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MAGIC at the
SYMPHONY Starring
LYN DILLIES Master Illusionist
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cal music experience,” she says, “but also to push the envelope to reach new audiences. We need to build bridges among cultures and peoples, particularly reaching audiences who are not familiar with symphonic music or who have negative impressions of what symphony orchestras are about.” Shapiro points out that because of the National Symphony Orchestra’s visibility as part of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the nation’s capital—and because of the city’s and region’s broad diversity—the orchestra has a long-established reputation for “portfolio diversity.” This is reflected not just in the organization’s pops programming, but also through Music Director Christoph Eschenbach’s commitment to the NSO’s tradition of adventurous world-music programming. In fact, Shapiro says that one NSO strategic goal is to build itself into a “supersized world-music orchestra.” Last year the NSO played a key role in “maximum INDIA,” the Kennedy Center’s three-week festival of Indian music, dance, and culture which featured contemporary Indian music, including a major commissioned work for orchestra and tabla by Zakir
Hussain, and Western classical works with Indian themes (e.g., Messiaen’s Turangalîla Symphony). Shapiro says the festival drew large sellout crowds from the D.C. area’s extensive multicultural population, especially local Indian residents and visitors. That penchant for ethnic diversity carries over into the orchestra’s pops programming, often propelled by commissions. Pops offerings on the NSO’s 2011-12 season will feature the female a cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock and the orchestra, with guest conductor Thomas Wilkins, performing Affirmations: A Musical Journey of Hope and Aspiration, by African-American composer William Banfield. It will also host John Legend and the Roots in a performance celebrating the 40th anniversary of Marvin Gaye’s seminal R&B album What’s Going On. Shapiro says that this concert will remind a new generation of listeners of all races about the impact of Gaye’s work. In describing the National Symphony Orchestra’s approach to pops programming, Shapiro emphasizes that its decisions reflect its commitment to “building new bridges to a community that is constantly changing.
Rich Ridenour
Gr ea t Mo vies , Gr a nd P ia no
”dazzling showman” “masterfully musical” “wickedly funny” “amazingly versatile”
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symphony
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