FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale is pleased to announce its 2016-17 Season of Heroes including Rameau’s original version of “The Temple of Glory” with libretto by Voltaire in partnership with Cal Performances.

Contact:
Dianne Provenzano
Director of Marketing and PR
Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra
(415) 252-1288 x 315
press@philharmonia.org

February, 2016

San Francisco, CA – Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra announces its 2016-2017 Season of Heroes. Inspired by music’s towering heroes – Vivaldi, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Rameau – Nicholas McGegan and Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale will ignite the world of historically informed-performance with this series of six remarkable concerts. International guest conductors and artists such as Robert Levin, Rachel Podger, Isabelle Faust, Jonathan Cohen and Ietsyn Davies join the orchestra throughout the season leading up to an unparalleled finale. In April 2017, Philharmonia and Cal Performances co-present a full-scale operatic production of Rameau’s “Le Temple de la Gloire” at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall. With the original libretto by Voltaire, this version of Rameau’s masterpiece has never been performed for modern audiences – until now.

In addition to the subscription set of six unique historically-informed concerts, Philharmonia will also release a new CD in spring 2017, perform at Tanglewood and continue its popular PBO SESSIONS series with performances in December and January.

Subscriptions to the new 2016-17 season range in price from $177 to $650 and are on public sale. Call (415) 295-1900 to subscribe, or visit philharmonia.org/subscribe.

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THE SUBSCRIPTION SEASON BY MONTH

In October, the season kicks off with a powerful “All Beethoven” program featuring Harvard professor of Musicology and fortepianist Robert Levin performing Beethoven’s Concert for

Fortepiano No. 3 with McGegan and the orchestra. The program also includes the composer’s beloved “Pastoral” Symphony No. 6.

The November “Vivaldi and Bach” program welcomes back world-renowned violinist Rachel Podger who will lead the orchestra in a program of concertos designed to showcase the variety of style and form so prevalent in Baroque music. The program includes Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto in D Major “L’inquietudine” and his Chamber Concerto in G minor, J.S. Bach’s Double Concerto for Oboe and Violin and his Orchestral Suite No. 1 as well as Tartini’s Concerto for Violin in A major.

In December, McGegan returns to lead Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale in Handel’s “Joshua” with guest singers Yulia van Doren, soprano; Daniel Taylor, countertenor; Thomas Cooley, tenor and William Berger, baritone. The Philharmonia Chorale, directed by Bruce Lamott, will round out the vocal performance as “Joshua” leads the Israelites to victory.

The new year welcomes acclaimed violinist Isabelle Faust for January’s “Haydn and Mozart” program. Faust performs Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5 “Turkish” while McGegan leads the orchestra in Haydn’s Symphony No. 91 and Gyrowetz’s Symphony Op. 6, No. 3.

Guest conductor Jonathan Cohen leads the orchestra in March’s “Operatic Heroes” program with countertenor Iestyn Davies. Davis will revive works written for castrati in the Baroque era. Works include Handel Arias from “Saul” and “Theodora”, Hasse works from “Didone Abbandonata,” Gluck arias and dances from “Telemanco” and “Orfeo ed Euridice,” CPE Bach’s Sinfonia in E major and Arne’s “Vengeance, O come inspire me!” from “Alfred.”

Finally, the regular season culminates in April with a Baroque experience years in the making – the full-scale production of Rameau’s five-act opera-ballet, “The Temple of Glory.” Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale is collaborating with Cal Performances and Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles to co-present the original version of “La temple de la gloire” – with libretto by Voltaire – that is housed at U.C. Berkeley’s Hargrove Music Library now.  The international cast of singers and dancers include Gabrielle Philiponet, Chantal Santon, Katherine Watson, Artavazd Sargsyan, Philippe-Nicolas Martin and Marc Labonnette with dancers from the New York Baroque Dance Company and singers from the Philharmonia Chorale.

The version of this ballet héroïque that has been heard up until now is the second version, which included several changes Rameau made to please Parisian tastes at the time-they weren’t used to watching an allegorical opera without a love story. Voltaire originally wanted this to be a philosophical reform of opera:  an allegory around the idea of the temple of glory, a grandiose spectacle with moral and political overtones. This original version will be presented at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall as part of both the Philharmonia and Cal Performances 2016-17 subscription series in April 2017. Subscription tickets for this event will be sold through Philharmonia Baroque
beginning in February 2016 and Cal Performances beginning in April 2016. Single tickets for the event will go on sale in August 2016 through Cal Performances.

