Reporting by Alexandra Scoville | Graphic by Karen Loschiavo
Tonight at 7:30 p.m. sharp (hopefully), the Phoenix Symphony will ring in its 2015-16 season with a little something new.
With this season maestro Tito Munoz, kicking off his second year in the Valley, plans to highlight the orchestral talent on display in the United States. Half of the symphony’s classics series will feature pieces written by six young (meaning living) composers, including Philip Glass.
“This is something that is going to be a big part of my tenure with the symphony,” Munoz said.
So for example, accompanying Beethoven’s ubiquitous classic “Symphony No. 9” (think “Ode to Joy”) on opening night at Phoenix Symphony Hall will be 34-year-old Adam Schoenberg’s jazzy, upbeat “American Symphony,” composed just four years ago.
Munoz recognizes that audiences can be nervous about trading in old “war horses” such as Beethoven or Bach for modern composers. Even at a contemporary art exhibition, the public can engage with the at-times confusing art on their own terms; with performances such as modern dance or a modern orchestra, they’re more or less stuck in place for two hours.
“I think there’s lot of fear in new things like that,” Munoz said.
He plans to ease symphony-goers into the new works by bringing out and introducing the young composers, as well as continuing to pair the more modern pieces with reliable classics.
In preparation for Phoenix Symphony’s big opening night, brush up on your knowledge of the symphony’s past and present.
