The Cleveland Orchestra January 9, 11, 12 Concerts

SEASON

An American in Paris JANUARY 9, 11 & 12, 2025

E X PEC T T H E E X T R AOR DI NARY

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Anthony McGill, clarinet and Emmanuel Ax, piano The duo will perform works by Robert Schumann, Jessie Montgomery, Franz Schubert, James Lee, Florence Price, Ludwig Von Beethoven, and Leonard Bernstein Tuesday, February 4

Midori

This visionary artist, activist, global cultural ambassador, and music educator will perform works by Che Buford, Brahms, Poulenc, and Ravel, in collaboration with pianist Özgür Aydin.

Wednesday, March 5

Martha Redbone Roots Project Martha Redbone and her ensemble blend the sounds of her coal country roots In Harlan County, KY, with folk, blues, and gospel from the ancestors of the Black migration, mixed with the region’s indigenous heritage.

Sunday, April 6

Jessie Montgomery + Third Coast Percussion The GRAMMY-winning percussion quartet is joined by GRAMMY-winning composer and acclaimed violinist Jessie Montgomery in a program of works by Lu Harrison, Tigran Hamasyan, Jlin, Philip Glass, and Montgomery.

Wednesday, April 30

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PAG E 3 Introduction PAG E 7

TH IS WE EK ’ S PROG R AM An American in Paris Stéphane Denève, conductor

La création du monde (The Creation of the World), Op. 81 (page 8)

by Darius Milhaud

A Kind of Trane (page 12)

by Guillaume Connesson Steven Banks, saxophone

Suite from Les biches (The Does) (page 16)

by Francis Poulenc

An American in Paris (page 20)

by George Gershwin

Conductor & Artist Biographies (page 25)

COVER: PHOTO OF STÉPHANE DENÈVE, COURTESY OF STUTTGART RADIO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

PAG E 35

TCO SPOTLIG HT Feature articles & musician interviews PAG E 4 5

I N THE N EWS Noteworthy happenings at The Cleveland Orchestra PAG E 5 0

SN APSHOTS Photo highlights from recent Cleveland Orchestra events PAG E 52

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I N TRO DUC TI O N

MODEL OF ORIGINAL COSTUME AND STAGE DESIGN FOR LA CRÉATION DU MONDE BY FERNAND LÉGER (DANSMUSEET, STOCKHOLM)

THIS WEEKEND , The Cleveland Orchestra and guest conductor Stéphane Denève

ring in the new year with a celebration of French and American music. The four pieces on this program share many features — jazz influences and narrative-driven forms among them — yet each stands out in its own way. Under the French and American umbrella, this program brings together the old and the new, the representative and the surrealist, the retrospective and the forward-looking.

Considered one of the first pieces of “symphonic jazz,” Darius Milhaud’s ballet La création du monde (The Creation of the World) (above) was a succès de scandale at its Paris premiere in 1923, but still enjoyed many performances in France and America.

The work, which includes saxophone and percussion imitating a drum set, brings together an eclectic mix of styles, from Baroque fugues to blues to Dixieland jazz.

Unlike the other works on the program, each written around a century ago, French composer Guillaume Connesson’s A Kind of Trane is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. This virtuosic concerto pays homage to the great saxophonist, bandleader, and composer John Coltrane. Each of its three movements was premiered by a different player in 2015, but the acclaimed Steven Banks takes on the entire work in this concert.

Francis Poulenc’s Suite from Les biches (The Does) stands out from the rest of tonight’s jazz-inspired program in that most of it is neoclassical (though the third movement takes some influence from ragtime). Poulenc, part of the group “Les Six” along with Milhaud, worked to reject the typical “French” sound and forge ahead with boundary-pushing surrealist art.

The concert closes with George Gershwin’s An American in Paris. In 1928, Gershwin traveled to Paris to study with the legendary pedagogue Nadia Boulanger, but she declined to teach him, concerned that she would influence his original style. Instead, the composer spent his time in the city finishing this jazz-inspired tone poem and brought four French taxi horns back home to use in the work. — Noah Hertzman Noah Hertzman was The Cleveland Orchestra’s content intern for summer 2024. He is a dual-degree student in composition at the Cleveland Institute of Music and history at Case Western Reserve University.

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An American in Paris Thursday, January 9, 2025, at 7:30 PM Saturday, January 11, 2025, at 8 PM Sunday, January 12, 2025, at 3 PM

Concert Preview with Michael Strasser Reinberger Chamber Hall one hour prior to performance

PHOTO OF STEVEN BANKS BY CHRIS LEE

Stéphane Denève, conductor Darius Milhaud (1892–1974)

La création du monde (The Creation of the World), Op. 81

15 minutes

Guillaume Connesson (b. 1970)

A Kind of Trane Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra

20 minutes

I. There is none other II. Ballade III. Coltrane on the Dance Floor Steven Banks, saxophone I NTERMISSION

20 minutes

Francis Poulenc (1899–1963)

Suite from Les biches (The Does)

15 minutes

George Gershwin (1898–1937)

An American in Paris

Rondeau Adagietto Rag-Mazurka Andantino Final 20 minutes

Total approximate running time: 1 hour 30 minutes

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La création du monde (The Creation of the World), Op. 81

by Darius Milhaud BORN : September 4, 1892, in Marseille, France DIED : June 22, 1974, in Geneva, Switzerland

▶ COMPOSED: 1923 ▶ WORLD PREMIERE : October 25, 1923, in Paris, with Vladimir Golschmann conducting ▶ CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA PREMIERE : April 1, 1962, led by Robert Shaw ▶ ORCHESTRATION : 2 flutes (1st doubling piccolo), oboe, 2 clarinets, alto saxophone, bassoon, horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, timpani, percussion (tambourine, cowbell, woodblock, cymbals, snare drum, tenor drum, Provençal drum, bass drum), piano, 2 violins, cello, and bass ▶ DURATION : about 15 minutes

THE 1920S WERE a vibrant time in Paris.

Following the end of World War I, music, arts, and culture exploded in new and experimental ways in the French capital.

Darius Milhaud positioned himself at the center of this activity, along with the other members of a group of turnof-the-century French composers known as “Les Six,” which also included Georges Auric, Louis Durey, Arthur Honegger, Francis Poulenc, and Germaine Tailleferre. A favorite haunt of Les Six and their literary associate Jean Cocteau was the bar La Gaya, later renamed Le Boeuf sur le toit after a ballet composed by Milhaud in 1919 and choreographed by Cocteau.

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La création du monde (The Creation of the World) was the next ballet Milhaud composed, the third of 17 he would write throughout his career. The ballet was commissioned and premiered by the Balled Suédois (Swedish Ballet) in 1923 and featured fanciful sets and costumes designed by cubist artist Fernand Léger (see page 3). The story is based on a creation myth from the Anthologie nègre, a collection of more than 100 African folk tales compiled and rewritten by poet Blaise Cendrars in 1921.

Darius Milhaud was an incredibly prolific composer, penning over 400 compositions during his career.

This includes The Deliverance of Theseus, which, at only 7.5 minutes long, is considered one of the world’s shortest operas.

PHOTO BY AGENCE DE PRESSE MEURISSE COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/BNF GALLICA

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Like Le Boeuf sur le toit, La création du monde is now most frequently presented as a concert piece and is rarely performed with dancers. Milhaud combined Cendrars’s African-influenced narrative with the African American jazz music that was taking Paris by storm, an essentializing association that nevertheless made sense in the minds of Milhaud and his collaborators at the time.

Milhaud first experienced jazz in London in 1920, when he attended a performance by the New York-based Billy Arnold Band and immediately sought to incorporate these sounds into his compositions. In 1922, while on a trip to New York, Milhaud heard Paul Whiteman’s band (the group that premiered Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue in 1924) and experienced jazz in Harlem, which directly inspired Milhaud’s composi-

Throughout the overture, these textures bubble and churn like a musical primordial soup. Milhaud then depicts the chaos before creation with much more clearly jazz-inspired music (though there is also Baroque inspiration here in the fugal writing). A syncopated and chromatic motive passes up through the instruments — from bass to trombone to trumpet — over increasingly euphoric percussion textures.

This rhythmic chaos peters out for a plodding depiction of the birth of plants and animals. The “chaos” theme reemerges at a much slower pace, mixed with pulsing accompaniment that recalls the overture. By the end of the movement, we can hear birds and insects emerging in flutter-tongued woodwind passages. The brass soon take over the flutter tonguing for the birth of man and woman, while the strings strike up

[La création du monde]] emerges not as a flirtation but as a real love affair with jazz.

— Leonard Bernstein

tional language in La création du monde.

Composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein famously said that La création du monde “emerges not as a flirtation but as a real love affair with jazz.”

The piece is divided into six contiguous sections, opening with an overture.

It begins with a slithering saxophone solo accompanied by undulating strings and syncopated brass interjections.

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a lively and syncopated dance. This movement spins out into a full-on celebration with each section of the orchestra taking on independent roles in kaleidoscopically shifting textures, while the “chaos” theme continues to reappear in various guises — the most complex music for the most complex beings.

In the next section, desire is captured by tango-esque rhythms in the piano

IMAGE COURTESY OF LEBRECHT MUSIC & ARTS / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

Five of the six members of Les Six with Jean Cocteau and percussion under a scintillating at the Eiffel Tower in 1921 — (l-r) Germaine Tailleferre, clarinet solo that inevitably incorporates Francis Poulenc, Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, the “chaos” theme. The solo voice passes Cocteau, and Georges Auric. through the woodwinds, first to the La création du monde sits beside oboe, which feels suspended in time, Jean-Féry Rebel’s ballet Les Élémens and and then through several duets. Like the birth of man and woman, this movement Joseph Haydn’s oratorio The Creation as a musical depiction of the beginning crescendos into a polyphonic dance. of everything. Milhaud’s piece offers an Milhaud seems to transport us back to especially powerful message: the motivic the jazz of 1920s Harlem, which he integration across the different vignettes described as such: “Against the beat of the drums, the melodic lines criss-crossed and the constant reimagining of the “chaos” theme underlines our common in a breathless pattern of broken and origins and the interrelation of all twisted rhythms.” The piece concludes of creation. with springtime after the apotheosis of desire. Sweet relief comes with music — Ellen Sauer Tanyeri that recalls the birth of plants and Ellen Sauer Tanyeri is the 2024 – 25 Cleveland Orchestra Archives research fellow and is working towards a PhD in animals, flutter tonguing and all. musicology at Case Western Reserve University.

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A Kind of Trane Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra

by Guillaume Connesson

▶ COMPOSED: 2015 ▶ WORLD PREMIERE : July 9, 2015, with Jean-Yves Fourmeau, Nicolas Prost, and Joonatan Rautiola as soloists (each playing one movement) and Marko Letonja conducting the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg ▶ This weekend’s concerts mark the first performances of Guillaume Connesson’s A Kind of Trane by The Cleveland Orchestra. ▶ ORCHESTRATION : 2 flutes, piccolo, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones, timpani, percussion (bass drum, chimes, claves, glockenspiel, güiro, marimba, mark tree, sandpaper, shaker, snare drum, cymbals, tam-tam, tom-toms, triangle, vibraphone, wood block), piano, and strings, plus solo saxophone (playing both soprano and alto saxophone) ▶ DURATION : about 20 minutes

FOR ANY MUSICIAN who takes up the saxophone, regardless of stylistic inclination or intent, sooner or later John Coltrane will loom large. Born in North Carolina on September 23, 1926, the saxophonist, composer, and bandleader who one day would be known simply as “Trane” honed his craft initially in Philadelphia and came to widespread attention playing with trumpeter Miles Davis and pianist Thelonious Monk.

From 1959 until his premature death in 1967, Coltrane blazed a singular trail, developing a singular, instantly recogniz-

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able sound on his instrument, while pushing jazz beyond rigorous compositional forms toward a spiritually inspired freedom that still resonates to this day.

What’s more, Coltrane’s impact has extended far beyond the jazz world, influencing artists active in all areas of music — including Guillaume Connesson, an open-minded, eclectic French composer born in 1970, three years after Coltrane’s passing.

“Coltrane’s phrasing, his total freedom of invention, and his mystical virtuosity have nourished my writing,” Connesson said of the concerto he composed and

1081896_Cleveland Orchestra_Week 13_single_sw

BORN : May 5, 1970, in Boulogne-Billancourt, France

PHOTO BY PHILIPPE GRAS / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

named in honor of the iconic saxophonist. Here, though, influence does not amount to mere imitation. The spirit of Coltrane may have prompted A Kind of Trane, whose title alludes not only to the musician’s nickname, but also to his participation in one of the best-loved jazz albums of all time, Davis’s Kind of Blue. But the sound of the composition is wholly symphonic and suffused with pure French elegance.

Small wonder: Belgian artisan Adolphe Sax always intended that his invention should be used in classical music — and French composers were clevelandorchestra.com

Saxophonist and composer John Coltrane (seen here in 1963) was one of the leaders of the free jazz movement, moving the genre into more experimental and spirtual directions.

the first to embrace it, starting with Hector Berlioz, who in 1844 fashioned an arrangement of his Chant Sacré for two clarinets and four “saxhorns.”

