Philadelphia Orchestra’s third week at Mann Center features award-winning soloists

World-renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman plays and conducts

Tony-winner Bebe Neuwirth performs songs from Chicago and Cabaret

Orchestra plays Tchaikovsky with Fireworks; Concertmaster David Kim solos

(Philadelphia, July 8, 2005)

The Philadelphia Orchestra’s third week at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Fairmount Park continues with concerts on July 19, 20, and 21, 2005. World-renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman plays and conducts (July 19), Broadway and TV star Bebe Neuwirth performs songs from Chicago and Cabaret (July 20), and the Orchestra plays a program of Tchaikovsky with Fireworks with a solo appearance by Concertmaster David Kim (July 21). All concerts begin at 8:00 p.m. Tickets for pavilion and lawn seating are available by calling Ticket Philadelphia at 215.893.1999 or by visiting www.philorch.org.

On Tuesday, July 19, 2005, violinist Itzhak Perlman plays excerpts from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and conducts Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 3 and Symphony No. 7. Known worldwide for his virtuosity on the violin, Mr. Perlman has appeared with every major orchestra and his numerous recordings have earned him fifteen Grammy Awards. His artistry has reached millions of TV viewers through such shows as The Late Show with David Letterman, Sesame Street, the Tonight show, Live From Lincoln Center broadcasts, and PBS specials. Mr. Perlman collaborated with film composer John Williams in Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award winning film Schindler’s List in which he performed the violin solos. His many honors include a Medal of Liberty from President Reagan, a National Medal of Arts from President Clinton, and a Kennedy Center Honor.

Tony-winning performer Bebe Neuwirth joins The Philadelphia Orchestra for the first time on Wednesday, July 20, 2005. She sings a program of songs by Kurt Weill, composer of The Threepenny Opera , and Broadway songwriting team Kander and Ebb, composer and lyricist of Cabaret, Chicago, and Kiss of the Spider Woman. Ms. Neuwirth’s Broadway credits include lead roles in Chicago and Sweet Charity, both of which earned her Tony awards. In addition to her role as Lilith on the TV series Cheers and

Tracey Kibre in Law & Order: Trial by Jury, she has appeared in the films Tadpole, Le Divorce, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and The Big Bounce.

The annual favorite Tchaikovsky with Fireworks closes the Orchestra’s third week of concerts at the Mann Center on Thursday, July 21, 2005. The program features the Orchestra’s own Concertmaster David Kim playing Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, a work he recently performed on a subscription concert and on the Orchestra’s tour of Asia in June. Also on the program are Marche slave, Romeo and Juliet, and the majestic 1812 Overture, conducted by Giancarlo Guerrero.

Tickets and transportation
Tickets for the 2005 Summer Concert Series with The Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Center are available for purchase in-person, by telephone, and via the internet. Undercover pavilion seats range from $20 to $68 and lawn tickets are $10 per ticket. They can be purchased by telephone by calling Ticket Philadelphia (215.893.1999), in-person at the Kimmel Center Box Office (Broad and Spruce streets in Philadelphia) or the Mann Center Ticket Office (52nd Street and Parkside Avenue in Fairmount Park), or through the Orchestra’s website at www.philorch.org.

Public Transportation is available to the Mann Center for all concerts. Bus service is available through the Mann Center’s Center City Bus Loop. For more information on routes and rates, call the Mann Center at 215.546.7900, ext. 132, or visit online at www.manncenter.org. The fare is $3.00 each way. SEPTA’s regular daily bus routes 38, 40, and 43 deliver passengers within walking distance of the Mann Center. (The route 38 bus stops at the intersection of Belmont Avenue and Concourse Drive.) For more information on SEPTA’s routes and rates, call 215.580.7800 or visit their website at www.septa.com.

