Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra at Thrasher-Horne Center, November 21, 2015

Classics by Beethoven, Mozart, and Ginastera, Courtney Lewis Conductor

 

The Jacksonville Symphony, led by Music Director Courtney Lewis, will bring an exciting program of classical favorites to the Thrasher-Horne Center on Saturday, November 21^st, at 8:00 p.m. This event is part of the Thrasher-Horne Center’s partnership with the Jacksonville Symphony. The concert will include Ludwig van Beethoven’s Consecration of the House, Alberto Ginastera’s Variaciones Concertantes, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony no. 41 (Jupiter).

Founded in 1949, the Jacksonville Symphony’s performance history has featured such renowned artists as Isaac Stern, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington, Marilyn Horne, Luciano Pavarotti and Itzhak Perlman. One of the nation’s top regional orchestras, the Jacksonville Symphony engages the community in many ways throughout the First Coast and statewide. 

The Jacksonville Symphony is the largest nonprofit provider of youth music education programs in North Florida. Each season nearly 70,000 young people and adults benefit from the Orchestra’s diverse educational and community engagement opportunities. Bringing the orchestra out of the concert hall and into the community makes a big impact.

This is a historic new era for the Jacksonville Symphony as Courtney Lewis takes the baton as Music Director in his inaugural season. Lewis brings to the podium a number of exciting new initiatives, including a Symphony in 60 series of three happy hour concerts, a Symphonic Night at the Movies series featuring three films accompanied by the Symphony, and six Signature Sunday Masterworks and Pops concerts.

Maestro Courtney Lewis

With clear artistic vision, subtle musicality, and innovative programming, Courtney Lewis has established himself as one of his generation’s most talented conductors. He conducted the opening and closing concerts for the Jacksonville Symphony’s 2014-2015 season. The 2015-2016 season marks his first as Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony. Previous appointments have included Associate Conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra and Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. From 2008 to 2014, he was the music director of Boston’s acclaimed Discovery Ensemble. Lewis is also the Assistant Conductor of the New York Philharmonic through the 2015-2016 season.

Born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Lewis made his major American orchestral debut in November 2008 with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. Since then, he has appeared with the Atlanta Symphony, Washington National Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Houston Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, and the Ulster Orchestra, among others. 

Quotes from Local Interviews of Courtney Lewis

At thirty-one years old, Courtney Lewis is one of the youngest conductors of a major orchestra in the country. He has been interviewed extensively in Northeast Florida’s newspapers and other media about conducting and his vision for the Jacksonville Symphony.

“My hope is that, as the Jacksonville Symphony moves forward, everybody will be aligned in a shared vision, that music is an essential thing, not a luxury. Everyone needs music, and we will present it at the highest artistic level. I’m very excited about the future of the orchestra,” Lewis told Frank Denton of the Florida Times-Union.

“Composing is a very lonely practice. I found that I wanted to spend my time working with other musicians. Conducting is the most social musical experience there is. It's very addicting,” he told Danny Kelly of Folio Weekly.

“I wanted to spend my life making music with other people, and conducting is the ultimate social musical experience… When everybody is pulling in the same direction, it’s the most exciting experience you can imagine,” he told Marylin Young of the Financial News and Daily Record.

Quotes about Lewis in Other Media

“Getting the best out of an orchestra is a challenge, but the young Belfast conductor proves he can handle it with performances of Prokofiev, Borodin and Shostakovich.” Michael Dervan, The Irish Times

“Lewis drew precise, energetic and persuasive performances from the orchestra in both the Tchaikovsky and the Stravinsky works.” Michael Anthony, Minnesota Star Tribune

“What’s most striking in the rehearsals is the rapport between Lewis and the players. His style of conducting is quick, alert, physically expressive.” Joan Wickersham, Boston Globe

“I couldn’t get the image out of my mind that Beethoven was smiling down on this talented, dynamic, and compelling young conductor.” Brain Jones, Musical World.

What does Maestro Lewis do in his spare time?

In his spare time, Lewis enjoys cooking, lifting weights, and travelling. He plays the piano for fun and listens to music for enjoyment. Not classical music, but today’s commercial pop. He also blogs on Jacksonville.com. The following is from his introductory post.

“Nothing prepares you for the first time you stand in front of a symphony orchestra and realize that everyone is staring straight at you! Terrifying, but thrilling. Simon Rattle once described conducting as ‘an un-kickable habit.’ I was an addict from day one. After four years at Cambridge, I went ‘Up North’ to Manchester to study conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music. From there I went to Boston for my first job with the Boston Philharmonic. During that time, my friends and I founded Discovery Ensemble, a chamber orchestra that played 18th- and 21st-century music, and also spent a lot of time going into schools in Boston that didn’t have any music education programs. It was incredibly rewarding to see kids’ faces light up when we introduced them to Beethoven and Ligeti.”

The Music

Beethoven’s Consecration of the House was composed in September 1822. It was commissioned by Carl Friedrich Hensler, the Director of Vienna's new Theater in der Josefstadt, and was first performed at the theatre's opening on October 3, 1822. It was the first work Beethoven wrote after his revival of studying the works of J. S. Bach and Handel, and bears their influence.

Alberto Ginastera’s Variaciones concertantes was commissioned by the Argentine Friends of Music, in 1953. It is scored for two flutes, piccolo, oboe, two clarinets, bassoon; two horns, trumpet, trombone; timpani; harp; and string choir. The work is in 12 parts, played without interruption.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart completed his Symphony No. 41 in C major on 10 August 1788. It was the last symphony that he composed, and also the longest. The 41st Symphony is the last of a set of three that Mozart composed in rapid succession during the summer of 1788.  

The Thrasher-Horne Center

This concert marks the third main stage performance by the Jacksonville Symphony.  Tickets are now on sale.  Thrasher-Horne Center has several great additional performances coming up, including Boz Scaggs in November, Michael McDonald in December, and magician Mike Super in December. Check out the calendar.

The Broadway Season at the Thrasher-Horne Center begins in December. There will be six great shows including Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, Ragtime, Always… Patsy Cline, Annie, Saturday Night Fever, and the Northeast Florida Premiere of Once. Subscriptions are on sale now on the Thrasher-Horne Center’s website.

Spread the word about one of Northeast Florida’s best kept secrets! Tell your family and friends about the Thrasher-Horne Center. Share this article with them. They will appreciate learning about what they have been missing.

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In this article, I’ve written about the upcoming performance of the Jacksonville Symphony on November 21^st. Courtney Lewis, Music Director, will be conducting. This event is part of the partnership between the Thrasher-Horne Center and the Jacksonville Symphony.