Further milestones of the saxophone’s burgeoning repertoire would include Georges Bizet’s music for L’Arlésienne (1872), Maurice Ravel’s orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition (1922), and Jacques Ibert’s Concertino da camera (1935). | 13

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The second movement, Ballade, honors Coltrane in his guise as a consummately lyrical player: a quality that was evident not only in celebrated albums like Ballads and John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman (both from 1963), but throughout the entirety of his canon, including the uncompromisingly avant-garde projects of his final years.

And even as he draws your attention to the splendidly songful soloist, Connesson provides accompaniment of beguiling beauty and resourcefulness.

The finale, Coltrane on the Dance Floor, conjures an unlikely scenario: Coltrane’s phrasing, his total the great saxophonist pitted against the robotic rhythmic pulsations of modernfreedom of invention, and day techno music. A thumping woodhis mystical virtuosity have block establishes the beat from the start, nourished my writing. with syncopated strings, eerie woodwinds, — Guillaume Connesson and robust brass figures mounting to create an air of anticipation — and when The opening of the first movement, the soprano saxophone makes its There is none other, includes the animated entrance, it’s not impossible concerto’s most directly Coltranesque to imagine how Coltrane might have gestures. The title comes from a line in responded under similar circumstances. the poem Coltrane wrote to accompany A robust passage pitting saxophone his landmark 1964 release A Love Supreme, which he plays literally, syllable-by-syllable, against percussion honors Coltrane’s fabled duets with drummers Elvin Jones in the album’s final piece, “Psalm.” and Rashied Ali. The music builds to an A stroke on the tam-tam introduces ecstatic climax, a contemplative pause, the concerto as it does A Love Supreme, and an unambiguous final thrust: an and the saxophone soloist enters with appropriate ending for an homage that inquisitive, floating phrases not dissimievokes Coltrane’s ceaseless quest for lar from those played by Coltrane at personal truth and an individual voice. the start of his questing album. The music, through-composed yet seemingly — Steve Smith spontaneous, bustles and burbles with Steve Smith is a writer and editor based in New York City.

He has written about music for The New York Times and abundant energy, then returns to the The New Yorker, and served as an editor for the Boston opening rumination.

Globe, Time Out New York, and NPR. The solo instrument itself reflects a kind of rapprochement between Connesson’s French lineage and the legacy of his stated inspiration. Known best for his hearty, soulful sound on the tenor saxophone, Coltrane also helped to popularize the comparably less common soprano saxophone in jazz. Connesson’s concerto, too, embraces the soprano saxophone in its first and last movements, but opts for the alto saxophone — a horn Coltrane used only at the beginning and end of his illustrious career — for the middle movement.

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Composer’s Note THIS CONCERTO IS CONCEIVED AS A TRIBUTE to the great jazz saxophonist John Coltrane (1926–1967). Coltrane’s phrasing, his total freedom of invention, and his mystical virtuosity have nourished my writing. Whether on a melodic album like Ballads (1962) or in the Free Jazz inspired by the famous Love Supreme (1964), his music inspired me to write this Kind of Trane.

The first movement, There is none other (a title taken from Coltrane’s poem for Love Supreme), opens with the tam-tam beat that began his album. After a slow introduction in which the soloist unfurls capricious diatonic phrases, a five-beat bass in a four-beat measure sets in, leading to the exposition of the main theme, which is developed in imitation. The movement ends with the calm music of the introduction.

The second movement, Ballade, is a long, continuous melody by the soloist, leading to a lyrical outburst from the orchestra. A second theme then appears, accompanied by a steady bass that gives the music a slow processional character. When the first theme returns at the end, it gradually deconstructs, ending in a final sigh of sadness.

The finale, Coltrane on the Dance Floor, is the unlikely meeting of two musical universes at opposite ends of the spectrum: the unpredictable rhythmic freedom of Coltrane and the robotic nature of techno music. This friction between the free and the constrained is the basis of this movement, which culminates in a madcap cadenza.

The soloist’s trance is then supported by a percussion pattern, leading to the wild coda. A cry from the soloist, cut short by the orchestra, concludes the score.

PHOTO BY MARIE SOPHIE

— Guillaume Connesson

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Suite from Les biches (The Does)

by Francis Poulenc BORN : January 7, 1899, in Paris DIED : January 30, 1963, in Paris

▶ COMPOSED: 1923; suite compiled 1948 ▶ WORLD PREMIERE : January 6, 1924, in Monte Carlo, with the Ballets Russes and Édouard Flament conducting ▶ CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA PREMIERE : Though the Orchestra played the opening movement at an education concert in October 1971, these concerts mark The Cleveland Orchestra’s first complete performances of Poulenc’s Suite from Les biches. ▶ ORCHESTRATION : 2 flutes, piccolo, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 3 bassoons (3rd doubling contrabassoon), 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (snare drum, small side drum, tambourine, bass drum, cymbals, triangle, glockenspiel), harp, celesta, and strings ▶ DURATION : about 15 minutes

“YOU ARE TRULY GOOD , and that is what I find again and again and again in your music.” These words came courtesy of Igor Stravinsky in 1931, who was writing to the young Francis Poulenc, a composer 17 years his junior.

The encouragement — especially from an established musical figure — was most welcome. Early in his career, Poulenc had trouble finding acceptance in the mainstream music circles in France. His lighthearted, often irreverent musical style clashed against the more “intellectual” compositions of his compatriots Debussy and Ravel, leading to disapproval from elder peers and critics.

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found good company with “Les Six,” a group of French composers whose ambition was to push back against the overblown emotions of Romanticism and the currently-in-vogue “Impressionist” style. The collective — consisting of Poulenc alongside Georges Auric, Louis Durey, Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, and Germaine Tailleferre — did so by taking a “neoclassical” approach to composition, mining past composers and musical styles for a simpler, more pared-down approach to melody, harmony, and structure.

Francis Poulenc was the second-to-youngest member of Les Six. He once said of his colleagues, “The diversity of our music, of our tastes and distastes, precluded any common aesthetic.”

PHOTO BY MAN RAY COURTESY OF ALBUM / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO / © MAN RAY TRUST

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Dancer Vera Nemchinova of the Ballet Russes takes center stage during an early production of Les biches in 1924.

more worthwhile. Poulenc got to work and finished the score by 1923. Its 1924 premiere in Monte Carlo — with choreography by Bronislava Nijinska and design by Marie Laurencin — was a resounding success, leading to a wellreceived set of performances in Paris.

(Stravinsky congratulated Poulenc in response, writing, “You know the warm regard I have for what you are doing, and especially for Les biches.”)

Much ink has been spilled in trying to decipher the ballet’s title. The straightforward translation from French to English refers to does (female deer), but further subtext presents a double, or even triple, entendre. Biches, that is, can also suggest both a group of young

IMAGE COURTESY OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

By the end of his career, Poulenc’s uncanny ability to seamlessly navigate genre and style was celebrated, even leading the critic Claude Rostand to famously describe the composer as “half-monk, half-rascal.” (After all, who else could write a prayerful vocal work like the Four Penitential Motets one moment and a comic opera like The Breasts of Tiresias the next?)

The ballet Les biches could easily fall within Poulenc’s “half-rascal” persona, though there is no shortage of handsfolded grace and beauty amidst the nosethumbing. The work was commissioned in 1921 by impresario Sergei Diaghilev for his Ballet Russes, a huge break for the then-21-year-old composer. Diaghilev was the impetus behind Stravinsky’s early balletic successes — The Firebird, Pétrouchka, and The Rite of Spring among them — making the opportunity all the

women and, in some cases, people — both men and women — who harbor sexual desires outside the socially accepted norms of the day.

The plot does little to help clarify the matter, simply because Les biches has no plot. Instead, in the words of critic Henry Malherbe, “atmosphere replaces action.” Only a short scenario is provided in the score, which provides basic details regarding setting and casting: The action passes in a large, white drawing room with just one piece of furniture, an immense blue sofa. It is a warm summer afternoon and three young men are enjoying the company of 16 lovely women. Just as in 18th-century prints, their play is innocent in appearance only.

While mining the subtext of the scenario and casting can prove fruitful — and many scholars have, particularly in how the dancers are paired throughout the ballet — Les biches is a delightful romp that can be enjoyed at face value.

After making some revisions in 1939–40, Poulenc returned to the work in 1948 to extract a five-movement suite from his score. (The original ballet contains a trio of choral movements, which Poulenc removed to create a purely orchestral work.)

Following a brief introduction, the suite opens in earnest with a sprightly Rondeau. The main tune — a jolly earworm first heralded by the trumpet — returns throughout despite the unexpected twists and turns the music takes. clevelandorchestra.com

The Adagietto presents Poulenc in a more serene guise. A beautifully haunting melody is couched in a variety of lush colors that vaguely harken back to the 19th century. But this is still music with a sly wink. Poulenc himself said, “The Adagietto must be played without romantic pathos. In this ballet, nobody falls in love for life, they have sex! Let’s just leave it there.”

Before long, we are thrust out of this pastoral reverie and back into the dance hall with a Rag-Mazurka. This jazzy movement owes more than a debt to Stravinsky, who similarly toyed with popular music styles in works such as The Solider’s Tale and Ragtime.

While mining the subtext of the scenario and casting can prove fruitful ... Les biches is a delightful romp that can be enjoyed at face value.

A plaintive coda sets the stage for the Andantino, which, despite its light and elegant mood, has some moments of cheek courtesy of the brass. The work concludes with a fleet-footed finale, where one can imagine the entire cast of dancers whirling across the stage in their final appearances. Hints of melodies from preceding movements occasionally pop into the texture before the curtain falls with a rousing bang.

— Kevin McBrien Kevin McBrien is The Cleveland Orchestra’s publications manager.

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An American in Paris

by George Gershwin BORN : September 26, 1898, in Brooklyn, New York DIED : July 11, 1937, in Los Angeles

▶ COMPOSED: 1928 ▶ WORLD PREMIERE : December 13, 1928, with Walter Damrosch conducting the New York Philharmonic ▶ CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA PREMIERE : April 2, 1928, led by Music Director Artur Rodziński ▶ ORCHESTRATION : 3 flutes (3rd doubling piccolo), 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 3 saxophones (alto, tenor, and baritone), 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (bass drum, snare drum, woodblock, cymbals, ratchet, tom-toms, triangle, glockenspiel, xylophone, and taxi horns), celesta, and strings ▶ DURATION : about 20 minutes

GEORGE GERSHWIN ACHIEVED early

success as one of the most brilliant songwriters on Broadway. He had more ambitious dreams, however — he aspired to be recognized as a serious classical composer.

Gershwin felt that American classical music should incorporate elements of jazz in order to find a distinctive national voice. Rhapsody in Blue was Gershwin’s first step in that direction, followed by the Piano Concerto in F, An American in Paris, and, finally, the opera Porgy and Bess. Throughout his efforts on these works, Gershwin, a fabulous pianist and improviser, knew that his technical equipment as a classical composer was incomplete and tried hard to fill 20 | 2024/2025 SEASON

in the gaps in his knowledge by applying himself to the study of music theory and orchestration.

The original manuscript of An American in Paris bears the following inscription by Gershwin: “An American in Paris, a tone poem for orchestra, composed and orchestrated by George Gershwin.

Begun early in 1928, finished November 18, 1928.” Gershwin went out of his way to point out that he had done the orchestration himself because, while his melodic gifts and pianistic virtuosity were acclaimed, he was dogged by After the remarkable success of Rhapsody in Blue, George Gershwin continued to experiment with merging jazz and classical styles in works like An American in Paris.

IMAGE COURTESY OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

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This new piece, really a rhapsodic ballet, is written very freely and is the most modern music I’ve yet attempted. The opening part will be developed in typical French style, in the manner of Debussy and The Six [a collective of neoclassical composers that comprised Auric, Durey, 22 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Twenty-two years after its premiere, Gershwin’s An American in Paris inspired a big-budget Hollywood musical starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron. The film went on to win six Academy Awards in 1952, including Best Picture.

Honegger, Milhaud, Poulenc, and Tailleferre], though the themes are original. My purpose here is to portray the impression of an American visitor in Paris, as he strolls about the city, listens to the various street noises, and absorbs the French atmosphere.

As in my other orchestral compositions, I’ve not endeavored to represent any definite scenes in this music. The rhapsody is programmatic only in a general impressionistic way, so that the individual listener can read into the music such episodes as his imagination pictures for him.

IMAGE COURTESY OF TCD/PROD.DB / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

constant criticism of perceived shortcomings (compared to expected norms) in his compositional craftsmanship.

An American in Paris is in a single movement with five clearly delineated sections, each of which contains themes that reappear throughout the 20-minute work. Gershwin provided the following explanation in an interview for Musical America in 1928:

The opening gay section is followed by a rich “blues” with a strong rhythmic undercurrent. Our American friend, perhaps after strolling into a café and having a couple of drinks, has suddenly succumbed to a spasm of homesickness.

The harmony here is both more intense and simple than in the preceding pages. This “blues” rises to a climax followed by a coda in which the spirit of the music returns to the vivacity and bubbling exuberance of the opening part with its impressions of Paris.

