World Renowned Israeli Pianist-Conductor Daniel Barenboim Performs Rare All-Liszt Piano Recital at the Kimmel Center,
November 13, 2008
"Daniel Barenboim is one of the few musicians in the world today who could accurately be described as legendary."
World renowned Israeli pianist-conductor Daniel Barenboim performs an all-Liszt piano recital at the Kimmel Center on Monday, December 8, 2008 at 8pm in Verizon Hall, as one of only four solo recitals in his U.S. tour this year. One of the most versatile pianists of his generation, Barenboim has collaborated with violinists Itzhak Perlman and Pinchas Zukerman, as well as his late wife, British cellist Jacqueline du Pré. In January 2008, his virtuosic musicianship was recognized with a Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medal, one of the most prestigious honors in classical music. Barenboim’s program includes selections from Liszt’s masterwork Années de pèlerinage ("Years of Pilgrimage") and Légendes, as well as Paraphrases on Operas of Guiseppe Verdi for Piano Forte.
"Barenboim is one of the finest pianists before the public today…"
This concert is the second performance in the Master Musicians Recital Series scheduled for the Kimmel Center Presents 2008-09 season. The next concert in the series will be Hilary Hahn on violin with pianist Valentina Lisitsa on Wednesday, March 4, 2009 at 8pm.
Tickets for Daniel Barenboim are $35, $45, $55, $64, $72, and $85 and can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center box office open daily from 10am to 6pm and later on performance evenings. (Additional fees may apply.) For group sales call 215-790-5883.
A limited number of $10 tickets are available for every Kimmel Center Presents performance at the Kimmel Center. Tickets go on sale the day of the event and can be purchased at the Kimmel Center box office beginning 2.5 hours prior to evening curtain time and 11:30am for matinees. Limit one ticket per person.
Born in Buenos Aires to parents of Russian Jewish descent, Daniel Barenboim has become one of the most prominent musicians in the world, touring regularly throughout Europe and the United States, as well as South America, Australia and the Far East. As a conductor, he has been in great demand with leading orchestras around the world, including the English Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Staatsoper Unter den Linden (Berlin State Opera) and Staatskapelle Berlin. In 2006, Barenboim was named principal guest conductor of the La Scala Opera House in Milan.
In addition to his extensive classic-romantic repertoire, Barenboim is a great advocate for contemporary music, and has performed and commissioned many new works. On December 11, 2008, Barenboim performs as soloist with James Levine and the Boston Symphony Orchestra in a world premiere of a piece by Elliot Carter in the celebrations of Carter’s 100th birthday at Carnegie Hall. Also with Levine, Barenboim will perform four-hand piano repertoire on programs with The MET Chamber Ensemble and Boston Symphony Orchestra this November. Barenboim will conduct Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde at the Metropolitan Opera, and performs a solo piano recital on the Met’s stage in December 2008. In January 2009, he will conduct the world famous New Year’s Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra.
A passionate voice for peace in the Middle East, Barenboim has worked tirelessly to promote dialogue and artistic exchange between Israel and Palestine. Along with the Palestinian literary scholar Edward Said, he cofounded the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra which has brought together young musicians from Israel and Arab countries for the past decade. In 2005, the Orchestra presented an historic concert in the Palestinian city of Ramallah, which was broadcast on television and recorded for DVD. In 2001, Barenboim broke a decades-old Israeli taboo by conducting a piece by anti-Semitic composer Richard Wagner at the annual Israel Festival. His humanitarian efforts have garnered numerous awards including recognition as a United Nations Messenger of Peace in 2007.
Kimmel Center Presents’ 2008/2009 Season is sponsored by Citi. The Great Orchestra Series is supported by ARCWheeler. Additional support is provided by the University of Pennsylvania Health System, American Express, and Interpark. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents. NBC-10 is a media partner for Kimmel Center Presents.
Free in the Plaza programming and subsidized tickets offered to the community and social service groups for $10 are made possible through the Wachovia Gateway to the Arts Community Access Program, supported by a generous grant from the Wachovia Foundation.
The Kimmel Center is the recipient of partnership funding through the nationally recognized PNC “Grow Up Great” initiative, a ten-year, $100 million investment in preparing children for success in school and life. Funding gives support to the Kimmel Center’s early childhood program “Bop and Swing,” an arts program for children 1-5 years old, designed to promote an appreciation for American culture.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS SPONSORED BY CITI
Monday, December 8, 2008 | 8pm
Verizon Hall
Master Musicians Recital Series
Daniel Barenboim, piano
LISZT: Années de pèlerinage, Deuxième Année: Italie:
Benedetto sia il giorno, Sonetto 47
Pace non trovo, Sonetto 104
I vidi in terra, Sonetto 123
LISZT: Légendes:
St. François d’Assise: La prédication aux oiseau
LISZT: Années de pèlerinage, Deuxième Année: Italie:
Après une lecture de Dante: Fantasia quasi sonata
LISZT: Paraphrases on Operas of Guiseppe Verdi for Piano Forte:
"Aida Danza sacre e duetto finale"
"Miserere du Trovatore"
"Rigoletto Paraphrase de Concert"
FREE AT THE KIMMEL:
Monday, December 8, 2008 | 6:30pm
Commonwealth Plaza
Jacob’s Music Showcase
Join us for a free musical performance by piano students from around the region, organized by Jacob’s Music Company, on the Commonwealth Plaza Stage prior to the ticketed performance by Daniel Barenboim in Verizon Hall.
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