Dale Chihuly has created stunning visuals that will be projected over the stage for this historic occasion. Renowned television, film and theater actors Patty Duke and F. Murray Abraham will narrate the dramatic Biblical text that accompanies the work.
In addition, Maestro Schwarz will lead the orchestra in Bohuslav Martinu's Symphony No. 3 as well as Erich Korngold's Violin Concerto featuring Stefan Jackiw. This program marks the opening night of Seattle Symphony's Coming to America: Composers in Pursuit of a DreamFestival, which honors immigrant composers past and present.
Professor and Milken Archive of American Jewish Music Director Dr. Neil Levin will give several public presentations on the recovery and reconstruction of the Genesis Suite. Levin, who was instrumental in locating scores and copyrights to facilitate the re-creation of the Genesis Suite, will give a free lecture at the Central Library, 1000 Fourth Avenue, in downtown Seattle on Wednesday, May 28, at 12 p.m. as part of a festival preview event. Audiences can hear him again later that evening in a lecture titled St. Petersburg: 100 Years of Jewish Artistic Expression in the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for the evening lecture are $5, and are redeemable for $5 off ticket prices for Genesis Suite performances.
Dr. Levin will also speak as part of a pre-concert event on Thursday, May 29, at 6:30 p.m. in a lecture titled "Reconstructing Eden: Exploring the Genesis Suite." The University of Washington Wind Ensemble under the direction of Timothy Salzman will perform works by composers Karel Husa, Darius Milhaud and Paul Hindemith on Saturday, May 31, at 6:30 p.m. prior to that evening's concert. -- www.seattlesymphony.org
