Symphony Launches Residency at Southern Connecticut State University on October 23 with Premiere of Joel Thompson’s “To Awaken the Sleeper”
The New Haven Symphony Orchestra (NHSO) announces the concert programs for its 2022-2023 residency at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU). The season will open on Sunday, October 23 at 3:00pm with a program conducted by music director Alasdair Neale and featuring the premiere of To Awaken the Sleeper, NHSO Composer-in-Residence Joel Thompson’s ode to literary giant James Baldwin.
NHSO Residency at Southern Connecticut State University
The residency amplifies the Symphony’s commitment to performing accessible concerts for diverse audiences, collaborating on- and off-stage with community partners, and infusing educational opportunities into every facet of the organization. The residency will include on-campus concerts, classroom visits, hands-on learning experiences, and internships.
The Symphony’s main performance venue for the 2022-2023 Season will be the John C. Lyman Center for the Performing Arts, SCSU’s multi-disciplinary performing arts venue. The distinctive 1,500-seat mainstage features a three-quarter “thrust” stage design, placing the audience in an intimate semi-circle around the stage. Other features of the Lyman Center include free and easy parking lots, modern facilities, and fast access to surrounding restaurants, highways, and public transportation.
The series at the Lyman Center will include orchestral music by historic and living composers and featuring guest artists from around the world and from within the orchestra’s roster. The NHSO will also continue its regional concerts at Shelton High School and Hamden High School this season in a Pops Series curated and conducted by Principal Pops Conductor Chelsea Tipton, II.
Music Director Finalist Concerts
Four music director finalists have been chosen by the NHSO Music Director Search committee, comprising NHSO musicians, board directors, and community members. The finalists will each spend a different week in New Haven in the Winter and Spring of 2023, rehearsing with the orchestra for a concert that they have programmed, leading music education activities, and meeting with key community constituency groups. The search committee will review feedback from employees, the audience, and broader community and will announce the new music director in the Summer of 2023. Current Music Director Alasdair Neale’s tenure will continue through the Spring of 2024 and the new Music Director will begin in the role in the Summer of 2024.
2022-2023 SEASON CONCERT SCHEDULE:
UNFORGETTABLE: THE MUSIC OF NAT KING COLE
Saturday, October 8 at 3pm – Hamden High School
Sunday, October 9 at 3pm – Shelton High School
The season kicks off with the Unforgettable hits of legendary singer Nat King Cole, including L-O-V-E, Nature Boy, and Mona Lisa. The NHSO welcomes guest star CAESAR, whose smooth velvet voice has often been compared to Nat King Cole’s, but with his his own interpretation and style that compares to none.
featuring Chelsea Tipton, II, Principal Pops Conductor and Caesar, guest vocal soloist
TO AWAKEN THE SLEEPER
Sunday, October 23 at 3pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Joel Thompson – To Awaken the Sleeper (Premiere)
Dmitri Shostakovich – Symphony No. 11, “The Year 1905”
featuring Alasdair Neale, conductor and Joel Thompson, narrator
A Gala Celebration!
BRAHMS & RACHMANINOFF
Friday, November 11 at 7:30pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Pre-Concert Gala Reception at 5:00pm – Adanti Center Ballroom at SCSU
Johannes Brahms – Symphony No. 2
Sergei Rachmaninoff – Piano Concerto No. 2
Samuel Coleridge Taylor – Ballade
featuring Alasdair Neale, conductor and Joyce Yang, piano
HOLIDAY EXTRAVAGANZA
Saturday, December 17 at 3pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Sunday, December 18 at 3pm – Shelton High School
Holiday favorites including excerpts from The Nutcracker, You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch, Polar Express, Deck the Halls, Greensleeves, Somewhere in my Memory, Stille Nacht, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas.
featuring Alasdair Neale, conductor and the Fairfield County Children’s Choir
CABRERA CONDUCTS DVORAK
Friday, January 20 at 7:30pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Antonín Dvořák – Symphony No. 8
Emmanuel Séjourné – Concerto for Marimba and Strings
Anna Clyne – Stride for String Orchestra
Richard Strauss – Serenade in E-flat Major
featuring Donato Cabrera, music director candidate and Aya Kaminaguchi, NHSO principal percussionist
RHAPSODY IN BLUE
Saturday, February 18 at 3pm – Hamden High School
Sunday, February 19 at 3pm – Shelton High School
Experience one of the defining voices in American music in a program of music celebrating George Gershwin. This jazzy program will include vocal solos from the American songbook as well as Gershwin’s virtuosic masterpiece, Rhapsody in Blue.
