Performance Details

Nathalie Stutzmann Conductor
Edgar Moreau Cello

Mazzoli Orpheus Undone
Schumann Cello Concerto
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5

The Lyric Opera of Chicago performs Missy Mazzoli’s opera The Listeners at the Lyric Opera House in Chicago, Illinois.

MISSY MAZZOLI

These Worlds in Us (2006)

ALEX PAXTON

Od Ody Pink’d (2019)

JULIUS EASTMAN

Stay on It (1973)

MISSY MAZZOLI

Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) (2013)

JESSIE COX

Schattenspiel (Shadow Play) (2023)

DERRICK SKYE

Prisms, Cycles, Leaps (2015)

ALEX PAXTON, TROMBONIST

KEVIN JOHN EDUSEI, CONDUCTOR

BASEL SINFONIETTA

The Lyric Opera of Chicago performs Missy Mazzoli’s opera The Listeners at the Lyric Opera House in Chicago, Illinois.

Roderick Cox conducts the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie and the RIAS Kammerchor in works by Missy Mazzoli, Luciano Berio, and Igor Stravinsky.

The Lyric Opera of Chicago performs Missy Mazzoli’s opera The Listeners at the Lyric Opera House in Chicago, Illinois.

The Lyric Opera of Chicago performs Missy Mazzoli’s opera The Listeners at the Lyric Opera House in Chicago, Illinois.

The Lyric Opera of Chicago performs Missy Mazzoli’s opera The Listeners at the Lyric Opera House in Chicago, Illinois.

Houston Grand Opera performs Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves with libretto by Royce Vavrek at Brown Theater in Houston, Texas.

Houston Grand Opera performs Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves with libretto by Royce Vavrek at Brown Theater in Houston, Texas.

Chamber music of Europe’s luscious Golden Age

Experience the dreamlike beauty of the music of La Belle Époque, with brilliant music highlighting the harp from impressionist master Claude Debussy, and lyrical romanticism of Camille Saint-Saëns.

During the peaceful decades between wars, a new-found optimism and prosperity fueled striking cultural innovation, creating a Golden Age of art and thought across Europe.

Also in this magical program are exciting new pieces from young Australian composers Andrew Ball and Tristan Coelho, exploring imaginative sounds and textures via collisions of acoustic and electronic instruments.

Presented by Hourglass Ensemble

Houston Grand Opera performs Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves with libretto by Royce Vavrek at Brown Theater in Houston, Texas.

Houston Grand Opera performs Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves with libretto by Royce Vavrek at Brown Theater in Houston, Texas.

Houston Grand Opera performs Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves with libretto by Royce Vavrek at Brown Theater in Houston, Texas.

Sergei Prokofiev, Lieutenant Kijé

Missy Mazzoli, Orpheus Undone

Zdenêk Fibich, Symphony No. 2

Experience the transformative magic of orchestral music in an intimate, resonant setting. The Spoleto Festival Orchestra takes you on a sonic journey with a program that combines the serene beauty of Arvo Pärt’s ethereal Fratres, the intense, surging landscapes of Missy Mazzoli in her colorful These Worlds in Us, and the enduring elegance and vibrance of Mozart’s timeless melodies in his Symphony No. 29. Set within the breathtaking acoustics of St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, this concert offers an unforgettable opportunity to hear these masterworks come alive in a space where every note seems to speak directly to you. Let the music envelop you in its power and emotion.

Chautauqua has long offered a cross-fertilization of art forms, bringing together art makers and art lovers in community — and increasingly it serves as an incubator for new, exciting work, providing a window into the process of creative experimentation and excellence. What are the dual roles and responsibilities of the artist and the audience, and what do works of art tell us about cultural, political, and social ideas and/or ideals? This week aims to connect impactful artistic experiences with a deeper understanding of artistic meaning and process from the makers themselves.

PROGRAM

MISSY MAZZOLI: These Worlds in Us
BRUCH: Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, op. 26
—
BERLIOZ: Symphonie fantastique, op. 14

Aspen favorite Gil Shaham returns to play Bruch’s soaring and melodious First Violin Concerto. His impeccable technique, inimitable warmth, and infectious joy in music-making have made him one of the world’s foremost soloists.

Bruch’s concerto was the composer’s first major work, putting him on the musical map, and setting up expectations for comparable achievements that never quite materialized. Soloists have always loved to play this passionate and demanding piece, and audiences have warmly embraced it. Bruch studied violin for several years, and his love for the instrument shines through. When his publisher once suggested he try a work for cello and orchestra, Bruch replied, “I have more important things to do than write stupid cello concertos.” Eugen d’Albert asked for a piano concerto in 1886; Bruch fired back: “Me, write a piano concerto! That’s the limit!” (Bruch eventually wrote beautifully for cello with orchestra, though he never did compose a piano concerto.)

Berlioz’s autobiographical symphony tells of an artist obsessed with a beautiful woman, and is peppered throughout with a melody which represents the object of his fixation. The real woman was the Shakespearean actress Harriet Smithson, who did (hysterically) agree to marry Berlioz — after he took a lethal dose of opium in front of her in a desperate attempt to woo her. The antidote he took worked; the marriage did not.