Details

It's an evening to celebrate, with all the glamour, excitement and spectacular music that you've come to expect from our annual Fundraising Gala. Anyone who has heard the profound voice of Dmitri Hvorostovsky knows the power, the drama, and the innate musicality he possesses. Anyone who has seen him on stage knows that he is one of the most charismatic performers of his generation.

*Tickets purchased for September 14 will be honoured for the new date. Patrons who have already purchased tickets for September 14th but who are unable to attend the concert on September 28th can receive a full refund, or may donate their tickets to the Edmonton Symphony. Tickets must be returned (either in person or by mail) to the Winspear Centre Box Office by Monday, September 21st. Refunds will be made to the original source of payment and tax receipts will be issued for all donated tickets. ESO is a non-profit charitable organization.

$250 Dress Circle Loges/Orchestra Loges (A/B)
$200 Dress Circle (A)
$175 Terrace (B)
$140 Orchestra (C/F)
$85 Upper Circle (D)
$50 Gallery (E)
(click map for interactive version)

Tickets subject to applicable service charges.

Tickets purchased in the A - C sections will receive a tax receipt for the portion of the ticket price above $85. Charitable registration number 118894203RR0001

Thank you to our media sponsor:

Thank you to our media sponsor:

Program Information

Scheduled program (subject to change):

LAVALLÉE - O Canada (Arr Gilliland)

MUSSORGSKY - A Night on Bare Mountain (Orchestrated by Rimsky-Korsakov)

BORODIN - Nocturne (from String Quartet No. 2 in D major) (Arranged by Craig Leon)

MUSSORGSKY - Songs and Dances of Death (Orchestrated by Shostakovich)

SAINT-SAËNS - "Mon cœur s'ouvre à ta voix" (Samson et Dalila) (Arranged by Dragon)

WAGNER - “O du mein holder Abendstern” (Tannhäuser)

RUBINSTEIN - “Na Vozdushnom akiane” (The Demon)

ROSSINI - William Tell: Overture

VERDI - “Il balen del suo sorriso” (Il trovatore)

VERDI - “Cortigiani, vil razza dannata" (Rigoletto)

TAGLIAFERRI - “Passione” (Arranged by Chiaramello)

Artist Information

 

Dmitri Hvorostovsky, baritone

 

Internationally acclaimed Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky was born and studied in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia. In 1989, he won the prestigious Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. From the start, audiences were bowled over by his cultivated voice, innate sense of musical line and natural legato. After his Western operatic debut at the Nice Opera in Tchaikovsky’s Pique Dame, his career exploded to take in regular engagements at the world’s major opera houses and appearances at renowned international festivals, including the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, New York’s Metropolitan Opera, the Paris Opera, the Bavarian State Opera, the Salzburg Festival, the Teatro alla Scala Milan, the Vienna State Opera, and the Chicago Lyric Opera.

A celebrated recitalist in demand in every corner of the globe - from the Far East to the Middle East, from Australia to South America - Hvorostovsky has appeared at such venues as Wigmore Hall, London; Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh; Carnegie Hall, New York; the Teatro alla Scala, Milan; the Tchaikovsky Conservatoire, Moscow; the Liceu, Barcelona; the Suntory Hall, Tokyo; and the Musikverein, Vienna. The singer regularly performs in concert with top orchestras like the New York Philharmonic and the Rotterdam Philharmonic, and conductors, including James Levine, Bernard Haitink, Claudio Abbado, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Yuri Termikanov and Valery Gergiev.

Dmitri retains a strong musical and personal contact with Russia. He became the first opera singer to give a solo concert with orchestra and chorus on Red Square in Moscow; this concert was televised in over 25 countries. Dmitri has gone on to sing a number of prestigious concerts in Moscow as a part of his own special series, ‘Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Friends’. He has invited such celebrated artists as Renee Fleming, Sumi Jo and Sondra Radvonosky. In 2005 he gave an historic tour throughout the cities of Russia at the invitation of President Putin, singing to crowds of hundreds of thousands of people to commemorate the soldiers of the Second World War. Dmitri now tours the cities of Russia and Eastern Europe on an annual basis.

Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s extensive discography spans recital and aria discs for Philips Classics and for Delos Records, as well as complete opera performances on CD and DVD, notably a disc of Verdi arias. His recent releases include 2007’s Heroes and Villains; a disc of Soviet-era songs, Moscow Nights, accompanied by Constantine Orbelian leading the Moscow Chamber and a traditional Russian ensemble, the Style of Five; a DVD in concert with the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal; and Passione Di Napoli, a compendium of blockbuster Neapolitan songs. He has also starred in Don Giovanni Unmasked, an award-winning film (by Rhombus Media) based on the Mozart opera, tackling the dual roles of the lecherous nobleman and his disapproving manservant.

2008/ 09 sees Dmitri open the season in San Francisco with Simon Boccanegra. He will then be singing Il Trovatore with the Metropolitan Opera and at also Covent Garden. In concert, Dmitri will be touring Europe singing for the first time with celebrated pianist Evgeny Kissin as his accompanist. He will also undertake lieder concerts in the US, Europe and Russia. In May 2009 Dmitri will be reunited with Anna Netrebko for a number of spectacular gala concerts which are surely to be a highlight of the season.

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William Eddins, conductor

 

William Eddins is in his fifth season as Music Director of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. A native of Buffalo, New York, he currently resides in Minneapolis with his lovely wife Jen, a clarinetist, and their two boys Raef (AKA Raefster; Munchers) and Riley (AKA Squeaky; The Imp; Dr. No).

Bill has been playing piano since he was five when his parents bought a Wurlitzer Grand piano at a garage sale. He started conducting during his sophomore year at the Eastman School of Music, and most of the '80s were spent trying to decide whether to pursue a career in conducting or piano. The quandary was answered for him when he realized that the life of a poor, starving pianist was for the birds. In 1989 Bill decided to study conducting with Dan Lewis at the University of Southern California, from whence he managed to land assistant conductor posts with the Chicago Symphony and the Minnesota Orchestra in 1992.

Bill has many non-musical hobbies including: cooking, eating, discussing food, and planning dinner parties. He is also quite fond of biking, tennis, reading, and pinball. Unfortunately, due to pianistic paranoia his days in the martial arts are long over.

Bill is committed to bringing classical music to the greater public. He has started a podcast – Classical Connections – which is dedicated to exploring the history of classical music and highlights live chamber music performances in which Bill has taken part (check it out for yourself at Bill Eddins' website). He has also produced a solo piano CD – Bad Boys, Volume I – which features Beethoven's "Hammerklavier" Sonata and Albright's Nightmare Fantasy Rag. His latest recording, on the Naxos label, features American music for cello and orchestra.

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Lucas Waldin, conductor

 

The 2009/10 season marks the first for Lucas Waldin as Resident Conductor for the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. This mentorship position is made possible through the Canada Council for the Arts. Mr. Waldin graduated in 2006 from the Cleveland Institute of Music with a Masters in Conducting. He has performed with L'Orchestre du Festival Beaulieu-Sur-Mer (Monaco), Staatstheater Cottbus (Brandenburg), and Bachakademie Stuttgart. Lucas was assistant conductor of the contemporary orchestra RED (Cleveland), director of the Cleveland Bach Consort, and a Discovery Series Conductor at the Oregon Bach Festival. In 2007, he was invited to conduct the Miami-based New World Symphony Orchestra in masterclasses given by Michael Tilson Thomas. In Lucerne in 2009, he also participated in a masterclass led by Bernard Haitink, with the Lucerne Festival Strings.

A native of Toronto, Lucas Waldin has spent summers studying in Europe, including studies at the International Music Academy in Leipzig, the Bayreuth Youth Orchestra, and the Acanthes New Music Festival in France. On this continent, he has studied under the renowned Bach conductor Helmut Rilling at the Oregon Bach Festival, and has attended conducting masterclasses with the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra in Toronto. Mr. Waldin received a Bachelor of Music degree in flute performance from the Cleveland Institute, studying with Joshua Smith.

Media

Dmitri Hvorostovsky performs the Toreador Song from "Carmen":

Read reviews of recent performances by Dmitri Hvorostovsky:

Chicago Tribune - August 17, 2009
Chicago Tribune - August 20, 2009
Chicago Sun Times - August 17, 2009
Chicago Sun Times - August 20, 2009