The Philadelphia Orchestra opens 2005-06 season  

Opening Night Gala and video broadcast on Broad Street kick off new season Wednesday, September 21

Pianist and Philadelphia native André Watts performs on all-Beethoven concert

(Philadelphia, August 25, 2005)

The Philadelphia Orchestra opens its 2005-06 season on Wednesday, September 21, with an Opening Night Gala at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts and a broadcast of the concert for the public outside the Kimmel Center on Broad Street. Music Director Christoph Eschenbach conducts the Orchestra in the Opening Night Concert, the first concert of the Orchestra’s 106th season, joined by Philadelphia’s own, pianist André Watts. The concert begins at 8:30 p.m. and will be performed with no intermission.

Gala festivities surrounding the concert, which are organized by The Philadelphia Orchestra’s Volunteer Committees, include pre-concert cocktails and dinner in the Kimmel Center for gala sponsors, benefactors, patrons, and the Orchestra’s 21st Century Society. In addition, all who are attending the concert are invited to a champagne reception at 7:45 p.m. in Commonwealth Plaza at the Kimmel Center preceding the concert.

Opening Night kicks off The Philadelphia Orchestra’s season-long focus on the music of Beethoven paired with contemporary works. The Opening Night program begins with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 1, features Philadelphia native André Watts performing the Piano Concerto No. 5 (“Emperor”), and concludes with the Leonore Overture No. 3. Continuing a tradition begun two years ago, the Opening Night Concert will be broadcast on a giant video screen on Broad Street across from the Kimmel Center, enabling a wider public to share in the concert experience. The video broadcast continues a practice that Christoph Eschenbach implemented at the start of his tenure as one facet of his mission to “raise the invisible curtain” and bring Orchestra and audience closer together.

Pianist André Watts made his Philadelphia Orchestra debut in 1957 as a 10-year-old winner of the Orchestra’s Children’s Student Competition and four years later he won the Junior Student Competition. He burst upon the national music scene at the age of 16, when Leonard Bernstein chose him to make his debut with the New York Philharmonic in a Young People’s Concert, broadcast nationwide on CBS-TV. Only two weeks later, Bernstein asked him to substitute at the last minute for the ailing Glenn Gould in performances of Liszt’s E-flat Concerto, again with the New York Philharmonic. Today Mr. Watts’s performances with the world’s great orchestras and his sold-out recitals take him to every corner of the globe.

A prolific recording artist, Mr. Watts’s latest release features both Liszt concertos and MacDowell’s Concerto No. 2, on the Telarc label. Other releases for Telarc include Tchaikovsky’s First Concerto and Saint-Saëns’s Concerto No. 2. Additionally his discography includes The Chopin Recital and The Schubert Recital, for Angel/EMI, and he is also included in the Philips series Great Pianists of the 20th Century. In 1988 Mr. Watts was awarded the Avery Fisher Prize. In 1984 the Peabody Conservatory honored him with its Distinguished Alumni Award; in 1997 the school presented him with an Honorary Doctorate. Mr. Watts is the youngest person ever to receive an Honorary Doctorate from Yale University. He has also received honorary degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, Miami University of Ohio, Albright College, Brandeis University, Trinity College, and Juilliard.

Gala events surrounding the Opening Night Concert include a cocktail party at 5:15 p.m. for sponsors, benefactors, patrons, and members of the Orchestra’s 21st Century Society, as well as a champagne reception at 7:45 p.m. for all who are attending the Opening Night Concert. In addition, two separate dinners are being held in the Kimmel Center. Catered by Restaurant Associates, the dinners include:

• the Benefactor Dinner for Underwriters, Platinum Sponsors, and Corporate Benefactors at 6:15 p.m. in the Kimmel Center’s Perelman Theater and Rooftop Garden (individual tickets are $1,000, Corporate Benefactor tables are $10,000, and Platinum Sponsor tables are $15,000); and
• the Patron Dinner for Gold Sponsors, Corporate Patrons, Patrons, and 21st Century Society members at 6:15 p.m. on Tiers One and Two of the Kimmel Center (individual tickets are $400, Corporate Patron tables are $4,000, Gold Sponsor tables are $5,000; and tickets for members of the Orchestra’s 21st Century Society are $125).

