Osmo Vänskä to Perform Mozart, MSO to Perform Vänskä
Concert includes world premiere of Metropassacaglia by composer Stephen Heinemann
MINNEAPOLIS, October 29, 2009 – The Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra is thrilled to announce its upcoming concert featuring Minnesota Orchestra Music Director Osmo Vänskä as clarinet soloist and composer.
Sunday, November 22, 2009 at 4:00 p.m.
Central Lutheran Church
333 South 12th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55404
In his first appearance as soloist since moving to Minneapolis six years ago, Vänskä will perform Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto under the baton of MSO Music Director William Schrickel. On the second half of the concert, Schrickel and the orchestra will perform The Bridge, a work by Vänskä that was commissioned and premiered by the MSO in 2008. Only the second orchestral composition by Vänskä, The Bridge was his response to the August 2007 collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis.
“It’s a great honor for the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra to feature Osmo as our soloist in the Mozart,” says Schrickel. “Osmo began his professional musical career as an orchestral clarinetist in his native Finland, and it is remarkable that he continues to play so beautifully while simultaneously leading the Minnesota Orchestra, guest conducting the finest orchestras around the world and carving out time to compose music like The Bridge.”
The concert will also include the world premiere of Metropassacaglia by composer Stephen Heinemann, an Associate Professor of Music at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. The Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra commissioned the piece from Heinemann to celebrate Schrickel’s tenth season as MSO Music Director.
“Steve and I went to high school at the same time back in Palatine, Illinois,” says Schrickel. “We performed in the high school band, and we played together in a couple different jazz groups. To conduct the premiere of a work by Steve written especially for the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra and me is literally a dream come true.”
The concert will also include music celebrating major anniversaries of three other composers: Mutations from Bach by Samuel Barber (born 100 years ago); The World on the Moon by Franz Joseph Haydn (died 200 years ago); and the Symphony #1 by Felix Mendelssohn (born 200 years ago.)
Following the concert, the audience is invited to attend a reception honoring Maestro Vänskä, author Michael Anthony and photographers Greg Helgeson and Ann Marsden as they celebrate the release of Osmo Vänskä: Orchestra Builder, a book that “sets new standards for orchestral conductor biographies” (Kirk House Publishers). The reception, hosted by Central Lutheran Church, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Hilton Garden Inn and Kirk House Publishers, will give guests the opportunity to purchase the book and have it personalized by Vänskä and its creators.
All MSO concerts are free of charge; free-will donations are accepted and appreciated. No tickets or reservations are needed. For more information and directions to the performing venue, please visit www.msoa.net.
Vänskä Plays Mozart, MSO Plays Vänskä
William Schrickel, conductor
Samuel Barber - Mutations from Bach
Franz Joseph Haydn - Overture to The World on the Moon, H. 28/7
Stephen Heinemann - Metropassacaglia (World Premiere—MSO Commission)
Wolfgang Mozart - Concerto for Clarinet & Orchestra in A major, K. 622
Osmo Vänskä, clarinet
Osmo Vänskä - The Bridge (MSO Commission)
Felix Mendelssohn - Symphony #1 in C minor, op. 11
Please visit the www.msoa.net for the full 2009–10 season program.
About William Schrickel and The Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra
The Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra this year celebrates William Schrickel’s 10th season as its Music Director. He was an Assistant Conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra for the 2005-06 season and was the Music Director of the St. Cloud Symphony Orchestra from 2002-2008. He is currently the Acting Principal Bass of the Minnesota Orchestra.
The Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra is in its 28th season. Founded in 1982 by Saint Olaf College graduates, the orchestra has grown from a small chamber ensemble to a full symphony orchestra, a magnet for some of the area’s finest professional and amateur instrumentalists. The primary goal of the orchestra is to reach all corners of the metropolitan area with a full spectrum of orchestral music and to encourage audiences to experience the excitement of live symphonic performances. Visit www.msoa.net for more information.