Bramwell Tovey conducts, women of the Providence Singers for Holst’s ‘The Planets’ and premieres one of his award-winning compositions, October 18-19

The TACO Classical Concert is on Saturday, October 19, 8 p.m.
The Amica Rush Hour Concert is on Friday, October 18, 6:30 p.m.

-Bramwell Tovey
Artistic Advisor
RI Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School

About James Ehnes, violin
James Ehnes is one of the most sought-after violinists on the international stage. Gifted with a rare combination of stunning virtuosity, serene lyricism and an unfaltering musicality, Ehnes is a favorite guest of many of the world’s most respected conductors including, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Marin Alsop, Sir Andrew Davis, Stéphane Denève, Sir Mark Philip Elder, Ivan Fischer, Edward Gardner, Paavo Järvi, Juanjo Mena, Gianandrea Noseda, David Robertson and Donald Runnicles. His long list of performing with orchestras includes Boston, Chicago, London, NHK and Vienna symphony orchestras, Los Angeles, New York, Munich and Czech philharmonic orchestras, and Cleveland, Philadelphia, Philharmonia and DSO Berlin orchestras.

Ehnes’s recent orchestral highlights include the MET Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, San Francisco and Frankfurt Radio symphonies, Hong Kong Philharmonic and Gothenburg Symphony. He also debuted with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Lincoln Center in spring 2019 and held a residency with the Minnesota Orchestra throughout 2017-18. In 2017, Ehnes premiered the Aaron-Jay Kernis Violin Concerto with the Toronto, Seattle and Dallas symphony orchestras, and gave additional performances of the piece with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Ehnes was awarded the 2017 Royal Philharmonic Society Award in the Instrumentalist category.

Ehnes began his violin studies at the age of five, became a protégé of the noted Canadian violinist Francis Chaplin when he was nine, and made his orchestra debut with Orchestra Symphonique de Montréal at age 13. He continued his studies with Sally Thomas at the Meadowmount School of Music and The Juilliard School, winning the Peter Mennin Prize for Outstanding Achievement and Leadership in Music upon his graduation in 1997. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and in 2010 was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada.

About the Providence Singers, Christine Noel, Artistic Director
Christine Noel recently conducted the RI Philharmonic and the Providence Singers in Handel’s Messiah. She conducted the chorus with orchestra in Bach, Cantata 140, Mozart’s Coronation Mass, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mozart’s Vesperae solennes de confessore, and Haydn’s Nelson Mass. She has led the Providence Singers through world premieres, commissions and, most recently, the Singers’ fourth commercial recording—Dan Forrest’s Requiem for the Living. Dr. Noel has served on the music faculty and as Director of Choral Activities at Clark University, Worcester, and as musical director at Trinity Repertory Company. She has prepared choruses for Larry Rachleff, Ann Howard Jones, Robert Page and Bramwell Tovey. She is Founder and Artistic Director of the award-winning Rhode Island Children’s Chorus, which has performed at conventions of the American Choral Directors Association and the Music Educators’ National Conference and at Carnegie Hall. An active guest conductor, festival clinician and adjudicator, she holds a Master of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts in conducting from Boston University, where she studied with Ann Howard Jones and David Hoose. She holds an undergraduate degree in Music Education from Rhode Island College, where she was awarded a grant from the Ridgway F. Shinn, Jr. Study Abroad Fund enabling her to spend a year of study at the Kodály Institute of Music in Kecskemét, Hungary. Dr. Noel completed the superior level of Italian studies at the Università degli Studi di Firenze and served as assistant conductor and vocal coach for two Italian choirs, Animae Voces and Coro Polifonico di Caricentro di Firenze.

 Providence Singers
Founded in 1971, the Providence Singers under the direction of Christine Noel celebrates choral art through concerts of masterworks and contemporary works, creative collaborations, recordings of American choral treasures, new music commissions and education programs. In addition to an annual concert series, the Singers has made frequent guest appearances throughout the region, including annual concerts with the RI Philharmonic Orchestra. The Singers performed with Kronos Quartet at FirstWorks, Dave Brubeck Quartet at Lincoln Center and Newport Jazz Festival, Boston Modern Orchestra Project, New Haven Philharmonic, Aurea Ensemble, Brown University Chorus and New Bedford Symphony.