Mrs. I. Croom Beatty V and Mrs. S. Matthews V. Hamilton, Jr., chair Opening Night 2005. The concert is generously sponsored by Bank of America, the cocktail party and benefactor dinner is generously sponsored by Marsh & McLennan Companies, and 10 Rittenhouse Square generously sponsors the champagne reception.

This year marks the 19th season for which The Philadelphia Orchestra Volunteer Committees have presented the Opening Night festivities. The Volunteer Committees were formed in 1904, four years after the Orchestra’s first concerts. The Women’s Committee, as it was originally called, was the first permanent organization of its kind in the world, and has since come to serve as a model for similar groups in the United States and abroad. The current Volunteer Committees include 10 committees: Central, Chestnut Hill, Chestnut Hill Musical Cocktails, Main Line and Delaware, Main Line Associates, New Jersey, Old York Road, Rittenhouse Square, the 21st Century Society, and West Philadelphia. Through their endeavors over the past century, thousands of members of the Volunteer Committees have given countless hours and their innumerable talents in service to The Philadelphia Orchestra and the people of the greater Philadelphia region.

One of today’s leading international conductors, Christoph Eschenbach, now in his third season as music director of The Philadelphia Orchestra, continues his creative artistic partnership with the venerable ensemble. Held in highest esteem by the world’s foremost orchestras and opera houses for his commanding presence, versatility, and consummate musicianship, Mr. Eschenbach has been acclaimed for his creative insight and dynamic energy as a conductor, a collaborator, and ardent champion of young musicians.

Highlights of his third season with the Orchestra include performance of all nine Beethoven symphonies paired with music of our time, including world premieres by Jennifer Higdon, Bright Sheng, and Daniel Kellogg; the continuation of the Orchestra’s five-season long, first-ever Mahler cycle; and the inauguration of the new mechanical pipe organ in the Orchestra’s home, Verizon Hall at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. The season concludes with a tour of the music festivals of Europe.

In addition to his work with The Philadelphia Orchestra during the 2005-06 season, Mr. Eschenbach continues as music director of the Orchestra de Paris; leads the Vienna Philharmonic at the BBC Proms, the Lucerne Festival, and the Musikverein in Vienna; and conducts concerts with the Hamburg NDR Symphony in Hamburg, Lübeck, and Bremen.

Mr. Eschenbach has made numerous recordings, as conductor, pianist, or both. His discography includes works of Adams, Berg, Berio, Berlioz, Brahms, Bruckner, Glass, Grieg, Mahler, Mendelssohn, Messiaen, Picker, Pintscher, Ravel, Rouse, Saint-Saëns, Schnittke, Schoenberg, Schumann, Strauss, and Tchaikovsky, among others.

Before turning to conducting, Mr. Eschenbach had already earned a distinguished international reputation as a concert pianist. He began winning major competitions at the age of 11, and made his United States debut in 1969 with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra. He learned the art of conducting under, among others, George Szell, who personally took him as his protégé, and with whom he worked for over three years. In addition, Herbert von Karajan was his mentor for nearly 25 years, and Mr. Eschenbach credits him as having had a tremendous influence on his development as a conductor. Mr. Eschenbach made his conducting debut in Hamburg in 1972. In 1981 he became principal guest conductor of Zürich’s Tonhalle Orchestra, and was chief conductor from 1982 to 1986. Additional posts include music director of the Houston Symphony (1988-1999); chief conductor of the Hamburg NDR Symphony Orchestra (1998-2004); music director of the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival (1999-2002); and music director of the Ravinia Festival, summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (1994-2003).

Among Christoph Eschenbach’s most recent awards are the Légion d’Honneur of France and the Officer’s Cross with Star and Ribbon of the German Order of Merit. In 1993 he received the Leonard Bernstein Award, presented to him by the Pacific Music Festival, where he served as co-artistic director from 1992 to 1998. Additional information about Mr. Eschenbach can be found at his website, www.christoph-eschenbach.com.

Founded in 1900, The Philadelphia Orchestra has distinguished itself as one of the leading orch­estras in the world through a century of acclaimed performances, historic international tours, best-selling recordings, and its unprecedented record of innovation in recording technologies and outreach. With only six music directors piloting The Philadelphia Orch­estra through its first century, the ensemble has maintained an unparalleled cohesiveness and unity in artistic leadership.

