Performances in Gainesville, Miami, West Palm Beach, Sarasota, and Vero Beach feature cellist Alisa Weilerstein in Elgar’s Cello Concerto; other works on the tour include Michael Abels’s Emerge, Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, “Pathétique”
February 24 and 25: Bignamini, Weilerstein, and the DSO return to Detroit to perform hometown concert following the tour; Sunday performance webcast for free on dso.org, YouTube, and Facebook as part of Live from Orchestra Hall series
Learn more at dso.org/florida-tour
Detroit, (November 16, 2023) – In February 2024, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and Music Director Jader Bignamini will undertake their historic first tour together, traveling to Florida for concerts in Gainesville, Miami, West Palm Beach, Sarasota, and Vero Beach. Acclaimed American cellist Alisa Weilerstein joins the tour for performances of Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto. Tour repertoire will also include Michael Abels’s Emerge, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, “Pathétique.”
Bignamini, now in his third season as DSO Music Director said, “Experiencing live music together creates profound connections, not only for the people in the audience, but also for the people on stage and behind the scenes. I look forward to sharing this atmosphere with the supremely talented Alisa Weilerstein, my DSO colleagues, and our audiences in Florida. We are pleased to present a program of the highest technical caliber and strengthen our bonds through these very special musical moments.”
“From performances in Orchestra Hall and our many community venues, to our global Live from Orchestra Hall webcasts, we’re always looking for new ways to perform for audiences where they are and deepen connections with the communities we serve,” said DSO President and CEO Erik Rönmark. “Hearing Jader conduct our orchestra is a remarkable experience unlike any other, and we are thrilled to share this impeccable musicmaking with fans and supporters in Florida.”
The DSO and Bignamini originally planned to tour Florida in January 2022, but those performances were postponed due to a surge in Covid-19 cases across the country.
From February 13–20, the DSO performs six concerts in Florida:
- Tuesday, February 13, 2024 - GAINESVILLE - Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (presented by University of Florida Performing Arts)
- Thursday, February 15, 2024 - MIAMI - Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts
- Saturday, February 17, 2024 - WEST PALM BEACH - Kravis Center for the Performing Arts
- Sunday, February 18, 2024 - WEST PALM BEACH - Kravis Center for the Performing Arts
- Monday, February 19, 2024 - SARASOTA - Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall (presented by Sarasota Concert Association)
- Tuesday, February 20, 2024 - VERO BEACH - Community Church of Vero Beach
On February 24 and 25, Bignamini and the DSO return to Detroit with Weilerstein to perform two welcome-back concerts on the PVS Classical Series at Orchestra Hall. The Sunday afternoon concert will be webcast for free on dso.org, YouTube, and Facebook as part of the orchestra’s groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series
During the tour, the DSO will develop community engagement opportunities to further its mission to provide music and access to students, families, and communities. This is the orchestra’s first major tour since traveling to Asia in 2017, when the DSO proudly served as an ambassador for Detroit. The DSO is excited to continue its advocacy and to highlight Jader Bignamini’s vision and artistry while deepening affinity throughout communities in Florida.
The DSO is inviting hometown supporters to join them on tour and will curate several personalized experiences, including pre- and post-concert dinners and receptions. Details will be announced as they are confirmed.
Tickets for the February 24 and 25 PVS Classical Series concerts in Orchestra Hall start at $19 and can be purchased at dso.org or by calling the Box Office at 313.576.3111, open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Presenting Sponsor of the DSO’s Florida Tour 2024 is the William Davidson Foundation. Those interested in supporting the tour may contact Cassidy Schmid, Director of Individual Giving, at cschmid@dso.org or 313.576.5115.
The title sponsor of the DSO’s PVS Classical Series is PVS Chemicals, Inc. DSO Live is presented by Ford Motor Company Fund. Technology support comes from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Digital programming is produced from the Al Glancy Control Room.
