- Performances in Miami, West Palm Beach, Gainesville, and Sarasota feature cellist Joshua Roman in Dvořak’s Cello Concerto; other works on the tour include Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition (orch. Ravel), Brahms’s Symphony No. 2, and Jessie Montgomery’s Banner
- Hometown send-off concert on Thursday, January 13 in Orchestra Hall will be webcast for free at dso.org and on Facebook as part of Live from Orchestra Hall series
- Learn more at dso.org/florida
Detroit, (October 18, 2021) – This January, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and Music Director Jader Bignamini will undertake their historic first tour together, traveling to Florida for concerts in Miami, West Palm Beach, Gainesville, and Sarasota. Acclaimed American cellist Joshua Roman joins the tour for performances of Dvořák’s Cello Concerto. The tour also highlights music by Jessie Montgomery (Banner), Brahms (Symphony No. 2), and Mussorgsky (Pictures at an Exhibition, orch. Ravel).
“Detroit is so proud to have an orchestra of this caliber, and we will be extremely happy to bring Detroit to the world,” said Bignamini, who opened his first full season at the artistic helm of the DSO on October 7. “The tour program will show the high technical level of the orchestra, and together we will be able to create musical moments of the highest quality that will make us all grow musically and as people.”
“I'm looking forward to the Florida tour not only to show other communities the incredible musicmaking the DSO is capable of under Jader, but also to spend time with my colleagues, many of whom lead busy lives outside of rehearsal and concerts,” said DSO Bass Nicholas Myers, who serves on the musicians’ Orchestra Committee and Artistic Advisory Committees. “Tours give us the chance to have experiences that forge a sense of togetherness and fellowship that no other experience provides.”
“The remarkable chemistry between Jader and our outstanding DSO musicians creates powerful performances that are deeply felt by all who hear them together,” said DSO President and CEO Anne Parsons. “Ten years of webcasts have brought the DSO and Detroit to millions of screens around the world, but there is something very special about hearing this conductor and orchestra in person. We’re excited to bring this experience to audiences in Florida, including many who have strong ties to Detroit and are long-time supporters of the orchestra.”
Following a hometown send-off concert in Orchestra Hall on Thursday, January 13, which will be webcast for free at dso.org and on Facebook as part of the orchestra’s groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series, the DSO performs four concerts in Florida:
- Sunday, January 16 at New World Center in Miami
- Monday, January 17 at Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach
- Tuesday, January 18 at Phillips Center for the Performing Arts (presented by University of Florida Arts)
- Thursday, January 20 at Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall in Sarasota (presented by Sarasota Concert Association)
In each tour city, the DSO will develop community engagement opportunities to further its mission to provide music and access to students, families, and communities. In West Palm Beach, the DSO is partnering with MorseLife Foundation to offer musical experiences to residents. Other collaborations will we announced in the future. 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 has created several personalized experiences, including pre- and post-concert dinners and receptions. For more details on these packages, visit dso.org/florida.
Tickets for the January 13 hometown send-off in Orchestra Hall are available now, starting at $15, 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.
Major support for the DSO’s Florida Tour 2022 is provided by Penny & Harold Blumenstein, Burns & Wilcox Ltd., The Clinton Family Fund, Joanne Danto & Arnold Weingarden, The William Davidson Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, PNC Bank, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Bernard & Eleanor Robertson, and Arn & Nancy Tellem.
The title sponsor of the DSO’s Classical Series is PVS Chemicals, Inc. DSO Live is presented by Ford Motor Company Fund and made possible by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Digital programming is produced from the Al Glancy Control Room.
DSO Florida Tour 2022 Program Information
Jader Bignamini, conductor
Joshua Roman, cello
HOMETOWN SEND-OFF CONCERT
PVS Classical Series
Thursday, January 13, 2022 at 7:30 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
GIOACHINO ROSSINI Overture to Guillaume Tell (William Tell) (Detroit only)
ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in B minor, Op. 104
MODEST MUSSORGSKY/ORCH. MAURICE RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition
MIAMI
Sunday, January 16, 2022 at 2 p.m.
New World Center
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Banner
ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in B minor, Op. 104
MODEST MUSSORGSKY/ORCH. MAURICE RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition
WEST PALM BEACH
Monday, January 17, 2022 at 8 p.m.
Kravis Center for the Performing Arts
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Banner
ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in B minor, Op. 104
JOHANNES BRAHMS Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73 (West Palm Beach only)
GAINESVILLE
Tuesday, January 18, 2022 at 7:30 p.m.
