Practical Philosophy Curtis Institute of Music, one of the world s foremost conservatoires, reaches out to audiences in the UK and Europe with landmark Curtis Symphony Orchestra tour conducted by Osmo Vänskä (20 May 2 June 2017) Curtis on Tour itinerary includes debut concerts at London s Cadogan Hall and in Finland and Poland The Curtis Symphony gave the brilliant instrumentation [of Berio s Sinfonia] all it was worth, New York Times, Carnegie Hall concert review, February 2016 The Curtis [Symphony] Orchestra was a collective marvel, Philadelphia Inquirer, review of Varèse s Amériques, April 2016 Ancient philosophers, from Socrates to Aristotle, placed high value on learning by experience. The practical process remains fully alive today in Philadelphia at the Curtis Institute of Music, vital to the conservatoire s education of world-class performers and the driving force behind its distinctive learn by doing approach. Audiences in the UK and across Europe have the chance to hear the results later this year when the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Osmo Vänskä, presents a nine-concert tour, including dates at the Helsinki Music Centre (Saturday 20 May), London s Cadogan Hall (Friday 26 May), the National Forum of Music in Wrocław (Wednesday 31 May) and at the Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music in Lusławice, southern Poland (Friday 2 June). The orchestra is also scheduled to perform in Berlin, Bremen, Dresden, Salzburg and Vienna. The initiative, presented under the care of Curtis on Tour - the Nina von Maltzahn Global Touring Initiative of the Curtis Institute of Music - ranks among the most ambitious and extensive touring projects undertaken since the school s foundation in 1924. Peter Serkin is set to join the 100-strong Curtis Symphony Orchestra as soloist in Brahms s Piano Concerto No.1 in London and Wrocław. Roberto Díaz, president and CEO of the Curtis Institute of Music and a former principal viola of the Philadelphia Orchestra, will share the stage with violinist Benjamin Schmid in Krzysztof Penderecki s Double Concerto for violin and viola, programmed for the orchestra s concerts in Helsinki and Poland. The tour repertoire also includes Richard Strauss s great symphonic showpiece Ein Heldenleben. I am delighted by the commitment of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra s tour and look forward to working with these remarkable young musicians, states Osmo Vänskä. Investing in a major tour is an investment in these musicians, where they will experience first-hand how to properly prepare as a professional musician in an orchestra tour setting. Curtis on Tour, because of the way it embraces every area of experience both on and off stage, is vital to the development of its musicians and understanding the changing environment of each concert venue to produce the highest quality performances. I think this is a bold and exciting project which I am sure will capture the imagination and inspire our audiences on tour. Peter Serkin, who turns seventy this summer, studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Mieczysław Horszowski, graduating in 1965. I will always feel enormous gratitude towards the Curtis Institute of Music, one of the world s very greatest music schools, he comments. I cherish the experience of having studied with such wonderful musicians and having benefited from being around such a distinguished faculty and my fellow students there. I had the pleasure of teaching very fine students at Curtis, and now I look forward to the opportunity of making music with current students there, of playing Brahms s First Piano Concerto with this extraordinary orchestra and the wonderful conductor Osmo Vänskä. Roberto Díaz believes that the experience of overseas touring is a boon to his conservatoire s outstanding young musicians, providing insights that cannot be learned from a book or in the classroom. I can say as a performing musician that there s no better learning opportunity than taking part in repeated performances of a programme or a piece, he comments. It s amazing to hear interpretations evolve as part of a broad learning process that includes insights into all the activities in the life of a professional musician, from working as part of a team to taking care of yourself and your instrument on tour. Curtis Institute of Music offers full-tuition scholarships to its 175 students. On average around four per cent of applicants are chosen for admission each year, making the school among the most selective in the United States.