This rich tradition is carried on by Christoph Eschenbach, who became the Orchestra’s seventh music director in September 2003. His acclaimed first season in Philadelphia saw the launch of the Orchestra’s first-ever multi-year cycle of Mahler’s complete symphonies and ended with a tour of the music capitals of Europe. The 2004-05 season celebrated the works of the great masters, and included a four-week festival entitled Late Great Works featuring late works by Mozart, Strauss, Mahler, Tchaikovsky, Wagner, and Berio. In October 2004, Mr. Eschenbach and the Orchestra opened Carnegie Hall’s season with an all-Strauss program, featuring Renée Fleming and Yo-Yo Ma and broadcast on PBS’ Great Performances. The season closed with a three-week tour of Asia.

In May 2005, Mr. Eschenbach and the Orchestra announced a three-year recording partnership with Ondine Records, the Orchestra’s first recording contract in 10 years. Taken from live concerts, the first recording under the agreement is scheduled to be released in fall 2005. Other recent highlights include the launch of the public phase of a five-year, $125 million endowment campaign, entitled A Sound, A City, A Civilization, in 2003. The Orchestra’s 2002-03 season celebrated Wolfgang Sawallisch’s 10 highly acclaimed years at the Orchestra’s helm and paid tribute to his artistic achievements with the release of a Grammy-nominated three-disc set of Schumann recordings, the first recordings made in Verizon Hall at The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. In 2000, the Orchestra celebrated its 100th Anniversary, and in the following year, moved to its new home in the Kimmel Center.

The Philadelphia Orchestra annually touches the lives of more than one million music lovers worldwide through its performances (more than 300 concerts and other pre­sentations each year), publications, recordings, and broadcasts. A major winter subscription season is presented in Phila­delphia each year from September to May, in addition to education and community part­ner­ship programs. The Orchestra presents a series of concerts each year at New York’s Carnegie Hall, performing encores of some of its acclaimed concerts from Philadelphia. Its summer schedule includes a month-long outdoor season in Phila­del­phia at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts, free concerts in local neighborhoods, and a three-week residency each August at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in upstate New York.

The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts hosts the Orchestra’s home subscription concerts. The Center includes two performance spaces, the 2500-seat Verizon Hall, designed and built especially for the Orchestra, and the 650-seat Perelman Theater for chamber music concerts. Designed by architect Rafael Viñoly along with acoustician Russell Johnson of Artec Consultants Inc., the Kimmel Center provides the Orchestra with a state-of-the-art facility for concerts, recordings, and education activities. The landmark building is named in honor of Philadelphia businessman and philanthropist Sidney Kimmel, who gave the largest individual gift toward its construction. Kimmel has served on the Board of Directors of The Philadelphia Orchestra since 1995.

The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts (KCPA) and the historic Academy of Music (where the Orchestra performed for 101 seasons) are operated to­gether as a single cultural facility by Kimmel Center, Inc. (KCI). A variety of Philadelphia’s other performing arts groups serve as resident companies for the two buildings. KCI owns, manages, supports, and maintains the KCPA. Kimmel Center, Inc., also manages the Academy of Music, owned by The Philadelphia Orchestra Association since 1957, and where the Orchestra continues to present the highly anticipated annual Academy Anniversary Concert and Ball.

Opening Night 2005 - Schedule of Events

September 21, 2005 – The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts – Wednesday evening

5:15 p.m. Cocktail party in the Kimmel Center for all Gala attendees

6:15 p.m. Benefactor Dinner in Perelman Theater and the Rooftop Garden
6:15 p.m. Patron Dinner on Tier One and Tier Two of the Kimmel Center

7:45 p.m. Champagne reception in the Kimmel Center for all Opening Night Concert ticketholders

8:30 p.m. 2005-06 Season Opening Night Concert – Verizon Hall

Live Concert Broadcast – Broad Street, across from the Kimmel Center

The Philadelphia Orchestra
Christoph Eschenbach,conductor
André Watts,piano

Beethoven Symphony No. 1
Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 (“Emperor”)
Beethoven Leonore Overture No. 3

Opening Night Concert Sponsored by Bank of America

Members of The Philadelphia Orchestra are graciously donating their services for this concert. Proceeds benefit the musicians’ Pension Fund.

Concert-only tickets, including preconcert Champagne Reception: $22-$132, 215.893.1999 or www.philorch.org.

For information on the Opening Night Gala, call 215.893.1956.