From a celebration of swing, to holiday favorites and the music of George Gershwin, Seattle Symphony principal Pops conductor Marvin Hamlisch unveiled preliminary plans for the 2008—2009 Pops season — part of the symphony’s tenth anniversary season at Benaroya Hall.
Hamlisch will begin his recently announced two-year appointment as principal Pops conductor at the start of the new Pops season in September, and will lead the orchestra in three of the five Pops programs next season.
Hamlisch will open the 2008—2009 Pops season Sept. 18—21 celebrating swing-era favorites in a program called “Swingin’ With Marvin,” featuring Grammy-winning guest vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, along with 14-year-old Canadian singing sensation Nikki Yanofsky and the premier touring jazz orchestra of the United States Army, the Jazz Ambassadors. The program celebrates the 50th anniversary of a historic concert at Carnegie Hall that featured music popularized by Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman and works by Duke Ellington and Irving Berlin.
“A Marvin Hamlisch Christmas,” Dec. 4-7, will ring in the holidays with seasonal favorite. The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra will come to Benaroya Hall Jan. 22-25, with music that will transport listeners to The Big Easy. Next, Doc Severinsen will bring his all-new show, El Ritmo De La Vita (Rhythm of Life), to Benaroya Hall Feb. 26-March 1, 2009 featuring music of the Americas with a jazz flair. Finally, from May 14-17, 2009, Hamlisch returns to close the Pops season with music from George Gershwin, including his Rhapsody in Blue, the iconic work that Gershwin himself called “a musical kaleidoscope of America.”
Pops series subscriptions are now available for renewing, as well as new, subscribers. Subscriptions, starting at $70 for all five performances, can be purchased by calling the Seattle Symphony ticket office at 206-215-4747, toll-free at 866-833-4747, or online at www.seattlesymphony.org.
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