The high quality of the student intake is matched by the excellence and range of training offered at Curtis. It is also reflected in the job destinations of alumni. The Berliner Philharmoniker, for instance, recently appointed David Cooper as its principal horn, while fellow Curtis graduate José Maria Blumenschein joined the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra as concertmaster in September 2016. Osmo Vänskä s Minnesota Orchestra numbers fourteen Curtis alumni among its full-time permanent members, including its concertmaster, first associate concertmaster, principal viola and principal horn. Since its foundation, the Curtis Institute of Music has produced such notable alumni as Samuel Barber, Leonard Bernstein, Jonathan Biss, Yefim Bronfman, Juan Diego Flórez, Alan Gilbert, Richard Goode, Hilary Hahn, Lynn Harrell, Paavo Järvi, Leila Josefowicz, Lang Lang, Gian Carlo Menotti, Anna Moffo, Ned Rorem, Nino Rota and Yuja Wang. There is no substitute for world-class performance and no room for corners to be cut, observes Roberto Díaz. Everything at Curtis is done with that in mind; there are no compromises here. The conservatoire s president launched Curtis on Tour soon after his arrival in post a decade ago. The initiative was created to promote his learn-by-doing ethos and to raise awareness of the conservatoire s work. It has grown since to encompass a wide range of events each year, comprising five or six national and international tours and a multitude of projects for chamber groups and small ensembles. Curtis on Tour continues to expand thanks to the $55 million donation made by Baroness Nina von Maltzahn to mark the close of her term as chair of the conservatoire s board in May 2016. The gift, among the largest ever made to a music school in the United States, has delivered the financial resources necessary to create an ambitious schedule of high-calibre tours and concert dates, open to every Curtis student. Curtis on Tour began as a modest initiative and has evolved from there, recalls Roberto Díaz. Nina von Maltzahn s generous support has given us the security to plan for the future and create new opportunities. We have a responsibility to give our students valuable professional experience and prepare them for life after Curtis. We also have a responsibility to the art form beyond what happens in our building. That is why Curtis on Tour is such an important part of what we do. Curtis Institute students, in addition to refining their skills as musicians, are encouraged to become advocates for classical music. Curtis on Tour projects comprise, inter alia, workshops with youth orchestras and concerts given to community groups in Philadelphia and beyond, complete with opportunities for students to speak about the works they are performing. No one engages with a young person like another young person, says Roberto Díaz. The impact of our students advocating for themselves is great and something that no older person could do for them. They also learn how to interact with donors, sponsors and promoters during rehearsal breaks or post-concert events. It s all part of the multi-dimensional experience of being a musician. Although the conservatoire s learn by doing philosophy has been woven into Curtis on Tour under Roberto Díaz s leadership, he notes how it has always been part of the mainstream of education at Curtis. Practical learning has been a core value here for as long as anyone can remember. This is a performance school: people come here to study because they want to become professional performers. The school has always encouraged and supported performance opportunities as a core part of students education. I think that is a major difference between us and many other music schools, where students have to create their own opportunities. I speak from my experience as a student and having taught at other music schools. This is one of the things that make a Curtis education unique. www.curtis.edu HarrisonParrott International Tour Management: www.harrisonparrott.com For press enquiries, please contact: Valerie Barber PR Suite 2 9a St John s Wood High Street London NW8 7NG Tel: +44 (0)20 7586 8560 madeleine@vbpr.co.uk www.vbpr.co.uk
FINNISH, UK & POLISH DATES Saturday 20 May Helsinki Music Centre, 7pm Presented by the Sibelius Academy Osmo Vänskä conductor Benjamin Schmid violin Roberto Díaz viola Curtis Symphony Orchestra Friday 26 May Cadogan Hall, 7.30pm Osmo Vänskä conductor Peter Serkin piano Curtis Symphony Orchestra Brahms Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15 Wednesday 31 May National Forum of Music, Wrocław, 7pm Presented by the Ludwig Van Beethoven Association Osmo Vänskä conductor Benjamin Schmid violin Roberto Díaz viola Peter Serkin piano Curtis Symphony Orchestra Brahms Concerto No. 1 in D minor for Piano, Op.15 Friday 2 June Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music, Lusławice, 7pm Presented by the Ludwig Van Beethoven Association in cooperation with the Krysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music Osmo Vänskä conductor Benjamin Schmid violin Roberto Díaz viola Curtis Symphony Orchestra Notes for Editors Overview One of the world s finest music academies (BBC Culture), the Curtis Institute of Music pairs tradition and innovation, educating exceptionally gifted young musicians as artist-citizens who engage a local and global community through music-making of the highest calibre. Each year approximately 175 students come to Curtis, drawn by a tuition-free, performance-inspired learning culture. In this intimate environment, they are nurtured by a celebrated faculty and inspired by the school s distinctive learn by doing approach, offering over 200 concerts each year in Philadelphia and performances around the world through Curtis on Tour. Curtis reaches global audiences through Curtis Performs (curtis.edu/curtisperforms), the school s dedicated HD performance video site. Online music courses and Summerfest programmes offer lifelong learners further ways to listen, explore and learn. Students also hone 21st-century skills through social entrepreneurship programmes that bring arts access and education to the community. The extraordinary young musicians of Curtis graduate to join 4,000 alumni who have long made music history. Curtis graduates are musical leaders, making a profound impact on music onstage and in their communities.
