Since classical music can be heard everywhere from movie soundtracks to cartoons, the final program of the 2009 Talcott Mountain Music Festival will feature some of the tunes that always get stuck in your head! Guest conductor Mariusz Smolij will lead the Hartford Symphony Orchestra in “Classical’s Greatest Hits!” on Friday, July 17, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center at Simsbury Meadows.
This program will feature some of Classical music’s most popular numbers, including Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, Grieg’s Peer Gynt, Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, and Copland’s Simple Gifts. As an added treat, up-and-coming mezzo-soprano Cynthia Cook will join the Hartford Symphony Orchestra for selections from Bizet’s Carmen, as well as Gershwin’s Summertime and I’ve Got Rhythm.
Hartford Symphony Orchestra Executive Director Kristen Phillips says, “What better way to end our Talcott Mountain Music Festival than with a program that plays to the Hartford Symphony’s forte- Classical Music! This show will include the music that we hear everywhere around us - in movies, television, musical theater, and more. This is the perfect concert for someone who is new to Classical music or a veteran Classical music lover - don’t miss this opportunity to hear your favorite hits in the fun, relaxed atmosphere of Simsbury Meadows.”
Considered one of the most exciting conductors of his generation and praised by the New York Times for his “compelling performances,” Mariusz Smolij has led nearly 100 orchestras in 25 countries on four continents in some of the most prestigious concert halls of the world.
The American Symphony Orchestra League has named Smolij one of the most promising young conductors in America. His recent engagements include collaborations with the Sinfonieorchester Basel, Bern Symphoniker, Belgrade Philharmonic, Johannesburg Philharmonic, Budapest Concert Orchestra, Florence Chamber Orchestra, Israel Symphony Orchestra, and Israel Sinfonietta. Maestro Smolij is in his sixth season as the Music Director of the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra in Lafayette, Louisiana and his thirteenth season as the Music Director of the Riverside Symphonia in New Jersey.
A native of Whitehouse Station, NJ, Cynthia Cook received her Bachelor of Music degree at the Hartt School at the University of Hartford, where she performed in Menotti’s The Old Maid and the Thief and Lehar’s The Merry Widow, as well as challenging 20th century works such as Berio’s Folk Songs and Susan Botti’s Scenes from Sylvia. Ms. Cook is in her third year as a resident artist at The Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, PA, where she has performed in Cosi fan tutte, Kat’a Kabanova, La Traviata, Anna Bolena, and La Fiamma. In the summer of 2009, Ms. Cook will be singing with the Lyric Opera Studio of Weimar in Weimar, Germany. -- www.hartfordsymphony.org
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