Apparently the homesick American, having left the café and reached the open air, has disowned his spell of the blues and once again is an alert spectator of Parisian life.

At the conclusion, the street noises and French atmosphere are triumphant!

My purpose here is to portray the impression of an American visitor in Paris, as he strolls about the city, listens to the various street noises, and absorbs the French atmosphere.

— George Gershwin

An American in Paris premiered at Carnegie Hall in December 1928, with Walter Damrosch conducting the New York Philharmonic in a program that included works by Franck, Wagner, and Lekeu (a Belgian composer rarely programmed today). Initial response was largely positive. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported that the audience received the work “with a demonstration of enthusiasm impressively genuine in contrast to the conventional applause which new clevelandorchestra.com

music, good and bad, ordinarily receives.”

Gershwin, who was in attendance, greeted the reception with several bows.

However, not all critical assessment was positive. The New York Telegram had the following to say about the work: “To one pair of ears Mr. Gershwin’s latest effusion turned out to be nauseous, clap-trap, so dull, patchy, thin, vulgar, longwinded and inane that the average ‘movie’ audience would probably be bored by it into open remonstrance. …

Even as honest jazz the whole cheap and silly affair seemed pitiably futile and inept.” Gershwin took the harsher reviews in stride, responding, “It’s not a Beethoven Symphony, you know ...

It’s a humorous piece, nothing solemn about it. It’s not intended to draw tears.

If it pleases symphony audiences as a light, jolly piece, a series of impressions musically expressed, it succeeds.”

Indeed, An American in Paris continued to succeed in the following years with numerous performances and recordings by other orchestras. Its legacy was cemented further in 1951 — 14 years after Gershwin’s death — when MGM released a musical film of the same name starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron.

Alongside several songs by Gershwin and his brother Ira, the film features an elaborate dance sequence that presents Gershwin’s “rhapsodic ballet” in full, which would introduce the now-timeless classic to a new generation of listeners.

— adapted from a note by Peter Laki Peter Laki is a musicologist and frequent lecturer on classical music. He is a visiting associate professor of music at Bard College.

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TH E CO N DU C TOR

Stéphane Denève

PHOTO COURTESY OF STUTTGART RADIO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

STÉPHANE DENÈVE IS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

of the New World Symphony, music director of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, and principal guest conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. He recently concluded terms as principal guest conductor of The Philadelphia Orchestra and chief conductor of the Brussels Philharmonic, and previously served as chief conductor of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra (SWR) and music director of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. His recent and upcoming engagements include appearances with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica dell’ Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra (with whom he conducted the 2020 Nobel Prize concert), NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, and Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.

In North America, Denève made his Carnegie Hall debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, with whom he has appeared several times both in Boston and at Tanglewood, and he regularly conducts The Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, and Toronto Symphony Orchestra. In 2022, Denève was the conductor for John Williams’s 90th Birthday Gala with the National Symphony Orchestra.

He is also a popular guest at many of the clevelandorchestra.com

US summer music festivals, including the Hollywood Bowl, Bravo! Vail, Grand Teton Music Festival, and Music Academy of the West.

Denève frequently performs with many of the world’s leading solo artists, including Emanuel Ax, Hélène Grimaud, Augustin Hadelich, Hilary Hahn, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Yo-Yo Ma, Víkingur Ólafsson, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, and many more. He also treasures the memory of Nicholas Angelich and Lars Vogt, two exceptional artists with whom he enjoyed a close musical friendship over many years.

Stéphane Denève leads The Cleveland Orchestra and violinist María Dueñas on January 31 and February 1 in Miami as part of the Orchestra’s Florida Residency.

Tickets available at arshtcenter.org/cleveland

| 25

ENGAGE & CONNEC T

Healthy Aging Programs

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Open to all, courses and events include arts and culture, literature, nutrition, current events, fitness and more.

Upcoming Programs • Cleveland Jewish Book Festival • Getting Started with Medicare • Pickleball Classes and Leagues • Brain Health • News of the Week • Creative Art Therapy

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mandeljcc.org/healthyaging • 216-593-6283 • healthyaging@mandeljcc.org

TH E ARTIST

Steven Banks Saxophone

PHOTO BY CHRIS LEE

AS A PERFORMER AND COMPOSER , saxo-

phonist Steven Banks is striving to bring his instrument to the heart of the classical music world. He is driven to program and write music that directly addresses aspects of the human experience and is a devoted and intentional supporter of diverse voices in the future of concert music.

In 2024 – 25, Banks appears with The Cleveland Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, and San Diego Symphony, among others. In recent seasons, he has made his debuts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, and National Symphony Orchestra, as well as the symphony orchestras of Montreal, Cincinnati, Detroit, and Kansas City.

Commissioning new works for saxophone is at the heart of Banks’s work. In July 2025, he will premiere Joan Tower’s new saxophone concerto at the Colorado Music Festival. Over the past two seasons, he has been performing Diaspora, the new saxophone concerto by Billy Childs with the 10 commissioning partners.

A keen chamber musician, Banks regularly collaborates with artistic partners such as pianist Xak Bjerken and the Borromeo and Dover quartets.

This season, he performs with the Miró Quartet and on tour with the Verona Quartet. Banks is also a founding member of the award-winning saxophone ensemble Kenari Quartet. As a composer, Steven Banks has been commissioned clevelandorchestra.com

by such organizations as Young Concert Artists and the chamber music festivals of Tulsa, Tucson, and Bridgehampton.

Banks was the first saxophonist to be awarded both the Avery Fisher Career Grant and First Prize at the Young Concert Artists International Auditions. He serves as faculty and artist-in-residence at the Cleveland Institute of Music and previously held positions at Ithaca College, Baldwin Wallace Conservatory, and the University of Hartford. Banks holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and Northwestern University Bienen School of Music, respectively.

An advocate for diversity and inclusion in music education and performance, Banks was invited to give a talk at the TEDx NorthwesternU 2017. He is also an endorsing artist for Conn-Selmer, D’Addario Woodwinds, LefreQue Sound Solutions, and Key Leaves.

Continue your journey with Steven Banks and The Cleveland Orchestra on Adella.live with Through the Looking Glass, a digital production featuring John Adams conducting a program of American music.

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A standing ovation for you!

Your ongoing generosity brings magic to the stage.

Thank you for making another year of music, education programs, and unforgettable memories possible.

You keep the music playing, and we are so grateful.

clevelandorchestra.com/impact

PHOTO BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

AB OU T THE CLE VEL AN D ORC HESTR A NOW FIRMLY IN ITS SECOND CENTURY , The Cleveland Orchestra, under the leadership of Franz Welser-Möst since 2002, is one of the most sought-after performing ensembles in the world.

Year after year, the ensemble exemplifies extraordinary artistic excellence, creative programming, and community engagement. In recent years, The New York Times has called Cleveland “the best in America” for its virtuosity, elegance of sound, variety of color, and chamber-like musical cohesion.

Founded by Adella Prentiss Hughes, the Orchestra performed its inaugural concert in December 1918. By the middle of the century, decades of growth and sustained support had turned the ensemble into one of the most admired around the world.

The past decade has seen an increasing number of young people attending concerts, bringing fresh attention to The Cleveland Orchestra’s legendary sound and committed programming. More recently, the Orchestra launched several bold digital projects, including the streaming platform Adella.live and its own recording label. Together, they have captured the Orchestra’s unique artistry and the musical achievements of the Welser-Möst and Cleveland Orchestra partnership.

The 2024 – 25 season marks Franz Welser-Möst’s 23rd year as Music Director, a period in which The Cleveland

@ClevelandOrchestra

clevelandorchestra.com

@Cleveorch

Orchestra has earned unprecedented acclaim around the world, including a series of residencies at the Musikverein in Vienna, the first of its kind by an American orchestra, and a number of celebrated opera presentations.

Since 1918, seven music directors — Nikolai Sokoloff, Artur Rodziński, Erich Leinsdorf, George Szell, Lorin Maazel, Christoph von Dohnányi, and Franz Welser-Möst — have guided and shaped the ensemble’s growth and sound. Through concerts at home and on tour, broadcasts, and a catalog of acclaimed recordings, The Cleveland Orchestra is heard today by a growing group of fans around the world.

@CleveOrchestra

@clevelandorchestra

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TH E CLEV EL A N D ORCHESTR A

Franz Welser-Möst, Music Director KELVIN SMITH FAMILY CHAIR FIRST VIOLINS

Eli Matthews1 Patricia M. Kozerefski and Richard J. Bogomolny Chair

Tanya Ell Thomas J. and Judith Fay Gruber Chair

Jeffrey Rathbun2 Everett D. and Eugenia S. McCurdy Chair

Sonja Braaten Molloy

Ralph Curry

Robert Walters

Carolyn Gadiel Warner Elayna Duitman

Brian Thornton William P. Blair III Chair

ENGLISH HORN

Ioana Missits

David Alan Harrell

Jeffrey Zehngut^

Martha Baldwin

Sae Shiragami

Dane Johansen

Stephen Tavani

Kathleen Collins

Paul Kushious

CLARINETS

ASSISTANT CONCERTMASTER

Beth Woodside

BASSES

Afendi Yusuf* Robert Marcellus Chair

Emma Shook Dr. Jeanette Grasselli Brown and Dr. Glenn R. Brown Chair

Maximilian Dimoff* Clarence T. Reinberger Chair

Liyuan Xie FIRST ASSOCIATE CONCERTMASTER

Virginia M. Lindseth, PhD, Chair Jung-Min Amy Lee ASSOCIATE CONCERTMASTER

Gretchen D. and Ward Smith Chair

Dr. Ronald H. Krasney Chair

Wei-Fang Gu Drs. Paul M. and Renate H. Duchesneau Chair Kim Gomez Elizabeth and Leslie Kondorossy Chair Chul-In Park Harriet T. and David L. Simon Chair Miho Hashizume Theodore Rautenberg Chair Jeanne Preucil Rose Larry J.B. and Barbara S. Robinson Chair Alicia Koelz Oswald and Phyllis Lerner Gilroy Chair Yu Yuan Patty and John Collinson Chair

Yun-Ting Lee Jiah Chung Chapdelaine Gawon Kim

VIOLAS Wesley Collins* Chaillé H. and Richard B. Tullis Chair

Derek Zadinsky2 Charles Paul1 Mary E. and F. Joseph Callahan Chair Mark Atherton

Daniel McKelway Stanley L. and Eloise M. Morgan Chair

Scott Dixon

HARP Trina Struble* Alice Chalifoux Chair

FLUTES Joshua Smith* Elizabeth M. and William C. Treuhaft Chair

Isabel Trautwein Trevor and Jennie Jones Chair

Eliesha Nelson^ Anthony and Diane Wynshaw-Boris Chair

Katherine Bormann

Joanna Patterson Zakany

Analise Handke Gladys B. Goetz Chair Zhan Shu

William Bender Thomas Lauria and Christopher Lauria Chair

Youngji Kim

Gareth Zehngut^

CELLOS

Mary Kay Fink Anne M. and M. Roger Clapp Chair

Genevieve Smelser

SECOND VIOLINS Stephen Rose* Alfred M. and Clara T. Rankin Chair Jason Yu2 James and Donna Reid Chair

Mark Kosower* Louis D. Beaumont Chair Richard Weiss1 The GAR Foundation Chair Charles Bernard2 Helen Weil Ross Chair Bryan Dumm Muriel and Noah Butkin Chair

30 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Amy Zoloto

E-FLAT CLARINET

Charles Carleton

Lembi Veskimets The Morgan Sisters Chair

Daniel McKelway2 Robert R. and Vilma L. Kohn Chair

Henry Peyrebrune Charles Barr Memorial Chair

Mark Jackobs Jean Wall Bennett Chair

Richard Waugh

Robert Woolfrey Victoire G. and Alfred M. Rankin, Jr. Chair

Thomas Sperl

Stanley Konopka2

Lisa Boyko Richard and Nancy Sneed Chair

Robert Walters Samuel C. and Bernette K. Jaffe Chair

BASS CLARINET Amy Zoloto Myrna and James Spira Chair

BASSOONS John Clouser* Louise Harkness Ingalls Chair Gareth Thomas Jonathan Sherwin

Saeran St. Christopher Jessica Sindell2^ Austin B. and Ellen W. Chinn Chair

CONTRABASSOON

Mary Kay Fink

HORNS

PICCOLO

Nathaniel Silberschlag* George Szell Memorial Chair

OBOES Frank Rosenwein* Edith S. Taplin Chair Corbin Stair Sharon and Yoash Wiener Chair

Jonathan Sherwin

Michael Mayhew§ Knight Foundation Chair Jesse McCormick Robert B. Benyo Chair Hans Clebsch Richard King Meghan Guegold Hege^