It released four CD recordings of contemporary choral compositions and presented a choral festival of American masterpieces underwritten by the National Endowment for the Arts. The Singers commissions new choral works through its Wachner Fund for New Music; recognizes national leaders in the choral profession through its New Rhythmus Award; and fosters community education and participation through vocal workshops, concert discussions, and community sings. It supports emerging talent through its Fassett Fellowships for young adult singers and through the Junior Providence Singers and Young Men’s Choral Festival. It was awarded the Jabez Gorham Award from the Arts and Business Council of Rhode Island in 2008 for “unwavering commitment to excellence, significant impact on the community, and success in organizational development.”

About Bramwell Tovey, Artistic Advisor and Conductor
As Artistic Advisor and Conductor of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School, Bramwell Tovey embarks on his first official full season leading the Orchestra. Since his appointment last September, Tovey has collaborated closely with staff and musicians to plan for this and future seasons. Last season, he conducted two stunning programs. In May, he spent time with our education community: visiting local schools; attending our full week of Link Up education concerts with area elementary school students; and holding masterclasses at the Philharmonic Music School’s Carter Center. During the 2019-20 season, he will lead the Orchestra in 19 performances, and nine concert programs.

About the concert: stories behind the music
Bramwell Tovey (1953– )
Urban Runway
Fashion re-imagined: Urban Runway (2008) bases its title on the “fashion shows” that may be seen on the sidewalks of Fifth Avenue (New York) and Rodeo Drive (Los Angeles). The idea is that the clothing that customers buy and wear influences how they walk and exhibit unique idiosyncrasies.
Listen for this: According to composer Tovey, “The score is laced with jazz and minimalist flavors. A flugelhorn and marimba introduce distinctive elements, and perhaps characteristically, the violas take a moment to remind us of the benefits of the ‘pre-owned’ grunge look.”

Samuel Barber (1910–1981)
Violin Concerto, Op. 14
Critical composition: Barber’s Violin Concerto has been termed a pivotal work in his style development. The first two movements could be called the culmination of his neo-Romantic period of the 1930s. His gift for flowing lyricism can be heard right from the first theme announced by the violin. Listen for this: The rhythmic second theme, introduced by the clarinet, is picked up and embellished by the violin and orchestra. In place of a big virtuosic violin solo, Barber gives the violin a vocal-style “recitative.” The second movement continues and rhapsodically amplifies the work’s Romantic lyricism and rhythmic vitality. Two themes are heard, then a contrasting middle section, then the two themes return.

Gustav Holst (1874–1934)
The Planets
Many sounds: The most memorable melodies of The Planets come in the Jupiter movement. After the spirited introduction, follows a theme that is the quintessence of English jollity. Close on its heels comes a noble hymn (which Holst later set to words) that gathers amazing strength. Later, a quick-march tune appears before an apotheosis of previous themes. Neptune employs a wordless female chorus offstage. At the suite’s ending, two repeated chords gradually fade until no longer audible.
Listen for this: Venus opens in a mood of placid coolness. Though composed in an age of silent movies, Holst’s theme for solo violin anticipates the lush film scores of the late 1930s. Gently rocking repetitions quietly close the movement.

The Planets
TACO Classical Concert
Saturday, Oct. 19, 8 p.m.
The VETS, One Avenue of the Arts

Tickets start at $15 (including all fees), and can be purchased online at tickets.riphil.org, in person from the RI Philharmonic Orchestra Box Office in East Providence, or by phone 401.248.7000 (Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.). On day of concerts only, tickets are also available at The VETS Box Office (Friday, 3:30 p.m.–showtime; Saturday, 4 p.m.-showtime). Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more. Questions can be emailed to boxoffice@riphil.org.