It’s all about love on Saturday, Feb. 11 as the Carmel Symphony Orchestra (CSO) under Artistic Director Janna Hymes is joined by guest artists the Harlem Quartet for a lush pre-Valentine’s Day performance at the Palladium at the Center for the Performing Arts.
The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Palladium, 1 Carter Green, Carmel. Tickets start at just $25 and are available at the Palladium Fifth Third Bank Box Office, by calling (317) 843-3800, or online at TheCenterPresents.org.
“Since this performance is scheduled just before the most romantic day of the year, we’re presenting a program filled with some of the world’s most romantic music,” Hymes said. “From the classics of Wagner and Tchaikovsky to more contemporary works such as the dance segment from Bridgerton, this concert will be a treat for people who truly love glorious, passionate music of all styles. It’s the ideal Valentine’s celebration – a perfect date night!”
The Harlem Quartet, featuring Carmel’s own Felix Umansky on cello, will join the CSO on the Randall Craig Fleischer arrangement of Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story. This selection holds special meaning for Hymes, who studied under Bernstein while learning the fine art of conducting an orchestra.
“It brings back wonderful memories of the maestro for me,” she said, “and of course the Feb. 11 performance will be even more special since we‘ll be featuring Carmel’s very own Felix Umansky of the Harlem Quartet on this particular piece.”
Harlem Quartet has been praised for its “panache” in The New York Times and hailed in the Cincinnati Enquirer for “bringing a new attitude to classical music, one that is fresh, bracing and intelligent.” It has also won plaudits from such veteran musicians as Jazz at Lincoln Center woodwind virtuoso Ted Nash, who declared in a 2018 Playbill article, “Harlem Quartet is one of the greatest string quartets I have ever heard. They can play anything.” Since its public debut at Carnegie Hall in 2006, the ensemble has thrilled audiences throughout the U.S. and the world.
The quartet’s mission is to advance diversity in classical music, engaging young and new audiences through the discovery and presentation of varied repertoire that includes works by composers of color. Harlem Quartet collaborated with jazz pianist Chick Corea in a Grammy-winning Hot House album that included Corea’s “Mozart Goes Dancing,” which won a separate Grammy as Best Instrumental Composition.
Harlem Quartet’s latest album, the July 2020 release Cross Pollination, features works by Debussy, William Bolcom, Dizzy Gillespie, and Guido López-Gavilán.
Other selections included on the CSO’s Feb. 11 program are:
- Wagner: Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde
- Langford: Dance Segment from Bridgerton
- Mascagni: Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana
- Khachaturian: Adagio of Spartacus & Phrygia from Spartacus Suite No. 2
- Massenet: Thais Meditation
- Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
CSO, currently in the midst of its 47th season, is a resident company of the Palladium at the Center for the Performing Arts located in Carmel’s City Center district. An abundance of free parking in garages, lots, and curbside is available within easy walking distance of the Palladium. There also are numerous restaurants in the area for pre- or post-concert dining. Additional information about the Feb. 11 concert and a preview of the remainder of performances during CSO’s current season can be found at CarmelSymphony.org.
The 2022-23 Carmel Symphony Orchestra season is supported by the City of Carmel, the Center for the Performing Arts, the Palladium, and Pedcor.