva
Couperin: L’âme-en peine (“The Anguished Soul”)
Evans: Turn Out the Stars
Scriabin: Etude No. 5 in C sharp minor, Op. 42
Korngold: (arr. Prutsman) Farewell Moon
Feldman: Intermission I
Scarlatti: Sonata K. 247
Crumb: Pastorale (from the Kingdom of Atlantis, ca. 10,000 BC) from Makrokosmos No.1
Debussy: Ce qu’a vu le vent d’Ouest (“What the West Wind Saw”)
7pm: Wine and Conversation with Performers and Composers
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Stephen Prutsman, piano
Wednesday, August 1 at 6pm
Donovan Pavilion, Vail
Big Music for Little Bands – Silver Nights at the Donovan (Evening II)
Kahane: Come on all you Ghosts (a Bravo commission)
Adès: Arcadiana for String Quartet
Schubert: “Auf dem Wasser zu Singen”
Ives: “The Things Our Fathers Loved”
Schubert: “Suleika”
Ives: “Tom Sails Away”
Schubert: “Litanei”
7pm: Wine and Conversation with Performers and Composers
7:30pm: Works for solo and four-hands piano
Schumann: Piano Quintet in E-flat major, Op. 44
Gabriel Kahane, singer/composer
Calder String Quartet
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Stephen Prutsman, piano
Thursday, August 2 at 6pm
Donovan Pavilion, Vail
Big Music for Little Bands – Silver Nights at the Donovan (Evening III)
Mackey: Physical Property, I’ve Grown So Ugly – for String Quartet and Electric Guitar
Barber: String Quartet, Op. 11
Golijov: Nonet for two string quartets and double bass
7pm: Wine and Conversation with Performers and Composers
7:30pm: Schubert: Quartettsatz in C minor, D. 703
Glass: The American Four Seasons for violin and string quartet
Robert McDuffie, violin
Steve Mackey, electric guitar
Calder String Quartet
Jasper String Quartet
Saturday, August 4 at 6pm
Vilar Performing Arts Center, Beaver Creek
4 x 4 – A Two Piano Extravaganza REDUX
Alessio Bax, piano
Anne-Marie McDermott, piano
Pedja Muzijevic, piano
Stephen Prutsman, piano
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