Program Notes: The Pines & Fountains of Rome Adolphus Hailstork’s Epitaph for a Man Who Dreamed World Premiere January 17, 1980; Baltimore, Maryland (8 Minutes) Adolphus Hailstork has been a major figure in American music for more than five decades. His music fuses African, American and European traditions. Hailstork studied violin, piano, organ and voice in addition to composition. He has taught at Michigan State, Norfolk State and Old Dominion University. Hailstork’s best known works include Celebration and An American Port of Call for orchestra. Virginia-based Adolphus Hailstork recei ..read more

Courtney Lewis, Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony   On March 8 and 9, we present a program of French and American music featuring a world premiere by Courtney Bryan. Courtney was our first Mary Carr Patton Composer-in-Residence a few years ago, and we’re delighted that she’s written us a second piece, entitled “Visual Rhythms.” The piece takes its title from a painting by the African American artist Alfred Smith, in which the artist depicts musical rhythms visually. In Courtney’s work, she takes this idea full circle, starting out with the visual as inspiration for music.&n ..read more

Program Notes: Saint-Saëns’ Organ Symphony Maurice Ravel’s La valse, poème chorégraphique:   World Premiere December 12, 1920; Paris, France (12 minutes)  Maurice Ravel is usually described as a musical impressionist, meaning that his work focuses on mood and atmosphere. He was actually more classical in his handling of melody and form. The cultures of the Far East, Africa and Spain fascinated him. La valse was a commentary on the political and moral climate of early 1920s Vienna. The work is a tour de force for orchestra. La valse began as a ballet score for the Russian impre ..read more

Courtney Lewis, Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony    On March 8 and 9, we present a program of French and American music featuring a world premiere by Courtney Bryan. Courtney was our first Mary Carr Patton Composer-in-Residence a few years ago, and we’re delighted that she’s written us a second piece, entitled “Visual Rhythms.” The piece takes its title from a painting by the African American artist Alfred Smith, in which the artist depicts musical rhythms visually. In Courtney’s work, she takes this idea full circle, starting out with the visual as inspiration for mu ..read more

What is your favorite part of the programming in these performances of Anna Clyne’s Restless Oceans, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Vocalise and his Second Symphony? “I definitely love all three pieces as well as the idea behind the program itself. One of the most lyrical symphonies goes after the most lyrical song ever written without words – Vocalise. The speechless voice of this masterpiece transforms into the orchestral timbres. And in Anna Clyne’s Restless Oceans, the orchestra itself literally finds its voice singing the melody along with playing it on the instruments.” How would you describe you ..read more

Program Notes: Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony Anna Clyne’s Restless Oceans: World Premiere January 22, 2019; Davos, Switzerland (3 minutes) London-born Anna Clyne is based in New York but has an international career. Her Prince of Clouds and Night Ferry were nominated for GRAMMY® Awards in 2015. Clyne collaborates regularly with choreographers, filmmakers and visual artists. Well-versed in technology, Clyne uses computer-controlled processes in some works. Restless Oceans was premiered at the Davos World Economic Forum in 2019. Clyne is much in demand internationally. Her works are the most ..read more

Marianne Rice, Vice President/Music Education & DEI Initiatives  The Jacksonville Symphony’s mission is to enrich the human spirit through music, and as we celebrate Black History Month, it is important to know that Black History is American History. The Jacksonville Symphony continues to celebrate the American story through music by presenting diverse programming that is culturally and demographically representative of the community that we serve. Music, the universal language, tells the human story of joy, sorrow, pain and love through the composer’s eyes.   In 2020, the ..read more

Program Notes: Mozart, Vivaldi & Handel George Frideric Handel’s Zadok the Priest (Coronation Anthem No. 1): World Premiere October 11, 1727; London, England (6 minutes) George Frideric Handel’s principal instrument was organ, but he also played violin and harpsichord. In the early 1700s, Handel mastered Italian opera, working in several Italian cities. Beginning in the 1730s, he focused on English language oratorios, including Messiah. Under George I, Handel had been “Composer of Musick for the Chapel Royal” for four years when the first Hanover king died in 1727. Handel then composed h ..read more

Photo from the 2022 production of La Boheme, courtesy of the Jacksonville Symphony. Courtney Lewis, Music Director of the Jacksonville Symphony      On April 12 and 14, the Jacksonville Symphony will stage our biggest production of the season, our “symphonically-staged” opera, which this year is Georges Bizet’s beloved and ever-relevant Carmen. For those of you who haven’t attended one of these operas before, Jacoby Symphony Hall is transformed into an opera house with a stage built behind the orchestra and several 30-feet screens onto which we project “sets.” It’s a ..read more

Steven B. Libman, President & CEO of the Jacksonville Symphony    Each December, the Jacksonville Symphony embarks on the most intense, and some might say exciting, part of our annual season. Within the span of three weeks, we will present 17 concerts before 21,000 patrons that celebrate the joy of the holiday season. Each of these programs creates magical, transformational moments that families will enjoy for generations, and many of our patrons return year after year. Imagine this–a young couple goes on a date to one of our holiday concerts, they subsequently marry and continue ..read more