Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

WHO: Diane Walsh with the Austin Symphony Orchestra
WHEN: May 26 & 27, 2006 - 8:00 p.m.
WHERE: Bass Concert Hall
TICKETS: $19 - $42
CONTACT: Don Hill, Director of Public Relations - 476-6064 x 213

AUSTIN SYMPHONY CLOSES SEASON WITH HEROIC WORKS, CONCERTMASTER DEBUT

Season Sponsor: JPMorganChase
Concert Sponsor: ConocoPhillips
Media Sponsors: Time Warner Cable/News 8 Austin, Austin American-Statesman and KVET 98.1 FM

"She's an artist for the next millenium" - Times-Union, Albany, NY

Austin audiences will continue to “Experience the Excellence” of the Austin Symphony’s 95th concert season on May 26 & 27 when Maestro Peter Bay and the ASO close their Classical Concert season with an evening of heroic works. Pianist Diane Walsh joins the ASO for a night featuring works by Beethoven, Bartók and Strauss. ConocoPhillips proudly sponsors this concert.

PROGRAM
Beethoven - Egmont Overture, Op. 84
Bartok - Piano Concerto No. 3
R. Strauss - Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40

Maestro Bay begins the evening with Beethoven’s Egmont Overture. The performance of this overture continues the ASO’s preview of the two-year Beethoven festival featuring symphonies, concertos and overtures to be performed by the Austin Symphony beginning next season, culminating in the ASO’s inaugural season at the new Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long Center for the Performing Arts in Fall 2008.

The evening continues when guest soloist Diane Walsh takes center stage. Ms. Walsh has given solo recitals and performed concertos worldwide. Her many awards over a 35-year career include the top prizes at the Munich International Piano Competition and the Salzburg International Mozart Competition. She was also a finalist in the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and won that competition’s chamber music prize. She is in demand at festivals around the world, including Bard, Marlboro, Santa Fe and the Chopin Festival in Marienbad. In recent seasons, she has appeared three times on the Great Performers Series at Lincoln Center, playing works by Bach, Tchaikovsky, Cage and Schoenberg. She appears with the ASO to perform the Third Piano Concerto of Béla Bartók.

After a brief intermission, Maestro Bay conducts the Richard Strauss tone poem, Ein Heldenleben (A Hero’s Life), featuring the solo debut of ASO Concertmaster Jessica Mathaes. Thought to be autobiographical, Heldenleben follows the story of The Hero and his battles with adversaries (critics?), his courtship of his Beloved (pictured by the solo violin), his battlefield, works of peace and release from the world. Ms. Mathaes is formally introduced to Austin audiences, having joined the Austin Symphony as concertmaster in September 2005.

Concertgoers can enjoy “Concert Conversations” with Bob Buckalew at 7:10 p.m. in the concert hall. These discussions provide an in-depth look at the composers and works being performed, including commentary on the social climate in which they were composed.

Performances for Diane Walsh with the Austin Symphony are May 26 & 27, 8:00 p.m. at Bass Concert Hall. Tickets range from $19 to $42. Student rush tickets are also available 20 minutes prior to performance for $5 cash and current student ID. Charge tickets online at www.austinsymphony.org where you will find interactive seating maps, price options and a wealth of concert information. Tickets are also available at the Austin Symphony Box Office, 11th and Red River or call 476-6064 or 1-888-4-MAESTRO (toll-free).