The Cleveland Orchestra Plays Schubert, MLK Memorial Concerts, and More | Arts Stories & Interviews | Cleveland
Franz Welser-Möst, conducting the New York Philharmonic in 2020.
The concert calendar this week features three interesting orchestral programs, two of which will travel to New York’s Carnegie Hall following their performances in Cleveland.
On January 12 at 7:30 p.m., Franz Welser-Möst will lead The Cleveland Orchestra in a program that weaves movements of Berg’s Lyric Suite together with Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 (Unfinished). The concert also includes Schubert’s Mass No. 6. featuring the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus and soprano Joélle Harvey, mezzo-soprano Daryl Freedman, tenors Julian Prégardien and Martin Mitterrutzner, and bass-baritone Dashon Burton. Severance Music Center is located at 11001 Euclid Avenue. Cleveland. The program will be repeated Friday, 13th, and Saturday, 14th. Tickets can be purchased online. Tickets are also available online.
On January 14 at 7:30 p.m., Christopher Wilkins conducts the Akron Symphony Orchestra in Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, Julia Perry’s Pastoral, Xavier Foley’s Double Concerto “For Justice and Peace,” Bottesini’s Double Bass Concerto No. 2, and Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings. Eunice Kim (violin) and Xavier Foley (double bass), are the soloists. They will be joined by members of E.J. Gospel Meets Symphony Choir. Thomas Hall, University of Akron 198 Hill St. Tickets are available online.
On January 17 at 7:30 p.m., Raphael Jiménez will lead the Oberlin Orchestra and Choirs in a Carnegie Hall Preview Concert. The program includes Brahms’ Tragic Overture, Iván Enrique Rodríguez’s “A Metaphor for Power,” and R. Nathaniel Dett’s “The Ordering of Moses” with Chabrelle Williams, soprano, Ronnita Miller, mezzo-soprano, Limmie Pulliam, tenor, and Eric Greene, baritone. Finney Chapel, 90 N. Professor St. Oberlin. Free. For live streaming, click here On the 20th, you can catch it at Carnegie Hall.
In conjunction with that performance, on January 19 at 5:30 p.m., you can view a livestream from Merkin Hall titled “Cultural Context in Dett’s ‘The Ordering of Moses.'” This piece is widely considered to be the greatest work of the composer in terms of compositional scale and its ability to address recurrent issues regarding both Black identity and artistry. Click here For more information and access to the stream, please click here
And on January 15 at 3 p.m., enjoy a Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Concert celebrating Dr. King’s life and mission through music and the written word. The Music Settlement and Bop Stop present it. Register to receive a free copy. Bop Stop, 2920 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland.
The Cleveland Orchestra’s annual Martin Luther King Day Celebration also takes place on January 15 at 7 p.m. Daniel Reith conducts joined by Soloman Howard, bass and narrator, Peter Lawson Jones, narrator and emcee, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Chorus Dr. William Henry Caldwell, director. The program features music by Black composers Florence Price, William L. Dawson. Even though the concert is sold-out, it will still be broadcast live by WCLV 90.3 FM and WKSU 89.7FM. You can also stream live at ideastream.org.
The MLK Day celebration will continue at Severance with a Community Day. This will feature performances by musicians from The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra and Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus. Click here for details.
If you’re looking for improvised music, on Friday, January 13 at 8 p.m. the Cleveland Uncommon Sound Project will present Chicago-based improvisers Ken Vandermark (reeds) and Tim Daisy (percussion), with an opening performance by Dana Jessen (bassoon). Convivium 33 Gallery, 1422 E. 33rd Street, Cleveland. Suggested donation $15.
Visit the Clevelandclassical.com Concert Listings page for more information.