GMHC Presents:
Orchestra of St. Luke's
The Orchestra of St. Luke's is America's foremost and most versatile chamber
orchestra. Formed at the Caramoor International Music Festival in the summer
of 1979, the Orchestra evolved from the St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble, which was
established in 1974, with Ensemble members forming the Orchestra's artistic
core as principal players. The Ensemble and the Orchestra still co-exist
today, and the collaborative chamber aesthetic that is the St. Luke's hallmark
has resulted in consistent critical acclaim, both for mastery of a diverse
repertoire spanning the Baroque to the contemporary, and for vibrant
music-making of the highest order.
The 2004–05 series, presented by Carnegie Hall in the Isaac Stern
Auditorium, features two concerts led by St. Luke's Principal Conductor
Donald Runnicles, and concerts with guest conductors Sir Roger Norrington
and David Zinman and soloists Dawn Upshaw, David Daniels, Kyoko Takezawa
and Ivan Moravec. In addition, the Orchestra participates in such Carnegie
Hall events as the Choral Workshop, a gala performance of South Pacific
and Carnegie's Family Concerts. The Orchestra is engaged throughout
the year in a number of artistic collaborations with other New York
City cultural organizations, and serves each summer as the
Orchestra-in-Residence at the Caramoor Festival.
The St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble presents an annual chamber music
series in Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall in partnership with Carnegie,
and also performs a three-concert series at the Brooklyn Museum. Its
contemporary music series, Second Helpings, features performances of
pieces by established and emerging composers as well as works commissioned
specifically by St. Luke's. Members of the Orchestra also participate
in St. Luke's Arts Education Program, which integrates comprehensive
in-school workshops and residencies with free performances for over
15,000 New York City school children annually.
The Orchestra has recently released two critically-acclaimed
recordings on its own label, St. Luke's Collection: Mozart's Symphonies
39 and 41 under the direction of Donald Runnicles and Bach's Brandenburg
Concertos, performed by the St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble. These two
discs are the most recent additions to an already stellar and extensive
discography of over 50 CDs that includes three Grammy Award-winning
recordings.
Visit www.OSLmusic.org.
© 2005 Gay Men's Health Crisis |
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