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Hasan Kerem, conductor
Kerem Hasan, conductor | © Tristan Fewings

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.

Free pre-concert entertainment Jul 22: 6:45–7:45PM Jack Brass Band / PEAVEY PLAZA
Free pre-concert entertainment Jul 23: 6:45–7:45PM Spoonbridge / PEAVEY PLAZA
Post concert on Jul 22 Join us for NightCap
Free post-concert entertainment Jul 23: 10:00–11:00PM Mary Louise Knutson Trio / TARGET ATRIUM

Pre-order your Bubbles and Bites: A sweet and savory sharable basket of goodies, paired with Prosecco Rosé. Learn more

Want to check out the rest of the schedule for the summer? Visit Sounds + Bites

A Few Things to Know

  1. 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.
  2. 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.”
  3. 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.

Date & Time

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Program

  • BEETHOVEN

    Piano Sonata No. 14, Moonlight

  • THORVALDSDOTTIR

    Metacosmos

  • SMETANA

    The Moldau

  • 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

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

Exhibit

Where: 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

MSAB
Delta
Target
UBS

The Creative Partner position is supported by Marilyn and Glen Nelson.