Admissions to the Curtis Institute of Music are based on artistic promise alone. Enrolment is limited to the number of musicians needed for a symphony orchestra, opera department, and select programmes in piano, guitar, composition, conducting, and organ, plus a string quartet in residence. With an average acceptance rate around four per cent, Curtis is among the most selective schools in the United States, consistently ranked as among college-level institutions with the lowest acceptance rates by U.S. News and World Report. Curtis provides full-tuition scholarships to all its students and complete and diverse musical training, together with liberal arts courses. Students may pursue a Diploma or a Bachelor of Music degree. Vocal students may also pursue a Master of Music degree or a Professional Studies Certificate. Students at Curtis enjoy a wealth of opportunities to perform, listen, and learn. The school s high standard for entry ensures that students rehearse and perform alongside their musical peers. The student body is international and multicultural, and there is no minimum or maximum age to audition. In its unique nurturing environment, the school s superb faculty encourages students at every step to grow as artists and as members of the Curtis community. Faculty members at Curtis include a high proportion of eminent performing musicians who connect students to life today as a successful professional musician. Their unmatched musical lineage, in turn, links students to the classical masters. Curtis s 113-member faculty also includes highly qualified instructors in musical studies, liberal arts and career studies. Curtis frequently hosts world-renowned artists to work with its students in master classes, chamber music coaching, and residencies; in orchestra reading sessions; in the classroom; and in performances by the Curtis Symphony Orchestra and Curtis Opera Theatre. Alumni of Curtis, having experienced extraordinary one-to-one training and valuable performance opportunities as students, progress to outstanding musical careers around the world. Curtis graduates have received Pulitzer Prizes, Guggenheim Fellowships and Avery Fisher Awards. They are in the front rank of soloists, composers and conductors. They are members of the world s leading orchestras, including principals in every major American symphony orchestra. They have sung with, among many others, the Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Milan, the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, the Vienna Staatsoper and the San Francisco Opera. Each season leading orchestras, opera houses and chamber music series around the world feature Curtis alumni as guest artists. Performances at Curtis grow from the school s learn by doing philosophy. Students enjoy constant opportunities to perform, with more than 200 public performances each year, including orchestra concerts, opera productions, and solo and chamber music recitals. The Student Recital Series offers free public performances most Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays during the school year. Students often perform with distinguished faculty members, alumni and guest artists. Praised by the New York Times for its otherworldly ensemble and professional level of sophistication, the Curtis Symphony Orchestra performs a three-concert season in Verizon Hall at Philadelphia s Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. Recent appearances outside Philadelphia include Carnegie Hall and the Dresden Music Festival. The Curtis Opera Theatre presents several staged performances and concert productions annually in various Philadelphia venues. The department s twenty-five voice and opera students are cast repeatedly each season, providing all with a rare level of performance experience. Curtis on Tour brings the extraordinary artistry of the world-renowned Curtis Institute of Music to national and international audiences, with students performing alongside celebrated Curtis alumni and faculty members. Curtis Presents honours the school s unique performance culture, featuring alumni, faculty members and students in recital. All proceeds directly benefit current Curtis students with the hope of inspiring and supporting future generations of virtuosity. Curtis Family Concerts are designed as a fun introduction to classical music for children aged five to twelve. Through performance and audience interaction, Curtis students illustrate the basic elements of music and share their experiences as musicians.
Flexible in size and scope, the Curtis 20/21 Ensemble performs a wide range of music from the 20th and 21st centuries, including works by Curtis students and alumni. It has presented portrait concerts of iconic composers-in-residence John Corigliano, George Crumb, Krzysztof Penderecki, Joan Tower and Steven Stucky, among others, and appears frequently in Philadelphia and at major U.S. venues such as the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall and Miller Theatre. Special concerts and collaborations take place throughout the year, including recitals at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Barnes Foundation and Longwood Gardens. Facilities at Curtis are housed in several stately mansions on Philadelphia s Rittenhouse Square that pair 19thcentury charm with 21st-century amenities. In 2011 Curtis opened Lenfest Hall, which greatly expanded the school s spaces for teaching, rehearsal, and practice and provided student residences and a dining hall. Financial Support for Curtis was initially provided by a $12.5 million gift from founder Mary Louise Curtis Bok, which launched Curtis s unusual tuition-free policy in 1928 and provided financial support throughout much of the school s history. In the 1980s, Curtis instituted annual fundraising to help pay a portion of the annual operating expenses. Curtis has successfully completed several endowment campaigns in subsequent years. Curtis receives annual operating support from the Mary Louise Curtis Bok Foundation, a not-for-profit corporation founded by the Curtis board in 1932 to administer Mrs. Bok s endowment. A joint committee oversees the investments of the Bok Foundation and Curtis endowments. FULL EUROPEAN TOUR DATES Saturday 20 May Helsinki Music Centre, 7pm Presented by the Sibelius Academy Monday 22 May Die Glocke, Bremen, 8pm Presented by the Philharmonische Gesellschaft Bremen Tuesday 23 May Konzerthaus Berlin, 8pm Presented in cooperation with Young Euro Classic Wednesday 24 May Kulturpalast, Dresden, 8pm Presented by the Dresden Music Festival Friday 26 May Cadogan Hall, 7.30pm Monday 29 May Mozarteum, Salzburg, 7.30pm Presented by Kulturvereinigung in cooperation with Mozarteum University Salzburg Tuesday May 30 Wiener Konzerthaus, Vienna, 7.30pm Presented by Jeunesse Wednesday 31 May National Forum of Music, Wrocław, 7pm Presented by the Ludwig Van Beethoven Association Friday 2 June Krzysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music, Lusławice, 7pm Presented by the Ludwig Van Beethoven Association in cooperation with the Krysztof Penderecki European Centre for Music