DSO Florida Tour 2024 Program Information
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Alisa Weilerstein, cello
GAINESVILLE
Tuesday, February 13, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (presented by University of Florida Performing Arts) (3201 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611)
Program to include:
MICHAEL ABELS Emerge
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade, Op. 35
MIAMI
Thursday, February 15, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County (1300 Biscayne Blvd, Miami, FL 33132)
Program to include:
MICHAEL ABELS Emerge
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade, Op. 35
WEST PALM BEACH
Saturday, February 17, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Alexander W. Dreyfoos Concert Hall within the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach, FL 33401)
Program to include:
MICHAEL ABELS Emerge
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade, Op. 35
WEST PALM BEACH
Sunday, February 18, 2024 at 2 p.m.
Alexander W. Dreyfoos Concert Hall within the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (701 Okeechobee Blvd, West Palm Beach, FL 33401)
Program to include:
MICHAEL ABELS Emerge
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74 “Pathétique”
SARASOTA
Monday, February 19, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall (presented by Sarasota Concert Association) (777 N Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, FL 34236)
Program to include:
MICHAEL ABELS Emerge
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade, Op. 35
VERO BEACH
Tuesday, February 20, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
Community Church of Vero Beach (presented by Indian River Symphonic Association) (1901 23rd St, Vero Beach, FL 32960)
Program to include:
MICHAEL ABELS Emerge
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade, Op. 35
Program and artists subject to change
Hometown Welcome-Back Concerts:
ELGAR & SCHEHERAZADE
PVS Classical Series
Saturday, February 24, 2024 at 8 p.m.
Sunday, February 25, 2024 at 3 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
FELIX MENDELSSOHN Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream
EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto in E minor
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade, Op. 35
Mendelssohn’s overture starts with four captivating chords, then wham!—the strings take off. Alisa Weilerstein, “the most outstanding cellist to emerge in America since Yo-Yo Ma,” (Classical Voice North America) plays Elgar’s concerto, written in the aftermath of World War I. Rimsky-Korsakov’s showpiece inspired by the tales of One Thousand and One Nights whirls with colossal and dazzling orchestral forces.
About Alisa Weilerstein
Alisa Weilerstein is one of the foremost cellists of our time. Known for her consummate artistry, emotional investment, and rare interpretive depth, she was recognized with a MacArthur “genius grant” Fellowship in 2011. Today her career is truly global in scope, taking her to the most prestigious international venues for solo recitals, chamber concerts, and concerto collaborations with all the preeminent conductors and orchestras worldwide. “Weilerstein is a throwback to an earlier age of classical performers: not content merely to serve as a vessel for the composer’s wishes, she inhabits a piece fully and turns it to her own ends,” marvels the The New York Times. “Weilerstein’s cello is her id. She doesn’t give the impression that making music involves will at all. She and the cello seem simply to be one and the same,” agrees the Los Angeles Times. As The Telegraph put it, “Weilerstein is truly a phenomenon.”
With her multi-season new project, “FRAGMENTS,” Weilerstein aims to rethink the concert experience and broaden the tent for classical music. A multisensory production for solo cello, the six-chapter series sees her weave together the 36 movements of Bach’s solo cello suites with 27 new commissions. After premiering the first two chapters in Toronto in early 2023, with subsequent performances at New York’s Carnegie Hall and beyond, she looks forward to touring all six chapters in seasons to come. Weilerstein recently premiered Joan Tower’s new cello concerto, A New Day, at the Colorado Music Festival. The work was co-commissioned with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra; The Cleveland Orchestra, where Weilerstein performed it last fall; and the National Symphony Orchestra, where she reprised it in May. An ardent proponent of contemporary music, she has also premiered and championed important new works by composers including Pascal Dusapin, Osvaldo Golijov, and Matthias Pintscher. Already an authority on Bach’s music for unaccompanied cello, in spring 2020 Weilerstein released a best-selling recording of his solo suites on the Pentatone label, streamed them in her innovative #36DaysOfBach project, and deconstructed his beloved G-major prelude in a Vox video, viewed more than two million times. Her discography also includes chart-topping albums and the winner of BBC Music’s “Recording of the Year” award, while other career milestones include a performance at the White House for President and Mrs. Obama.
Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at nine years old, Weilerstein is a staunch advocate for the T1D community. She lives with her husband, Venezuelan conductor Rafael Payare, and their two young children.
About Jader Bignamini
Jader Bignamini was introduced as the 18th music director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in January 2020, commencing with the 2020–2021 season. His infectious passion and artistic excellence set the tone for the seasons ahead, creating extraordinary music and establishing a close relationship with the orchestra. A jazz aficionado, he has immersed himself in Detroit’s rich jazz culture and the influences of American music.
A native of Crema, Italy, Bignamini studied at the Piacenza Music Conservatory and began his career as a musician (clarinet) with Orchestra Sinfonica La Verdi in Milan, later serving as the group’s resident conductor. Captivated by the operatic arias of legends like Mahler and Tchaikovsky, Bignamini explored their complexity and power, puzzling out the role that each instrument played in creating a larger-than-life sound. When he conducted his first professional concert at the age of 28, it didn’t feel like a departure, but an arrival.
In the years since, Bignamini has conducted some of the world’s most acclaimed orchestras and opera companies in venues across the globe including working with Riccardo Chailly on concerts of Mahler’s Eighth Symphony in 2013 and his concert debut at La Scala in 2015 for the opening season of La Verdi Orchestra. Recent highlights include debuts with Opera de Paris conducting La Forza del Destino and with Deutsche Opera Berlin conducting Simon Boccanegra; appearances with the Pittsburgh and Toronto symphonies; debuts with the Houston, Dallas, and Minnesota symphonies; Osaka Philharmonic and Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo; with the Metropolitan Opera, Vienna State Opera, and Dutch National Opera (Madama Butterfly); Bayerische Staatsoper (La Traviata); I Puritani in Montpellier for the Festival of Radio France; Traviata in Tokyo directed by Sofia Coppola; return engagements with Oper Frankfurt (La forza del destino) and Santa Fe Opera (La bohème); Manon Lescaut at the Bolshoi; Traviata, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot at Arena of Verona; Il Trovatore and Aida at Rome’s Teatro dell’Opera; Madama Butterfly, I Puritani, and Manon Lescaut at Teatro Massimo in Palermo; Simon Boccanegra and La Forza del Destino at the Verdi Festival in Parma; Ciro in Babilonia at Rossini Opera Festival, and La bohème, Madama Butterfly, and Elisir d’amore at La Fenice in Venice.
When Bignamini leads an orchestra in symphonic repertoire, he conducts without a score, preferring to make direct eye contact with the musicians. He conducts from the heart, forging a profound connection with his musicians that shines through both onstage and off. He both embodies and exudes the excellence and enthusiasm that has long distinguished the DSO’s artistry.
About the DSO
The acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra is known for trailblazing performances, collaborations with the world’s foremost musical artists, and a deep connection to its city. Led by Music Director Jader Bignamini since 2020, the DSO makes its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, offering a performance schedule that features the PVS Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in metro area venues, as well as eclectic multi-genre performances in its mid-size venue The Cube, constructed and curated with support from Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings. A dedication to broadcast innovation began in 1922, when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a live radio broadcast of a concert and continues today with the groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series of free webcasts.
Since its first school concerts a century ago, and particularly since the founding of the Civic Youth Ensembles in 1970, the DSO has been a national leader in bringing the benefits of music education to students, teachers, and families in Detroit and surrounding communities. The DSO remains committed to expanding its participation in the growth and well-being of Detroit through programs like its Detroit Neighborhood Initiative—cultural events co-created with community partners and residents—and Detroit Harmony, a promise to provide an instrument and instruction to any student in the city who wants to learn. With unwavering support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to impact lives through the power of unforgettable musical experiences.