Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra Welcome Special Guest Artist Jill Scott for Academy of Music 157th Anniversary Concert and Ball

Grammy® Winning Musician and Acclaimed Actor Returns Home to Philadelphia to Help Celebrate the Cultural Legacy of the Grand Old Lady of Locust Street, January 25, 2014

(Philadelphia, October 15, 2013)—The Philadelphia Orchestra today announced details of its upcoming 157th Academy of Music Anniversary Concert and Ball to be held Saturday, January 25, 2014, beginning at 5:30 PM. Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra welcome special guest artist and Philadelphia hero Jill Scott for this magnificent evening of music, dinner, and dancing in celebration of the Academy of Music, a National Historic Landmark. Three-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, New York Times best-selling poet, and critically acclaimed actress, Jill Scott began her career collaborating with musical icons the Roots, Will Smith, and Common in the late 1990s before releasing her debut record, Who is Jill Scott? Words & Sounds, Vol. 1 in 2000. The record quickly went double platinum and earned her several Grammy nominations including Best New Artist.

“I am eager to work with artists at the highest level of their genres, and Jill Scott is one who is at the absolute top,” says Yannick Nézet-Séguin. “Her many talents—as musician, poet, and actor—will give us unique avenues to explore in our collaboration and her deep connections to Philadelphia make her a perfect fit for this celebration of the Academy of Music. What a thrill to combine her magnificent voice with our Orchestra’s Philadelphia Sound and what an opportunity to showcase the best Philadelphia talent on one of our starriest nights!”

“It’s such an honor to be invited to play with The Philadelphia Orchestra, such a talented company of musicians, as they celebrate the 157th anniversary of their historic home, the Academy of Music,” said Jill Scott.

The theme for the 157th Anniversary Concert and Ball, Philadelphia’s premier annual white-tie gala, is Preserving Our Heritage, highlighting The Philadelphia Orchestra’s commitment to continuing the cultural legacy of the magnificent Academy of Music for future generations to enjoy. The celebration begins this year at 5:30 PM with a pre-concert Open House Reception at the Academy of Music, also known as the Grand Old Lady of Locust Street.” Guests will mix and mingle enjoying cocktails and sumptuous hors d’oeuvres while exploring the architectural wonders of this beloved landmark building. The evening continues with a concert in the Academy at 7:30 PM with a program featuring The Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin in his second season leading the ensemble, and special guest artist Jill Scott. The celebration continues after the concert, at the stunning Park Hyatt at the Bellevue. The elegant supper and Ball will fill the many reception rooms of the historic building, from the stylish Fountain Court to the sophisticated Grand Ballroom to the rooftop grandeur of XIX. Six of the region’s preeminent dance orchestras and bands, performing music ranging in style from classic American songbook to R&B funk, will keep attendees dancing throughout the evening.

The gala is co-chaired by Eliana Papadakis and Joseph H. Jacovini, Esq. The Concert and Ball are underwritten as of this release by Airgas, Inc.; Brian Communications/Realtime Media; Dilworth Paxson LLP; ESM Productions, Inc.; L.F. Driscoll Co., LLC; Leslie Anne Miller and Richard B. Worley; the Neubauer Family Foundation; Eliana Papadakis; PECO, an Exelon Company; PNC; PREIT, an NYSE listed company; the Joanna McNeil Trust; Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young, LLP; and Wells Fargo & Co./Abbot Downing, A Wells Fargo Business. The performance will be executive produced by Scott Mirkin and produced by Shawn Gee.

Concert and Ball Gala tickets are available online at www.philorch.org/157 or by calling the Academy of Music Restoration Fund Office at 215.893.1978.

Concert-only tickets, priced at $200 and located in the Amphitheatre level, go on sale November 1, 2013, and can be purchased by calling 215.893.1999 or by visiting www.ticketphiladelphia.org.

For additional information please call the Academy of Music Restoration Fund Office at 215.893.1978 or visit www.philorch.org/157.

History of the Academy of Music and the Anniversary Concert and Ball

The Academy of Music 157th Anniversary Concert and Ball benefits the Academy of Music Restoration Fund and The Philadelphia Orchestra. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1963, the Academy of Music was home to The Philadelphia Orchestra for more than a century, from the ensemble’s founding in 1900 to the opening of The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in 2001. The first Anniversary Concert and Ball, which took place on January 26, 1957, showcased a star-studded line-up in which Eugene Ormandy shared his podium with Danny Kaye. The historic evening’s guest performers included classical artists Marian Anderson, Hilde Gueden, Arthur Rubinstein, and Isaac Stern, and popular singer Dinah Shore.