Phillips Center (presented by University of Florida Performing Arts)
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Banner
ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in B minor, Op. 104
MODEST MUSSORGSKY/ORCH. MAURICE RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition
SARASOTA
Thursday, January 20, 2022 at 7:30 p.m.
Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall (presented by Sarasota Concert Association)
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Banner
ANTONÍN DVOŘÁK Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in B minor, Op. 104
MODEST MUSSORGSKY/ORCH. MAURICE RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition
About Joshua Roman
Joshua Roman is a cellist, accomplished composer, and curator whose performances embrace musical styles from Bach to Radiohead. Before setting off on his unique path as a soloist, Roman was the Seattle Symphony’s principal cellist, a job he began at just 22 years of age and left only two years later. He has since become renowned for his genre-bending repertoire and wide-ranging collaborations. Roman was named a TED Senior Fellow in 2015. His live performance of the complete Six Suites for Solo Cello by J.S. Bach on TED's Facebook Page garnered 1.8 million live viewers, with millions more for his Main Stage TED Talks/Performances, including an improvisational performance with Tony Award-winner and MacArthur Genius Grant recipient Bill T. Jones and East African vocalist Somi.
A Gramophone review of his 2017 recording of Aaron Jay Kernis’s Cello Concerto (written for Roman) proclaimed that “Roman’s outstanding performance of the cello concerto is the disc’s highlight... Roman’s extraordinary performance combines the expressive control of Casals with the creative individuality and virtuoso flair of Hendrix himself.” Recent highlights include performing standard and new concertos with Detroit Symphony Orchestra (on the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series), and the Colorado, Jacksonville, Milwaukee, and San Francisco Symphonies. In addition to orchestral appearances, Roman has collaborated with the JACK, St. Lawrence, and Verona Quartets and brings the same fresh approach to chamber music projects as well as his own series, Town Music at Town Hall Seattle.
Roman’s adventurous spirit has led to collaborations with artists outside the music community, including creating “On Grace” with Tony-nominated actor Anna Deavere Smith. His compositions are inspired by sources such as the poetry of Pulitzer Prize-winner Tracy K. Smith, as well as the musicians he writes for, which have included the JACK Quartet, violinist Vadim Gluzman, and conductor David Danzmayr. Roman’s outreach endeavors have taken him to Uganda with his violin-playing siblings, where they played chamber music in schools, HIV/AIDS centers, and displacement camps.
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. He began his tenure as DSO Music Director with the launch of DSO Digital Concerts in September 2020, conducting works by Copland, Puccini, Tchaikovsky, and Saint-Georges. Bignamini’s infectious passion and artistic excellence set the tone for the season ahead, creating extraordinary music and establishing a close relationship with the orchestra.
A native of Crema, Italy, Bignamini studied at the Piacenza Music Conservatory and began his career as a clarinetist with Orchestra Sinfonica La Verdi in Milan, later serving as the group’s resident conductor. Captivated by the symphonies of greats like Mahler and Tchaikovsky, he explored their complexity and power, puzzling out the role that each instrument played in creating a larger-than-life sound. When Bignamini 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 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; Andrea Chénier at New National Theatre in Tokyo; Rossini’s Stabat Mater at Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, Italy; Rossini’s Petite messe solennelle at Teatro dell’Opera in Rome; and return engagements with Oper Frankfurt (La forza del destino) and Santa Fe Opera (La Bohème).
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. Jader Bignamini both embodies and exudes the excellence and enthusiasm that has long distinguished the DSO’s artistry.
About the DSO
The most accessible orchestra on the planet, 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. As a community-supported orchestra, generous giving by individuals and institutions at all levels drives the continued success and growth of the organization. In January 2020, Italian conductor Jader Bignamini was named the DSO’s next music director to commence with the 2020-2021 season. Celebrated conductor, arranger, and trumpeter Jeff Tyzik is the orchestra’s Principal Pops Conductor, while Oscar-nominated trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard holds the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair.
Making its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, the DSO offers a performance schedule that features Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. One of the world’s most acoustically perfect concert halls, Orchestra Hall celebrated its centennial in 2019-2020. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in eight metro area venues, as well as a robust schedule of 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, which also reaches tens of thousands of children with the Classroom Edition expansion. With growing attendance and unwavering philanthropic support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to embrace and inspire individuals, families, and communities through unsurpassed musical experiences.