“The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s programming for the 2017-18 season includes a season-long tribute to composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein and a number of firsts,” writes Andrea Shea on Thursday (3/30) at radio station WBUR (Boston). “First, the orchestra is welcoming its first artist-in-residence, pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet. Then there’s the debut of ‘Leipzig week in Boston,’ a new partnership between the BSO and the Gewandhausorchester conceived as a way to connect the two cities—and two orchestras—that maestro Andris Nelsons leads…. Nelsons’ and his [Boston] musicians will embark on their first tour of Japan together in November…. The opening night program will kick off the centennial celebration of composer and Massachusetts native son Leonard Bernstein. Concerts sprinkled throughout the season will highlight the decades-long relationship he had with his hometown orchestra… An ‘Insights Series’ [will explore] questions Bernstein himself posed about society, politics and religion…. There’s one more ‘first’ … a tablet app that includes a ‘discover what my camera sees’ feature, a ‘discover what is near me’ function, and a meme generator, ‘allowing users to take a photo at Symphony Hall and post it as a meme to social media.’ ”
Posted March 31, 2017
