For the first time in its 170-year history, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra has a native New Yorker at the helm. Music director Alan Gilbert (above) brings the band to the Barbican this month for a brief residency that crams four concerts into a little over 48 hours, starting with a performance of Mahler’s Ninth on 16 February. Later concerts include the UK première of Polaris, a ‘Voyage for Orchestra’ by Thomas Adès, and Lang Lang tackling Bartók’s famously arduous Piano Concerto No. 2. The residency will also see small groups of musicians venturing beyond the concert hall to perform for residents of East London housing estates as part of the Barbican’s Front Room Concerts series.
A Saturday matinée on 18 February pays explicit tribute to Leonard Bernstein, himself a former NYPO music director, with a Young People’s Concert of the kind he pioneered as far back as 1958. The New York-themed programme, hosted by the composer’s daughter Jamie, cannily exploits the power of Bernstein’s evocative mid-century works (On The Town, West Side Story) to draw a younger crowd, and the Barbican is promising ‘a New York-style makeover and free foyer activities’ from 1 p.m. Also on the bill is an extract from Bernstein’s underrated Symphony No. 2 featuring 19-year-old pianist Benjamin Grosvenor. Our own LSO offers something of a taster on 9 February with a programme of jazz-infused work from Bernstein, Copland and Milhaud.
Comments
Join the debate for just £1 a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for £3.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just £1 a monthAlready a subscriber? Log in