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The Cleveland Orchestra just gave a most refreshing summer concert (Aug. 23)

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by Kevin McLaughlin

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio – The Cleveland Orchestra sounded far younger Saturday than their 107 years, energized by guest conductor Stephanie Childress, lifted by cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, and buoyed by a program of youthful works by Britten, Saint-Saëns, and Mendelssohn.

Franco-British conductor Stephanie Childress, who debuted with the Orchestra in 2024, returned Saturday to a warm welcome at the Blossom Music Center. From her slight frame and controlled gestures came a striking reserve of power. Whether with baton or without, her long, expressive fingers eloquently shaped phrases with precision and grace throughout the evening.

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Cleveland Orchestra honors Rodgers & Hammerstein in dazzling Blossom concert (Aug. 17)

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by Peter Feher

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio – If any industry understands the magic of a marquee, it’s Broadway. And few names in the history of musical theater have lit up the Great White Way as brilliantly as Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II.

Together, the composer and lyricist have been a box-office draw for close to a century, from the smashing success of their first collaboration, “Oklahoma!” (1943) to the packed crowd they drew for The Cleveland Orchestra’s concert at Blossom Music Center on Sunday, Aug. 17.

A versatile trio of vocal soloists shared the spotlight with the ensemble under guest pops conductor Andy Einhorn, but the evening ultimately belonged to the singular duo who transformed the art of songwriting for the stage.

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Cleveland Orchestra delights with homage to Cuyahoga Valley National Park at Blossom Music Center (Aug. 16)

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by Kevin McLaughlin

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio – The Cleveland Orchestra brought together music, nature and friendship in a program as warm and satisfying as a summer night under the trees at Blossom Music Center on Saturday.

Conducted by Daniel Reith — making his final appearance as the ensemble’s associate conductor — the concert offered the regional premiere of Gabriella Smith’s Rewilding, Max Bruch’s seldom-heard Violin Concerto No. 2 and Edward Elgar’s beloved Enigma Variations.

Commissioned in honor of the 50th anniversary of Cuyahoga Valley National Park — where Blossom is situated — Rewilding is Smith’s exuberant tribute to ecological restoration.

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Elim Chan directs Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center in Maurice Ravel’s Shéhérazade with Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 (Aug. 9)

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by Kevin McLaughlin

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — The Cleveland Orchestra on Saturday offered a summer evening of musical storytelling that was alluring and colorful without excess.

Under the elegant and incisive direction of Elim Chan at Blossom Music Center, the program paired Maurice Ravel’s Shéhérazade with Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 in performances redolent of perfume and sonic splendor.

Coinciding with the 150th anniversary of Maurice Ravel’s birth, the opener was Shéhérazade, a 1903 song cycle with words by Tristan Klingsor, the pen name of French poet, painter, and composer Léon Leclère.

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Laufey crafts a shimmering “Night at the Symphony” (Aug. 7)

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by Stephanie Manning

It was only “A Matter of Time” before Laufey had the Blossom Music Center audience hanging on to her every word. And that was practically no time at all.

The singer-songwriter’s August 7 performance with The Cleveland Orchestra packed the venue with her adoring fans — many of them wearing her trademark items like dresses and hair bows — whose cheers rose up the moment the lights dimmed.

Ahead of the August 22 release of her third album, A Matter of Time, the Icelandic-Chinese artist brought her “A Night at the Symphony” tour to Cuyahoga Falls on a temperate Thursday evening. The sparkling, emotionally vulnerable performance thrived on her star power, bolstered by The Cleveland Orchestra and conductor Ross Jamie Collins.

The orchestral palette is familiar territory for Laufey (pronounced LAY-vay), a classically trained musician who grew up between Reykjavik and Washington, D.C. Her wistful, crooning voice also draws influence from pop and jazz, the latter most identifiable in the daydreaming “Like the Movies” and the layered harmonies of the opening “Dreamer.”

