Tuesday evening at the Kentucky Center, the storied Israel Philharmonic Orchestra will perform a concert of romantic masterpieces as part of its latest United States tour.
Considered one of the finest orchestras in the world, the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (formerly the Palestine Symphony Orchestra) was founded in 1936 by famed Polish violinist Bronisław Huberman as an unofficial refuge for Jewish musicians fleeing the Third Reich in Europe. Attracting some of the best orchestral musicians in Europe at the time, Huberman’s efforts are estimated to have saved the lives of nearly a thousand people, the descendants and students of which are still playing in the ensemble today. Recently, Orchestra of Exiles , a fabulous and sobering documentary on the Philharmonic’s origins was released. It was written, directed and produced by Academy-award nominated Josh Aronson. (As of the posting of this article, it is streaming on Netflix and is definitely worth the watch. Check out the trailer here [4].)
Since its inaugural concert under the baton of the legendary Arturo Toscanini, the IPO has welcomed some of the greatest conductors of the twentieth century including Zubin Mehta and Leonard Bernstein both of whom served as Musical Advisors. In addition, the Philharmonic has collaborated with virtually every noteworthy soloist of the last eight decades and has toured extensively in Europe, Asia, North America and South America. Here [5] are some excerpts from one of the IPO’s recent performances.
And now the Philharmonic adds Louisville to its history. Led by Guest Principal Conductor Gianandrea Noseda, Tuesday’s concert at Whitney Hall will include performances of Fauré’s playfully introverted Pelléas et Mélisande , Ravel’s charming Mother Goose and Daphnis et Chloé Suites as well as Berlioz’s psychedelic Symphonie fantastique . Tickets start at $35 and can be purchased online here [6]. The curtain goes up at 7:30 pm.
(Photo courtesy of the IPO via www.afipo.org/ipo.)