Saturday, april 27th, 2024 | 7:30pm
Umstattd Hall | Zimmermann Symphony Center
2331 17th St. NW
Canton, OH 44708
TICKETS
$10 / $25 / $37 / $50
All tickets, excluding children and students, are subject to a $2 processing fee.
Student Tickets (18+ with ID): FREE
Children 17 and under: FREE
Veterans, First Responders, Healthcare Workers, & Educators: 20% off
SNAP & Medicaid Recipients: 20% off
* Children’s and Student tickets available over the phone or at the box office day of show with ID*
Box Office: 330-452-2094
boxoffice@cantonsymphony.org
DESCRIPTION
This concert will be conducted by CSO Music Director Designate, Matthew Jenkins Jaroszewicz.
The Canton Symphony’s 2023-24 season concludes with Rhapsodies from Bohemia! Many people think that Gustav Mahler was German or Austrian, but in fact, he was born in Bohemia, the western part of modern-day Czech Republic. We conclude our season with his epic First Symphony, appropriately nicknamed, “The Titan.” The first movement is like a musical sunrise. The third movement features a spooky, minor key setting of Frère Jacques – a popular nursery rhyme of French origin. Finally, the fourth movement crescendos into an epic, celebratory wall of sound that will bring the season to a soaring conclusion.
The concert opens with the music of Dvořák and Smetana, two Bohemian composers who took inspiration from their country’s folk tradition. We also feature mezzo-soprano Melanie Ashkar on songs by both Gustav & Alma Mahler.
PROGRAM
Slavonic Dance No. 8…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..Antonin Dvořák
Dance of the Comedians…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Bedřich Smetana
Selected Songs……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..Alma Mahler/orch. Jorma Panula
The Quiet Town
With You It Is Pleasant
I Stroll Among Flowers
I Went Out This Morning Through The Fields from Songs of a Wayfarer..………………..Gustav Mahler
Rheinlegendchen from The Youth’s Magic Horn…………………………………………………………………………Gustav Mahler
Intermission
Symphony No. 1…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..Gustav Mahler
Pre-Concert Lecture
Join us for our final “Performance Prelude” at 6:30pm in Foundation Hall to discuss the contrast between pieces by Gustav and Alma Mahler.
ARTIST SPOTLIGHT
Lebanese-American mezzo-soprano Melanie Ashkar is known for the “rich texture” of her voice and her “delightfully expressive” stage presence. A frequent interpreter of opera, she has performed across the United States with companies such as Utah Opera, Central City Opera, New York City Opera, OperaDelaware, Opera Southwest, and Virginia Opera. Her repertoire includes Mother in Amahl and the Night Visitors, Olga in Eugene Onegin, Third Lady in The Magic Flute, the Witch in Hansel and Gretel, Jo in Little Women, and Flora in La Traviata, among other roles. On the concert stage, she has appeared as the alto soloist in Messiah with the Utah Symphony, in Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle with the Oratorio Society of Virginia, and in Beethoven’s Mass in C Major with the Chesapeake Chorale. Melanie has received awards from the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Opera Piccola, the Schuyler Foundation for Career Bridges Grant Awards, and the Gerda Lissner Foundation. A Washington, DC native, she holds degrees from the University of Virginia, Georgetown University, and Mannes College.
ALMA MAHLER
Alma Mahler was an Austrian composer and musician who was born in 1879. She was a talented pianist and singer, and she began composing music at a young age. Mahler’s music is characterized by its rich harmonies and expressive melodies, and she often drew inspiration from her personal experiences and emotions. Some of her most famous works include “Five Songs for Voice and Piano,” “Die stille Stadt,” and “Laue Sommernacht.” Despite her talent and success as a composer, Mahler was often overshadowed by her famous husband, the composer Gustav Mahler. She later became involved with other prominent artists and intellectuals of the time, including the painter Oskar Kokoschka and the writer Franz Werfel. Mahler’s legacy as a composer continues to be celebrated today, and her music is recognized as an important contribution to the classical music tradition.
Co-Sponsor
Brad & Sue Goris
Participating Sponsors
Pat Gillespie