The Philadelphia Orchestra at Fairmount Park and The Mann Center for the Performing Arts
Summer 2005 marks the 75th anniversary of The Philadelphia Orchestra’s first performance in Fairmount Park and the Orchestra’s 30th year of performances at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts. In 1930, The Philadelphia Orchestra began performing concerts at the Robin Hood Dell in a band shell on the east side of the Schuylkill, and symphonic concerts continued there into the 1970s. The Mann Center for the Performing Arts, as it is now known, opened on the west side of the Schuylkill as the Robin Hood Dell West in 1976 and became the home of The Philadelphia Orchestra’s summer series. In 1978, it was renamed in honor of longtime Philadelphia resident Fredric R. Mann (1903-1987), a businessman whose advocacy of summer concerts in Fairmount Park extended back for more than half a century. The modern pavilion seats 4,700 under cover, with lawn seating for 2,500. The park’s more than 5,000 acres extend along both banks of the Schuylkill River northeast from downtown Philadelphia.

Founded in 1900, The Philadelphia Orchestra has distinguished itself as one of the leading orchestras in the world through a century of acclaimed performances, historic international tours, best-selling recordings, and its unprecedented record of innovation in recording technologies and outreach. With only six music directors piloting The Philadelphia Orchestra through its first century, the ensemble has maintained an unparalleled cohesiveness and unity in artistic leadership.

This rich tradition is carried on by Christoph Eschenbach, who began his tenure as the Orchestra’s seventh music director in September 2003. Concluding an acclaimed first season together that saw the launch of the Orchestra’s first-ever multi-year cycle of Mahler’s complete symphonies, Maestro Eschenbach and the Orchestra toured the music capitals of Europe in the spring of 2004. In May and June 2005, they completed a three-week tour of Asia.

The Philadelphia Orchestra annually touches the lives of more than 1 million music lovers worldwide through its performances (more than 300 concerts and other pre­sentations each year), publications, recordings, and broadcasts. A major winter subscription season is presented in Phila­delphia each year from September to May, in addition to education and community part­ner­ship programs. Its summer schedule includes a month-long outdoor season in Phila­del­phia at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts, free concerts in local neighborhoods, and a three-week residency each August at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in upstate New York.

The Mann Center for the Performing Arts

July 19 at 8:00 p.m. – Tuesday evening

The Philadelphia Orchestra
Itzhak Perlman, conductor and violin

 Beethoven Leonore Overture No. 3
Vivaldi Excerpts from The Four Seasons
Beethoven Symphony No. 7

Tickets: $20-$68 (general admission lawn tickets: $10), 215.893.1999 or www.philorch.org

Itzhak Perlman’s appearance is made possible through the Dr. Richard Klein Guest Artist Fund.

The Mann Center for the Performing Arts

July 20 at 8:00 p.m. – Wednesday evening

The Philadelphia Orchestra
Bebe Neuwirth, vocalist – Philadelphia
     Orchestra Debut
Leslie Stifelman, conductor – Philadelphia     Orchestra Debut

Kander Overture to Chicago
             “All That Jazz,” from Chicago
Weill “The Saga of Jenny,” from Lady in the Dark
        “I’m a Stranger Here Myself,” from One Touch of
         Venus
Kander “Razzle Dazzle,” from Chicago
             “Class,” from Chicago
             “Roxie,” from Chicago
             “A Quiet Thing,” from Flora the Red Menace
             “How Lucky Can You Get,” from Funny Lady
             Cabaret, Suite for Orchestra
             “Cabaret,” from Cabaret
Weill “The Bilbao Song”
Kander “Mein Herr,” from Cabaret
Weill “Ballad of the Soldier’s Wife”
         “Je ne t’aime pas”
         “Surabaya Johnny,” from Happy End
Kander “The World Goes ’Round,” from And the
              World Goes ’Round

Tickets: $20-$68 (general admission lawn tickets: $10), 215.893.1999 or www.philorch.org.

The Mann Center for the Performing Arts

July 21 at 8:00 p.m. – Thursday evening

The Philadelphia Orchestra
Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor
David Kim, violin 

Tchaikovsky Marche slave
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto
Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet
Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture

Tickets: $20-$68 (general admission lawn tickets: $10), 215.893.1999 or www.philorch.org

David Kim’s appearance is made possible through the Dr. Richard Klein Guest Artist Fund.

UBS, a global financial services leader, is the proud sponsor of The Philadelphia Orchestra’s 2004-05 season.

Lexus is the exclusive automotive sponsor of The Philadelphia Orchestra.