Simone Dinnerstein performs with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra for the first of three scheduled appearances by the world-renowned pianist as part of the Gogue Center’s 2023–24 Orchestra & Chamber Music Series.

PROGRAM

The Marriage of Figaro Overture; Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)

Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 83; Johannes Brahms (1833–1897)

Simone Dinnerstein, piano

INTERMISSION

Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92; Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)

Program subject to change

Simone Dinnerstein

Called “an artist of strikingly original ideas and irrefutable integrity” by The Washington Post, American pianist Simone Dinnerstein has a distinctive musical voice.

She first came to wider public attention in 2007 through her recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, reflecting an aesthetic that was both deeply rooted in the score and profoundly idiosyncratic. In recent years, Dinnerstein has created projects that express her broad musical interests. She has recorded with the Havana Lyceum Orchestra, collaborated with choreographer Pam Tanowitz to create New Work for Goldberg Variations, and has worked with Renée Fleming and the Emerson String Quartet. Most recently, she created her own string ensemble, Baroklyn, which she directs from the keyboard.

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Alabama Symphony Orchestra

The formation of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra (ASO) began with the first performance by a group of volunteer musicians in 1921. That group would evolve from a volunteer ensemble to the state’s only full-time professional orchestra. Today, the ASO is continuing to make music and provide vital services to the residents of the state, serving nearly 100,000 individuals a year through concert series, youth programs, and educational and community engagement efforts to fulfill its mission to change lives through music.

The Alabama Symphony Orchestra has entertained and enriched audiences for almost a century, playing a variety of classical and popular music and hosting performances by some of the finest guest artists in the world. Performing 100 concerts annually, the 53 talented musicians of the ASO bring to life some of the world’s most treasured musical masterpieces and introduce listeners to exciting new works and composers.

Carlos Izcaray

The music director of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra since 2015, Carlos Izcaray has firmly established himself as one of the most highly regarded conductors of his generation. He has conducted award-winning performances and productions at distinguished venues across the globe and is equally at home leading symphonies as well as operas. Throughout his career, Izcaray has shown special interest and prowess in tackling some of the most complex scores in the symphonic repertoire, while also championing a historically informed approach in his interpretations.

 Izcaray has worked extensively with the world’s top talents and leading music institutions and is a strong supporter of young musical talent. In 2016, building on his passion for music education, he became the music director of the American Youth Symphony. A distinguished instrumentalist himself, Izcaray has been featured as a concert soloist and chamber musician on stages worldwide and served as principal cello and artistic president of the Venezuela Symphony Orchestra prior to dedicating his career primarily to the podium.

 Izcaray was born into a family of several artistic generations in Caracas. He studied conducting with his father since he was a teenager and went on to become a distinguished fellow at the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen. Izcaray is an alumnus of the Interlochen Arts Academy, New World School of the Arts and Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, and won top prizes at the 2007 Aspen Music Festival and the 2008 Toscanini International Conducting Competition.

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