Contact:  Meg Whalen, Director of Public Relations
E: megw@charlottesymphony.org
P: 704-714-5114
W: www.charlottesymphony.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                                                       March 11, 2011

Charlotte Symphony Announces 2011-2012 Classics Series for its 80th Season

The Charlotte Symphony (CSO) announces today the 2011-2012 Classics series and second season of Music Director Christopher Warren-Green. Founded in 1932, the 2011-2012 season marks the 80th anniversary of the Charlotte Symphony.

Warren-Green will conduct eight of the ten programs in a Classics series that continues the Symphony’s tradition of highlighting emerging, exceptionally gifted soloists who are the brightest of their generation. Guest performers include pianist Martina Filjak, cellist Joshua Roman, pianist Joyce Yang, violinist Chad Hoopes, and Swedish soprano Klara Ek. Guest conductors include the esteemed Music Director of the North Carolina Symphony, Grant Llewellyn, and Michael Stern, conductor of the Kansas City Symphony in Kansas City, Missouri.

Christopher Warren-Green opens the season on September 16 and 17 with the passionate music of beloved Russian composers – Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, and Mussorgsky. Featured soloist is the young Croatian pianist Martina Filjak, who will perform Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat Minor. Filjak was the winner of the 2009 Cleveland International Piano Competition and took First Prize at both the 2007 Viotti International Music Competition and the 2008 International Music Competition Maria Canals.

The third program of the Classics series, on November 11 and 12, features “subscribers’ choice.” Classics subscribers will vote for their choice of a Mozart symphony to be performed on the concert with Mozart’s Requiem. Long absent from Classics concerts, instrumental music by J.S. Bach will be performed on two programs this season: the Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 in November and the Orchestral Suite No. 1 in April.

Classics 8 celebrates the music of Tchaikovsky as part of a month-long Tchaikovsky Festival, presented in collaboration with Opera Carolina and the North Carolina Dance Theatre. In addition to the Classics concerts, festival performances throughout the month of March include Opera Carolina’s production of Eugene Onegin, ballet with NCDT, and a special KnightSounds series concert by the Charlotte Symphony.

"When I moved to Charlotte, it was a treat to discover the presence of the North Carolina Dance Theatre and Opera Carolina in the city,” says Music Director Christopher Warren-Green. “I saw the opportunity for the Symphony to collaborate with both of these wonderful arts organizations to showcase the talent of Charlotte. The Tchaikovsky Festival in March 2012 promises to be an exciting partnership."

The 2011-2012 season comes to a magnificent conclusion in May with Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis, performed with the Oratorio Singers of Charlotte. In addition to the Symphony’s 80th year, this season also marks the 60th anniversary of the Oratorio Singers of Charlotte. Missa Solemnis is arguably one of Beethoven’s greatest achievements, contemporaneous with his famous Symphony No. 9.

The complete 2011-2012 Classics series is below. All concerts take place at 8 p.m. at the Belk Theater, Blumenthal Performing Arts Center. “Musically Speaking” pre-concert talks begin at 7 p.m.

Season subscriptions are available by calling 704-972-2000 or online at www.charlottesymphony.org.

Charlotte Symphony 2011-2012 CLASSICS SERIES

About the Charlotte Symphony
The Charlotte Symphony is the largest performing arts organization in the Charlotte region and the largest professional orchestra in the central Carolinas, employing more than 100 musicians, 62 on full-time contracts.  The orchestra performs nearly 100 concerts each year, reaching more than 200,000 listeners. The CSO also operates the Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestras and the Oratorio Singers of Charlotte and is committed to broad educational outreach. The CSO is supported by ticket revenue, generous corporate and individual giving, and foundation grants and receives operating support from the N.C. Arts Council and the Arts & Science Council.

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