Westchester Philharmonic Releases '12-'13 Schedule

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When the Westchester Philharmonic was founded in 1983 as The New Orchestra of Westchester, the small group of community-minded volunteers who were the orchestra’s backers hoped to simply survive the first season.

They could not have imagined that, 30 years later, the Westchester Philharmonic would be the county’s largest and most highly accomplished performing arts organization of any kind.

“They were dreamers,” said Philharmonic Executive Director Joshua Worby, “who believed in the transformational power of music, and with nothing more than that and a modest fundraising drive, they were able to get that first season on its feet. Now look how far this little project has come: Hundreds of thousands of our neighbors, from every community and walk of life, have experienced this great orchestra in their backyard. Tens of thousands of school children have fallen in love with classical music through our educational outreach programs. Legendary artists like Itzhak Perlman and Branford Marsalis have found inspiration on our stage. Previously unknown teenagers like Midori and Joshua Bell took early bows here. The Pulitzer Prize was awarded to a new work we commissioned. Concert-goers have stood and cheered for everything from Beethoven and Tchaikovsky to Sondheim and Duke Ellington. Over thirty years, we have evolved into a true people’s orchestra, and we are deeply thankful to every listener we’ve encountered along the way.”

The 2012-13 main stage season, performed at the Performing Arts Center at , includes highly anticipated return engagements of conductor and violinist Jaime Laredo, Japanese maestra Tomomi Nishimoto and Tony-winner Ted Sperling. Virtuoso violinists Jennifer Koh and Cho-Liang Lin, conductor Tito Muñoz, pianist Jeremy Denk, and guitarist Eliot Fisk will also join the Philharmonic over the course of the season that runs October through May 2013.

By overwhelming audience request, on Saturday, Oct. 6, 2012 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 7, 2012 at 3 p.m. Jaime Laredo returns, this time joined by his former star pupil and now a renowned virtuoso in her own right, Jennifer Koh.

“When Jennifer Koh sets her bow to her violin, the performer falls silent and the composer begins to speak,” noted The Columbus Dispatch.

Laredo, Koh, and the Phil perform Bach's sublime Concerto for Two Violins, then Laredo trades his bow for a baton to lead Koh and the orchestra in the haunting and emotional violin concerto of Jean Sebelius. The Westchester Philharmonic Brass rings in our 30th anniversary season with Dukas' celebratory Fanfare to La Peri, and our opening weekend concludes with an all-time favorite, Mendelssohn's exultant Symphony No. 4.

Rising quickly from assistant conductorships at Cleveland and Cincinnati, Tito Muňoz was recently named music director at the celebrated Opera National de Lorraine and has already guest-conducted the leading orchestras of the world in his young career. On Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 11, 2012 at 3 p.m. he is joined by the uber-talented Jeremy Denk, himself no stranger to the world's major concert stages who The New York Times considers “Bracing, effortlessly virtuosic, and utterly joyous.”

This concert is all-Beethoven perfection: Overture to the ballet Creatures of Prometheus, the Piano Concerto No. 3, considered by many the prototype of the entire genre, and the master's brilliant “Pastoral” Symphony No. 6.

During the holiday season, stars of Broadway sing their way through Tony-winner Ted Sperling's guide to the greatest love stories from musicals past and present. Our annual Winter Pops concert returns on Sunday, Dec. 16, 2012 at 3 p.m. The concert has sold out for five straight years. Tickets buyers are encouraged to order tickets soon!

“There's truth and beauty to his playing. He radiates integrity and affection,” says The Dallas Morning News of violinist Cho-Liang Lin, who commands the music world's highest respect as both a violin virtuoso and a deft leader of chamber orchestras. He joins the Phil in both capacities on Saturday, April 13, 2013 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, April 14, 2013 at 3 p.m. with Vivaldi's masterpiece, The Four Seasons, as timeless and surprising as ever; the transcendent melodies of Elgar's Serenade, and the consummate perfection of Mozart's Second Violin Concerto. Schubert's delectable Polonaise arrives as a perfect dessert.

Last November a young conductor from Japan, largely unknown in this country, ascended our podium, and as the final notes were played, the audience had erupted into a spontaneous ovation. At the insistence of our loyal audience, maestra Tomomi Nishimoto returns on Saturday, May 18, 2013 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, May 19, 2013 at 3 p.m. joined by guitar virtuoso Eliot Fisk.

Dubbed by The New Yorker as “the king of American classical guitar,” Eliot Fisk joins the orchestra for Rodrigo's passionate and exhilarating Concierto Aranjuez. Opening with Smetana's buoyant The Moldau, our 30th anniversary season concludes with a singular achievement of the 20th century, Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony.

All events take place at The Performing Arts Center at Purchase College. Free open rehearsals are scheduled for Saturdays Oct. 6, Nov. 10, April 13 and May 18 at 10 a.m. in The Concert Hall. Additional pre-concert events are TBD. Please visit www.westchesterphil.org for updates.

Concert Tickets

Five and four concert subscriptions are now available and range from $394-89. Single tickets range from $97 to $30. Student/child/group discounts are available.

To purchase tickets and for additional information call the Westchester Philharmonic Box Office at (914) 682-3707 ext. 10.  Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover Card accepted.  Visit the Westchester Philharmonic’s website atwww.westchesterphil.org

About the Westchester Philharmonic

Celebrating its 30th anniversary season, the Westchester Philharmonic orchestra is the only fully-professional symphony orchestra devoted to serving the people of Westchester County.

Recently led by the legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman, the Philharmonic fulfills its mission in the concert hall, in the community, and in the classroom. The Philharmonic performs a main stage Concert Series at the Performing Arts Center Purchase College and partners with local agencies to present free and low-cost concerts for all County residents. Its award-winning education program serves over 2,000 elementary school students.

The orchestra is comprised of the finest musicians from the greater New York area and has worked with the world’s finest soloists, including Midori, Joshua Bell, and the late Isaac Stern. With a focus on presenting the best music of the past and present, the orchestra places particular emphasis on providing young musicians with an opportunity to perform with, or compose for, a professional symphony orchestra early in their careers. The Philharmonic has become a home for living American composers and has proudly commissioned many orchestral works such as Melinda Wagner’s Concerto for Flute, Strings and Percussion, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize.

The orchestra is dedicated to inviting and attracting people of diverse backgrounds to its concerts and continues to explore new partnerships with local schools, libraries, and community centers, so that all in the community have the opportunity to experience the joy of a live, classical music concert.