Conductor Courtney Lewis and Discovery Ensemble Present An International Program

Oct. 7, 2011 - PRLog -- “. . . groups like the Discovery Ensemble - a chamber orchestra in its fourth season, made up of talented early-career players - continue to offer concerts of dependably fresh and visceral music-making.” - Jeremy Eichler, Boston Globe

Boston, MA--Conductor Courtney Lewis, whose career is rapidly accelerating, and his acclaimed Boston-based Discovery Ensemble will present their second 2011-2012 season concert at Sanders Theatre in Cambridge on Sunday, November 6 at 3:00 PM [with a pre-concert discussion beginning at 2 PM.]  The program is Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite; Copland’s Clarinet Concerto, Julian Anderson’s Khorovod and Hadyn’s Symphony No. 90.  Sanders Theatre is located at 45 Quincy Street, Cambridge, MA 02138; the venue is wheelchair accessible.  

For American composer Aaron Copland’s beloved Clarinet Concerto, Discovery is honored to present one of the most respected clarinetists in America, William R. Hudgins, principal clarinetist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.  Mr. Hudgins is renowned for the perfection of his technique and the silken beauty of his tone (much like the dedicatee of this concerto, Benny Goodman). Opportunities to hear him as a concerto soloist are rare, so concert-goers won’t want to miss this special occasion.  Clarinet Concerto is also sometimes referred to as the Concerto for Clarinet, Strings and Harp.  Soon after Copland composed his Third Symphony, jazz clarinetist Benny Goodman, in 1947, commissioned Copland to write a clarinet concerto, Goodman told Copland biographer Vivian Perlis.  Goodman premiered the concerto on an NBC radio broadcast with the NBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Fritz Reiner, on November 6, 1950.

The Sunday, November 6 program will also present the modern English composer Julian Anderson and his glistening, breathtaking Khorovod.  Composed in 1994, the piece calls for just fifteen players.  Imagine a string of dances going at different speeds, overlapped and juxtaposed in surprising and intriguing ways.  It is intricate, witty and dazzling, and it will be a real discovery for the audience!

The opening French work of this very international program, Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite, (Ma Mere l'Oye) is a deft evocation of some of the familiar characters and situations from the Tales of Mother Goose.  The composer’s famous orchestral wizardry is nowhere more enchanting than in this work.  Sleeping Beauty's Pavane describes a procession of mourning for Sleeping Beauty, a very delicate and touching scene.  Little Tom Thumb illustrates a rather sad little story, in which Tom Thumb leaves a trail of breadcrumbs to find his way back through the forest.  But the birds eat the crumbs, leaving Tom lost. Ravel's music has a limping and ungainly rhythm, imitating Tom Thumb wandering around in circles in the forest.  Laideronnette (Little Ugly Girl), Empress of the Pagodas is inspired by the Orient.  This piece describes how little statues on pagodas come to life and play music as their Empress enters the water to bathe. The music is dazzling and glorious, full of oriental harmonies and exciting colors.  The conversations of Beauty and the Beast is a charming little waltz, full of the nostalgia of awkward love. Beauty sees through the Beast's horrible appearance to his kindness and courage and eventually he transforms into a handsome prince.  The Fairy Garden illustrates a poetically magical happy ending, but still with a slight tinge of sadness.  

Austrian composer Franz Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 90 in C major is not the one that is nicknamed “The Surprise,” but it should be.  For over two hundred years delighted audiences have been snared in its devilishly ingenious trap.  The symphony is in standard four-movement form and scored for flute, two oboes, two bassoons, two horns, two trumpets, timpani, continuo (harpsichord) and strings.  The finale contains one of Haydn's more famous jokes.  Soon after the recapitulation starts, the music arrives at a rousing and unexpected “ending” in C major followed by four measures of silence which leads the audience to believe the symphony may have actually finished.  Instead, the first theme quietly resumes in the remote key of D-flat major.

Ticket information:

Reserved seat tickets at $35, $28 and $20 are available now at www.discoveryensemble.com, at the Harvard Box office website [www.boxoffice.harvard.edu] or by calling 617-496-2222.  Tickets for this concert and Discovery’s April concert are also available at the Harvard Box Office Booth, located at 1350 Massachusetts Avenue in the Holyoke Center Arcade.  Harvard Box Office hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 12:00 noon to 6:00 P.M.  The box office is closed on Mondays and some holidays.  Tickets for students and seniors with identification will be available at a discount of $10.00 in all price ranges.  

Discovery Ensemble 2011 - 2012 Season Programs:
Sunday, November 6, 2011 at 3:00 PM
Sanders Theatre, Cambridge [discussion at 2 P.M.]
Ravel:  Mother Goose Suite
Julian Anderson:  Khorovod
Copland: Clarinet Concerto, William R. Hudgins, clarinet
Haydn:  Symphony No. 90
Tickets:  $35, $28 and $20


Friday, April 13, 2012 at 8:00 PM
Jordan Hall, Boston [discussion at 7:00 P.M.]
Beethoven:  Leonore Overture No. 2
Salonen:  Mania for Cello and Chamber Orchestra, Kacy Clopton, cello
Debussy:  Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune
Mozart:  Symphony 39
Tickets:  $35, $28 and $20


About Courtney Lewis:

Courtney Lewis, the 27-year-old Conductor and Music Director of Boston’s Discovery Ensemble, Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Associate Conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra now jets from coast to coast and continent to continent and he is jubilant at being able to achieve his lifelong passion for conducting great music with some of the world’s finest orchestras and at the same time conduct and oversee his own orchestra, Discovery Ensemble, based in Boston.

Courtney Lewis is quickly becoming recognized as one of today’s top emerging international talents.  He is not only Founder and Music Director of Boston’s acclaimed Discovery Ensemble, a chamber orchestra with the mission of introducing inner-city school children to classical music while bringing new and unusual repertoire to established concert audiences, but was also recently promoted to Associate Conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra, where he regularly conducts Young People’s concerts, outdoor concerts, and other performances.  With this orchestra this year, he will make his subscription debut and conduct a fully-staged production of Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel.

In November 2008 Lewis also made his major American orchestra debut with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, leading a series of five concerts.  He subsequently spent several weeks assisting Music Director David Robertson.  In addition, he has also worked with the BBC Philharmonic as well as smaller groups including the Nash Ensemble.  Recent engagements include a return to the St. Louis Symphony and successful debuts with the Ulster Orchestra and the New Hampshire Music Festival.  

This past summer, Lewis made his debut at the Sewanee Music Festival and returned to the the British Isles and the Ulster Orchestra for a series of BBC Radio 3 invitation concerts including the New Generation Artists and Discovering Music series.  Lewis will also appear on the Ulster Orchestra’s main subscription series in spring of 2012.  Other upcoming debuts include the RTE National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland and the Atlanta Symphony.

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