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Cleveland Orchestra Associate Conductor Daniel Reith: a final Blossom concert and a fond farewell

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by Mike Telin

Daniel Reith was appointed assistant conductor of The Cleveland Orchestra by Music Director Franz Welser-Möst at the beginning of the 2022–23 season. In June of 2024, following a one-year contract extension, he was promoted to the position of associate conductor through the end of the 2024–25 season.

On Saturday, August 16 at 7:00 pm, Reith will conclude his tenure when he leads The Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom Music Center in a program of music by Edward Elgar, Gabriella Smith, and Max Bruch (tickets are available online.)

He made his Cleveland Orchestra subscription debut in February 2023 when he replaced Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä on very short notice. He also stepped in for Welser-Möst to lead the Orchestra as part of the first annual Mandel Opera & Humanities festival concert in May 2023.

Reith has also led the Orchestra in many performances, including Education Concerts in Cleveland and Miami, the Family Concert series, the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration Concert, and the Orchestra’s inaugural Sensory-Friendly Concerts.

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Lisztomania ignites Blossom as Rustioni and Bax dazzle in Cleveland Orchestra debut (Aug. 2)

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by Kevin McLaughlin

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — The marketing department of The Cleveland Orchestra seized on two works by the 19th-century “rock star” composer and pianist Franz Liszt on its programs at Severance and Blossom to advertise the weekend events as “Lisztomania” — with a nod to “Beatlemania,” the 20th century craze for the music of The Beatles by their adoring fans.

On Saturday night, August 2, at Blossom Music Center, Daniele Rustioni made his Cleveland Orchestra debut, conducting with clarity and joy but also with a flair reminiscent of Liszt’s charismatic presence. His physical expressivity drew a palpable response from the ensemble, an experience of shared energy between conductor, soloist and orchestra that recalled how Liszt could drive his fans into a frenzy.

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Sounds of Bartók, Dohnányi, Liszt shine at Severance Music Center (July 31)

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by Peter Feher

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — It’s quite possible that a record number of soloists have taken the stage at Severance Music Center over the past few weeks.

Thursday night’s Cleveland Orchestra concert — a symphonic showcase from beginning to end that spotlighted every section of the ensemble — should certainly count toward the virtuoso tally.

The playing of dozens of individual orchestra members came brilliantly to the fore in Mandel Concert Hall. Never mind that no guest soloist was featured. Rather, the evening’s prodigiousness originated with the lineup of composers, expertly channeled by visiting conductor Christoph Koncz.

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Guest conductor Jonathon Heyward presents captivating program in Cleveland Orchestra debut (July 26)

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by Kevin McLaughlin

This article was originally published on Cleveland.com

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — The July 26 concert at Blossom Music Center marked the exciting Cleveland Orchestra debut of conductor Jonathon Heyward — the music director of the Baltimore Symphony and the Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center. His program should have captivated even the most distant lawn loungers with works by Dvořák and Beethoven, as well as a recent concerto by London-born composer Anna Clyne, who now resides in the United States.

The centerpiece of the evening was Clyne’s Glasslands, a haunting, kaleidoscopic concerto for soprano saxophone, written for the 27-year-old British saxophonist Jess Gillam, who premiered it with the Detroit Symphony in 2023 and performed it on Saturday with beauty and authority.

[Read more…]

Pianist Alessio Bax to make Cleveland Orchestra debut

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by Mike Telin

Although Alessio Bax has performed twice in Cleveland for the Cleveland Chamber Music Society — most recently this past January — on Saturday, August 2 at Blossom Music Center, the Italian pianist will make his Cleveland Orchestra debut.

The 7:00 pm concert, under the direction of guest conductor Daniele Rustioni, will include Richard Wagner’s Tannhäuser Overture, Franz Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1, and Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 1. Tickets are available online.

“I’m incredibly excited about it — It’s really a dream come true,” the pianist said during a telephone conversation. “I grew up listening to The Cleveland Orchestra’s recordings and I have friends who play in the orchestra. I’ve never been to Blossom, but I know what a special place it is.”

I began our conversation by asking him about his choice of concertos. [Read more…]

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