In September 2020, the Seattle Symphony and Whitney Mongé recorded a concert at Benaroya Hall that was streamed the following month. Photo by James Holt
“ ‘If there is a silver lining to the pandemic,’ says Seattle Symphony associate conductor Lee Mills, ‘it’s that Seattle artists whom the orchestra wants to work with are all in town. Typically they’d be busy with touring,’ ” writes Tom Keogh in Monday’s (3/22) Seattle Times. “The artists Mills is specifically referring to are local stars from various popular music genres who have already collaborated, or who will collaborate with, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra as part of the latter’s new Essential Series program…. Blues vocalist-guitarist Whitney Mongé kicked off the Essential Series in October, performing with the orchestra on the new online streaming platform Seattle Symphony Live…. Mills, the conductor for the concerts in the series, is looking forward to working with the five-member Ivan & Alyosha in a concert thoughtfully arranged to bring nuance to the sonic partnership of two formidable ensembles. The arranger for the Essential Series performances is Andrew Joslyn … a busy orchestrator and composer for films and recording artists, and a violinist with the Passenger String Quartet…. ‘It will be fun to see the range of colors we’re allowed to add to what we thought was a pretty full palate,’ says Mills.”
