“Anniversaries are often celebrated with gifts,” writes David Lowry in this week’s (3/20) Free Times (Columbia, South Carolina). “The South Carolina Philharmonic is endeavoring to celebrate its 50-year relationship with the Columbia area with the gift of an extraordinary 2013-2014 season. The repertory includes such works as Verdi’s Grand March from Aida, a Brahms piano concerto, Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Borodin’s dances from Prince Igor, Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite, Gershwin’s American in Paris, Berlioz’s Roman Carnival Overture, and Dvorak’s Eighth Symphony. That’s a heavenly orchestral list for any music lover. But for the 50th anniversary, Maestro Morihiko Nakahara has added to these favorites an outstanding list of new works and artists—things you don’t get every season. There are two world premieres: a concerto by one of America’s finest composers, Joan Tower, and an orchestral work by Columbia’s John Fitz Rogers. … [Tower’s] work will be a concerto for bassoon featuring Peter Kolkay, who has been the South Carolina Philharmonic’s principal bassoonist and a faculty member at the University of South Carolina, now a professor at Vanderbilt University. … The season is also adorned with collaborative efforts with the Columbia Museum of Art, Trustus Theatre, USC’s Southeastern International Piano Festival, and the Celebrate Freedom Foundation.”
Posted March 20, 2013
