Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GREENSBORO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
200 North Davie Street, Box 10
Greensboro, North Carolina 27401
336-335-5456
September 3, 2008
Contact:
GREENSBORO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
200 North Davie Street, Box 10
Greensboro, North Carolina 27401
336-335-5456
December 28, 2007
Contact:
Lisa Crawford (336)335-5456 X 222
Sheila Cauthen (336)335-5456 X 227
Saturday, September 13, 2008
“Dima” and “Fima” reunite at GSO’S Season Opening “Century Celebration Gala” at newly-renovated Aycock Auditorium Saturday, September 13 at 7 P.M. followed by reception at Weatherspoon Art Museum
Greensboro – He may not be wearing an orange suit, and he won’t be playing a 9-foot grand piano in Greensboro’s Depot, but Yefim Bronfman will be gracing Greensboro audiences with the same illustrious talent that stopped New Yorkers in their tracks as they walked through Grand Central Station during morning rush hour last fall. The GSO’s “Century Celebration Gala” on September 13, 2008 will feature virtuoso pianist Yefim Bronfman and tenor Rene Barbera in concert with the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Dmitry Sitkovetsky. Bronfman, nicknamed “Fima” (short for Yefim), is in demand by orchestras and concert halls all over the world. He is widely-regarded as one of the most talented performers and recording artists of today. Bronfman's morning serenade in New York last fall was part of NYC Goes Orange, a week-long fundraising campaign by the Food Bank for New York City – thus the orange, the color of hunger awareness.
Bronfman will most likely not wear orange for the GSO’s black-tie “Century Celebration Gala” on September 13. The concert, which begins at 7 P.M., will be the first chance for symphony patrons to experience the $19-million acoustic and amenity improvements to the historic Aycock Auditorium at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and hear a professional orchestra, pianist and vocalist in the newly-renovated hall.
In collaborating with Bronfman for this concert, the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra and its Music Director Dmitry Sitkovetsky will join the ranks of some of the world’s greatest orchestras and conductors who have performed with Bronfman, including the Vienna Philharmonic with Valery Gergiev, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra with Mariss Jansons, and the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra with James Levine. Sitkovetsky, also known to Greensboro audiences as “Dima,” shares both a birthplace and musical sensibilities with his friend “Fima.”
Dima and Fima’s parents were both born in Baku, Azerbaijan, and knew each other. Fima’s parents contacted Dima’s mother, Bella Davidovich, at the Moscow Conservatory when he was a young boy to see if she would listen to him. Both artists left Russia in th 1970’s. Fima first to Israel and then to New York City to study at Julliard. Dima arrived in New York almost at the same time direct from Russia and also entered Julliard, where the two met. In 1977, they performed chamber music together at Dima’s debut USA Arts Festival at Spoleto in Charleston, SC. Although they are old friends and Fima lives across the street from Dima’s mother in NYC, the Spoleto Festival is their only prior performance together. Both Fima and Dima are looking forward to their first collaboration as conductor and soloist in the performance of Tchaikovsky’s beloved first piano concerto for a Greensboro audience.
The concert will also feature familiar operatic selections by Donizetti, Verdi and Tchaikovsky, including Verdi’s dramatic overture to La Forza del Destino and selections to be performed by Metropolitan Opera competition winner tenor Rene Barbera. Up-and-coming young Barbera was a finalist in the 2008 Metropolitan Opera’s National Council Auditions, garnering the praise of critics and walking away with a $15,000 prize. Barbera, a native of Texas, has connections to North Carolina, having been a winner in UNCG’s 2007 Charles A. Lynam vocal competition and currently completing his final undergraduate year at the North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem.
Aycock Auditorium is the oldest continuous performance facility in Greensboro, according to Bruce Michaels, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. Generations of students, faculty, and staff have shared with the greater Greensboro community the thrill of encountering some of the greatest names in the performing arts within the warm embrace of this historic building.
Tickets are now on sale for the black-tie “Century Celebration Gala” on Saturday, September 13, 2008
Ticket Prices:
Gala: $110 include premium concert tickets, GALA cocktail reception with hor d’oeuvres, champagne etc. and valet parking
Concerts Tickets with GALA are $50, $30 and $10 student tickets (limited)
WHEN YOU GO:
Who:
“Dima” conducts the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra in concert with Yefim Bronfman, pianist and Rene Barbera, tenor
What:
Tchaikvosky: Piano Concerto No.1, Donizetti
When:
Saturday, September 13 at 7:00 PM
Where:
UNCG’s Aycock Auditorium, 408 Tate Street, Greensboro, NC 27412
How to get tickets:
Call the Box Office at 336-335-5456 x 223, visit the Coliseum Box office, UNCG Box office or order online at www.ticketmaster.com or call Ticketmaster at 852-1100