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Minnesota Orchestra Appoints Violinist Leonidas Kavakos Principal Guest Conductor
On Thursday the Minnesota Orchestra announced the appointment of Greek violinist Leonidas Kavakos as its principal guest conductor, beginning in the fall of 2027.
The three-year appointment will feature Kavakos in three weeks of subscription concerts each season, including conducting the orchestra at least twice a season. He also will appear in additional concerts and artistic projects as soloist or chamber music collaborator.
Originally from Athens, Kavakos, 58, has more than 30 years of history with the Minnesota Orchestra, having debuted with the orchestra in March 1995, playing the Stravinsky Violin Concerto. He returned over the next five years for 16 performances across the season and summer and has been a regular soloist ever since, including appearing with the Orchestra in performances of the Sibelius Violin Concerto at Carnegie Hall in May 2009. As a conductor, he first led the Minnesota Orchestra in a May 2023 program featuring Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 and Bach’s Violin Concerto No. 1. For his most recent appearance, last October, he led as a soloist for Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3 and conducted Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 15.
"I am thrilled to be joining the Minnesota Orchestra as its principal guest conductor," Kavakos said in a statement. "As a young music student still forming a musical identity, I was deeply inspired by the Minnesota Orchestra’s recordings with the legendary Dimitri Mitropoulos."
"I first conducted the Orchestra in 2023 and the rehearsals and performances were pure joy," he said. "I felt an immediate chemistry with my colleagues, and together we've found the sense of expressive freedom that every musician aims for." Keep reading...
LA Phil Announces 2026 Hollywood Bowl Summer Season
On Wednesday the Los Angeles Philharmonic announced the 2026 Hollywood Bowl summer season - its 104th at the 17,500 seat amphitheater in the Hollywood Hills.
For fans of the violin, the season is a winner, with five internationally-known violin soloists coming to the Bowl, as well as leading artists in the LA Phil featured:
- July 9: Violinist Randall Goosby will perform Barber's Violin Concerto with the LA Phil and Tito Muñoz in a program called "Classical World Cup" that includes world premiere (LA Phil commission) of Adam Schoenberg’s "Art of the Goal," as well as other American works.
- July 14: Violinist Leonidas Kavakos will perform the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the LA Phil and Cristian Macelaru in a program that also includes Beethoven's Symphony No. 7.
- August 4: Violinist Marc Bouchkov will perform the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with the LA Phil and Louis Langrée in a program that also includes Mendelssohn's "The Hebrides" (Fingal’s Cave) and Haydn’s "London" symphony.
- August 6: Violinist Augustin Hadelich will perform Brahms' Violin Concerto with the LA Phil and Louis Langrée in a program that also includes Farrenc’s Overture No. 1 and selections from Bizet’s Carmen and L’Arlésienne Suites.
- August. 25: Concertmaster Bing Wang, Principal Cello Robert deMaine and keyboardist Joanne Pearce Martin will perform Beethoven’s Triple Concerto with the LA Phil and Anna Handler in a program that also includes Beethoven's Symphony No. 5.
- Sept. 1: Violinist Bomsori will perform Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1 with the LA Phil and Anja Bihlmaier in a program that also includes Dvorák’s Symphony No. 8.
The season also features a number of other guest soloists, including cellist Zlatomir Fung as well as pianists Mao Fujita, Conrad Tao, Angela Hewitt, Jeneba Kanneh-Mason, Jean-Yves Thibaudet
The LA Phil also will mark Gustavo Dudamel's final summer as its Music & Artistic Director by featuring him in series four concert programs over four days, August 20-23. Keep reading...
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'From the Top' Radio Program to Move to Texas
From the Top, the public radio program that features young classically-trained musicians, will move its home base from Boston to the Dallas area this spring, when it will officially become a program of North Texas’s not-for-profit public media organization KERA on June 1.
KERA includes an array of public television, digital, print and radio programs, including KERA-TV, KERA FM radio and more.
Founded at the New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall in Boston, From the Top began broadcasting in 2000 and was hosted by pianist Christopher O'Riley until 2018. The weekly radio program is distributed by National Public Radio (NPR) and currently heard on some 200 radio stations across the U.S. The program features young classical musicians, ages 8–18, in performance and in conversation with pianist Peter Dugan, its host since 2020. A team of co-hosts includes violinist Tessa Lark, clarinetist Alex Laing, pianist Orli Shaham and violinist Charles Yang.
"This was a forward-looking decision grounded in responsibility," said Gretchen Nielsen, From the Top's Executive Director. "From the Top has accomplished a tremendous amount with a small, highly effective team. But as the scope and complexity of our national work have grown, so has the need for a larger operational engine. By joining KERA, we’re ensuring that this work can evolve and expand – while staying true to our mission and the community of artists, families, and supporters who have sustained us from the beginning."
The "From the Top" radio program will continue to be distributed by NPR, with the show maintaining its current format and editorial team. Keep reading...
The Week in Reviews, Op. 537: Hilary Hahn's Return, with Philadelphia Orchestra
In an effort to promote the coverage of live violin performance, Violinist.com each week presents links to reviews of notable concerts and recitals around the world. Click on the highlighted links to read the entire reviews.
Hilary Hahn returned to the concert stage after a six-month break for injury recovery, performing Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 1 in D major with The Philadelphia Orchestra and Santtu-Matias Rouvali.
- Bach Track: "No surprise here: it was like she never left....Prokofiev requires not just a dextrous technician but an artist who can shift moods on a dime. Hahn fits that bill down to the ground."
Keep reading...
