People

On a recent drive across the Midwest, I mused about PSO seasons past and future. The six-hour trek was rife with astonishing realizations about what we have become and are becoming. “Wow!” I thought, as I tried to sum it all up in my head, so many things: memories of patron reactions, the orchestra’s accomplishments,…

I had the pleasure of working with the San Diego Symphony this past December. A great orchestra full of wonderful players, some were former students from Juilliard and a joy to see again. The staff was friendly and efficient; the hall splendid, and San Diego itself, well … “Wow!”  The San Diego Symphony’s marketing slogan…

The PSO’s 120th Season concluded this past July with its triumphant, debut performance at the Ravinia Festival near Chicago. A tribute to Leonard Bernstein, the program featured daughter Jamie Bernstein and outstanding young soloists from Chicago and New York, including our own favorite Harmony Zhu. A friend from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra said of the…

For those of you who attended any of our performances or events this past month, you are well aware of the many vocal surprises we had both on and off stage in March. Chicago Lyric Opera soprano Kimberly McCord had to cancel her PSO debut at the last-minute due to health issues. I am happy…

In this concert, Barber’s music explores universal undercurrents of American existence, while Copland’s convivial “Appalachian Spring” resonates with thoughtful simplicity – emanating from hard-won wisdom. This music hides the profound in the open. For, though we listen to these works, now so familiar and popular, we often forget to hear them – as I experienced…

This past Sunday October 26, Lyle Lovett performed at the Peoria Civic Center Theater under the auspices of the Peoria Symphony Orchestra. It was an immensely satisfying evening of great American music drawn from the varied cultures and history of the United States and performed exquisitely by Mr. Lovett and his exceptionally talented acoustic group. The…