RPO 2016/17 single tickets on sale July 29
RPO 2016/17 SINGLE TICKETS ON SALE JULY 29
Don’t miss out on best seats for your favorite concerts
ALSO: Double your Annual Campaign donation by August 31
NEW: The Music of David Bowie Special Concert added April 7
Rochester, NY – Single tickets for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO)’s 2016/17 season, presented by Dawn & Jacques Lipson, go on sale next Friday, July 29 at 10 a.m. online at rpo.org, by phone at (585) 454-2100, or in person at the RPO’s new Patron Services Center at 108 East Avenue and at all Wegmans That’s T.H.E. Ticket! locations. Subscription packages only have been available since Music Director Ward Stare’s free announcement concert in Kodak Hall this past February.
“Our upcoming 94th season is a spectacular one, and Rochester can be very proud of what the RPO contributes to the quality of life here,” said 33-year old Stare, a Rochester native who returned to his home town to become the orchestra’s 12th music director in 2014.
Because RPO ticket sales are the strongest they have been since the 2007/08 season, interested ticket buyers should be prepared to buy as soon as possible for the best seats. Subscription sales for the 2016/17 Philharmonics, Pops, and Sunday Matinee Series have already surpassed final subscription totals for the 2015/16 season, which exceeded its goals in both subscription and single ticket sales as well.
“These numbers go against the industry trend in orchestras and are a true testament to the artistic leadership of Ward Stare,” said RPO President & CEO Ralph Craviso, who has led the orchestra since October 1, 2015. “We are proud of the RPO’s ticketing success, but it’s important to note that ticket sales cover only 40 percent of our overall operating costs. As a world-class orchestra that is deeply committed to serving the community, we in turn look to the community for support.”
Several key RPO supporters have come together with a $100,000 challenge grant to match donations from RPO patrons “dollar-for-dollar” to the RPO’s 2015/16 Annual Fund. Special thanks to the Elaine P. & Richard U. Wilson Foundation, Board Member Ilene Flaum and husband David, Board Member Dr. Stephen Rosenfeld and wife Elise, and an additional anonymous benefactor. Make a gift by August 31, 2016, and all new and increased donations will be doubled. Find out more at rpo.org/donate.
More about the upcoming season: In addition to a Philharmonics Series (sponsored by M&T Bank) that features an American Music Festival (three weekends: October 23, October 27 & 29, and November 3 & 5), Mozart’s Requiem (February 2 & 4), Stare Conducts Mahler 5 (April 20 & 22), and Puccini’s La Bohème (May 25 & 27), the RPO’s Pops Series (sponsored by Canandaigua National Bank & Trust and Wegmans) includes Cirque de la Symphonie (November 18 & 19), Bugs Bunny at the Symphony II (January 20 & 21) , Sutton Foster (February 10 & 11), and Star Wars and More: The Best of John Williams (April 28 & 29). Holiday Concerts include The Nutcracker (November 23, and 25-27), Music from The Polar Express & Frozen (December 4), Handel’s Messiah (December 10 & 11), and – of course – Gala Holiday Pops (December 16-18), while the Special Concerts this season are: The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses – Master Quest (November 11), Yo-Yo Ma (sold out, December 6), Raiders of the Lost Ark – Film with Orchestra (January 6), Amy Grant (January 7), and NEW: The Music of David Bowie (April 7, replaces The Music of The Eagles (due to an unforeseen conflict with the band) at Kodak Center for Performing Arts, formerly Theatre on the Ridge). Guest conductor Brent Havens, a full rock band, and the RPO will take you on a symphonic musical odyssey that explores the incredible range of David Bowie’s music including the hits “Space Oddity,” “Changes,” “Under Pressure,” “Heroes,” “Rebel Rebel,” “Fame,” “China Girl,” and more.
The OrKIDStra Series of four concerts opens on Sunday, October 9, with The Pirates of Penzance – Opera for Kids, and the 2016/17 Sunday Matinees Series – also at the Performance Hall at Hochstein – opens with Beethoven & Haydn on October 2 with Ward Stare and recently appointed Principal Cello Ahrim Kim (The Clara and Edwin Strasenburgh Chair).
Guest artists include the annual visit by RPO’s beloved Conductor Laureate Christopher Seaman (October 13 & 15, Seaman Conducts Elgar & Beethoven), “the world’s finest percussionist” (The Spectator) Colin Currie (November 3 & 5, Higdon, Copland & Barber), Grammy-winning violinist James Ehnes (January 12 & 14, Ehnes Plays Beethoven), soprano Nicole Cabell (January 26 & 28, Stare Conducts Shostakovich 5), pianist Jeremy Denk (February 16 & 18, Romantic Classics with Stare & Denk), and conductor and Rochester favorite, Fabien Gabel (May 11 & 13, Debussy’s La Mer).
Another Rochester favorite, pianist Jon Nakamatsu, is a featured guest for two series openers: the Philharmonics Series with Stare Conducts Beethoven 7 + Nakamatsu Returns on Thursday and Saturday, September 15 & 17, as well as the Pops Series opener, Gershwin Favorites, with Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik on Friday and Saturday, September 30 & October 1. Nakamatsu is celebrating both the 20th anniversary season of his gold medal win at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, and the10th anniversary of his Gershwin CD release with the RPO and Tyzik that rose to #3 on the Billboard charts.
For a complete schedule, please visit rpo.org. Subscriptions are still available, including a new Compose-Your-Own four-concert package, which will also go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. Subscribers get the best seats at the best prices for all 2016/17concerts.
Individual concert sponsors include Constellation Brands (American Music: Stage & Screen), The Haskell Rosenberg Memorial Fund for Opera and The Gouvernet Arts Fund (Puccini’s La Bohème), Caldwell (The Nutcracker), the Melvin and Mildred Eggers Family Foundation (Sutton Foster, Stare Conducts Brahms 1) and High Falls Advisors (Cirque de la Symphonie, Gala Holiday Pops). RPO performances are also made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. Additional support is provided by Monroe County, the City of Rochester, the Alfred Davis and Brunhilde Knapp Artists Performance Fund, the Mozart Performance Fund: Sarah D. Atkinson, M.D. and Steven Hess, and the Katherine T. and Jon L. Schumacher Orchestra Musician Soloist Fund.
The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) has been committed to enriching and inspiring our community through the art of music since its founding in 1922. The RPO presents approximately 160 concerts and broadcasts a year, serving up to 170,000 people through ticketed events, education and community engagement activities, and concerts in schools and community centers throughout the region. 12th Music Director Ward Stare joins the ranks of former notable RPO music directors, including Eugene Goossens, José Iturbi, Erich Leinsdorf, David Zinman and Conductor Laureate Christopher Seaman. Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik has earned a national reputation for excellence in pops programming during his 22-year tenure with the RPO. With Michael Butterman as Principal Conductor for Education and Community Engagement (The Louise and Henry Epstein Family Chair) – the first endowed position of its kind in the country – the RPO reaches more than 12,000 children through its specific programs for school-aged children.
Media please note: High-resolution images and a complete listing of 2016/17 concerts are available at http://ow.ly/XTOa6, and interviews and photo/footage opportunities can be arranged.
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