Sunday, November 10, 2024 As we continue the PSO’s centennial celebration, this program brings to our attention the brilliant principal players of the orchestra. Variaciones concertantes by Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) was written at a time when the composer’s conflict with the Perón régime caused him great hardship. Friends in other parts of the… Read More
Alberto Ginastera Variaciones concertantes, Op. 23 Alberto Ginastera was born in 1916 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and died in 1983 in Geneva, Switzerland. He composed this work in 1953 on a commission from the Asociación Amigos de la Música in Buenos Aires, and it was first performed in that city the same year under the… Read More
Thursday, October 10, 2024 This gala celebrates so much: Yo-Yo Ma’s first solo appearance with the PSO, the PSO’s hundred years of existence, and the eager, faithful and generous support of Portland audiences. It is the audiences who make the PSO’s milestone possible, and the milestone warrants the appearance of classical music’s most celebrated instrumentalist…. Read More
Sydney Guillaume Lavil Okap Sydney Guillaume was born in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti on July 22, 1982. He now lives in California. Lavil Okap was first heard on April 1, 2023 in Cap-Haïtien, Haiti with the musicians of the Haitian Orchestra Institute under the composer’s direction. It is scored for 2 flutes and piccolo, 2 oboes, 2… Read More
Sunday, September 22, 2024 Tuesday, September 24, 2024 Founded in 1924 as Portland’s Amateur Strand Symphony Orchestra, the Portland Symphony Orchestra has come a great distance in a hundred years. With the community’s support, we have become a fully professional orchestra that is one of Maine’s largest arts organizations, with 83 contracted musicians and… Read More
Anna Clyne Quarter Days Anna Clyne was born in London, England on March 9, 1980. She now lives in the United States. Quarter Days was first heard on October 23, 2023 performed by the South Bend Symphony Orchestra with Alastair Willis on the podium. It is scored for 2 flutes (second doubling on piccolo), 2… Read More
Click here for a digital copy of tonight’s program notes. Below, find the full bio of each past PSO Music Director that will be joining us tonight. Bruce Hangen (1976 – 1986) I. Allegro ma non troppo; un poco maestoso Bruce Hangen is Director of Orchestral Activities and Professor of Conducting at the Boston Conservatory… Read More
Tuesday, June 18, 2024 Selecting a symphonic program to honor Pride Month means choosing from an embarrassment of riches. Along with the composers heard tonight, who either identified as LGBTQ or tried hard to conceal this status, a conservative list would also include Benjamin Britten, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Jennifer Higdon, John Cage, and Francis… Read More
Dame Ethel Smyth Overture to “The Wreckers”, Opera in Three Acts Ethel Smyth was born in Sidup, Kent, England in 1858 and died in Woking, England in 1944. . The full opera was first staged in Leipzig, Germany, in 1906, and the Overture is scored for 2 flutes and piccolo, 2 oboes and English Horn,… Read More
Tuesday, May 7, 2024 It is a great pleasure to welcome the celebrated guitarist Pepe Romero to share the Merrill stage with the PSO and Music Director Eckart Preu for the first time. Mr. Romero’s spectacular career has so far spanned more than six decades and shows no sign of waning. Of particular interest tonight… Read More
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In honor of its 100th anniversary season, the Portland Symphony Orchestra steps beyond Merrill Auditorium and brings the music to you.
This all-new Chamber Music series celebrates the intimate and artistically vibrant nature of small musician led groups as they perform on stages throughout the state of Maine.
Find the answers to all the questions about the orchestra you may be too afraid to ask!
Coming in 2025… The Portland Symphony Orchestra partners with Carnegie Hall to present Link Up: The Orchestra Sings! Link Up is a fully participatory, school-day concert program. Students will fill Merrill Auditorium to sing, play recorders, move, and listen along with the symphony from their seats. This program is designed for students in grades 3-5 but all are welcome and encouraged to participate!
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