Since 1957 numerous luminaries of the musical world have performed with The Philadelphia Orchestra as part of Academy of Music Anniversary concerts. Notable guest artists include sopranos Audra McDonald, Jessye Norman, and Kiri Te Kanawa; mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne; violinists Anne-Sophie Mutter, Itzhak Perlman, and Isaac Stern; cellist Yo-Yo Ma; pianists Evgeny Kissin and Lang Lang; as well as popular artists such as Rod Stewart, James Taylor, Billy Joel, Sting, and Paul Simon; and performers such as last year’s guest artist, Hugh Jackman.

About the Artists

Shortly after her momentous debut, Jill Scott released her eagerly awaited follow-up, Beautifully Human: Words & Sounds, Vol. 2, which was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. Around the same time, she also penned The Moments, The Minutes, The Hours, a compilation of poems that instantly became a New York Times bestseller.
 
By 2007 Scott took the entertainment industry by storm as she released her third studio album, The Real Thing: Words & Sounds, Vol. 3, and starred in Tyler Perr’s star-studded film Why Did I Get Married alongside Janet Jackson, which debuted as the number one film in the country.

Scott was then cast as the lead character in the HBO hit mini-series filmed on location in Botswana, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency. Directed by the late Academy Award-winning director Anthony Minghella, her performance was hailed by critics from the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times to Variety and the Hollywood Reporter. With Golden Globe, IPA Satellite, American Film Institute, and NAACP Image Award nominations underneath her belt, she went on to win the coveted Peabody Award for her role.
 
In 2010 Scott embarked on a popular 20-city national tour with Grammy Award-winning singer Maxwell. The duo sold out full arenas throughout the country, including Madison Square Garden in New York City and the Staples Center in Los Angeles. That same year she starred in the hit sequel Why Did I Get Married Too and the Lifetime Movie Network’s Sins of the Mother, which became the second-most watched movie in the network’s history.  

Scott recently finished her work on the Marvel/BET Networks animated miniseries Black Panther, alongside Academy Award-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou, and in 2011 released her album Light of the Sun, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hip-Hop & R&B Chart.

In 2012 Scott co-starred alongside Queen Latifah, Phylicia Rashad, and Alfre Woodard in the Lifetime TV remake of the classic movie Steel Magnolias, which drew in 6.5 million viewers and was a huge hit for the cable channel. Scott currently just wrapped her fourth feature film, the Fox Searchlight movie Baggage Claim, for which she has received critical acclaim for her role as Gail Best. 

Before stardom beckoned, Scott was a Philadelphian through and through and remains connected with the Philadelphia community. She is a graduate of Philadelphia High School for Girls, attended Temple University, and first garnered attention with her poetry readings in local clubs and galleries. She has raised more than $100,000 to support her foundation, Blues Babe, which supports minority students residing in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley who are pursuing college degrees. In addition to actively promoting the foundation at festivals, she’s worked with corporations such as Kiehls and Target in her community.  

Yannick Nézet-Séguin triumphantly opened his inaugural season as the eighth music director of The Philadelphia Orchestra in the fall of 2012. His highly collaborative style, deeply-rooted musical curiosity, and boundless enthusiasm, paired with a fresh approach to orchestral programming, have been heralded by critics and audiences alike. The New York Times has called Yannick “phenomenal,” adding that under his baton “the ensemble … has never sounded better.” In his first season he took the Orchestra to new musical heights. His second builds on that momentum with highlights that include a Philadelphia Commissions Micro-Festival, for which three leading composers have been commissioned to write solo works for three of the Orchestra’s principal players; the next installment in his multi-season focus on requiems with Fauré’s Requiem; and a unique, theatrically-staged presentation of Strauss’s revolutionary opera Salome, a first-ever co-production with Opera Philadelphia.

Yannick has established himself as a musical leader of the highest caliber and one of the most exciting talents of his generation. Since 2008 he has been music director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic and principal guest conductor of the London Philharmonic, and since 2000 artistic director and principal conductor of Montreal’s Orchestre Métropolitain. In addition he becomes the first ever mentor conductor of the Curtis Institute of Music’s conducting fellows program in the fall of 2013. He has made wildly successful appearances with the world’s most revered ensembles, and has conducted critically acclaimed performances at many of the leading opera houses. 

Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Deutsche Grammophon (DG) enjoy a long-term collaboration. Under his leadership the Orchestra returns to recording with a newly-released CD on that label of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring and Leopold Stokowski transcriptions. Yannick continues a fruitful recording relationship with the Rotterdam Philharmonic for DG, BIS, and EMI/Virgin; the London Philharmonic for the LPO label; and the Orchestre Métropolitain for ATMA Classique.

A native of Montreal, Yannick Nézet-Séguin studied at that city’s Conservatory of Music and continued lessons with renowned conductor Carlo Maria Giulini and with Joseph Flummerfelt at Westminster Choir College. Among Yannick’s honors are an appointment as Companion of the Order of Canada, one of the country’s highest civilian honors; a Royal Philharmonic Society Award; Canada’s National Arts Centre Award; the Prix Denise-Pelletier, the highest distinction for the arts in Quebec, awarded by the Quebec government; and an honorary doctorate by the University of Quebec in Montreal.

To read Yannick’s full bio, please visit www.philorch.org/conductor.

The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the preeminent orchestras in the world, renowned for its distinctive sound, desired for its keen ability to capture the hearts and imaginations of audiences, and admired for a legacy of innovation in music-making. The Orchestra is inspiring the future and transforming its rich tradition of achievement, sustaining the highest level of artistic quality, but also challenging—and exceeding—that level by creating powerful musical experiences for audiences at home and around the world.

Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin triumphantly opened his inaugural season as the eighth artistic leader of The Philadelphia Orchestra in the fall of 2012. His highly collaborative style, deeply-rooted musical curiosity, and boundless enthusiasm, paired with a fresh approach to orchestral programming, have been heralded by critics and audiences alike. The New York Times has called Nézet-Séguin “phenomenal,” adding that under his baton, “the ensemble … has never sounded better.” He is embraced by the musicians of the Orchestra, audiences, and the community itself. His concerts of diverse repertoire attract sold-out houses, and he has established a regular forum for connecting with concert-goers through Post-Concert Conversations.

Under Nézet-Séguin’s leadership the Orchestra returns to recording with a newly-released CD on the Deutsche Grammophon label of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring and Leopold Stokowski transcriptions. In his inaugural season the Orchestra has also returned to the radio airwaves, with weekly Sunday afternoon broadcasts on WRTI-FM.

Philadelphia is home and the Orchestra nurtures an important relationship not only with patrons who support the main season at the Kimmel Center but also those who enjoy the Orchestra’s other area performances at the Mann Center, Penn’s Landing, and other venues. The Philadelphia Orchestra Association also continues to own the Academy of Music, a National Historic Landmark.

The Philadelphia Orchestra maintains a strong commitment to collaborations with cultural and community organizations on a regional and national level. Since Orchestra President and CEO Allison Vulgamore’s arrival in 2010 the Orchestra has reinvigorated and launched new partnerships with Opera Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania Ballet, Philadelphia Live Arts (Fringe Festival), Philadanco, the Curtis Institute of Music, the Ridge Theater Company, and stage director James Alexander, among others.

Through concerts, tours, residencies, presentations, and recordings, the Orchestra is a global ambassador for Philadelphia and for the United States. Having been the first American orchestra to perform in China, in 1973 at the request of President Nixon, today The Philadelphia Orchestra boasts a new partnership with the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing. The ensemble annually performs at Carnegie Hall while also enjoying a three-week residency in Saratoga Springs, New York, and a strong partnership with the Bravo! Vail festival.

The Philadelphia Orchestra continues its decades-long tradition of presenting learning and community engagement opportunities for listeners of all ages across the Delaware Valley. Concerts for families and schoolchildren; eZseatU, which allows full-time college students to attend an unlimited number of Orchestra concerts for a $25 annual membership fee; free Neighborhood Concerts; and PreConcert Conversations before every subscription concert are only a few examples of ways in which the Orchestra introduces orchestral music to a new generation of listeners. Musician-led initiatives, including recent highly-successful Cello and Violin Play-Ins, shine a spotlight on the Orchestra’s musicians, as they spread out from the stage into the community, and serve a key role in growing young musician talent and a love of classical music in their own dedicated roles as teachers, coaches, and mentors.   

For more information on The Philadelphia Orchestra, please visit www.philorch.org.

Academy of Music 157th Anniversary Concert

January 25, 2014, at 7:30 PM. – Saturday evening – Academy of Music

The Philadelphia Orchestra

Yannick Nézet-Séguin Conductor

Jill Scott Special Guest Artist

The musicians of The Philadelphia Orchestra are graciously donating their services for this concert.

This concert will be performed without an intermission.

Concert-only tickets, priced at $200 and located in the Amphitheatre level, go on sale November 1, 2013.

Tickets can be purchased by calling 215.893.1999 or by visiting www.ticketphiladelphia.org.

For Gala information, please call the Academy of Music Restoration Fund Office at 215.893.1978 or visit www.philorch.org/157.

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