HOUSTON (Dec. 21, 2018) – The Houston Symphony welcomes back American piano star and conductor Jeffrey Kahane for a program of jazz-inspired works, capped by one of George Gershwin’s seminal and most popular compositions, Rhapsody in Blue.
1983 Grand Prize Winner of the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Competition and former music director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Kahane is both piano soloist and conductor for two works on this Houston Symphony program: Gershwin’s iconic Rhapsody in Blue in its rarely-heard original jazz band version and Ravel’s jazzy, blues-influenced Piano Concerto in G major. Rounding out the program are another jazz-influenced work, Darius Milhaud’s Creation of the World, and a contemporary work by Timo Andres which adapts the music of ambient and alternative rock musician and producer Brian Eno for orchestra.
Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue sponsored by Shell takes place at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, 615 Louisiana Street, in Houston’s Theater District. For tickets and information, please call (713) 224-7575 or visit www.houstonsymphony.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the Houston Symphony Patron Services Center in Jones Hall (Monday–Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.). All programs and artists are subject to change.
About the Houston Symphony
During the 2018-19 season, the Houston Symphony celebrates its fifth season with Music Director Andrés Orozco- Estrada and continues its second century as one of America’s leading orchestras with a full complement of concert, community, education, touring and recording activities. The Houston Symphony, one of the oldest performing arts organizations in Texas, held its inaugural performance at The Majestic Theater in downtown Houston June 21, 1913. Today, with an annual operating budget of $33.9 million, the full-time ensemble of 88 professional musicians presents nearly 170 concerts annually, making it the largest performing arts organization in Houston. Additionally, musicians of the orchestra and the Symphony’s four Community-Embedded Musicians offer over 900 community-based performances each year, reaching thousands of people in Greater Houston.
The Grammy Award-winning Houston Symphony has recorded under various prestigious labels, including Naxos, Koch International Classics, Telarc, RCA Red Seal, Virgin Classics and, most recently, Dutch recording label PENTATONE. In 2017, the Houston Symphony was awarded an ECHO Klassik award for the live recording of Alban Berg’s Wozzeck under the direction of former Music Director Hans Graf. The orchestra earned its first Grammy nomination and Grammy Award at the 60th annual ceremony for the same recording in the Best Opera Recording category.