South Florida Symphony Orchestra’s 25th Anniversary Season Finale Concert Featuring Rachmaninoff and Bruckner
Wednesday, 04/26/2023-, 07:30 pm-09:00 pm
The Parker (Parker Playhouse)
707 NE 8th Street,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 33304
Website
Cost: Tickets start at just $15 for individual concerts at The Parker in Fort Lauderdale
South Florida Symphony Orchestra will close out its triumphant 25th anniversary season with a grand finale concert featuring Rachmaninoff’s demanding Piano Concerto No. 3 performed by Svetlana Smolina; along with Bruckner’s choral masterpiece, Te Deum, featuring the South Florida Symphony Chorus and vocalists Elaine Alvarez, soprano; Rehanna Thelwell, mezzo-soprano; Neil Nelson, bass-baritone; and Arnold Rawls, tenor. Led by Music Director Sebrina María Alfonso, the concert will take place at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 26, at The Parker in Fort Lauderdale. Tickets are on sale, now.
Born April 1, 1873, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3 is considered to be one of the most demanding and beautiful of all of the Russian composer’s piano concertos. The romantic, yet, complicated piece, was originally intended as a spotlight soloist piece for Rachmaninoff’s friend Josef Hofmann, who eventually elected not to perform it. So complex is this piece, that the biographical film drama “Shine” detailed pianist David Helfgott’s quest to conquer the concerto resulting in his ultimate mental breakdown.
Performing Piano Concerto No. 3 will be audience favorite and recurring South Florida Symphony soloist Svetlana Smolina. Smolina has performed with orchestras and in recitals, worldwide. Notable appearances include the Mariinsky Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, New York Philharmonic, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France, Odessa and Nizhny Novgorod Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, New Florida Philharmonic, Shreveport Symphony and New York Chamber Orchestra. A frequent guest at international festivals, Smolina has performed at the Salzburg Festival, Hollywood Bowl, Ravinia Rising Stars, White Nights, Maggio Musicale, Mikkeli, Ruhr, Easter, Rotterdam Phillips Gergiev, International Gilmore, Settimane Musicali di Stresa, Michelangeli, Hennessy Artists Series at Hanoi Opera House, The Voice of Music in Upper Galilee, Royal Covent Garden Opera, Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory, Mozarteum, Merkin Hall, Kravis Center, NJPAC, Gulbenkian Foundation, Grand Artists Series in Tel-Aviv and Academia Santa Cecilia in Rome. In addition to her touring engagements, Smolina is currently piano program director for European Academy of Fine Arts / Piano Conservatory (a division of Irish American University) and piano program director of the Philadelphia International Music Festival.
Anton Bruckner’s Te Deum premiered in Vienna on May 2, 1885. The composer himself called the work “the pride of his life” and it stands as the composer’s most overtly joyful hymn of praise and thanks. The piece was performed more than 30 times in his lifetime with the first performance in the United States occurring at the Cincinnati May Festival on May 26, 1892 by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus and soloists.
Tickets for Rachmaninoff and Bruckner Masterworks on April 26 at The Parker in Fort Lauderdale start at $15 and may be purchased by visiting https://southfloridasymphony.org/masterworks-v-2022-2023 or by calling (954) 522-8445.
For additional information, visit southfloridasymphony.org, call (954) 522-8445 or email info@southfloridasymphony.org.
