ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) welcomes conductor Karina Canellakis and violinist Renaud Capuçon for a weekend of performances anchored by works by Beethoven and Schumann.
The concerts will be on Friday, January 18, 2019, at 10:30 am and Saturday, January 19, 2019, at 8:00 pm.
Acclaimed by the Los Angeles Times as a “rising conductor,” Canellakis, the chief conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, makes her SLSO debut conducting a program of Austro-Germanic repertoire.
Canellakis is one of five conductors making their SLSO debut in the 2018/2019 season, the SLSO’s 139th.
Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 3 opens the program – one of four overtures the composer wrote for his opera, Fidelio. Leonore Overture No. 3 became the most popular of the four Fidelio overtures.
Then, violinist Renaud Capuçon performs with the SLSO in Schumann’s Violin Concerto. One of Schumann’s last significant compositions, his Violin Concerto is noted for the symphonic nature of its opening movement. Hailed for his “generously warm and forthright style” (The Guardian), Capuçon returns for his second engagement with the SLSO.
The SLSO premiere of Richard Strauss’ Symphonic Fantasy from Die Frau ohne Schatten – translated to The Woman Without a Shadow – opens the second half of the program. Selections of music from the composer’s opera of the same name tell the story of a gazelle-turned-empress who must gain a shadow before her husband turns to stone. The piece is one of 12 works added to the SLSO repertoire this year, including two world premieres: Christopher Rouse’s Bassoon Concerto (November 16-17, 2018) and Jeff Beal’s New Song Cycle (May 3-4, 2019). Closing the program is Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphosis, a four-movement suite inspired by themes by German composer Carl Maria von Weber.
Friday, January 18, 2019, 10:30 am
Saturday, January 19, 2019, 8:00 pm
Powell Hall, 718 N. Grand Blvd., St. Louis, MO
Karina Canellakis, conductor
Renaud Capuҫon, violin
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3
SCHUMANN Violin Concerto
R. STRAUSS Symphonic Fantasy from Die Frau ohne Schatten
HINDEMITH Symphonic Metamorphosis
Audiences can attend the free Pre-Concert Conversation at 9:30 am Friday and 7:00 pm Saturday in the auditorium. This weekend, the conversations are hosted by pianist Peter Henderson.
Tune in to St. Louis Public Radio on Saturday, January 19, 2019, at 8:00 pm for the live broadcast of the performance, along with interviews of Canellakis and Capuҫon during intermission. Listen on air (90.7 FM KWMU) or online.
The 18/19 SLSO Classical Season is presented by World Wide Technology and the Steward Family Foundation and runs through May 12, 2019.
Tickets are on sale now and may be purchased at www.slso.org or by calling the Box Office at 314-534-1700.