29 episodes
SoundWaves with The Florida Orchestra The Florida Orchestra
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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For more than 55 years, The Florida Orchestra has been a driving force for cultural arts in the Tampa Bay region. Every work of music, every musician, every composer has a story to tell. SoundWaves with The Florida Orchestra gives those stories a voice, so you can experience a deep, personal connection to the music during a concert or anytime. The non-profit Florida Orchestra is the largest orchestra in the state and the only arts organization that bridges Tampa Bay. TFO exists to INSPIRE – UNITE – EDUCATE as we build community through the power of music onstage and in our schools and community. With 71 full-time professional musicians and conductors, TFO performs more than 100 concerts a season, including a wide range of classical, popular, film, rock and family-friendly music. Performances are at three major performing arts venues: Mahaffey Theater in St. Petersburg, Straz Center in Tampa and Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater. For tickets and information: FloridaOrchestra.org
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Program Notes: Saint-Saens’ Organ Symphony
We’re taking a tour of France in the spring. Magnifique! Saint-Saens’ Organ Symphony – used so effectively in the 1995 movie Babe – is a lush masterpiece that builds and builds until … wait for it … the organ is let loose in the finale. Fauré’s Requiem creates a place of peace and serenity with rich, soulful melodies, featuring The Master Chorale of Tampa Bay. The vibrant energy of Lili Boulanger’s Of a Spring Morning begins the concert.
These program notes include music excerpts.
Masterworks 11 of the 23/24 Season
Performances April 26-28, 2024 -
Program Notes: Dvorak’s New World Symphony
Antonin Dvorak’s Ninth Symphony is as big a deal today as it was in 1893, when it premiered with huge fanfare at Carnegie Hall in New York. The Ninth was special. Major composer. Written in America. Inspired by African-American spirituals. No wonder it prompted one of the most elaborate music reviews in the history of newspapers, a 3,000-word essay. In Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola, the sublime middle movement is dipped in grief, but all sadness vanishes in the presto finale. The concert begins with Berlioz’s Roman Carnival Overture – full-throttled music, virtuosic and splashy – from a colorful composer who would make a delightful dinner party guest.
These program notes include music excerpts.
Masterworks 10 of the 23/24 Season
Performances April 12-14, 2024 -
Program Notes: Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony
This is the symphony that changed all symphonies, Beethoven’s monumental Third. No one had heard anything like it before. The work was originally called “Bonaparte” after Napoleon, but a disgruntled Beethoven hastily changed the title to “Eroica,” meaning heroic. Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2 breaks free from oppression after the death of Stalin. The program starts with the evocative Chairman Dances: Foxtrot for Orchestra, composed by John Adams, one of the most performed American composers. A common thread links the three works on the program, each in some way stimulated by the politics of its time.
These program notes include music excerpts.
Masterworks 9 of the 23/24 Season
April 5-7, 2024 -
Secret Lives: Robin Hood of Fried Chicken
Cellist, conductor, Robin Hood of Fried Chicken
For TFO Associate Principal Cello Victor Minke Huls, his life in music started way before he was born. And it keeps getting better. From homework in the concert hall to conducting, salsa dancing, an Irish family band and his secret career as a counter tenor, the Florida native keeps adding to an amazing life. Dare we mention that unfortunate job in the school cafeteria? With. All. That. Food. There’s a lot to look forward to in his new role with The Florida Orchestra, but a big moment will be performing Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben. He’ll share the stage with someone very special.
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Program Notes: Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto
A heroic concert indeed. Beethoven’s famed Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor,” composed when he was deaf, is a stunning example of Beethoven’s stubborn nature. He overcame his liability to create a work of unprecedented depth and expression. The adagio is simply sublime. “The concerto encapsulates the heroic struggle of the individual,’’ says TFO Music Director Michael Francis, “and how one determined soul can influence the world around him to a magnificent degree.’’ Rounding out the program is Richard Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben, or A Hero’s Life. In this case the hero is, well, Strauss. He was an enormous talent with an ego to match. The muscular work also is a great showcase for the orchestra. These program notes include music excerpts.
Masterworks 8 of the 23/24 Season
Performances Feb. 23-25, 2024 -
Program Notes: Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue
This program is packed with American greats in honor of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, a smash hit since its debut 100 years ago. “I wanted to put it on a pedestal because it deserves to be there,” says TFO Music Director Michael Francis. The concert starts with jazzy fanfare Herald, Holler & Hallelujah composed by Wynton Marsalis before launching into Mason Bates’ Alternative Energy, which goes techno with a conductor’s laptop and monitors for the musicians, among other surprises. Bernstein’s Three Dance Episodes from On the Town follows three sailors on a one-day shore leave in New York. And serious Russian master Stravinsky shows his quirky American side with his jazzy, bluesy Ebony clarinet concerto, featuring Natalie Hoe. These program notes include music excerpts.
Masterworks 7 of the 23/24 Season
Performances Feb. 17 & 18, 2024