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Monday, September 24, 2001

Orchestra Begins Cross-Country Tour
Special Tribute Concert Brings Community Together
Opening Night Launches a Remarkable Season
Philadelphia Orchestra Award Presented to David Eastburn
Season Continues at Academy In October

     
           
    Orchestra Begins Cross-Country Tour
The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Wolfgang Sawallisch departed Philadelphia together at the end of last week, embarking on a three-week United States Tour. The tour includes 12 concerts in 9 states from America's heartland to the West Coast. The Orchestra took off by plane from Philadelphia on Friday, with heightened security as well as an increased sense of purpose for the tour, taking the healing powers of music to a nation still mourning and reacting to the tragedies of September 11. The Delaware River Port Authority is providing generous sponsorship for the tour, which features orchestral showpieces by Beethoven, Brahms, Elgar, Strauss, and Smetana.
     
           
    Special Tribute Concert Brings Community Together
The Philadelphia Orchestra came back to work early following the terrorist attacks of September 11. In partnership with Philadelphia's WHYY television and radio and the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, the Orchestra performed a special Tribute Concert just six days after the tragedies. The Sunday evening concert drew an on-site crowd of about 6500, with tens of thousands more tuning in across the country to hear offerings of music and reflection for those who lost their lives on September 11. All musicians, staff, and subcontractors involved in presenting the special concert donated their services for the event, which raised money for relief efforts in tragedy's aftermath. More than $65,000 was raised from those in attendance at the Mann Center, with even greater sums given by generous home viewers throughout the nation.
     
           
    Opening Night Launches a Remarkable Season
The Orchestra's 2001-02 season officially began on Wednesday evening, September 19, with the traditional gala Opening Night concert at the Academy of Music. Along with the usual gourmet dinners and pre-concert champagne toasts, the concert began with a moment of silence and reflection on recent national events. Maestro Sawallisch led the musical program, which featured orchestral works by Strauss and Elgar alongside Mendelssohn's perennially-popular Violin Concerto with soloist Maxim Vengerov. The event marked the Orchestra's final Opening Concert at the Academy, which has served as its home for more than a century. The Orchestra's new home, The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, opens its doors in December with a gala Inaugural Weekend of televised concerts and events.
     
           
    Philadelphia Orchestra Award Presented to David Eastburn
The Orchestra's season Opening Night included the presentation of the "Philadelphia Orchestra Award" to former Association President David P. Eastburn. In a ten-minute ceremony to start the concert's second half, current Chairman Dick Smoot introduced a special film tribute to Eastburn's sage advice for and leadership of the Orchestra over the course of three decades. Mr. Eastburn accepted the award and tribute with brief and humble remarks, receiving a standing ovation from the assembled audience. The Philadelphia Orchestra Award was created in 1994 and recognizes individuals and organizations who have provided exemplary support of the Orchestra and its artistic mission. Past recipients have included board members, musicians, volunteers, and CIGNA International.
     
           
    Season Continues at Academy in October
Following the Orchestra's three-week United States Tour, the 2001-02 season in Philadelphia begins in earnest with the first weekend of subscription concerts October 25-27. A new string orchestra scoring of composer Steve Reich's "Different Trains" will receive its world premiere presentation at these concerts, juxtaposed with Mahler's ethereal Fourth Symphony, both under the direction of guest conductor David Robertson. Subscription ticket packages for the Orchestra's season are still available (individual tickets go on sale in stages later this fall), although interest and anticipation surrounding the opening of the Kimmel Center have already caused several series to sell out. For more information or to order series packages for the season, please call 215.893.1955 or visit the Orchestra's website at www.philorch.org.
     
           
   

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