APO presents world's best & New Zealand firsts in 2008
Monday 24 September 2007, 11:12AM
By Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra
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International musical giants, rising young classical stars, new works by New Zealand composers and beloved audience favourites come together in the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra’s 2008 Season, launched today.
The APO 2008 Season brings together international heavyweights such as pianists Mûza Rubackyté and Bernd Glemser, violinist James Ehnes and conductor Okko Kamu to New Zealand for the first time, as well as introducing rising stars of the classical music world, such as conductor Lionel Bringuier and saxophonist Amy Dickson.
The repertoire ranges from powerful symphonic works, such as Mahler’s fifth, Beethoven’s second and Sibelius’s fifth symphonies, to the world’s most popular classics and the world premieres of three New Zealand works: a new song cycle called Ex Stasis from APO Composer-in-Residence Gareth Farr in May; Ross Harris’s much-anticipated third symphony in August; and the final work in Christopher Blake’s acclaimed Northland Panels string cycle in October.
In April the annual Opera in Concert will bring sisters Margaret and Helen Medlyn together on stage in R. Strauss’s Salome and a new Choral Masterpieces concert in October will bring ex-pat singer Keith Lewis home to sing in Stravinsky’s Les Noces and Haydn’s Mass In Time of War – the former featuring four pianists on the Auckland Town Hall stage at the same time!
The 2008 Season will be Chief Executive Barbara Glaser’s second year steering the APO. It will also be the third year of programming by Manager of Artistic Planning, Antony Ernst, as the orchestra continues its search for a Music Director with an appointment expected at the end of 2008.
“The 2007 Season was full of many amazing and memorable events and the feedback we receive from our audiences indicates that the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra is more than living up to its reputation as a valuable regional treasure,” says Ms Glaser. “The 2008 Season promises another exciting year with the programmes covering all classical bases and the conductors, composers and soloists engaged for the season truly representing the world’s best and New Zealand’s finest.”
The Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra is a fulltime, professional symphony orchestra that presents over 100 performances each year. The APO’s main series of 12 concerts is the APN News & Media Premier Series. In addition to this series, it also presents the three-concert Vero Aotea Series, a three-concert Splendour Series, the Lion Foundation Twilight Series and an annual Opera in Concert event. In 2008 it will also introduce a new Choral Masterpieces concert.
2008 Series Subscriptions are available now with subscribers saving between 10 to 40 percent on ticket prices. A Mix’n’Match option is also available, giving concertgoers the opportunity to pick and choose across the different series. To request a 2008 Season Brochure Ph 09 638 7073 or visit the website, www.apo.co.nz.