Bard College Conservatory of Music Presents Gustav Mahler’s Second Symphony, “Resurrection” on October 23 and 24

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, NY—The Bard College Conservatory of Music presents the Bard Conservatory Orchestra with members of The Orchestra Now (TŌN) performing Gustav Mahler’s Second Symphony, “Resurrection” conducted by music director Leon Botstein. The concert features soloists Sungyeun Kim (soprano) and Joanne Evans (mezzo) from the Bard Conservatory Graduate Vocal Arts Program, as well as vocalists from Bard College Chamber Singers, Bard Festival Chorale, and Bard Conservatory Graduate Vocal Arts Program, led by choral director James Bagwell. The performances will be held on Saturday, October 23 at 8 pm and Sunday, October 24 at 3 pm in the Fisher Center’s Sosnoff Theater. Tickets have a suggested donation of $20 for Orchestra; $15 for Parterre & Balcony; and are free for Bard community with ID and for virtual livestream. Ticket sales benefit the Conservatory scholarship fund. To purchase or reserve tickets visit fishercenter.bard.edu, call 845-758-7900 (Mon-Fri 10am-5pm), or email [email protected].

Mahler composed Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, “Resurrection” over the span of nearly seven years (1888–94) with it emerging as one of his most powerful and successful compositions. When he began writing it in 1888, at age 28, he had no idea of the overall structure or how it would end; the process of discovery—and self-discovery—that unfolded during this time pondering issues no less weighty than the meaning of life and death. The conclusion was a particular problem and the solution proved something of a revelation: a choral finale setting the “Resurrection” poem by the 18th-century German writer Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, which Mahler adapted with his own words. What became known as the “Resurrection” Symphony is one of the longest, most ambitious, and profoundly moving orchestral works ever composed. 

The Second Symphony held special place for Mahler. It was the first of his symphonies he conducted in Vienna (and also as his farewell to the city in 1907), as well as the first that he presented in Munich, New York, and Paris. Mahler told his confidant Natalie Bauer-Lechner: “Never again will I attain such depths and heights, as Ulysses only once in his life returned from Tartarus. One can create only once or twice in a lifetime works on such a great subject.”

PHOTO CAPTIONS: 
Sungyeun Lim. Photo by May B Studio.
Joanne Evans. Photo by Bertie Watson.
 
About the Soloists

Joanne Evans
Hailed as “a singer to watch” (Classical Voice America), London-born mezzo soprano Joanne Evans prides herself on her versatility in spanning various musical genres—and on her comedic timing. Joanne’s most recent engagement as Meg Page in Verdi’s Falstaff at Berkshire Opera Festival was described by Opera Wire as “bright and sparkling throughout, matched with the…soprano of Tamara Wilson”. Other professional credits include a six-month US tour with a cappella show, Gobsmacked, along with her professional acting debut, aged 22, as Charlie in the UK regional premiere of Laura Wade’s Posh. Other notable performances include that of the role of Cherubino in Saverio Mercandante’s I due Figaro at the Manhattan School of Music. Elsewhere Joanne is credited as co-writer and vocalist of the theme song for the BBC show Pitch Battle (2017), and was a finalist in the 2020 Harlem Opera Theatre Competition. www.joanne-evans.com

Sungyeun Kim 
Sungyeun Kim recently performed in the Verdi Opera Gala Concert (2020) and Korea National Opera Competition Final Concert (2019) at Seoul Arts Center. She has won several awards including the Sung-Jeong National Music Competition (1st prize), Suri National Music Competition (1st prize, KBS-KEPCO Music Competition (3rd prize), and Korea National Opera Competition (3rd prize).

About the Bard College Conservatory
The Bard College Conservatory of Music expands Bard’s spirit of innovation in arts and education. The Conservatory, which opened in 2005, offers a five-year, double-degree program at the undergraduate level and, at the graduate level, programs in vocal arts and conducting. At the graduate level the Conservatory also offers a nondegree-granting Advanced Performance Studies program and a two-year Postgraduate Collaborative Piano Fellowship. The US-China Music Institute of the Bard College Conservatory of Music, established in 2018, offers a unique degree program in Chinese instruments; and the Creative Center for Film Music, a 2021 initiative, supports the study of film scoring and composition for film. In fall 2022, two new graduate programs will be added, a Master of Music in Instrumental Performance and a Master of Arts in Chinese Music. bard.edu/conservatory

About Bard College
Founded in 1860, Bard College is a four-year, residential college of the liberal arts and sciences located 90 miles north of New York City. With the addition of the Montgomery Place estate, Bard’s campus consists of nearly 1,000 parklike acres in the Hudson River Valley. It offers bachelor of arts, bachelor of science, and bachelor of music degrees, with majors in more than 40 academic programs; graduate degrees in 11 programs; nine early colleges; and numerous dual-degree programs nationally and internationally. Building on its 161-year history as a competitive and innovative undergraduate institution, Bard College has expanded its mission as a private institution acting in the public interest across the country and around the world to meet broader student needs and increase access to liberal arts education. The undergraduate program at our main campus in upstate New York has a reputation for scholarly excellence, a focus on the arts, and civic engagement. Bard is committed to enriching culture, public life, and democratic discourse by training tomorrow’s thought leaders. For more information about Bard College, visit bard.edu.
(09/28/21)

This event was last updated on 09-28-2021

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