FRO M TH E PRESID E N T & CEO

TRUMPETS

BASS TROMBONE

LIBRARIANS

CONDUCTORS

Michael Sachs* Robert and Eunice Podis Weiskopf Chair

Luke Sieve

Michael Ferraguto* Joe and Marlene Toot Chair

Christoph von Dohnányi

EUPHONIUM & BASS TRUMPET

Donald Miller

Daniel Reith

Gabrielle Petek

ASSOCIATE CONDUCTOR

Jack Sutte Lyle Steelman2^ James P. and Dolores D. Storer Chair

Richard Stout

Michael Miller

Yasuhito Sugiyama* Nathalie C. Spence and Nathalie S. Boswell Chair

CORNETS Michael Sachs* Mary Elizabeth and G. Robert Klein Chair

TIMPANI

Elizabeth Ring and William Gwinn Mather Chair Clara G. and George P. Bickford Chair

Michael Miller

PERCUSSION

Sandra L. Haslinger Chair

TROMBONES

Marc Damoulakis* Margaret Allen Ireland Chair

Richard Stout Alexander and Marianna C. McAfee Chair Shachar Israel

2

clevelandorchestra.com

Thomas Sherwood Tanner Tanyeri

KEYBOARD INSTRUMENTS Carolyn Gadiel Warner Marjory and Marc L. Swartzbaugh Chair

Sidney and Doris Dworkin Chair

Lisa Wong DIRECTOR OF CHORUSES

Frances P. and Chester C. Bolton Chair

Blossom-Lee Chair

vacant

Brian Wendel* Gilbert W. and Louise I. Humphrey Chair PHOTO BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

TUBA

ENDOWED CHAIRS CURRENTLY UNOCCUPIED

MUSIC DIRECTOR LAUREATE

Paul and Lucille Jones Chair Charles M. and Janet G. Kimball Chair

* Principal § Associate Principal 1

First Assistant Principal

2 Assistant Principal

^ Alum of The Cleveland

Orchestra Youth Orchestra

Sunshine Chair Otto G. and Corinne T. Voss Chair Mr. and Mrs. Richard K. Smucker Chair Rudolf Serkin Chair

This roster lists full-time members of The Cleveland Orchestra. The number and seating of musicians onstage varies depending on the piece being performed. Seating within the string sections rotates on a periodic basis.

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24 /25 SEASON

CALE N DAR WINTER

FEB 20 & 22 ADÈS CONDUCTS ADÈS

MAR 13 & 15 HAYDN & STRAUSS

JAN 16–18 HAHN PLAYS BRAHMS

Thomas Adès, conductor Kelley O’Connor, mezzo-soprano The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus

Franz Welser-Möst, conductor Asmik Grigorian, soprano

Elim Chan, conductor Hilary Hahn, violin BRAHMS Violin Concerto LUTOSŁAWSKI Concerto for Orchestra

SIBELIUS The Oceanides SAARIAHO Oltra Mar THOMAS ADÈS America: A Prophecy IVES Orchestral Set No. 2

RECITAL

HAYDN Symphony No. 52 R . STRAUSS Four Last Songs JANÁČEK Suite from From the House of the Dead PUCCINI Final Scene from Suor Angelica

FEB 7–9 ALSO SPRACH ZARATHUSTRA

FEB 23 ÓLAFSSON & WANG IN RECITAL

MAR 14 HAYDN & STRAVINSKY

Thomas Guggeis, conductor Mark Kosower, cello

Víkingur Ólafsson, piano Yuja Wang, piano

HAYDN Symphony No. 52 STRAVINSKY Pétrouchka

R . STRAUSS Also sprach Zarathustra DUTILLEUX Tout un monde lointain...

RAVEL La valse

Works by Berio, Schubert, Cage, Nancarrow, John Adams, Arvo Pärt, and Rachmaninoff

FEB 13 & 15 BRUCKNER’S SEVENTH Fabio Luisi, conductor Tim Mead, countertenor SILVIA COLASANTI Time’s Cruel Hand BRUCKNER Symphony No. 7

SPECIAL FEB 14 & 16 THE MUSIC OF JOHN WILLIAMS Keith Lockhart, conductor Selections from Jaws, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, E.T., Harry Potter, and more

FEB 27–MAR 1 BEETHOVEN’S EROICA Alan Gilbert, conductor Leonidas Kavakos, violin SHOSTAKOVICH Violin Concerto No. 2 BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3, “Eroica”

MAR 6–9 TCHAIKOVSKY’S FOURTH SYMPHONY Franz Welser-Möst, conductor Seong-Jin Cho, piano RAVEL Rapsodie espagnole RAVEL Piano Concerto in G major TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 4

Franz Welser-Möst, conductor

MAR 22 & 23 YUJA WANG PLAYS TCHAIKOVSKY Franz Welser-Möst, conductor Yuja Wang, piano TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Concerto No. 1 TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 5

SPRING RECITAL MAR 27 ANDSNES IN RECITAL Leif Ove Andsnes, piano Works by Grieg, Tveitt, and Chopin

RECITAL APR 8 IN THE FIDDLER’S HOUSE Itzhak Perlman, violin Hankus Netsky, music director, arranger, saxophone, piano Andy Statman, clarinet, mandolin Michael Alpert, vocals, violin Lorin Sklamberg, vocals, accordion Judy Bressler, vocals, percussion Frank London, trumpet Klezmer Conservatory Band

For tickets & more information visit

clevelandorchestra.com 32 | 2024/2025 SEASON

APR 17–19 BACH’S EASTER ORATORIO

RECITAL

Bernard Labadie, conductor Joélle Harvey, soprano Adèle Charvet, mezzo-soprano Andrew Haji, tenor Gordon Bintner, bass-baritone The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus

Evgeny Kissin, piano

J.S. BACH Easter Oratorio J.S. BACH Sinfonia from Cantata No. 29 J.S. BACH Magnificat

APR 24–26 MOZART & ELGAR Kazuki Yamada, conductor Francesco Piemontesi, piano MOZART Piano Concerto No. 25 ELGAR Symphony No. 1

MAY 7 KISSIN IN RECITAL Works by Beethoven, Chopin, and Shostakovich

MAY 8–10 MOZART’S SYMPHONY NO. 40 Franz Welser-Möst, conductor MOZART Symphony No. 40 ALLISON LOGGINS-HULL New Work PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 3 *

MAY 17, 22 & 25 JANÁČEK’S JENŮFA

MAY 23 & 24 VOX HUMANA Franz Welser-Möst, conductor Sarah Aristidou, soprano Tony Sias, narrator The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus POULENC La voix humaine J.S. BACH Concerto from Komm, Jesu, komm USTVOLSKAYA Symphony No. 5, “Amen” J.S. BACH Aria from Komm, Jesu, komm R . STRAUSS Symphonic Fantasy on Die Frau ohne Schatten

* Not performed on the Friday matinee concert

Franz Welser-Möst, conductor Latonia Moore, soprano Pavol Breslik, tenor Miles Mykkanen, tenor Nina Stemme, soprano The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus JANÁČEK Jenůfa Opera presentation sung in Czech with projected supertitles

Generous support for the 2024–25 Recital Series provided by the Reyzis Family Foundation

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A S CULP TOR OF S OU N D:

Celebrating Pierre Boulez’s 100th Birthday PIERRE B O ULE Z WAS A LU M I NARY OF 20TH-CE N T U RY M USIC , inspiring

generations of musicians and listeners as a composer, conductor, and pedagogue. He also spent a great deal of time with The Cleveland Orchestra, first as a guest conductor in the 1960s, then as musical advisor starting in 1970. The artistic relationship remained strong, with Boulez returning nearly annually to Cleveland to lead concerts and recording projects.

With 2025 marking the 100th anniversary of Boulez’s birth, we take a

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA ARCHIVES

brief look at his five-decade relationship with The Cleveland Orchestra.

Boulez was born on March 26, 1925, in Montbrison, France. He entered the Paris Conservatoire in 1942 to study composition with Olivier Messiaen.

After graduating, Boulez quickly identified with a group of young firebrand composers who believed that music ought to capture the anxiety of the moment and was not afraid to criticize the old guard of modernists when they fell short of that mark. He also found opportunities to spread his influence as a conductor as well as a composer.

Boulez’s debut in Cleveland in 1965 was not his first time to appear in the United States, but it was his first time leading a major American orchestra.

Pierre Boulez fostered a remarkable five-decade relationship with The Cleveland Orchestra, which encompassed concerts at home, tours abroad, and numerous recording projects (five of which received Grammy Awards).

clevelandorchestra.com

Over dinner in 1963, then-Music Director George Szell invited the rising European star to guest conduct The Cleveland Orchestra, an offer which Boulez graciously accepted. That first program the composer-conductor led at Severance featured a collection of modernist works, including one of his own compositions — the US premiere of Figures — Doubles — Prismes.

The performance was a great success and Szell invited him back in 1967. That same season, Boulez entered a five-year guest conducting agreement with the Orchestra, and in February 1969, he was appointed its first-ever principal guest conductor. The press release quotes Szell: “I feel sure that our community of artistic purpose and our mutually complementing musical backgrounds will greatly benefit The Cleveland Orchestra and its audiences.” | 35

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On July 30, 1970, Boulez was conducting a concert at Blossom Music Center when word of Szell’s untimely passing reached the Orchestra. Assistant Conductor Louis Lane delivered the news to Boulez at intermission, who promised to tell the musicians only after the concert. Soon after, Boulez agreed to serve as musical advisor to The Cleveland Orchestra for the following two seasons, ushering the organization through the upheaval in the wake of Szell’s loss.

pieces. He led the Orchestra at Severance, Blossom Music Center, and on regional runouts, in addition to joining the Orchestra on international tours to Montreal and Japan.

Boulez took time off from guest conducting in 1977 to found the Institute de Recherche et de Coordination Acoutstique/Musique (IRCAM). But beginning in 1991, Boulez returned to Cleveland once or twice a season to lead projects and went on tour with the

I believe that Pierre Boulez has left his fingerprint on this Orchestra in a very strong way. ... He has widened the horizon of all the players individually but also as a collective.

— Franz Welser-Möst

It was during his stint as musical advisor that Boulez led a series of “Informal Evenings”— concerts of new music interspersed with lectures from the conductor. The musicians dressed in casual suits and the lights stayed up while Boulez walked the audience through seemingly inaccessible modernist pieces by Messiaen, Varèse, and others. Robert Finn of The Plain Dealer captured the crux of these experimental concerts: “While it did not sell many tickets, there is no question that it was an artistic triumph.”

In his years with an official appointment in Cleveland (1967 – 72), Boulez led the Orchestra in over 100 works spanning three centuries, including the Cleveland premieres of more than 30 36 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Orchestra in 1993 (Carnegie Hall), 1996 (Paris), and 1999 (Carnegie). Boulez remained active internationally into the early 2000s, when health concerns began to slow his musical activities.

Before Boulez’s passing in 2016, The Cleveland Orchestra held three major birthday celebrations for him — for his 80th in 2005, his 85th in 2010, and his 90th in 2015 — the first two of which he himself conducted. As a happy coincidence, these celebrations also corresponded with the 40th, 45th, and 50th anniversaries of Boulez’s first appearance with the Orchestra in March 1965. Each of these programs featured quintessentially Boulez selections celebrating 20th-century music, including his own compositions.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA ARCHIVES

To this day, Boulez holds the record for having the longest working relationship with The Cleveland Orchestra outside of its music directors. Since his first appearance in 1965, Boulez led the Orchestra in over 220 performances at home and on tour, and recorded more than 50 works with the Orchestra, winning five Grammy Awards. The Musical Arts Association honored him with the 2013 – 14 Distinguished Service Award.

In a video produced for Boulez’s 90th birthday celebration in 2015, Music Director Franz Welser-Möst reflected on the lasting impact the conductor has had on the reputation and identity of The Cleveland Orchestra: clevelandorchestra.com

Music Director George Szell (right) first invited Boulez to conduct The Cleveland Orchestra in 1963.

His debut appearance in 1965 would ultimately lead the Frenchman to be named the Orchestra’s musical advisor after Szell’s death in 1970.

I believe that Pierre Boulez has left his fingerprint on this Orchestra in a very strong way. He has conducted this orchestra [for] over 40 years with his very calm style of teaching the Orchestra the most complex scores. He has widened the horizon of all the players individually but also as a collective. …

The Cleveland Orchestra in our day is known actually for playing the music from the last 70 years with an ease which is unmatched in our world, and I think that is very much thanks to him. | 37

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The Orchestra and its members had an equal impact on Boulez, which one can see in the collection of hand-written thank-you notes preserved in the Orchestra’s Archives. An undated photograph from the 1970s reads: “To the members of the Cleveland Orchestra with my deepest gratitude for the wonderful partnership we always had.”

More recently, the letter sent after his 85th birthday celebration reads: 38 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Since 45 years — yes, forty five! — I have the privilege to conduct the Cleveland Orchestra. To all of its members I want to express my sincere gratitude for the wonderful memories I spent working with them, great moments of joy and of accomplishment. Such a rewarding experience has been and still is an extremely precious part of my musical life. My warmest thanks to all of you and to each of you.

— Ellen Sauer Tanyeri Ellen Sauer Tanyeri is the 2024 –25 Cleveland Orchestra Archives research fellow and is working towards a PhD in musicology at Case Western Reserve University.

