Bernstein and Copland

American Rhapsody

📍 This event takes place at Powell Hall

Friday, Apr 9, 2027, 10:30am View Subscriptions Saturday, Apr 10, 2027, 7:30pm View Subscriptions Sunday, Apr 11, 2027, 3:00pm View Subscriptions

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Program

Stéphane Denève, conductor
Scott Andrews, clarinet
Erin Schreiber, violin

Carlos Simon “Wake Up!” Concerto for Orchestra
Aaron Copland Clarinet Concerto
Christopher Stark Violin Concerto “Vesper Flights” (World Premiere/SLSO commission)
Leonard Bernstein Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

About this Concert

In this quintessentially American program overflowing with joy, get an orchestral jumpstart from Carlos Simon and his Concerto for Orchestra. Then, two SLSO musicians take the solo spotlight: Principal Clarinetist Scott Andrews showcases the jazz-infused, rollicking Clarinet Concerto by Aaron Copland, and Associate Concertmaster Erin Schreiber introduces us to the music of Christopher Stark, one of SLSO’s longtime artistic partners. Finally, West Side Story features some of Bernstein’s most beautiful music, a lasting vision of what humanity could be.

- Leonard Bernstein found the greatest joy in projects that were collaborative, partnering with actors, dancers, and lyricists to bring his most exciting ideas to life, both visually and musically. One of his greatest accomplishments in this arena was the creation of the musical, West Side Story. 
- Copland’s virtuosic concerto, written for the great Benny Goodman, begins lyrically and concludes with a jazzy movement notable for its range of sounds: the clarinet in the high register, basses played “slap style,” and a lively piano part.
- Award-winning composer Christopher Stark, who teaches composition at Washington University in St. Louis, partners with the SLSO as the curator for the Live at the Pulitzer chamber music series. His Violin Concerto was written specifically for Erin Schreiber and was inspired by the flights that flocks of swifts take at dusk and dawn, ascending to a height of 6,000 feet, where they disappear into the clouds and the darkness and can no longer be seen.

Artists

Meet the people that make the music.

Musicians of the SLSO

Special Thanks

Presented by the Whitaker Foundation
Coffee Concert Series Supported by EverTrue
Friday morning complimentary refreshments courtesy of Kaldi’s Coffee Roasting Co. and Eddie’s Southtown Donuts