Dallas Symphony & Members of Met Opera Orchestra Unite in Dallas for Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 Led by Fabio Luisi (April 30 – May 1)

April 12, 2021

Fabio Luisi and Dallas Symphony (photo: Sylvia Elzafon)

Today the Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) and Music Director Fabio Luisi announce a joint concert with members of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. This unique collaborative event will benefit the Met Orchestra Musicians' Fund and the DFW Musicians COVID-19 Relief Fund. It will be the first time many of the non-DSO musicians will have had the opportunity to perform for a live audience since the COVID-19 shutdown in March 2020. This full-sized orchestra will perform Mahler's Symphony No. 1 at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center with Fabio Luisi conducting.

The Dallas Symphony has put a number of protocols in place to ensure the safety and health of the musicians and attendees during the 2020/21 season. All audience members must be masked, and seats will be assigned with social distancing in place. Tickets will be timed for entry, and the concert will have no intermission. For a full list of protocols, visit dallassymphony.org.

Looking forward to this one-of-a-kind event, Luisi commented:

'During my time with the Metropolitan Opera, I became close to many of the members of the orchestra. It is devastating that these incredible musicians have not had an opportunity to perform together in over a year. Sadly, this is the case for many musicians around the country, and many have been affected so greatly by this reduction of income. I urged the DSO to find a way to gather musicians together to make music in a way we have not heard in more than a year as a symbol of solidarity.'

Kim Noltemy, President & CEO of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, agreed:

'As one of the few orchestras fortunate to be able to perform all season to live audiences, we are painfully aware that many of our colleagues around the country have not been able to play concerts since last March. Fabio encouraged us to think of something here in Dallas to show our support for our colleagues who have been unable to play to live audiences. These live performances, combining members of our DSO with the Met Orchestra under his direction, will be special events for our audiences as well as a way to show support for our colleagues.'

Brad Gemeinhardt, Met Orchestra Committee Chair, added:

'We cannot overstate the impact this unprecedented collaboration will have on our members, both financially and artistically, after this long year of cultural famine. We are profoundly grateful to the generous donors who are making these concerts possible, to the Board of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, to Maestro Luisi, to the musicians of the DSO and to the entire Dallas music community. Thank you for so warmly welcoming us into your home.'

Finally, Alexander Kerr, Concertmaster of the DSO, spoke for all the members of the orchestra:

'The members of the DSO are thrilled to welcome our colleagues from New York. It will be an inspiring and emotional event for all of us; especially performing such a monumental work. We are honored and blessed to be a part of an organization that has been able to perform for live audiences throughout this difficult time and we are thankful to be able to share the experience with our friends, the wonderful musicians of the Met.'

In addition to their performance, the musicians will engage with members of the DSO's Young Strings through masterclasses and workshops. Young Strings is the DSO's signature education program that develops the talents of exceptional and underrepresented string players in the city of Dallas by providing its students with the skills, lessons, opportunities, and resources essential for success both in college and careers in music.

This special benefit event is presented by Capital One and made possible by The Marcella Fund, as well as travel partners Dallas Marriott Downtown and Southwest Airlines. The DSO is grateful to Mercedes T. Bass, Fabio Luisi, Joanne Bober, and Sarah Titus & Tilda Morris for their support of this event.

In the words of Mercedes T. Bass, Chairman of the Board of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and member of the Metropolitan Opera Board of Directors:

'I have enjoyed performances with Fabio Luisi for years, first in New York and now in Dallas. This is such a brilliant idea and a wonderful way to show how musicians around the world are like a family, supportive of and helpful to their colleagues.'

Tickets are priced at $30, $50 and $90, and will go on sale on Friday, April 16 at dallassymphony.org. A video of the performance will be made available on the DSO's website for free on-demand streaming in early May.

About the Dallas Symphony Orchestra

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra, under the leadership of Music Director Fabio Luisi, presents world-class orchestral music at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, one of the world's top-rated concert halls. As the largest performing arts organization in the Southwest, the DSO is committed to inspiring the broadest possible audience with distinctive classical programs, inventive pops concerts and innovative multi-media presentations. In fulfilling its commitment to the community, the orchestra reaches more than 243,000 adults and children annually through performances, educational programs and community outreach initiatives. The DSO's involvement with the City of Dallas and the surrounding region includes an award-winning multi-faceted educational program, community projects, popular parks concerts and youth programming.

During the pandemic, the Dallas Symphony was the first major U.S. orchestra to present socially distanced concerts with live audiences during the 2020/21 season. Furthermore, the orchestra has offered more than 200 outdoor chamber concerts in neighborhoods throughout the Metroplex since the summer. The DSO continued online music lessons to more than 200 students as part of its Young Strings and Young Musicians programs and increased its online dissemination of concerts through a newly designed website and on social media.

The DSO has a tradition dating back to 1900 and is a cornerstone of the unique 118-acre Arts District in downtown Dallas that is home to multiple performing arts venues, museums and parks - the largest district of its kind in the nation. The DSO is supported, in part, by funds from the Office of Arts & Culture, City of Dallas.

High-resolution photos can be downloaded here.

www.dallassymphony.org
facebook.com/DallasSymphony
twitter.com/DallasSymphony
instagram.com/dallassymphony

Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Members of Metropolitan Opera Orchestra
Fabio Luisi, conductor
Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas, TX
April 30 & May 1 at 7:30pm

MAHLER: Symphony No. 1

Streaming in early May

# # #

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Denise McGovern, Vice President of Communications, Dallas Symphony Orchestra
[email protected]; (214) 718-7094

Louise Barder, 21C Media Group
[email protected]

Glenn Petry, 21C Media Group
[email protected]; (212) 625-2038

© 21C Media Group, April 2021

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.