The Oregon Symphony’s season has been pretty darned eclectic. Beginning with renowned pianist Jeffrey Kahane performing Gershwin’s Concerto in F, the most popular American piano concerto; on Election Day the Capitol Steps bring their wickedly funny take on politics; and the following evening the incomparable Tony Bennett leaves his heart in the Rose City, accompanied by his daughter, singer Antonia Bennett. Kids and their families will enjoy swashbuckling adventures on the high seas with the first Kids’ Concert of the season (“Pirates”), and Artist in Residence Alban Gerhardt returns to perform Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C major. Theatre icon Bernadette Peters sings an evening of Broadway classics, and fans of Disney films will enjoy a Pops concert of blockbuster hits from Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, and The Lion King and more.
Tickets can be purchased online at any time from the orchestra’s website, OrSymphony.org; at the Oregon Symphony Ticket Office, 923 SW Washington St., in downtown Portland (M-F, 10 am-6 pm); by phone at (503) 228-1353 or (800) 228-7343 (M-F, 10 am-9 pm); and at the concert hall box office starting two hours before the performance.
Herewith November:
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 1, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 2, MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3
Kahane
JEFFREY KAHANE PLAYS GERSHWIN: Nov. 1 and Nov. 2 at 7:30 pm; Nov. 3 at 8 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.
The Performers: The Oregon Symphony, with Music Director Carlos Kalmar; *Jeffrey Kahane, piano
The Program: Dukas: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, *Gershwin: Concerto in F, Prokofiev: Cinderella Suite from the ballet
At the keyboard and on the podium, Jeffrey Kahane has established an international reputation as a truly versatile artist, recognized by audiences around the world for his mastery of a diverse repertoire ranging from Bach, Mozart and Beethoven to Gershwin, Golijov and John Adams. Music Director Carlos Kalmar has selected his own suite of movements from Sergei Prokofiev’s ballet Cinderella to perform on these concerts. This version of Cinderella is an Oregon Symphony debut. In addition to his career as a soloist, Kahane is equally well known for his collaborations with artists and chamber ensembles such as Yo-Yo Ma, Dawn Upshaw, Joshua Bell, Thomas Quasthoff and the Emerson and Takács Quartets.
Tickets: Begin at $22
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER. 4
THE CAPITOL STEPS 7:30 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. The Oregon Symphony does not perform.
The Program (subject to change, to reflect any new scandals of the day): Like A Rolling Drone, The Big Benghazi Theory, Fiscal Shades of Gray, Pope and Change, Barrack Around the Clock, Brat’s in the Cradle, When IRS Guys Are Smiling, De-Face the Nation, One Joke Over the Line, Throw Congress from the Train, Honey I Blew Up the Deficit, Obamascare, Lirty Dies. The Capitol Steps began in 1981, at a Christmas party in the office of former Senator Charles Percy. Over the past thirty years, the Capitol Steps have performed for five sitting U.S. Presidents, and recorded thirty-four albums. They have also appeared on “Good Morning America,” the “Today Show,” “20/20,” “Entertainment Tonight,” “Nightline,” CNN’s “Inside Politics,” and dozens of times on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered.”
Tickets: Begin at $25
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5
TONY BENNETT 7:30 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. The Oregon Symphony does not perform.
The Performers: Tony Bennett and his daughter Antonia Bennett, vocals
An evening of his standards. Bennett performs with a special guest artist – his daughter Antonia, a noted jazz vocalist in her own right. Mr. Bennett and Antonia Bennett will announce their program from the stage. Bennett has won 17 Grammy Awards and became a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2006. In that same year, he was also named a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition, Bennett has received a Citizen of the World Award from the United Nations and Billboard Magazine’s Century Award in honor of his outstanding contributions to music. Bennett’s daughter Antonia has been singing with her father since early childhood.
Tickets: Begin at $45
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9
Pam Mahon
PIRATES! [Kids’ Concert] 2 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.
The Performers: The Oregon Symphony, with Resident Conductor Paul Ghun Kim; narrator Pam Mahon; Pacific Youth Choir and Dance West
The Program: Wagner: Overture to The Flying Dutchman, Sullivan: “I Am a Pirate King” from Pirates of Penzance, Zimmermann: Anchors Aweigh, Mendelssohn: The Hebrides Overture, Op. 26, “Fingal’s Cave,” Handel: Suite No. 1 in F major, HWV 348, from Water Music, Charlap: “I’ve Gotta Crow” from Peter Pan, Korngold: Overture to Captain Blood, Elgar: Sea Pictures, Op. 37, Traditional: Sailor’s Hornpipe, Verdi: Traviata Act I: Introduction and “Libiamo ne’lieti calici,” Rossini: Overture to William Tell, Badelt: Selections from Pirates of the Caribbean, Grainger: Shepherd’s Hey, Williams: “Flight to Neverland” from Hook.
Tickets: Begin at $10
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15, MONDAY, NOV. 17
Gerhardt
ALBAN GERHARDT PLAYS HAYDN Noember. 15 at 7:30 pm; November 17 at 8 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. (This concert will also be performed in Salem on Nov. 14 at 8 pm. More information.)
The Performers: The Oregon Symphony, with Music Director Carlos Kalmar; *Alban Gerhardt, cello
The Program: *Haydn: Cello Concerto in C major, Mahler: Symphony No. 5. Acclaimed cellist Alban Gerhardt returns to the Oregon Symphony to begin his third year as Artist in Residence with these performances of Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C major. Gerhardt’s affinity for Haydn stretches back to his first public performance, in which he performed Haydn’s D major cello concerto at the age of 18. Kalmar and the Oregon Symphony perform Gustav Mahler’s epic Symphony No. 5, with its famous fourth movement Adagietto, for the first time in almost ten years. As has become his custom, Gerhardt often joins the cello section for the second half of the concert; look for him during the Mahler.
Tickets: Begin at $22
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22
BERNADETTE PETERS 7:30 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.
The Performers: The Oregon Symphony with Resident Conductor Paul Ghun Kim and Music Director/Conductor Marvin Laird; Bernadette Peters, vocals
The Program: Ms. Peters will announce her program from the stage. Theatre critic Frank Rich summed up Peters’ career better than anyone else when he wrote: “As an actress, singer, comedienne and all-around warming presence, Bernadette Peters has no peer in the musical theatre right now.” Over her five-decade career, Peters has been nominated for seven Tony awards, winning two. She has garnered nine Drama Desk Award nominations and won three.
Tickets: Begin at $30
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER. 29, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER. 30
TALE AS OLD AS TIME: DISNEY IN CONCERT November 29 at 7:30 pm and November 30 at 3 pm at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.
The Performers: The Oregon Symphony, with Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik; Lisa Livesay, vocals; Arielle Jacobs, vocals; Anthony Apicella, vocals; Terron Brooks, vocals
The Program: Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid and many more – come to life in this multi-media showpiece of Disney’s movies, music and characters. The concert includes clips from favorite Disney films shown while four vocalists, the Oregon Symphony and Tyzik present classic Disney music. Singer Arielle Jacobs starred on Broadway as Nina Rosario in the four-time Tony & Grammy award winning musical In The Heights. Vocalist Lisa Livesay was most recently seen as Glinda in the national tour of Wicked. Terron Brooks is an accomplished singer/songwriter/actor who has performed with Stevie Wonder, Josh Groban, Randy Jackson, Sheila E., Smokey Robinson and Michael Jackson, among others.
Tickets: Begin at $22
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