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2016-17 Season Concert Schedule

All Beethoven with Robert Levin
October  16 – 22, 2016

BEETHOVEN
Concerto for Fortepiano No. 3
Symphony No. 6 “Pastoral”

Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Robert Levin, fortepiano

WHEN & WHERE:
Sunday October 16, 2016 @ 4:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Wednesday October 19, 2016 @ 7:30 PM
Bing Concert Hall, Stanford

Friday October 21, 2016 @ 8:00 PM
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco

Saturday October 22, 2016 @ 8:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Vivaldi & Bach with Rachel Podger
November 2-6, 2016

VERACINI Overture No. 6 in G minor
VIVALDI Violin Concerto in D major “L’inquietudine”
BACH Double Concerto for Oboe and Violin
TARTINI Concerto for Violin in A major
VIVALDI Chamber Concerto in G minor
BACH Orchestra Suite No. 1

Rachel Podger, violin and leader

WHEN & WHERE:
Thursday November 2, 2016 @ 7:30 PM
First United Methodist Church, Palo Alto

Friday November 4, 2016 @ 8:00 PM
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco

Saturday November 5, 2016 @ 8:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Sunday November 6, 2016 @ 4:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Handel’s Joshua
December 1 – 4, 2016

HANDEL “Joshua”

Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Yulia Van Doren, soprano
Daniel Taylor, countertenor
Thomas Cooley, tenor
William Berger, baritone
Philharmonia Chorale, Bruce Lamott, director

WHEN & WHERE:
Thursday December 1, 2016 @ 7:00 PM
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco

Friday December 2, 2016 @ 8:00 PM
First United Methodist Church, Palo Alto

Saturday December 3, 2016 @ 7:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Sunday December 4, 2016 @ 4:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Haydn & Mozart with Isabelle Faust
January 25 – 29, 2017

GYROWETZ Symphony Op. 6, No. 3
MOZART Violin Concerto No. 5 “Turkish”
HAYDN Symphony No. 91

Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Isabelle Faust, violin

WHEN & WHERE:
Wednesday January 25, 2017 @ 7:30 PM
Bing Concert Hall, Standford

Friday January 27, 2017 @ 8:00 PM
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco

Saturday January 28, 2017 @ 8:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Sunday January 29, 2017 @ 4:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Operatic Heroes with
Jonathan Cohen and Ietsyn Davies
March 1 – 5, 2017

HANDEL Arias from “Saul” and “Theodora”
HASSE Works from “Didone Abbandonata”
ZELENKA Suite in A minor
ARNE “Vengeance, O come inspire me!” from “Alfred”
CPE BACH Sinfonia in D minor
GLUCK Arias and dances from “Telemanco” and “Orfeo ed Euridice”

Jonathan Cohen, conductor
Ietsyn Davis, countertenor

WHEN & WHERE:
Wednesday March 1, 2017 @ 7:30 PM
Bing Concert Hall, Standford

Friday March 3, 2017 @ 8:00 PM
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco

Saturday March 4, 2017 @ 8:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Sunday March 5, 2017 @ 4:00 PM
First Congregational Church, Berkeley

Rameau’s The Temple of Glory
Co-presented with Cal Performances
April 28 – 30, 2017
FULLY-STAGED OPERA  

RAMEAU “Le temple de la gloire”
Libretto by Voltaire

Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Catherine Turocy, stage director & choreographer
Marie Anne Chiment, costume designer
Scott Blake, set designer
Pierre Dupouey, lighting designer
Gabrielle Philiponet, soprano
Chantal Santon, soprano
Katherine Watson, soprano
Artavazd Sargsyan, haute-contre
Philippe-Nicolas Martin, baritone
Marc Labonnette, baritone
New York Baroque Dance Company
Philharmonia Chorale, Bruce Lamott director

WHEN & WHERE:
Friday April 28, 2017 @ 8:00 pm
Cal Performances
Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley

Saturday April 29, 2017 @ 8:00 pm
Cal Performances
Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley

Sunday April 30, 2017 @ 3:00 pm
Cal Performances
Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley