Orchestra to play at Auditorium

After a now-resolved strike and resulting hiatus due to impending salary cuts, the Cleveland Orchestra will perform at 8 p.m. Tuesday at the IU Auditorium.

The concert will be a culmination of a three-day residency the Cleveland Orchestra has with the IU Jacobs School of Music.

The Jacobs School of Music and the Cleveland Orchestra have a long history together, said Ana Papakhian, director of communications for the Cleveland Orchestra.

Many of the members of the orchestra are IU alumni.

However, the biggest tie between the Cleveland Orchestra and IU is Josef Gingold.

Gingold was a music teacher at the School of Music for more than 30 years.
Before coming to IU, Gingold was the concertmaster for the Cleveland Orchestra.

“We have in three days time 30 events of the orchestra interacting with classes and students,” Papakhian said.

During the residency, Cleveland Orchestra music director Franz Welser-Möst will lead the IU Philharmonic.

He will also instruct in a coaching session as well as in an open rehearsal for student conductors.

The residency will also include principal musicians of the orchestra teaching classes to IU students.

 Other events include a visit to Fairview Elementary School and an arts administration seminar, among other activities.

“We have put together one of the most prolific education residencies the Cleveland Orchestra has ever performed,” IU Auditorium Director Doug Booher said.

The centerpiece of the residency is the concert.

The program includes the Overture to Wagner’s “Tannhäuser”, Richard Strauss’s “Ein Heldenleben” (“A Hero’s Life”) and Bartók’s “Piano Concerto No. 2” with pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard as soloist.

“There is a lot of excitement in the concert program,” Papakhian said. “You can hear the soloists performing with the orchestra.”

Bringing musicians of the orchestra’s caliber to IU is one of the things the Auditorium was committed to doing this year, Booher said.

“One of the areas we wanted to focus on was soloists,” Booher said. “As we continue to show the classical audience to Bloomington, we decided the next important step is to bring high-caliber ensembles.”

Events manager Maria Talbert said the Auditorium hasn’t had an orchestra of this class for a few years.

“Because of the world-class distinctions and of the magnificence of the orchestra, the IU Auditorium is very excited to be a part of this residency and re-connection between IU and the Cleveland Orchestra,”