Visit clevelandorchestra.com/archives to read an extended version of this essay featuring audio and video clips.

PHOTO BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

February 2010 marked one of Boulez’s final appearances in Cleveland, where he led the Orchestra and pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard in Ravel’s two piano concertos. These performances were recorded and subsequently released by Deutsche Grammophon.

A Conversation with

Mark Kosower Principal Cello LOUIS D. BEAUMONT CHAIR TH E CLEVELA N D ORCHE STR A’ S 2024–25 SEA S ON has featured not one,

but two musicians stepping out from its ranks and into the solo spotlight.

In the fall, Principal Percussionist Marc Damoulakis took on Tan Dun’s mesmerizing Water Concerto. On February 7– 9, Principal Cellist Mark Kosower tackles an equally impressive concerto: Dutilleux’s Tout un monde lointain… (A whole distant world…) for cello and orchestra. We sat down with Kosower to find out more about this fascinating piece, his role as a principal string player, and his fleeting impressions of Pierre Boulez.

Talk a bit about the Dutilleux work.

Have you performed it before? What made you choose it?

MARK: It’s funny because the guest conductor for those concerts, Thomas Guggeis, actually requested it! I’ve never played it, but it just so happened to be one of those works I’ve always wanted to learn and perform.

It’s definitely different than your standard Romantic-era concerto. One of the most striking things is the role of the soloist. You’re sort of this voice of the cosmos instead of the “hero” that overcomes a struggle. The language is “atonal,” but it often doesn’t sound that way. The orchestration and colors are very much an outgrowth of the French tradition: Debussy, Ravel, Messiaen, and Boulez. It’s absolutely captivating.

clevelandorchestra.com

The first time I heard it, I thought, “Wow, I want to hear that again!” It just draws you in.

Plus, it fits nicely in that program with Ravel’s La valse and Richard Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra, which famously has the 2001: A Space Odyssey connection.

MARK: Absolutely! The perfect type of program for early February.

What is your preparation like for a work you’ve heard a lot but have never performed before?

MARK: It’s a very complex work, so it requires a lot of score study. I’ve also been listening to different recordings to gain some points of reference. And in addition to working on it by myself,

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I’m practicing with a pianist because, harmonically, it’s very sophisticated.

A piece like this needs a lot of playing to make it feel “normal.” I try to work on things from many different angles; it gives you a fuller, complete kind of approach. But I’m so fortunate to get to sit in front of this amazing orchestra and play this piece.

A piece like [Dutilleux’s Tout un monde lointain...] needs a lot of playing to make it feel ‘normal.’ I try to work on things from many different angles; it gives you a fuller, complete kind of approach.

For those who may not know, what does your role typically look like as a principal string player?

MARK: There are several things. As

principal cello, you’re the leader of the bassline in most musical compositions.

You need to have a strong understanding of how the harmony works and develops in each piece. There are melodic places where the cello section is leading, but there are also places where you provide support. So, it’s all about interpreting your role in the music and setting the tone for the group.

Also, before the first rehearsal, I coordinate bowings with the other string sections. We do bowings before anything starts so they align with the other 40 | 2024/2025 SEASON

sections and our own musical style.

Some educated guessing is often required — since we don’t always know what the conductor’s interpretation will be — so we might tweak some things later during rehearsal to make it work better.

You mentioned Boulez earlier. Since 2025 marks the centennial of his birth, do you have a favorite memory or impression of working with him when he conducted the Orchestra?

MARK: Sadly, the first time I got to play

for him in 2012, he conducted half a rehearsal and then had to pull out due to health concerns. So, I didn’t really experience him, but he was such a gentleman and still stuck around to observe the rehearsals. This was the last we saw of him; he passed away a few years after that.

He was one of the greatest musical minds and had one of the greatest sets of ears. He could pick out anything, anywhere. One touching thing was in the Mahler 10 video recording he made with the Orchestra the year before I arrived in Cleveland: It was his birthday, and Franz [Welser–Möst] came on stage with a cake. And you can see in Franz’s eyes the admiration he had for that man. Boulez loved the Orchestra, and it seems like the Orchestra really loved him too.

It certainly does. One last question: Outside of your Dutilleux performance, what other concerts are you excited about in the remainder of the season?

PHOTO OF MARK KOSOWER BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

MARK: I’m really looking forward to working with Elim Chan again [January 16–18]. And the piece she’s bringing — Lutosławski’s Concerto for Orchestra — is outstanding. I first played it with Franz in 2012 and was so taken with it. It’s an amazing piece in the same vein as Bartók’s own Concerto for Orchestra.

Outside of that, I always enjoy

clevelandorchestra.com

returning to Carnegie Hall [March 18 & 19]. Other than Severance, it’s one of my absolute favorite halls in the world.

And I’m also excited for Janáček’s Jenůfa [May 17, 22 & 25]. When we did The Cunning Little Vixen several years back, it was so memorable. That composer has such a specific, individual voice, and I can’t wait to return to his music. | 41

THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA’S DIGITAL STREAMING SERVICE & APP

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Concert Experiences Experience on-demand concerts with exclusive interviews and behind-the-scenes features!

Educational Content Videos and learning resources for children, students, and teachers.

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Visit online at: stream.adella.live/premium or scan the QR code to secure your subscription today!

Questions? adellahelp@clevelandorchestra.com | 216-231-7300

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Your Concert Getaway . . .

The Lotus Club Relax before concerts and during intermission in the comfort of the Lotus Club with a full-service bar, light snacks, and private restrooms.

You can unlock membership to the Lotus Club all season long with your donation of $600 or more, or just $50/month.

Give today! clevelandorchestra.com/give 216-456-8400 Find the benefits and giving level that are right for you at clevelandorchestra.com/benefits

I N THE N EWS

New Events Announced for 2025 Mandel Opera & Humanities Festival Opera & Humanities Festival has quickly become an anticipated yearly highlight in The Cleveland Orchestra’s season.

Its third iteration — which takes place at Severance Music Center from May 16 to 25 — is no exception, centered around three concert performances of Janáček’s riveting opera Jenůfa, led by Music Director Franz Welser-Möst (May 17, 22 & 25). This year’s festival explores the theme of Reconciliation, highlighting its challenges, triumphs, and enduring relevance in a fractured world.

The award-winning Moth Mainstage comes to Severance on May 16 to kick off the festival. In this two-act evening, five masterful tellers share true, personal stories on the theme of reconciliation.

Honest and compelling, each story invites listeners into an intimate world of transformation and humanity, with brief musical interludes in between.

Acclaimed pianist Michelle Cann brings the legacy of Chicago’s Black Renaissance to life on May 19 in a recital that celebrates the music and stories of pioneering Black women composers.

With her signature artistry, Cann weaves spoken commentary and storytelling into the evening, offering insight into the fascinating lives of Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, Betty Jackson King, Nora Holt, and Irene Britton Smith.

Curious about opera? On May 18, you’ll have an opportunity to step behind the curtain and experience the art form through the world of Jenůfa, with a curated discussion and performance designed to enlighten and inspire.

This special event features members of the Jenůfa cast and is open to the public as part of The Cleveland Orchestra’s newly launched Opera Club.

Plus, on May 17, the audience-favorite United in Song! returns for its third year, highlighting the rich diversity of the Greater Cleveland choral community.

“Jenůfa is a rare gem of the operatic repertoire — emotionally raw, morally complex, and musically gripping,” said Welser-Möst. “Its profound exploration of sacrifice, forgiveness, and redemption makes it a uniquely compelling artistic journey that I look forward to sharing with our musicians, cast, chorus, and audiences in Cleveland this spring.”

The Moth Mainstage comes to Severance on May 16 for an evening of inspiring and intimate storytelling, interspersed with musical interludes.

More festival events will be announced in February. Visit clevelandorchestra.com/festival for details and ticketing information.

PHOTO BY ADETONA OMOKANYE

THE JACK, JOSEPH AND MORTON MANDEL

clevelandorchestra.com

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2025 MLK Service in the Arts Award Winners THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA is proud

to announce the three recipients of the 2025 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Service in the Arts Awards: Richard K. Levitz, Dr. David Thomas, and Splice-Cream Truck. This is the 21st year for the awards, which recognize individuals and organizations whose work has had a positive impact on music and the arts in the Cleveland community, reflecting the spirit, example, and teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. An accomplished architect, planner, and urban designer, Richard K. Levitz has served on the Orchestra’s Community Engagement Committee for decades, passionately advocating for the inclusion 46 | 2024/2025 SEASON

of Hispanics/Latinos in the Cleveland Orchestra family. Levit has been responsible for establishing community concerts by Orchestra members, including the Hispanic Heritage Month concerts at Severance.

Dr. David Thomas is a celebrated performer, composer, arranger, and teacher, who serves as music director at Karamu House. His numerous compositions have been published by GIA Publications, Inc. and he co-authored A Child’s First Book of Spirituals, which received the Coretta Scott King Award.

Creator of the Splice-Cream Truck — an ice-cream-truck-meets-recordingstudio — Benjamin Smith is a composer, vintage electronics tinkerer, and aural/ visual artist. He uses and creates sometimes forgotten analog and acoustic musical devices to bring a hands-on approach to connecting with people through art and sound.

PHOTO BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

I N THE N EW S

Blossom Spotlights Favorite Movies & Star Singer This Summer

ABOVE: PHOTO BY MARK SELIGER | RIGHT: © DISNEY

celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2024 — comes to Blossom on August 29, 30, and 31, featuring Hans Zimmer’s Oscarwinning score and beloved songs by Elton John and Tim Rice.

But that’s not all! On July 27, Cynthia Erivo (left) — Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award–winning actress, singer, producer, and recent star of the smash-hit film adaptation of Wicked — joins the Orchestra for a program of legendary voices. Erivo will perform hits from some of the greatest vocalists of all time, along with her own original songs.

Don’t miss out on these extraordinary performances!

IT ISN’T TOO EARLY to start anticipating warm summer nights at Blossom Music Center. Alongside a hearty lineup of classical and pops concerts, music lovers can look forward to three particularly special events at the 2025 Blossom Music Festival.

On July 5 and 6, The Cleveland Orchestra performs John Williams’s magical score to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone accompanied by the film on the big screens. Follow Harry and his friends Ron and Hermoine as they begin their studies at Hogwarts, encountering all sorts of adventures and dangers along the way. Later, the 1994 animated classic The Lion King (right) — which

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The remainder of the 2025 Blossom Music Festival season will be announced in February.

Visit clevelandorchestra.com/blossom for tickets and more information.

Blossom Music Festival Movie Nights are presented by NOPEC

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I N THE N EW S

TCO Releases New Digital Recording A NEW SPATIAL AUDIO RECORDING of

Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, led by Music Director Franz WelserMöst, is the latest addition to The Cleveland Orchestra’s growing catalog.

Initially available as an Apple Music Classical exclusive, it is now available to stream and purchase on all major streaming platforms.

Recorded live at Severance Music Center in May 2024, Symphonie fantastique is an unforgettable orchestral showpiece, taking listeners through tender love scenes, a thrilling march to the scaffold, and concluding with an opium-induced nightmare.

This was The Cleveland Orchestra’s fourth digital release of 2024, a year that also marked the centennial of its firstever recording. Other recent recordings highlight the music of Bartók, Prokofiev’s Sixth Symphony, and Bruckner’s Fourth Symphony.

Visit clevelandorchestra.com/recordings for more information on the Orchestra’s latest releases.

THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA is pleased

to welcome two distinguished individuals, Arthur C. Hall III (left) and Tony White (right), to its Board of Trustees.

Hall is the firm administrative partner and partner-in-charge of the Cleveland office of Calfee, Halter & Griswold LLP. In 2021 and 2022, he was named in Cleveland Magazine’s “500” list and also 48 | 2024/2025 SEASON

serves on the boards of Great Lakes Theater, Business Volunteers Unlimited, and Cleveland Leadership Center.

White is the managing partner and chief executive officer at Thompson Hine. He also sits on the board for Greater Cleveland Partnership, and is a former board member for United Way of Central Ohio, The Ohio State University Hospital, and the Big Ten Conference Advisory Commission.

Elected to three-year terms as members of the Class of 2027, both bring a wealth of expertise and visionary leadership to further strengthen the Orchestra’s mission and board.

PHOTOS COURTSEY OF ARTHUR HALL III AND BUSINESS WIRE

Two New Trustees Join TCO Board

PNC Foundation Grant Helps Children “Grow Up Great” Through Music

PHOTO BY ROGER MASTROIANNI

THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA is proud

to announce an extension of the PNC Grow Up Great program through a PNC Foundation grant that will support our Music Explorers initiative for the 2024–25 season. Now in its 20th year, PNC’s $500 million, bilingual, signature philanthropic initiative is designed to help prepare children from birth through age 5 for success in school and life.

Through the PNC Foundation grant, Music Explorers supports early childhood learning through engaging 30-minute concerts that introduce children to the instruments of the orchestra, with the goal of sparking creativity and a love for learning and music. The series also incorporates essential school readiness skills and helps set foundational building blocks that connect children in our community with the music The Cleveland Orchestra creates.