featuring Chelsea Tipton, II, Principal Pops Conductor
MILLER CONDUCTS SCHUMANN & BEETHOVEN
Friday, March 10 at 7:30pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Ludwig van Beethoven – Piano Concerto No. 2
Robert Schumann – Symphony No. 2
Valentin Silvestrov – Hymne
featuring Tania Miller, music director candidate and Chelsea Guo, piano & soprano soloist
SO CONDUCTS BEETHOVEN
Sunday, March 26 at 3pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 3
Samuel Barber – Violin Concerto
Tania León – Ácana
featuring Perry So, music director candidate and Aubree Oliverson, violin soloist
FREE Admission!
YOUNG PEOPLE’S CONCERT
Saturday, April 1 at 1pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Florence Price – “Juba Dance” from Symphony No. 1
Arturo Marquez – Danzon No. 2
Alberto Ginastera – excerpts from Variaciones Concertantes
John Williams – excerpts from Star Wars
Igor Stravinsky, “Berceuse” and “Finale” from The Firebird
featuring Alasdair Neale, conductor
BLACHLY CONDUCTS DAWSON
Sunday, April 16 at 3pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
William Levi Dawson – Negro Folk Symphony
Angélica Negrón – Moriviví
Violin Concerto to be Announced
featuring James Blachly, music director candidate and Simone Porter, violin soloist
PRICE, BONDS & HAGAN
Friday, May 12 at 7:30pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Florence Price – Piano Concerto in One Movement
Margaret Bonds – Montgomery Variations
Helen Hagan – Piano Concerto No. 1, Mvt. 1 (premiere)
Quinn Mason – A Joyous Trilogy
featuring Alasdair Neale, conductor and Michelle Cann, piano
ARETHA: A TRIBUTE
Friday, June 2 at 7:30pm – Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at SCSU
Sunday, June 4 at 3pm – Shelton High School
A Tribute to the Queen of Soul, this program features Broadway sensation Capathia Jenkins performing such iconic hits as “Respect,” “Think,” “A Natural Woman,” “Chain of Fools,” and many others.
featuring Chelsea Tipton, II, Principal Pops Conductor and Capathia Jenkins, guest vocal soloist
Tickets: Patrons who purchase tickets or subscribe to 4 or more concerts get a 20% discount that can be applied to any subsequent ticket purchases on concerts through June 2023. Subscription packages start as low as $48. Ticket prices for individual concerts vary by performance and can start as low as $15. Tickets for kids 17 and under are free with the purchase of an adult ticket. Young People’s Concerts are free admission although ticket registration is required. To purchase tickets, click here or call (203) 693-1486 Monday-Friday from 12-5pm.
Covid-19 Protocols: The NHSO will announce updated policies for Covid-19 safety at the end of the summer and those policies will be posted here. Policies may be adjusted throughout the year as conditions change. The NHSO will exchange or refund tickets upon request due to concerns over a change in policy.
The fourth-oldest orchestra in America, the New Haven Symphony Orchestra’s exceptional and accessible performances and education programs reach more than 40,000 audience members and 20,000 students each year. Innovative programming and a dedication to the commission of new works inspires deeper audience engagement and meaningful artistic and educational collaborations. Through the nationally-acclaimed Harmony Fellowship program, as well as numerous award-winning education and community engagement programs, the Symphony strives to be a leader for racial equity in the arts. To learn more about the NHSO, visit NewHavenSymphony.org.
The New Haven Symphony Orchestra is sponsored by Avangrid Lighting Up the Arts,The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development: Office of the Arts, CT Humanities, Frontier, National Endowment for the Arts, NewAlliance Foundation, New Haven Register, Southern Connecticut State University, Town Fair Tire, Valley Community Foundation, Yale New Haven Hospital, and generous members of its community.
