Paavo Järvi Conducts Curtis Symphony Orchestra in All-Russian Program at Carnegie Hall

Carter Brey, Principal Cellist of New York Philharmonic, Performs Prokofiev’s Sinfonia concertante

Paavo Järvi (pictured), music director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Curtis alumnus, conducts the Curtis Symphony Orchestra on Tuesday, April 28 at 8pm in Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall. The all-Russian program features Stravinsky’s Petrushka (1947) and two works by Prokofiev: Suite No. 1 from Romeo and Juliet and Sinfonia concertante with cello soloist Carter Brey.

The Curtis Symphony Orchestra has been called “an orchestra that any city would be lucky to have as its professional ensemble” (Philadelphia Inquirer) and has been praised for its “otherworldly ensemble and professional level of sophistication” (New York Times). Recent visiting conductors include Charles Dutoit, Alan Gilbert, Simon Rattle, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Miguel Harth-Bedoya. This real-world training has enabled Curtis alumni to assume prominent positions in major orchestras across the United States , Canada , and abroad. Sixteen percent of the principal chairs in America ’s top 25 orchestras are held by Curtis-trained musicians.

The Curtis Institute of Music educates and trains exceptionally gifted young musicians for careers as performing artists on the highest professional level. One of the world’s leading music schools, Curtis provides full-tuition scholarships to all of its 162 students, ensuring that admissions are based solely on artistic promise. A Curtis education is uniquely tailored to the individual student, with personalized attention from a celebrated faculty and unusually frequent performance opportunities. This distinctive “learn by doing” approach to musical training has produced an impressive number of notable artists, from such legends as Leonard Bernstein and Samuel Barber to current stars Juan Diego Flórez, Alan Gilbert, Hilary Hahn, Leila Josefowicz, Jennifer Higdon, and Lang Lang.

Paavo Järvi, one of the most sought-after conductors of his generation, became music director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in 2001 and recently extended his contract through the 2011-12 season. In 2004, Mr. Järvi became artistic director of the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen , one of the world’s leading chamber orchestras, and he also serves as music director of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. He will become the seventh music director of the Orchestre de Paris beginning in the 2010-11 season.

Mr. Järvi’s demand as a guest conductor has led to engagements with the world’s major orchestras including the Berlin, St. Petersburg, and Vienna Philharmonics. In North America , he regularly conducts the Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, and Chicago Symphony. He previously held the post of principal guest conductor with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

Born in Estonia , he studied percussion and conducting at the Tallinn Music High School . His studies continued in the United States at the Curtis Institute under Otto-Werner Mueller and Max Rudolf, former music director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, as well as at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute with Leonard Bernstein.

Principal cellist of the New York Philharmonic, Carter Brey joined the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music in 2008. “I’m very excited about the opportunity to kick off my relationship with the school through this pair of concerts” said Mr. Brey. “It will be a nice way for the students to get to know me a little better and vice versa.” The 100 young musicians between the ages of 14 and 25 who make up the Curtis Symphony Orchestra will perform Prokofiev’s Sinfonia concertante with Mr. Brey. “I think it’s one of Prokofiev’s best large-scale works,” he said. “The melodic invention is fantastic. Because he wrote it in concert for Mstislav Rostropovich, it’s very idiomatic for the instrument. It’s a challenge, but very rewarding.”

Carter Brey rose to international attention in 1981 as a prizewinner in the Rostropovich Intern ational Cello Competition. He was appointed principal cellist of the New York Philharmonic in 1996 and has performed numerous times as a soloist with the orchestra under the batons of Kurt Masur, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, and Alan Gilbert. The first musician to win the Arts Council of America’s Performing Arts Prize, Mr. Brey has also won the Gregor Piatigorsky Memorial Prize, Avery Fisher Career Grant, and Young Concert Artists’ Michaels Award.

As a chamber musician, Mr. Brey has made regular appearances with the Tokyo and Emerson String Quartets, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Spoleto Festival in the United States and Italy, and the Santa Fe and La Jolla chamber music festivals, among others. His discography includes Chopin’s complete works for cello and piano with Garrick Ohlsson (Arabesque), and The Latin American Album (Helicon Records), featuring compositions from South America and Mexico with Christopher O’Riley. Mr. Brey studied with Laurence Lesser and Stephen Kates at the Peabody Conservatory of Music and with Aldo Parisot at Yale University.

Tuesday, April 28 at 8pm
Curtis Symphony Orchestra
Jack Wolgin Orchestral Concerts

Perelman Stage, Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, 57th Street and 7th Avenue , New York

STRAVINSKY: Petrushka (1947)
PROKOFIEV: Sinfonia concertante (Carter Brey, cello)
PROKOFIEV: Suite No. 1 from Romeo and Juliet

Tickets are $16, $30, and $50 and are available at the Carnegie Ticket Office at (212) 247-7800 or www.carnegiehall.org. Pre-concert gala tickets are available through the Curtis Development Office at (215) 893-5279 or development@curtis.edu.