“Mozart is turning 50 this summer. No, not Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus (Amadeus), but the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York’s Lincoln Center,” writes Martin Steinberg on Friday (7/15) in Strings magazine. “When it began in the summer of 1966, it was called Midsummer Serenades: A Mozart Festival…. The festival, which adopted the name Mostly Mozart in 1970, has become a New York summertime institution…. This year’s five-week series officially starts July 22 with [Louis] Langrée leading the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra in a free concert at Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park…. The festival will also present more than 50 premieres of works, led by the International Contemporary Ensemble, to honor the 50th anniversary. One premiere, on July 27, will feature ICE soloists backed by a string ensemble from Elementary School 316 in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights.” Says Jane Moss, the festival’s artistic director, “Mozart was a contemporary composer in his time…. He also was quite an innovator. So, to us, it makes total sense to include contemporary music.” Also planned is the world premiere of David Lang’s public domain, “an a cappella composition to be performed on August 13 in a free concert by 1,000 professional and amateur singers.”
Posted July 19, 2016
Pictured: Louis Langrée leads the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, 2014.