“PNC Grow Up Great is built on the clevelandorchestra.com

knowledge that high-quality education is a powerful means for social and economic mobility,” said Pat Pastore, PNC regional president for Cleveland. “This is a fantastic opportunity for us to bring together two amazing organizations that are focused on early childhood education and exposing children to arts and culture.”

Thanks to PNC’s support, these concerts are provided at no cost to schools, and tickets for adults are kept at an affordable price, allowing guardians to bring their children through The Cleveland Orchestra’s Under 18s Free program.

In addition to supporting Music Explorers, PNC has helped establish additional collaborations, including PNC Fairfax Connection and the PBS Kids national resource database, further expanding access to The Cleveland Orchestra’s educational resources.

Support from the PNC Foundation enables us to reach future musicians and music lovers, helping them form vital memories and strong first impressions with live music. We are thankful to have PNC’s support in making these important moments happen for the young people in our community!

There’s still time to bring your little ones to a Music Explorers concert! Mark your calendar for Cheerful Cello with Cleveland Orchestra cellist Alan Harrell on March 7 and 8, and Totally Tuba with tubist Kenneth Heinlein on April 4 and 5.

Visit: clevelandorchestra.com/attend/ concerts-for-families

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SN APSH OTS

1

END-OF-YEAR CONCERTS As temperatures outside dropped, Severance Music Center stayed toasty with a flurry of orchestra concerts, recitals, movies, and more. Here are some highlights from the end of the calendar year: 1) In late October, hundreds of 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders from around Cleveland learned about American music as the Orchestra performed a time-spanning program of music by a wide variety of American composers.

2) The sounds of water splashing, dripping, and bubbling filled Severance as Principal Percussionist Marc Damoulakis presented Tan Dun’s mesmerizing Water Concerto, conducted by the composer himself.

3) Associate Conductor Daniel Reith led the Orchestra through a cycle of Beethoven’s piano concertos, featuring five acclaimed pianists: Sir Stephen Hough, Yunchan Lim (pictured), Garrick Ohlsson, Minsoo Sohn, and Orion Weiss (who performed Beethoven’s Triple Concerto alongside violinist Augustin Hadelich and cellist Julia Hagen).

50 | 2024/2025 SEASON

2

4

3

5

HOLIDAYS AT SEVERANCE 4) Santa cracks a joke with guest conductor Sarah Hicks at one of The Cleveland Orchestra’s annual Holiday Concerts, a beloved community favorite.

5) Venera Foti and Mark Plush enjoy the festivities at the annual Winter Spree, an evening of music, merriment, and good cheer for the Orchestra’s family of supporters.

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: PHOTOS BY SCOTT ESTERLY, ROGER MASTROIANNI, YEVHEN GULENKO, YEVHEN GULENKO, ROGER MASTROIANNI

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THA N K YOU

The John L. Severance Society is named to honor the philanthropist and business leader who dedicated his life and fortune to creating The Cleveland Orchestra’s home concert hall, which today symbolizes unrivaled quality and enduring community pride.

The donors recognized here represent today’s visionary leaders, who have each surpassed $1 million in cumulative gifts to The Cleveland Orchestra. Their generosity and support joins a long tradition of community-wide support, helping to ensure our mission to provide extraordinary musical experiences — today and for future generations.

Gay Cull Addicott* Art of Beauty Company, Inc. BakerHostetler Bank of America The William Bingham Foundation Mr. William P. Blair III* Blossom Friends of The Cleveland Orchestra Mr. Richard J. Bogomolny & Ms. Patricia M. Kozerefski Jeanette Grasselli Brown & Glenn R. Brown* Mary E. & F. Joseph Callahan Foundation Mary Freer Cannon* The Cleveland Foundation The George W. Codrington Charitable Foundation Robert & Jean* Conrad Mr. & Mrs. Alexander M. Cutler Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts & Culture Mrs. Rebecca F. Dunn Eaton FirstEnergy Foundation Friends of The Cleveland Orchestra GAR Foundation The Gerhard Foundation, Inc. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Geoffrey & Sarah* Gund The George Gund Foundation The Haslam 3 Foundation Mr. & Mrs. James A. Haslam III The Estate of Leonard & Joan Horvitz

52 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Mr. & Mrs. Michael J. Horvitz Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. NACCO Industries, Inc. The Louise H. and David S. Ingalls Foundation Martha Holden Jennings Foundation The Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland Jones Day Foundation The Junior Committee of The Cleveland Orchestra Myra Tuteur Kahn Memorial Fund of the Cleveland Foundation The Walter and Jean Kalberer Foundation Joseph and Nancy Keithley Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Joseph P. Keithley Mr. & Mrs. Douglas A. Kern KeyBank Dr. & Mrs. Herbert Kloiber The Estate of Giles & Malvina Klopman Kulas Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Dennis W. LaBarre Nancy Lerner & Randy Lerner Mrs. Norma Lerner and The Lerner Foundation Daniel R. Lewis Jan R. Lewis Virginia M. & Jon A. Lindseth The Lubrizol Corporation Maltz Family Foundation The Milton and Tamar Maltz Family Foundation The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation Elizabeth Ring Mather and William Gwinn Mather Fund

Alexander & Marianna C. McAfee* Elizabeth F. McBride* Nancy W. McCann William C. McCoy* The Sisler McFawn Foundation Medical Mutual The Miami Foundation, from a fund established by John S. and James L. Knight Foundation The MJH Foundation Ms. Beth E. Mooney John C. Morley* John P. Murphy Foundation David and Inez Myers Foundation National Endowment for the Arts The Eric & Jane Nord Family Fund Mrs. Jane B. Nord Ohio Department of Development State of Ohio Ohio Arts Council The Honorable John Doyle Ong Parker Hannifin Foundation The Payne Fund The Dr. M. Lee Pearce Foundation, Inc. PNC Julia & Larry Pollock Mr. & Mrs. Alfred M. Rankin, Jr. Mrs. Alfred M. Rankin, Sr. Mr. & Mrs. Albert B. Ratner Charles & Ilana Horowitz Ratner The James and Donna Reid Foundation James* & Donna Reid The Reinberger Foundation Barbara S. Robinson* The Ralph and Luci Schey Foundation The Seven Five Fund Mrs. Gretchen D. Smith The Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation Richard & Emily Smucker Family Foundation The J. M. Smucker Co. Mr. & Mrs.* Richard K. Smucker Jenny & Tim Smucker Richard & Nancy Sneed Myrna & James Spira Lois & Tom Stauffer* Thompson Hine LLP Timken Foundation of Canton Joe & Marlene Toot Ms. Ginger Warner Robert C. Weppler Anonymous (7)

* DECEASED

LISTINGS AS OF DECEMBER 2024

Severance Society

clevelandorchestra.com/give

The Cleveland Orchestra Endowment For over a century, The Cleveland Orchestra has sought to inspire and unite people through the extraordinary power of music. The Cleveland Orchestra’s Endowment provides vital funds each season and is a long-term investment in the institution’s future.

We share our deepest gratitude to the following supporters who have established and contributed to a named fund in the Endowment. Their leadership support creates a legacy of music that will be shared for generations.

General Operating endowed funds provide foundational support for artistic initiatives, education and community programs, recordings, and more.

Gay Cull Addicott & Robert R. Cull Art of Beauty Company, Inc. Randall & Virginia Barbato John P. Bergren & Sarah S. Evans William P. Blair III Cynthia R. Boardman & Jane R. Horvitz Clarence E. Klaus Elizabeth Ring Mather & William Gwinn Mather Margaret Fulton-Mueller Virginia M. & Jon A. Lindseth The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation Nancy McCann MJH Foundation Harlan & Elizabeth Peterjohn Leighton A. Rosenthal Family Naomi G. & Edwin Z. Singer Artistic endowed funds support a variety of programmatic initiatives ranging from guest artists and radio broadcasts to the all-volunteer Cleveland Orchestra Chorus and the commissioning of new works.

Artistic Excellence George Gund III Artistic Collaboration Dr. Feite F. Hofman Joseph P. & Nancy F. Keithley Artistic Initiatives Barbara Robinson

Young Composers Daniel R. Lewis Friday Morning Concerts Mary E. and F. Joseph Callahan Foundation Radio Broadcasts Robert & Jean Conrad Dr. Frederick S. & Priscilla Cross The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus Jerome & Shirley Grover Meacham Hitchcock & Family American Conductors Fund Douglas Peace Handyside Holsey Gates Handyside

Severance Music Center endowed funds support maintenance of keyboard instruments and the facilities of the Orchestra’s concert home in Cleveland.

Keyboard Maintenance Mary Freer Cannon William R. Dew The Frederick W. and Janet P. Dorn Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Richard A. Manuel Vincent K. & Edith H. Smith Memorial Trust Organ D. Robert & Kathleen L. Barber Arlene & Arthur Holden Kulas Foundation Descendants of D.Z. Norton Oglebay Norton Foundation Severance Music Center Preservation Severance family and friends Blossom Music Center and Blossom Festival endowed funds support the Orchestra’s summer performances and maintenance of Blossom Music Center.

Severance Guest Conductors Roger & Anne Clapp James & Donna Reid

Blossom Festival Guest Artists Dr. & Mrs. Murray M. Bett The Hershey Foundation The Payne Fund Mr. & Mrs. William C. Zekan

Concert Previews Dorothy Humel Hovorka

Blossom Festival Family Concerts David E. & Jane J. Griffiths

Guest Artists Kulas Foundation The Payne Fund Julia & Larry Pollock Family James S. Reid Jr. Timothy J. & Jennifer C. Smucker

Landscaping and Maintenance The William Bingham Foundation Emily Blossom family members and friends The GAR Foundation John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

International Touring Frances Elizabeth Wilkinson Center for Future Audiences supports programs to develop new generations of audiences.

Center for Future Audiences Marguerite B. Humphrey Maltz Family Foundation Saul & Linda Ludwig Student Audiences Alexander & Sarah Cutler

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THA N K YOU Education and Community endowed funds support programs that deepen connections to symphonic music at every age and stage of life, including music instruction, performances, and classroom resources for thousands of students and adults each year.

Education Programs Hope & Stanley I. Adelstein Kathleen L. Barber Isabelle & Ronald Brown Dr. Jeanette Grasselli Brown & Dr. Glenn R. Brown The Brown and Kunze Foundation Frank & Margaret Hyncik Junior Committee of The Cleveland Orchestra Mr. & Mrs. David T. Morgenthaler John & Sally Morley Jane B. Nord & the Eric and Jane Nord Family Fund The William N. Skirball Endowment Family Concerts Stanley & Barbara Meisel and the Meisel and Pesses Foundation In-School Performances Alfred M. Lerner

Classroom Resources Charles & Marguerite C. Galanie Education Concerts Courtney & Marguerite Rankin Burton Malcolm E. Kenney Jane B. Nord & the Eric and Jane Nord Family Fund The Max Ratner Education Fund, given by the Ratner, Miller, and Shafran families and by Forest City Enterprises, Inc.

The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra William E. Dean Jr. & Gloria P. Dean Geoffrey & Sarah Gund The George Gund Foundation Christine Gitlin Miles, in honor of Jahja Ling Jules & Ruth Vinney Music Explorers Pysht Fund Community Programming Alex & Carol Machaskee

Make Music a Part of Your Legacy Your support for the Endowment creates a long-lasting connection to The Cleveland Orchestra. Whether you endow a chair or establish an endowed fund, your generosity is a powerful investment in classical music that will endure for years to come.

To learn more about ways to support The Cleveland Orchestra’s Endowment, contact: Katie Shames, JD, Sr. Major Gift and Planned Giving Officer

216-456-8400 | legacy@clevelandorchestra.com

The Cleveland Orchestra’s Stand Partner monthly donors keep the music playing through their ongoing generosity and dedication.

Thank you, Stand Partners, for giving from the heart — and for being invaluable advocates for music in our community.

