(NEWARK, NJ) -- Daniil Trifonov, Musical America’s 2019 Artist of the Year, performs Schumann’s Piano Concerto in his NJSO debut, January 25–27, in the final program of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra’s 2019 Winter Festival, “Music Speaks.” Music Director Xian Zhang conducts the program, which also features Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra and the NJSO premiere of Scriabin’s Poem of Ecstasy. Performances take place on January 25 at 8:00pm at NJPAC in Newark, January 26 at 8:00pm at State Theatre New Jersey in New Brunswick and January 27 at 3:00pm at Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown.
Zhang says: “I worked with Daniil in Italy, and the phenomenal sound he produced at the piano blew me away. I’m very happy that he is joining the NJSO to play the Schumann concerto.”
NJSO Accent events include a pre-concert performance by dancer Maurice Chestnut and poet Kurtis Lamkin on January 25 and a prelude performance by the Anne Lieberson Ensemble from the NJSO Youth Orchestras on January 26. More information on NJSO Accent events is available at njsymphony.org/accents.
The Orchestra’s signature artistic event, the Winter Festival takes place across three weekends, January 10–27, in six New Jersey venues. Zhang conducts programs with music inspired by poetry, stories and myths. The festival’s first weekend features pianist Emanuel Ax in Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 22 (January 10–13); the second features soprano Dawn Upshaw in Maria Schneider’s Winter Morning Walks and Mahler’s Fourth Symphony (January 18–20).
Concert tickets start at $20 and are available for purchase at njsymphony.org or 1.800.ALLEGRO (255.3476).
For more information on the Winter Festival and related events, visit njsymphony.org/winterfestival.
WINTER FESTIVAL WEEK III: Daniil Trifonov & Xian Zhang
Fri, Jan 25, at 8 pm | NJPAC in Newark
Sat, Jan 26, at 8 pm | State Theatre New Jersey in New Brunswick
Sun, Jan 27, at 3 pm | Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown
Xian Zhang, conductor
Daniil Trifonov, piano
New Jersey Symphony Orchestra
STRAUSS Also sprach Zarathustra
SCHUMANN Piano Concerto
SCRIABIN Poem of Ecstasy (NJSO Premiere)
NJSO ACCENTS
Poetry in Motion – Fri, Jan 25, at 7 pm
A fusion of movement, music and spoken word: dancer Maurice Chestnut and poet Kurtis Lamkin entertain in the lobby before the performance.
Prelude Performance – Sat, Jan 26, at 7:15 pm
Come early and hear the extraordinary Anne Lieberson Ensemble from the NJSO Youth Orchestras in a special performance in the Heldrich Room.
Additional concert information and artist bios are available at njsymphony.org/trifonov.
2019 NJSO Winter Festival: ‘Music Speaks’
A trio of renowned guest artists with distinct musical voices—pianists Emanuel Ax and Daniil Trifonov and soprano Dawn Upshaw—headline the NJSO’s Winter Festival, “Music Speaks,” in January 2019. The Orchestra’s signature artistic event takes place across three weekends, January 10–27, in six New Jersey venues.
Week I: Emanuel Ax & Xian Zhang - Jan 10–13 in Englewood, Newark and New Brunswick
Week II: Dawn Upshaw & Xian Zhang - Jan 18–20 in Princeton, Red Bank and Newark
Week III: Daniil Trifonov & Xian Zhang - Jan 25–27 in Newark, New Brunswick and Morristown
Named “a vital, artistically significant musical organization” by The Wall Street Journal, the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra embodies that vitality through its statewide presence and critically acclaimed performances, education partnerships and unparalleled access to music and the Orchestra’s superb musicians.
Music Director Xian Zhang—a “dynamic podium presence” The New York Times has praised for her “technical abilities, musicianship and maturity”—continues her acclaimed leadership of the NJSO. The Orchestra presents classical, pops and family programs, as well as outdoor summer concerts and special events. Embracing its legacy as a statewide orchestra, the NJSO is the resident orchestra of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark and regularly performs at State Theatre New Jersey in New Brunswick, Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, Richardson Auditorium in Princeton, Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown and bergenPAC in Englewood. Partnerships with New Jersey arts organizations, universities and civic organizations remain a key element of the Orchestra’s statewide identity.
In addition to its lauded artistic programming, the NJSO presents a suite of education and community engagement programs that promote meaningful, lifelong engagement with live music. Programs include school-time Concerts for Young People; NJSO Youth Orchestras family of student ensembles, led by José Luis Domínguez; and El Sistema-inspired NJSO CHAMPS (Character, Achievement and Music Project). NJSO musicians annually perform original chamber music programs at community events in a variety of settings statewide through the NJSO Community Partners program.
Photo by Dario Acosta
