Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony
Fri Jul 22 — Sat Jul 23, 2022
Orchestra Hall
London-born conductor Kerem Hasan leads a program examining nature’s profound influence on Beethoven and other composers, including Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir, whose exploration of the cosmos, Metacosmos, was premiered to acclaim in 2018 by the New York Philharmonic. Jon Kimura Parker appears as soloist in Beethoven’s evocative Moonlight Sonata, and In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre’s puppet creations will bring to life Bedřich Smetana’s The Moldau.
A Few Things to Know
- Out of Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas, the Sonata No. 14 stood out as an audience favorite even in the composer’s lifetime, particularly its famous opening slow movement. Beethoven seemed flustered by its popularity, and reportedly told a pupil: “Everybody is always talking about the C-sharp minor Sonata! Surely I have written better things.” The title Moonlight was not attached to the music until five years after the Beethoven’s death, when the critic and poet Ludwig Rellstab compared the first movement to the moonlight shining upon Switzerland’s Lake Lucerne.
- Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s Metacosmos is music that embraces large ideas and unexpected juxtapositions—among them beauty, chaos, the human experience and the depths of space. The composer describes its inspiration as “the speculative metaphor of falling into a black hole—the unknown—with endless constellations and layers of opposing forces connecting and communicating with each other, expanding and contracting, projecting a struggle for power as the different sources pull on you and you realize that you are being drawn into a force that is beyond your control.”
- In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre has often collaborated with the Minnesota Orchestra for Young People’s Concerts and Hansel and Gretel productions, and its puppets were also featured at the Orchestra’s 2011 performances of Mozart’s The Magic Flute.
Program
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BEETHOVEN
Piano Sonata No. 14, Moonlight
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THORVALDSDOTTIR
Metacosmos
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SMETANA
The Moldau
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BEETHOVEN
Symphony No. 6, Pastoral
Artists
Minnesota Orchestra
Kerem Hasan
conductor
Jon Kimura Parker
piano
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre
The Grammy Award-winning Minnesota Orchestra, led by Danish conductor Thomas Søndergård—who is serving as music director designate during the 2022-23 season—is recognized for distinguished performances around the world, award-winning recordings and broadcasts, educational engagement programs, and commitment to building the orchestral repertoire of the future. Founded in 1903, the Orchestra has an extensive history of touring throughout Minnesota, nationally and abroad, including high-profile visits in recent years to Cuba, Europe and South Africa. Recording projects undertaken in the past two decades include complete cycles of symphonies by Beethoven, Sibelius and Mahler, all recorded under Osmo Vänskä, who is now the Orchestra’s conductor laureate.
British conductor Kerem Hasan commenced his third season in 2021-22 as chief conductor of the Tiroler Symphonieorchester Innsbruck. In summer 2017, he won the Nestlé and Salzburg Young Conductors Award. Prior to this, he had already attracted attention as a finalist in the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition in London and as associate conductor of the Welsh National Opera. Hasan also returns this season to the Tiroler Landestheater in Innsbruck to conduct Rossini’s L’italiana in Algeri and Mozart‘s The Magic Flute.
Known for his passionate artistry and engaging stage presence, pianist Jon Kimura Parker has performed regularly at the Berlin Philharmonie, Carnegie Hall, London’s South Bank, the Sydney Opera House and the Beijing Concert Hall. In 2019 he was appointed the Minnesota Orchestra’s first-ever creative partner for Summer at Orchestra Hall, a new role in which he is serving as a creative force behind the Orchestra’s summer festival and appearing each summer as a host, performer and personality.
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre (HOBT) produces original plays, hosts puppet shows and workshops and leads residencies throughout the Midwest. For many years it produced the MayDay parade, which is now transitioning to a celebration throughout May. Its recent productions include Impact Theory in June 2022 at the Avalon Theater. HOBT has often collaborated with the Minnesota Orchestra for Young People’s Concerts and Hansel and Gretel productions. At the 2022 Summer at Orchestra Hall festival, it collaborated with the Orchestra in choreographed performances of Smetana’s The Moldau. Its puppets were also featured at 2011 performances of Mozart’s The Magic Flute.
Your Concert Experience
Join us for Q&A’s, hosted discussions, exhibits and more. All free with your concert ticket!
Sounds + Bites
Come early and stay late for Sounds + Bites: special food experiences and free entertainment by outstanding local performers on the magnificent Peavey Plaza. Enjoy a cocktail beside the reflecting pool during our $5 Happy Hour while you listen. Learn more.
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre
ExhibitWhere: Balcony A Lobby
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre uses water, flour, newspaper, paint, and unlimited imagination to tell stories that explore the struggles and celebrations of human existence. Come see themed displays of puppets created by HOBT artists; from large dragon masks to a collection of winged creatures!
Accessibility Services
- Assistive Listening Devices
- Large Print Programs
- Service Animals
- Wheelchair & Accessible Seating
Additional services are available upon request.
Sponsors
The Creative Partner position is supported by Marilyn and Glen Nelson.
