(ANNANDALE-on-HUDSON, N.Y.) – Members of the American Symphony Orchestra, Bard College Conservatory Orchestra, Bard Festival Chorale, Bard Chamber Singers, Bard Graduate Vocal Arts Program, and Longy Chorale will perform Joseph Haydn’s oratorio “The Creation” in the Fisher Center at Bard College on Friday, March 6, and Saturday, March 7, at 8 p.m. There will be a preconcert talk at 7pm by James Bagwell, chorus master.
The oratorio will be conducted by Leon Botstein, music director of the American Symphony Orchestra. Soloists for the performance are sopranos Sophia Burgos ’16, Helen Zhibing Huang ’15, Ju Hye Kim ’16, Laura Soto-Bayomi ’15, and Sarah Tuttle ’15; tenors Corey Hart ’16 and Matt Slipp ’15; Michael Hofmann ’15, baritone; Andrew Munn ’16, bass; and Jeremy Hirsch ’15, bass-baritone.
Tickets are $25–$40 and can be ordered online at Fisher Center at Bard College or by calling the box office at 845-758-7900.
Leon Botstein is now in his 23rd year as Music Director and Principal Conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra. He has been hailed for his visionary zeal, often creating concert programs that give audiences a once-in-a-lifetime chance to hear live performances of works that are ignored in the standard repertory, and inviting music lovers to listen in their own way to create a personal experience. At the same time he brings his distinctive style to core repertory works. He is also co-artistic director of Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival, which take place at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College, where he has been president since 1975. He is also Conductor Laureate of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, where he served as Music Director from 2003–2011.
James Bagwell maintains an active international schedule as a conductor of choral, operatic, and orchestral music. In 2009 he was appointed music director of the Collegiate Chorale and principal guest conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra, leading them in concerts at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. Since 2003, he has been director of choruses for the Bard Music Festival, conducting and preparing choral works during the summer festival at the Fisher Center. He has taught since 2000 at Bard College, where he is director of the Music Program and co-director of the Graduate Conducting Program.