Minnesota Orchestra unveils classical season; Vanska to conduct six concerts

Just 10 days after reaching a settlement with musicians after a bitter 15-month lock out, the Minnesota Orchestra is today announcing its new season.

The concerts are unabashedly meant as crowd pleasers, with popular repertoire and visiting artists included. Of particular note are six concerts featuring former Music Director Osmo Vanska, who resigned in October, a year into the lockout.

The full season details are here:

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2014 Classical Season Calendar

Minnesota Orchestra Homecoming

BEETHOVEN’S THIRD SYMPHONY: EROICA

Friday, Feb. 7, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, Feb. 8, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra,  Stanislaw Skrowaczewski , conductor

  • BACH/Skrowaczewski Toccata and Fugue in D minor

  • STRAUSS Don Juan 

  • BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3, Eroica

These performances are each preceded by a free public open house at Orchestra Hall beginning at 4 p.m. No tickets or reservations are required to attend the open house.

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Minnesota Orchestra Homecoming

HOLST’S PLANETS AND ELGAR’S CELLO CONCERTO

Friday, Feb. 14, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, Feb. 15, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Yan Pascal Tortelier, conductor

Steven Isserlis, cello

  •  ELGAR Cello Concerto

  • HOLST The Planets

These performances are each preceded by a free public open house at Orchestra Hall beginning at 4 p.m. No tickets or reservations are required to attend the open house.

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RAVEL'S BOLÉRO AND STRAVINSKY'S FIREBIRD

Thursday, Feb. 20, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, Feb. 21, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, Feb. 22, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Michael Christie, conductor

Daniil Trifonov, piano

  • RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 2

  •  STRAVINSKY Suite from The Firebird (1919)

  •  RAVEL Boléro

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WEST SIDE STORY

Friday, Feb. 28, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, March 1, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Sarah Hicks, conductor

The Minnesota Orchestra performs Leonard Bernstein’s score live while the newly re-mastered film plays on a big screen with the original vocals and dialogue.

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ANDREW LITTON AND STEPHEN HOUGH

Thursday, March 6, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, March 7, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, March 8, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Andrew Litton, conductor

Stephen Hough, piano

  •  RACHMANINOFF The Rock

  •  RACHMANINOFF Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

  •  PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 4 (1947 revision)

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ELGAR AND SHOSTAKOVICH

Thursday, March 13, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, March 14, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, March 15, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra,  Mark Wigglesworth, conductor

  • ELGAR Enigma Variations

  • SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10

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DEBUSSY’S LA MER

Saturday, March 22, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Sunday, March 23, 2014, 2 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Andrew Litton, conductor and piano

  •  RAVEL Rapsodie espagnole

  •  RAVEL Piano Concerto in G

  •  BRITTEN Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes

  •  DEBUSSY La Mer

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VÄNSKÄ CONDUCTS SIBELIUS: 2014 GRAMMY CELEBRATION

Thursday, March 27, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, March 28, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, March 29, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, conductor

  • SIBELIUS Symphony No. 4 SIBELIUS Symphony No. 1

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ERIC WHITACRE: A CHORAL CELEBRATION

Thursday, April 10, 2014, 7:30 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, April 11, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Eric Whitacre, conductor

Minnesota Chorale

The program, which will include several compositions by Whitacre, is to be announced at a later date.

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JOSHUA BELL AND OSMO VÄNSKÄ

Tuesday, April 15, 2014, 7:30 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, conductor

Joshua Bell, violin

  • RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Capriccio espagnol

  •  LALO Symphonie espagnole

  •  MUSSORGSKY/Ravel Pictures at an Exhibition

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ECHOES OF HISTORY

Friday, May 2, 2014, 8 p.m. / Northrop Auditorium, University of Minnesota

Sunday, May 4, 2014, 2 p.m. / Northrop Auditorium, University of Minnesota

Minnesota Orchestra, Osmo Vänskä, conductor

University of Minnesota Marching Band

University of Minnesota Chorus

  • WAGNER Overture to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg

  •  DVOŘÁK Largo, from Symphony No. 9, From the New World

  •  LISZT Les préludes, Symphonic Poem No. 3

  •  LISZT Piano Concerto No. 1

  •  TCHAIKOVSKY 1812 Overture

Tickets for these concerts are available through the University of Minnesota. Call 612-624-2345 for information.

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COMMON CHORDS: THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA IN HIBBING

May 5 to 10, 2014 / Hibbing, Minn.

The Minnesota Orchestra travels to Hibbing, Minnesota, for a week-long Common Chords outreach residency. The Orchestra and its musicians will visit the northeastern Minnesota city from May 5 to May 10 for a celebratory festival week of concerts and numerous events specially tailored to the Hibbing community.

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ERIN KEEFE PLAYS MENDELSSOHN

Thursday, May 15, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, May 16, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, May 17, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Mark Wigglesworth , conductor

Erin Keefe, violin

  •  MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto

  • WAGNER/de Vlieger The Ring: An Orchestral Adventure

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MOZART: THE THREE FINAL SYMPHONIES

Thursday, June 5, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, June 6, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, June 7, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Christopher Warren-Green , conductor

MOZART

  • Symphony No. 39

  • Symphony No. 40

  • Symphony No. 41, Jupiter

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MAHLER’S SYMPHONY NO. 5

Thursday, June 12, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, June 14, 2014, 7 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Courtney Lewis, conductor

  • MAHLER Symphony No. 5

The Minnesota Orchestra’s June 14 performance is a multimedia concert experience—presented as part of the Northern Spark festival, Minneapolis’ dusk-to-dawn urban arts festival, which is produced by Northern Lights.mn.

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CARMINA BURANA

Thursday, June 26, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, June 27, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Saturday, June 28, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Sunday, June 29, 2014, 2 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Yan Pascal Tortelier, conductor

Vocal soloists to be announced

Minnesota Chorale

  •  HEITZEG Now We Start the Great Round

  •  STRAVINSKY Symphony of Psalms

  •  ORFF Carmina burana

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RACHMANINOFF AND BRAHMS

Thursday, July 10, 2014, 11 a.m. / Orchestra Hall

Friday, July 11, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Andrew Litton, conductor

Natasha Paremski, piano

  • KABALEVSKY Overture to Colas Breugnon

  •  RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 3

  •  BRAHMS Symphony No. 2

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A NIGHT IN VIENNA

Saturday, July 12, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra, Andrew Litton, conductor

Natasha Paremski, piano

  • CHOPIN Piano Concerto No. 1

  •  J. STRAUSS, JR. On the Beautiful Blue Danube

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MOZART AND RACHMANINOFF

Friday, July 18, 2014, 8 p.m. / Orchestra Hall

Minnesota Orchestra,  Courtney Lewis, conductor

Michael McHale, piano

  • TCHAIKOVSKY Romeo and Juliet, Fantasy-Overture

  • MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23

  •  RACHMANINOFF Symphonic Dances