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Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra Announces 2016 Masterworks Season

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NASA

Tickets go on sale today for the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra’s Masterworks season. 

Twelve different programs will stretch from October until next June. Music lovers can anticipate a season filled with color, drama and brilliance featuring superstar performers such as André Watts and William Wolfram, and the return of fan favorites Gerard Schwarz, JoAnn Falletta, and Naoto Otomo all showcasing beloved repertoire and masterworks by Bernstein, Gershwin, Tchaikovsky, Brahms, Beethoven, Rachmaninoff, and much more.  The season opens in October with “Tao Rachs!” featuring the return of 21-year-old pianist Conrad Tao playing selections from Brahms, Rachmaninoff, and Liszt conducted by Gerald Schwartz.

Two of the events will incorporate video into the performance.  October’s presentation of “The Planets” will feature footage and animation from NASA’s space exploration.  April’s program entitled “Ocean Dreams”, will mix the orchestra with Hawaiian chanting and undersea footage.  Jonathan Parrish is the Executive Director of the Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra.

The complete schedule and tickets can be found at HawaiiSymphonyOrchestra.org.

Season Opener – Masterworks 1: Tao Rachs!

Saturday, October 1 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, October 2 at 4 pm

Gerard Schwarz, conductor

Conrad Tao, piano 

Brahms – Symphony No. 3

Rachmaninoff – Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Liszt – Les préludes

Masterworks 2: The Planets

Sunday, October 30 at 4 pm

Sarah Ioannides, conductor

Ray Chen, violin

Wagenaar – Overture to Taming of the Shrew

Bruch – Violin Concerto No. 1

Holst – The Planets

Masterworks 3: Kennard Plays Liszt

Sunday, November 13 at 4 pm

Ward Stare, conductor

Sean Kennard, piano

Wagner – Overture to Rienzi

Liszt – Piano Concerto No. 1

Sibelius – Symphony No. 5

Masterworks 4: Augustin Plays Lalo

Saturday, November 19 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, November 20 at 4 pm

Marcelo Lehninger, conductor

Augustin Hadelich, violin

Mozart – Overture toThe Magic Flute

Lalo – Symphonie espagnole

Beethoven – Symphony No. 4

Masterworks 5: Ode to Joy

Thursday, December 29 at 7:30 pm and Friday, December 30 at 7:30pm

JoAnn Falletta, conductor

Strauss – Death & Transfiguration

Beethoven – Symphony No. 9, Choral

Masterworks 6: Made In America

Sunday, January 8 at 4 pm

JoAnn Falletta, conductor

William Wolfram, piano

Barber – The School for Scandal Overture

Gershwin – Piano Concerto in F major

John Corigliano – Phantasmagoria Suite

Bernstein – West Side Story Symphonic Dances

Masterworks 7: Brahms Double Concerto

Saturday, February 4 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, February 5 at 4 pm

Xian Zhang, conductor

Ignace Jang, violin

Mark Votapek, cello

Rachmaninoff – Vocalise

Brahms – Violin & Cello Concerto in A minor

Tchaikovsky – Suite from Sleeping Beauty

Tchaikovsky – Marche Slave

Masterworks 8: Schubert “The Great”

Saturday, February 18 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, February 19 at 4 pm

Rune Bergmann, conductor

Joseph Swenson, violin

Barber – Violin Concerto

Schubert – Symphony No. 9, “The Great”

Masterworks 9: Beethoven & Schumann

Sunday, March 19 at 4 pm

Jun Märkl, conductor

Zhang Zuo, piano

Beethoven – Overture to Fidelio

Beethoven – Piano Concerto No. 1

Schumann – Symphony No.3, Rhenish

Masterworks 10: Ocean Dreams

Saturday, April 1 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, April 2 at 4 pm

JoAnn Falletta, conductor

JinJoo Cho, violin

Zemlinsky – The Little Mermaid

Mendelssohn – Violin Concerto

Anders Paulsson – Kumulipo Reflections (World Premiere)

Masterworks 11: Romeo & Juliet

Saturday, May 13 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, May 14 at 4 pm

Ken Lam, conductor

Sayaka Shoji, violin

Vaughan Williams – Five Variants of “Dives and Lazarus”

Respighi – Concerto Gregoriano

Prokofiev – Romeo & Juliet Suite

Masterworks 12: Season Finale with Otomo & Watts

Saturday, June 10 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, June 11 at 4 pm

Naoto Otomo, conductor

André Watts, piano

Rachmaninoff – Piano Concerto No. 2

Ravel – Mother Goose Suite

Stravinsky – The Firebird

For more information, call the Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra Box Office (808) 94-MUSIC – (808) 946-8742 from Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Nick Yee’s passion for music developed at an early age, as he collected jazz and rock records pulled from dusty locations while growing up in both Southern California and Honolulu. In college he started DJing around Honolulu, playing Jazz and Bossa Nova sets at various lounges and clubs under the name dj mr.nick. He started to incorporate Downtempo, House and Breaks into his sets as his popularity grew, eventually getting DJ residences at different Chinatown locations. To this day, he is a fixture in the Honolulu underground club scene, where his live sets are famous for being able to link musical and cultural boundaries, starting mellow and building the audience into a frenzy while steering free of mainstream clichés.
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