Rena Abrams David Adams Mr. & Mrs. Timothy L. Adams Louis V. Adrean Mr. Mark D. Agrast & Mr. David M. Hollis Sharon Aitken Cheryl Allen Moses Allooh Benjamin Altose Susan Aluzri Mary Ellen Amos Gail Anderson

54 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Herb & Sheila Andre de la Porte Joseph Andrews John Anzevino Valerie Arbie-McClelland & Warren McClelland Ms. Jane Archer Michael Archiablee Dalia N. Armonas Catherine Armstrong Jean Armstrong-Mathews Helen Arnett Lowry & Linda Arnold Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Audino

Anthony E. Bacevice Mr. Charles Bacon Kelsey Baer Matthew Baker Mr. Kenneth & Mrs. Sharen Bakke Christine Banks-VanAllen Mrs. Borbala Banto, CPA Anemaria Iani & Thomas Barnard Christy Barnes James & Mary Barry Wayne Bartlett Aliza Bartunek Dr. Benico & Mrs. Joan Barzilai Stephanie Bass Dr. Debbie Bates Mike & Cynthia Bauman Reverend Thomas & Dr. Joan Baumgardner* Michael & Mary Anne Baumgartner Mr. Robert C. Beiter Lois Bell Kathy & Andrew Bemer Daniel Bennett

* DECEASED

LISTINGS AS OF DECEMBER 2024

Stand Partner Monthly Supporters

clevelandorchestra.com/give

David Benson Scott & Pamela Benson David Bercheck Jared Berg Molly Berger Thomas M. Berger Mr. Kurt Berglund Dr. & Mrs. Rolf S. Bergman Ms. Cornelia Bergmann Vincent & Sydney Bertei Ashley Best Brian Bialik & Rhonda Richardson Barb Birk Joanne Blanchard Nicholas Blasius Ryan Boehm Scott Boehnen Drs. Robert & Constance Bouchard Conda Boyd Ramone Boyd Lisa & Ronald Boyko Barbara Bradley Mr. Gary L. Brahler Dr. Eugene Brand Rick Breault Justin Brewer Matthew P. Brewer, MD Michael Brewer Constance Brewster Keith & April Brewster Sean Brewster Mr. Frank Brichacek & Mrs. Roseanna Lechner-Brichacek Claudia Brobst Mr. Richard Brockett Kathryn Brockway Linda L. Brown, PhD Mrs. Carole D. Brown Troy Brown Erik Bruder Gayle Brun Ms. Leslie Buck Ryan Buckley Mr. & Mrs. John Budnik Brian Bugay Ms. Mary Ann Bugno Christopher & Elizabeth Burdick Brian & Cyndee Burke James Burkholder Alicia Burkle Kathryn Button Lynn & Jeffrey Callahan Steve & Polly Canfield Robert Carlyon John Carter Mr. & Mrs. William S. Carter Theresa Cassara-Norvell John & Pamela Caulkins John & Linda Chae Angel Chan William & Jennifer Clawson Mr. & Mrs. Robert Claytor Ms. Sara Clem

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Candy Clemson Mr. & Mrs. George J. Clessuras Josh & Cinda Coldwell Abigail Coleman-Kemp Ms. Kathleen Collins & Mr. Jonathan Fields Mrs.Barbara F. Colombi Mr. Carlton J. Conrad Sheila Cooley John & Colleen Cooney Esther Cooper Craig Cope Renee Copfer Dr. Christine M. & Mr. Vincent A. Cortese Ella Corvin Joseph Cosentino Morgan Cotopolis Elizabeth Counsil Bridget Courtright Mr. & Mrs. Frederick H. Cowie Joann Toth & Lon Cseplo Jennifer Cullum William Curtin Mr. Robert & Mrs. Susan Curtis Dr. Christine A Hudak & Mr. Marc F. Cymes Mr. & Mrs. Paul Dahnke Carmen & Faye D’Amore Mr. James Damoulakis Ms. Barbara D’Angelo Jennifer Darling Holly Davies Jill Davis Ms. Marcia Davis Mr. Matthew Davis Randall De Alba Mr. Fred & Mrs. Mary Deblasis Charles & Marion DeBrosse Suzanne DeBrosse Anita Bertin Degreen James & Kathleen Deily Alec Deitz Teresa Del Moral (Miami) Joan Delahay Richard DeLoof Vincent DeLuca Elaine R. DeMore William Dempsey & Beverly Sater Dempsey L. Susan De Pould Roderick & Barbara Dibble Darlene Dimitrijevs Drs. Michael & Leslie Dingeldein Molly Dise Todd & Lynne Dixon Gregory Dobbins F. Paul & Nora C. Doerder Mrs. Linda Dolce Mary Kay DeGrandis & Edward Donnelly Dr. & Mrs. Michael B. Dowell Douglas & Amanda Droste

L. M. Dunker Mr. & Mrs. Kevin D. Durham Lisa Durkin Giselle Dutcher Clare Dyczkowski Adrienne Dziak Martha Eagleton Dr. Robert E. Eckardt Paul & Peggy Edenburn Carter Edman Bonnie Eggers Amy Egle Mr. & Mrs. Edward A. Eiskamp Teresa Eland Dr. Mark D. Elderbrock Harald Ellers Matthew Ellis Marlene & Jon Englander Gary English Marilyn Eppich Ted Espenschied Louis* & Patricia Esposito Sharon & Nicholas Ezzone Robert Fabien Joe & Stephanie Fagan Jon & Mary Fancher Ava & Michel Farivar Lori Faust Mr. Cole Fauver John Fazio Donald Ferfolia Tracy Ferguson Michael Ferraguto Dylan Findley Mary Kay Fink & Nicholas Underhill Joan Firmin Melissa & Eliana Fittante Ms. Susan Flowers Laura Fox Michael Fox Marianne Frantz John & Barbara Freshley Chris Frey Julie Frey Adam Fuller Katherine Funkner William Furfaro Alexandra Fushi Dennis Fyffe James Gaffney Nancy Galambush Mike & Kay Galloway Margaret Gambill Mr. Stefan Ganobcik Ms. Deborah A. Geier Joseph & Margaret Geiger Ms. Lesley Geldart Frank & Louise Gerlak Hollie Geyer-Rasnick Jennifer Gilles Nairn’ Gillet Terri Gilliam Patrick Giuffrida

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Dan & Lee Glover Pamela & Richard* Goetsch Mrs. Heather Goldberg Mr. Robert & Mrs. Lisa Goldberg Mr. John Goodell Andrew Gordon-Seifert Mr. & Mrs. Thomas F. Gorgas John & Ann Gosky Angela & Jeffrey Gotthardt Charlotte Gouveia Dr. Ruffin Graham Heather Grant Tyler Grasee Ms. Sarah Gridley Emily Griffin Patrick Grijak James Grover Dr. William K. & Mrs. Judith Guegold Dr. & Mrs. Alan Gurd Genevieve Gurnick Ann Guthrie Mary Gutierrez Judge James & Bonnie Gwin Adam Hackett The Adam & Loren Hackett Family Meg Hackett Eleanor Hagan Earl Hagey Karen Hale Alison Hall Megan Hall & James Janning Yoshinori & Yukiko Hamamura Mr. Ray Hamlin, Jr. Amy Han Karen Hanrahan Jill Harbaugh Delores Hargrove Gregory Harig Jared Harp Shaun Harper Betty Harrell Brian Harris Albert & Jean Harsar Melody Hart Gerald Harvey Mr. Robert Hawkes Scott Healy Drs. John & Brittany Heffernan Craig Heitger Mr. & Mrs. Wade F. Helms Abby Henderhan Candace & Jack Hendershot Kevin & Pam Hendryx Nathan Hensley Rob Hermanowski Rita Herrera Patti Hester James & Susan Hildebrandt Mr.* & Mrs. Richard A. Hiles Michael Hoffman Susan M. Biasella-Hohs Mary Holland Suzanne Holt

56 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Supensri Holzheimer Jim Hoover Mr. Herbert J. Hoppe Jr. Craig Horst Jon Horvath Xavier-Nichols Foundation/ Robert & Karen Hostoffer Rebecca Hoyt Katheryn Hrabik Phillip Huber Bradley Hughes & Claire Sonneborn Mr.* & Mrs. J. David Hunter Jesse & Rachel Hurst Todd & Joy Hutchinson Michael Iodice Ms. Anna Marie Irwin Margaret Irwin Todd & Shelley Ivary Cori Jackson Jasmine Lynn Jackson Ms. Rebecca Jackson Mr. John E. Jackson David Jacob Daniel Jacobs Thomas K. & Crystal R. James Scott James Amy & Kerry Janke Edward Janoch Dr. Maita & Mr. Gary Jarkewicz Ms. Abigail Jasper Penny Jeffrey Mr. Robert & Mrs. Patricia Jeffreys Sandra Jensen Amy & Jaren Jenyk Dylan Jin Dane Johansen Sandra John Jeffrey & Amy Johnson Mr. Jeremy V. Johnson Eric & Susan Johnson Kimberly Johnson Gennie S. Johnston Alex Jones John Jones Janet Jordan Mr. Robert & Mrs. Mary V. Kahelin Susan Kaiser Nozomu Kawashima David Keep Robert Keesecker Ellen Keffer Rev. John S. Keller & Mr. Donald J. Jackson Valerie Kelly Joyce Kennedy Ryan Kerfoot Dr. Kristin A. Kerling Mr. & Mrs. Donald Kest David Keymer Ms. Chere Kilbane Linda Kirkwood Dr. Jacobo & Mrs. Joana Kirsch Ms. Trudee Klautky

Michael & Lisa Knall Mr. Thomas J. Kniesner & Mrs. Deborah A. Freund Alicia Koelz & Christos Georgalis Tim & Linda Koelz James Koerner Mr. & Mrs. John C. Komperda Mr. Michael Komperda Keisi Kotobelli Allison Kreiner Robert Sebulsky & Margaret H. Kreiner, Esq. David & Jarrett Krizan Mrs. Kristi Krueger Megan Krutsch Thomas* & Barbara Kuby Bill & Sue Kuczinski Drs. Steven & Carolyn Kuerbitz Tracy Kuhn Susan Kuilder Christopher & Chelsea Kulhanek Robert & Brenda Kunkel Ms. Leslie Lahr Rachel Lamb Mr. & Mrs. Robert J. Landgraf Dr. Richard S. Lang Mr. & Mrs. Michael Lavelle William & Lynn Lavezzi Dr. William Lavigna Mr. & Mrs. Brian A. Lawler Ms. Cynthia D. Leach SeungHee Lee & EunGyoung Song Joshua Harris & Yun-Ting Lee Stephen Leiby Don & Jane Lennon Jasmine Lepir Melissa Lewis Shien Liao Michael & Valerie Libman Ms. Kim E. Lindsey Mrs. Kay B. Lingafelter Mr. Jeff Litwiller Janice Liu Gina Lloyd Hannah Long Nikki Long Susana Lorenzo-Giguere Robert Lovicz & Kimberly Johnson Phillip & Louise Luschek Judith Lyon Ms. Pamela MacWilliams Diana Maher Audra Mahon Margaret Mahoney Iryna Maitta Olietunja Mann Elena Manoli Jennifer Manthey Dr. Kandice Marchant Ashley Marchetta Jeanette Marks Gerald & Marilyn Martau Douglas Martin

* DECEASED

LISTINGS AS OF DECEMBER 2024

THA N K YOU

clevelandorchestra.com/give

Kathleen Masis Robert & Gail Mastrangelo Ms. Judith E. Matsko Dr. Lee Maxwell & Mr. Michael M. Prunty Marilyn Mazzei John McBratney Judge Alison McCarty Mr. David L. McCombs Mrs. Pamela J. McConnell Linda McCorkle Daniel McCroskey Tim McDonnell Dr. Scott & Sonia McDonough Ms. Tara McElroy Melissa McGregor Mary Ellen McLaughlin Terese McLeod Ms. Luellen McMahon Susan McMaster Nancy McMillin Paul & Elizabeth Meeker Ms. Karen D. Melton Matthew Menger Ian Mercer Dr. Susan M. Merzweiler Dr. Michelle Messner Mr. Dave Metlicka Dr. Richard & Mrs. Judith Meyer Mr. Gene Milford Amy Miller & Nikhil Rao Deborah Miller Michael & Evelyn Miller Sally Miller Taylor Mills Logan Samuel Milner Paula Mindes & George A. Gilliam Mr. Timothy Minnis Ioana Missits Michael Monter Derek Moore Julieanne Moore Elizabeth Morris Barbara Morrison Angela Mortellaro & Michael Davies Ms. Joanne Mortimer Ronald & Mary Mortus Anna Maria Motta Ken & Sharon Mountcastle Hannah Muzzi John Myers Joan Katz Napoli & August Napoli Melissa Nautiyal Dr. Anne & Mr. Peter Neff Ronald Neill & Ann Harlan Joyce & Jay Nesbit MaryAnne Nestor David & Karen Nevergall Sunny Nixon Margaret Noll Jeffrey & Beverly Norris Jessica Norris Greg Nosan & Brandon Ruud

clevelandorchestra.com

Matt & Valerie Nousak Andres Nunez Caitlin O’Brien David & Mary Jo Ockenga Kathleen O’Connor Mr. Karl E. Odenweller Andrew O’Donnell Christopher O’Donnell Ms. Mary M. Ogden Tonia Oglesby Dr. Cara Ogren Vicki Ohl Thomas Okoben Moira ONeill Mia O’Riordan Mrs. Krysia Orlowski & Dr. Brian Harte Douglas Orr & Kimberley Barton Richard* & Elizabeth Osborne David Ottney Randall & Ann Over Robert Owen Robert & Marian Page Allison Paine Clayton Papenfus Ian Park Jacqueline Pasek Steven Pastor Hilary Patriok David Pavlich & Cherie Arnold Victoria Peacock Jim & Barbara Pearce Dan Pedrotty Daniel Pendergast Tamara & Alec Pendleton Donald & Judith Penn John Perko Dr. & Mrs. Bernard Perla Delores Perry Charles & Sharon Pervo Ms. Catherine Peters Jennifer Petruzzi Mitchell Phillips Craig Piper Jonathan Pittman Jane Pollis Greg Polyak & Marcia Snavely Polyak Richard Popelmayer Carol Porter Sangeeta Prakash Rich Pranzarone & Karen Lincicome William & Millie Prebel Joshua Prest Christopher Przybycin Katherine Rademacher Rika Rall Jeannine Ramsey Mrs. Amy Raubenolt Mrs. Bridget Rechin Mr. Todd J. Reese Judy & Clifford Reeves Jr. Caeli Regan

