The Houston Symphony is building a stage extension over the first three rows of audience seating at Jones Hall to accommodate more than 400 performers in the final concert of its centennial season, Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 (“Symphony of a Thousand”) on May 9 and 10. Former Music Director Christoph Eschenbach—who led the Houston Symphony’s inaugural performances of the work 20 years ago—will return to conduct the massed forces. The roster of 437 participants includes 118 orchestral musicians; vocal soloists; and members of an expanded Houston Symphony Chorus, including alumni of the Houston Symphony Chorus, student performers from the Prairie View A&M University Chorus, members of the Clear Creek High School and Clear Lake High School Choirs, and members of the combined Houston Boychoir and Fort Bend Boys Choir of Texas. The orchestra has produced a video about preparations for the concert, which can be viewed here.
Posted May 8, 2014
