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RICHARDSON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

​Clay Couturiaux, Music Director & Conductor
2023-2024 Season

October 7, 2023 • OPENING NIGHT CONCERT
      Boulanger D’un matin de printemps
      Chausson Poème, Op. 25; Ravel Tzigane  [▪]  Lara St. John, violin
      Debussy “Nuages” and “Fêtes” from Nocturnes
      Ravel Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2

The RSO opens the season with Lili Boulanger’s vibrant D’un matin de printemps (On a Spring Morning), depicting the start of a new day. The “high-powered soloist” (New York Times), Lara St. John performs Chausson’s darkly mournful Poème and Ravel’s rhapsodic Tzigane. Debussy’s Nocturnes have been celebrated for their ability to evoke imagery, light, and color. Ravel vividly interprets the ancient Greek myth of Daphnis and Chloé, originally scored for a ballet. As an orchestral work, the Suite No. 2 dazzles with its whirling intensity.

November 4, 2023   •   AMERICAN LANDSCAPES 
     Bernstein Overture to Candide
     Farrell Continuum
     Copland Lincoln Portrait
     Dvořák “Largo” from Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 “From the New World”

     Copland Four Dances from Rodeo

Celebrate America’s beauty and heritage with compositions inspired by the sights and sounds of the place we call home. This spectacular tribute features a stunning multi-media collaboration with Nicholas Bardonnay of Westwater Arts. Live classical music paired with coordinating imagery that embodies the American spirit as it celebrates the history and the majesty of our great nation.

December 2, 2023   •   HOLIDAY CLASSICS WITH 5 SECOBD RULE

Celebrate the most wonderful time of the year with timeless carols and a jubilant collaboration with 5 Second Rule.
This Dallas-based, high-energy acoustic ensemble combines Celtic, folk, classical, and rock music to set the stage for a joyous performance of traditional, progressive, and original music.

February 3, 2024   •   A NIGHT AT THE MOVIES: GOOD VS. EVIL
A tribute to some of our favorite Hollywood heroes and villains.  Are they good or evil? You decide! Gary Cogill, longtime film critic for WFAA, will share his insights as our guest commentator. The program includes beloved film scores which reveal the emotional impact of cinema’s most celebrated characters. From Bernard Herrmann (“Psycho”) to John Williams (“Jaws”) to John Barry (“Dances With Wolves.”)

March 2, 2024   •   STARS OF THE FUTURE 
     Rimsky-Korsakov Russian Easter Overture, Op. 36
     Mozart Symphony No. 39 in E-flat Major, K. 543
     String Concerto TBA:  Performed by the winner of the Ann & Charles Eisemann International Young Artists Competition

Based on chants used in Russian Orthodox liturgy, Rimsky-Korsakov designed his overture as a carefully calculated explosion of orchestral color reflecting popular Russian feelings on this highest Christian feast. Mozart’s Symphony No. 39, one of the final symphonic statements in his prolific career, stands apart in innovation, emotion, increased dissonance, and profound content.

April 20, 2024   •   SEASON FINALE CONCERT

     Smetana Overture to The Bartered Bride
     Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43  [▪]  Anna Geniushene, piano
     Brahms Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98

The season concludes with Anna Geniushene, 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition Silver Medalist, performing Rachmaninoff’s last work for piano and orchestra, featuring both astonishing virtuoso passages and Rachmaninoff ’s best-known melody. Brahms’ Fourth and last symphony has been called “one of the supreme creative acts of the Romantic era” and is fraught with tension between lyrical beauty, intense drama, and subdued melancholy.  

 
All Performances take place at the Charles W. Eisemann Center for Performing Arts at 7:30 P.M.
2351 Performance Drive, Richardson, Texas 75082
Get Tickets by calling 972.744.4650 or at eisemanncenter.com