Greg Reichwein Michael Resnick Stephanie Resnick Carmen Rey Robert Rice Craig Rich & Victoria Gray Donna Richardson Matthew Richardson Dr. & Mrs. Bradford Richmond Miss Melissa Richmond Marin Ridgway Cynthia Ries Mr. Kevin Roach Mr. D. Keith* & Mrs. Margaret B. Robinson Debra Robinson Janice & Roger Robinson Michael & Laura Rogers Mr. Hans J. Rohr Dr. Bruce & Mrs. Jan Rose Douglas H. & Kasia Gustaw Rothenberg Cristin Roush Deborah Rowe Drs. Jordi & David Rowe Jennifer Rozsa Marlon Rucker Roberta W. & Michael J. Rusek Mrs. Elisa J. Russo Mrs. Shelley Sabga Patricia Sadataki Thomas Safford Mr. & Mrs. Clinton Samuel Alexa Sandmann Robert & Cathie Sankey Rick Santich & Paula Smith Erica Savage Bryan & Jenna Scafidi Adelaide Schaaf Charles Schaefer Floyd Schanbacher Susan Schapiro Charles & Susan Schenkelberg Mr. Matthew Schenz Henry Schilb Conner Schliffka John Schmoll Ms. Beverly J. Schneider Mr. Kim Schrock Edward Schroeder Dawn Schwartz Rachel Hersh Schwarz Deborah Scolaro Barbara Scott Paul & Sarah Scott Tiffany Sedlacek Dr. W. David Sedwick June A. Seech Roslyn Seed Mr. Robert Sehein Peter Selover Caltha Seymour

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THA N K YOU

58 | 2024/2025 SEASON

Mr. & Mrs. Michael C. Strasser Fritz & Alison Streiff Mr. & Mrs. Martin Striegl Trina Struble & John Bourne Bobbi Sundman Christopher Switzer David Szabo Cameron Taylor Dr. Harris C. Taylor Jill & Jim Taylor Kathryn Teng & Derek Abbott Kevin Tennant Sharon Tesar Dr. Roland Thomas Dr. & Mrs. Ronald G. Thomas Dr. Stefanie Thomas Dustin Thompson Matt Thompson Jerry Thornburg Brian Thornton, Jennifer Woda, Maddi Woda & Maya Thornton Andrew Tian Dr. Jane Timmons-Mitchell & Mr. Robert Mitchell Isabel Trautwein Andrew Grace & Robert Troy Peter Turkson Susan Tyler Kevin Ubert Dr. Veronica Garcia & Dr. Ken Uchino Anne Unverzagt Dave Vacca Kenneth Vail Karen Valenti Dorothy Valerian Anthony & Connie Van Gilder George Vanderbilt Leah VanLear Ann VerWiebe David Viglione Adele Viguera Kathryn Vine David S. & Rebecca Vineyard Mr. Gary & Mrs. Sandra Vinicky Wendy Voelker Dr. Vincenzo G. Volpe Erika Wagner Tom Wagner & Melinda Smyth David Waldron Karen A. Waldron Iva L. Walker Leslie & Mark Walker Veronika Walter Jake Wang Jessica Ward

Ginger & Bryan Ware John & Deborah Warner Kent Warner Mr. & Mrs.* Joseph F. Wasserbauer Tim & Jo Watson Jeffrey Webb Teagan Webb Dr. Leslie T. Webster, III, MD Martha Webster Mr. & Mrs. Charles E. Weil Mr. & Mrs. Chris Weinkamer Kenneth & Celine Weiss Kathleen Weppelman Dennis & Vicki Wert Elizabeth Wertz Julie West Aaron & Vera Wester Suzanne Westlake Margaret Wetzler Sarah Whalen-Cohen Amy Wheeler Patricia Whitson Sharon & Michael Widenmeyer Mary Pat Wiegand Pete Wieneke Martha Wiersma David & Janet Williams Patricia Willkomm Mr. Ronald Willner John & Tory Willoughby Benjamin Winters Nancy Wittig Nancy L. Wolpe Lisa Wong Shari Wong Mr. Philip Woodcock & Ms. Virginia Benjamin Gayle Woodrow Anita Woodward Sandra Woolley Christina Woskobojnik Mr. David & Mrs. Mary Alice Wyatt Ryan Xie Peijun Xu Dr. Charles & Mrs. Jennifer Young Ms. Libby M. Yunger Mrs. Valerie Zahirsky John Zanghi Gareth Zehngut Mr. Jeffrey A. Zehngut Kristina Zerbe Rick Zhang Sandra Zieve John & Jane Zuzek Anonymous (19)

To learn more about monthly giving and becoming a Stand Partner, visit clevelandorchestra.com/standpartner or call us at 216-456-8400.

* DECEASED

LISTINGS AS OF DECEMBER 2024

Ms. Melanie Shakarian & Dr. Peter Kvidera Ginger & Larry Shane Ms. Marlene Sharak Lynn Shaw Charles & Linda Shearouse John & Myra Shen Maredith Sheridan & Norman Graubart Stuart & Gina Sheridan Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Sherwood Robert Shields Erin Shipley Toni Shreve Connetta Shringarpurey Christina Sibilla Richard Sicha & Marcia Moll Mrs. Susan M. Simenc Ms. Barbara Sindyla Annie & Andrew Singer Timothy Singer Robert Sisler Michal Sittek Jennifer Skinner Tom & Eve Sliwinski Molly Slota Alex & Elizabeth Smilovich Lauren Smit Brad & Leslie Smith Mr. Joshua Smith Barb & Bill Snyder Mr. Frank & Mrs. Nancy* Sobol John Sobolewski Mr. Scott Soeder & Mr. James Riggs Patricia King Sommer Nick Sondag Mary Southards Stacey Souther Ms. Kelli Souvey James & Patricia Spayer Kate Spector Lilith Spencer Mary Spencer Tom & Cindy Sperl Brenda J. Spicer Mr. Michael Sprinker Deborah Stack Maribeth & Christopher Stahl Claire Stair Barbara J. Stanford & Vincent T. Lombardo Mr. Michael Star Philip Star & Jane Peterson Mr. & Mrs. Kent O. Starrett Carol Stephens Dr. William H. Stigelman, Jr. Roger & Donna Stiller Mr. & Mrs. Gary V. Stolcals Bethany Stone & Nicholas Campagna Elinore Marsh Stormer Mr. James D. Storry* & Mrs. Sidney Storry

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The Cleveland Orchestra

Board of Trustees O FFIC ER S Richard K. Smucker Chair Richard J. Kramer Vice Chair & Treasurer André Gremillet President & CEO Dennis W. LaBarre Immediate Past Chair Richard J. Bogomolny Chair Emeritus Norma Lerner Honorary Chair David J. Hooker Secretary RES ID E N T TRUSTEES Victor Alexander Robin Dunn Blossom Yuval Brisker Helen Rankin Butler Irad Carmi Matthew V. Crawford Michael Frank, MD JD Hiroyuki Fujita Robert Glick Arthur C. Hall III Iris A. Harvie Dee Haslam Stephen H. Hoffman David J. Hooker Michelle Shan Jeschelnig Sarah Liotta Johnston Elizabeth B. Juliano Nancy F. Keithley Douglas A. Kern John D. Koch Richard J. Kramer Dennis W. LaBarre Heather Lennox Cathy Lincoln Robert W. Malone Ben Mathews

Nancy W. McCann Stephen McHale Beth E. Mooney Christine Myeroff Katherine T. O’Neill Hyun Park Alfred M. Rankin, Jr. Charles A. Ratner Zoya Reyzis Richard K. Smucker James C. Spira R. Thomas Stanton Richard Stovsky Russell A. Trusso Daniel P. Walsh Thomas A. Waltermire Jeffery J. Weaver Anya Weaving Meredith Smith Weil Paul E. Westlake Jr. David A. Wolfort Anthony Wynshaw-Boris NATI O NAL TRUSTEES Virginia Nord Barbato (NY) Mary Jo Eaton (FL) Michael J. Horvitz (FL) Thomas E Lauria (FL) Loretta Mester (PA) Benjamin N. Pyne (NY) Geraldine B. Warner (OH) Tony White (OH)

E X-O FFIC IO TRUSTEES André Gremillet (President & CEO, The Cleveland Orchestra) Todd Diacon Lisa Fedorovich Eric Kaler Judith E. Matsko Beverly J. Schneider TRUSTEE EMERITI Thomas F. McKee HON OR ARY TRUSTEES FO R LIFE Richard J. Bogomolny Charles P. Bolton Jeanette Grasselli Brown Robert D. Conrad Alexander M. Cutler Robert W. Gillespie Richard C. Gridley S. Lee Kohrman Norma Lerner Virginia “Ginny” Lindseth Alex Machaskee Robert P. Madison Milton S. Maltz John D. Ong Clara T. Rankin Audrey Gilbert Ratner Hewitt B. Shaw Luci Schey Spring

I N TERNATI O NAL TRUSTEES Wolfgang C. Berndt (Austria) Herbert Kloiber (Germany)

Whatever greatness The Cleveland Orchestra has achieved is because of all the people here in this community, who believe in what the power of music can do.

— Franz Welser-Möst

clevelandorchestra.com

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YOU R V IS IT LATE SEATING As a courtesy to the audience members and musicians in the hall, late-arriving patrons are asked to wait quietly until the first convenient break in the program. These seating breaks are at the discretion of the House Manager in consultation with the performing artists.

CELL PHONES, WATCHES & OTHER DEVICES As a courtesy to others, please silence all electronic devices prior to the start of the concert.

PHOTOGRAPHY, VIDEOGRAPHY & RECORDING Audio recording, photography, and videography are prohibited during performances at Severance.

Photographs can only be taken when the performance is not in progress.

HEARING AIDS & OTHER HEALTH-ASSISTIVE DEVICES For the comfort of those around you, please reduce the volume on hearing aids and other devices that may produce a noise that would detract from the program. For Infrared Assistive-Listening Devices, please see the House Manager or Head Usher for more details.

IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY Contact an usher or a member of house staff if you require medical assistance. Emergency exits are clearly marked throughout the building. Ushers and house staff will provide instructions in the event of an emergency.

AGE RESTRICTIONS Regardless of age, each person must have a ticket and be able to sit quietly in a seat throughout the performance. Classical Season sub-

FREE MOBILE APP

TICKET WALLET Download today for instant, secure, and paperless access to your concert tickets.

For more information and direct links to download, visit clevelandorchestra.com/ticketwallet or scan the code with your smartphone camera to download the app for iPhone or Android.

Available for iOS and Android on Google Play and at the Apple App Store.

scription concerts are not recommended for children under the age of 8. However, there are several age-appropriate series designed specifically for children and youth, including Music Explorers (for 3 to 6 years old) and Family Concerts (for ages 7 and older).

FOOD & MERCHANDISE Beverages and snacks are available at bars throughout Severance Music Center. For Cleveland Orchestra apparel, recordings, and gift items, visit the Welcome Desk in Lerner Lobby.

TELL US ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE We are so glad you joined us!

Want to share about your time at Severance? Send your feedback to cx@clevelandorchestra.com.

Hearing directly from you about what we are doing right and where we can improve will help us create the best experience possible.

The Cleveland Orchestra is grateful to the following organizations for their ongoing generous support of The Cleveland Orchestra: the State of Ohio and Ohio Arts Council and to the residents of Cuyahoga County through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.

The Cleveland Orchestra is proud of its long-term partnership with Kent State University, made possible in part through generous funding from the State of Ohio.

The Cleveland Orchestra is proud to have its home, Severance Music Center, located on the campus of Case Western Reserve University, with whom it has a long history of collaboration and partnership. ©2025 The Cleveland Orchestra and the Musical Arts Association Program books for Cleveland Orchestra concerts are produced by The Cleveland Orchestra and are distributed free to attending audience members.

EDI TORI AL

Cleveland Orchestra performances are broadcast as part of regular programming on ideastream/WCLV Classical 90.3 FM, Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 4 PM.

Kevin McBrien, Publications Manager The Cleveland Orchestra kmcbrien@clevelandorchestra.com DE SIG N

Elizabeth Eddins, Eddinsdesign eddinsdesign@gmail.com ADV ERT ISI NG

Live Publishing Company, 216-721-1800

60 | 2024/2025 SEASON

“We are paving a path for our next chapter by establishing connections now. We can keep enjoying our wonderful skyline views and musical activities, knowing our plan is in place.”

Max Bunker and Tony Bianchi / Bratenahl

Membership

is Music to Our Ears!

As a Judson at Home member, you’ll have access to an engaging community, cultural programs, wellness activities and an array of dining venues. Most of all, you have all the services and amenities of a retirement community at your fingertips while living in your own home.

Become a Member Today!

(216) 791-2436 judsonsmartliving.org Read more about Max and Tony’s experience at judsonsmartliving.org/blog.