In Sunday’s (2/5) Birmingham News (Alabama), Michael Huebner writes, “In 95 days, the Alabama Symphony Orchestra will make its Carnegie Hall debut. So goes the countdown, announced before nearly every ASO event, to the May 10 concert at the revered New York venue. The constant reminder is a source of pride as well as a campaign to drum up an audience of Alabamians to join them. So far, 300 have signed up for packages that include hotel rooms, receptions and concert tickets. … ASO is among six orchestras in North America that will perform on the 2012 Spring for Music Festival. Assigned a May 10 slot, it will be joined on the festival by the symphonies of Houston, Edmonton, New Jersey, Milwaukee and Nashville. … Being chosen for the festival is a testimony to the strides the orchestra has made. Since its bankruptcy in 1993 and rebirth four years later, ASO has gained respect as a regional orchestra under conductor Richard Westerfield and [current music director Justin] Brown. National recognition came in 2007, when the New Yorker magazine music critic Alex Ross wrote about a road trip he took on I-65. He heard the Indianapolis, Nashville and Alabama symphonies, and later deemed the ASO concert at the Alys Stephens Center one of the top 10 performances he heard all year.”
Posted February 7, 2012
