HOUSTON (Sept. 27, 2019) – Best-selling travel author and PBS star Rick Steves joins the Houston Symphony and former Houston Symphony Principal POPS conductor Michael Krajewski in an immersive concert experience, Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey, at 8 p.m. Oct. 11 and 12, and 2:30 p.m. Oct. 13.
Known for his travel adventures, Steves presents a one-of-a-kind journey to Houstonians by combining his love for music and travel. A giant screen inside Jones Hall will project breathtaking footage of England, France, Italy, Norway, Vienna, and many other destinations while the orchestra plays classical favorites from each country. Throughout, Steves presents fascinating insights and context at each stop.
“I designed this concert to start in America, so the audience could feel the patriotic musical thrill that comes with that,” said Steves, “then we take a tour of Europe, sampling similar thrills from other cultural perspectives—each piece honors a different nationality.”
Musical highlights performed live by the Houston Symphony accompanying Steves’ travel adventures include Johann Strauss Jr.’s The Beautiful Blue Danube, the Triumphal March from Verdi’s Aida, Ferde Grofés’ Grand Canyon Suite, and Edward Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1.
Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey takes place at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, 615 Louisiana Street, in Houston’s Theater District. For tickets and information, please call 713.224.7575 or visit houstonsymphony.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the Houston Symphony Patron Services Center in Jones Hall (Monday–Saturday, 12–6 p.m.). All programs and artists are subject to change.
RICK STEVES’ EUROPE: A SYMPHONIC JOURNEY
Saturday, Oct. 12, 8 p.m.
Michael Krajewski, conductor
Rick Steves, presenter
About Michael Krajewski
Known for his entertaining programs and clever humor, Michael Krajewski is a much sought after conductor of symphonic pops. He is principal pops conductor of the Jacksonville Symphony and previously served as principal pops conductor of the Houston Symphony and Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as well as music director of The Philly Pops.
As a guest conductor, Michael has performed with The Cleveland and Philadelphia Orchestras; the Boston and Cincinnati Pops; the San Francisco, Baltimore, Detroit, Indianapolis, Seattle, Dallas, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, and National symphony orchestras; and numerous other orchestras across the United States. In Canada, he has led Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, and the Edmonton and Winnipeg Symphony Orchestras. Other international appearances include performances in Dublin and Belfast with the Ulster Orchestra as well as performances with the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and Spain’s Bilbao Symphony Orchestra.
Michael is the conductor of the video Silver Screen Serenade with violinist Jenny Oaks Baker that aired worldwide on BYU Broadcasting. On recordings, he has led the Houston Symphony on two holiday albums: Glad Tidings and Christmas Festival. His collaborative programs have included such artists as flutist James Galway, mezzo Marilyn Horne, pianist Alicia de Larrocha, guitarist Ángel Romero, and pop artists Rufus Wainwright, Jason Alexander, Roberta Flack, Judy Collins, Art Garfunkel, Wynonna Judd, Kenny Loggins, Ben Folds, Doc Severinsen, Patti Austin, Sandi Patty, Ann Hampton Callaway, Chicago, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, The Chieftains, Pink Martini, Rockapella, Cirque de la Symphonie, The Doo Wop Project, Classical Mystery Tour, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and The Midtown Men.
With degrees from Wayne State University in Detroit and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Michael furthered his training at the Pierre Monteux Domaine School for Conductors. He was a Dorati Fellowship Conductor with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and later served as that orchestra’s assistant conductor. He was resident conductor of the Florida Orchestra, and for 11 years, served as music director of the Modesto Symphony Orchestra. Michael lives in Orlando, Florida, with his wife, Darcy. When not conducting, he enjoys travel, photography, and solving crossword puzzles.
About Rick Steves
Guidebook author and travel TV host Rick Steves is America’s most respected authority on European travel. He took his first trip to Europe in 1969, visiting piano factories with his father, a piano importer. As an 18-year-old, Rick began traveling on his own, funding his trips by teaching piano lessons.
In 1976, he started his business, Rick Steves’ Europe, which has grown from a one-man operation to a company with a staff of 100 full-time, well-travelled employees at its headquarters in Edmonds, Washington. There he produces a best-selling guidebook series on European travel, America’s most popular travel series on public television, a weekly hour-long national public radio show, a weekly syndicated column, and free travel information available through his travel center and ricksteves.com.
Rick Steves’ Europe also runs a successful European tour program organizing small-group tours that annually take more than 30,000 travelers to Europe. His mission is to empower Americans to have European trips that are fun, affordable, and culturally broadening.
Over the past 20 years, Rick has hosted more than 100 travel shows for public television and numerous pledge specials, raising millions of dollars for local stations. His Rick Steves’ Europe TV series is carried by more than 300 stations, reaching 95 percent of U.S. markets. Rick has also created two award-winning specials for public television: Rick Steves’ European Christmas and the groundbreaking Rick Steves’ Iran, both of which he wrote and co-produced through his company Back Door Productions.
Rick hosts the weekly public radio program Travel with Rick Steves, which airs across the country and has spawned a popular podcast. He has also created a series of audio walking tour podcasts for museums and neighborhoods in Paris, Rome, Florence, Venice, London, and Athens.
Rick self-published the first edition of his travel skills book Europe Through the Back Door (now updated annually) in 1980. He has also written more than 50 other guidebooks, phrase books, and “snapshot” guides. For several years, Rick Steves’ Italy has been the best-selling international guidebook sold in the United States. In 2009, he tackled a new genre of travel writing with Travel as a Political Act, reflecting on how travel can be a significant force for peace and understanding in the world.
When not on the road, Rick is active in his church and with advocacy groups focused on economic and social justice, drug policy reform, and ending hunger. He lives and works in his hometown of Edmonds, Washington.
About the Houston Symphony
During the 2019–20 season, the Houston Symphony celebrates its sixth season with Music Director Andrés Orozco-Estrada and continues its second century as one of America’s leading orchestras with a full complement of concert, community, education, touring, and recording activities. The Houston Symphony, one of the oldest performing arts organizations in Texas, held its inaugural performance at The Majestic Theater in downtown Houston June 21, 1913. Today, with an annual operating budget of $35.2 million, the full-time ensemble of 88 professional musicians presents nearly 170 concerts annually, making it the largest performing arts organization in Houston. Additionally, musicians of the orchestra and the Symphony’s four Community-Embedded Musicians offer over 1,000 community-based performances each year at various schools, community centers, hospitals, and churches reaching nearly 200,000 people in Greater Houston annually.
The Grammy Award-winning Houston Symphony has recorded under various prestigious labels, including Naxos, Koch International Classics, Telarc, RCA Red Seal, Virgin Classics and, most recently, Dutch recording label Pentatone. In 2017, the Houston Symphony was awarded an ECHO Klassik award for the live recording of Alban Berg’s Wozzeck under the direction of former Music Director Hans Graf. The orchestra earned its first Grammy nomination and Grammy Award at the 60th annual ceremony for the same recording in the Best Opera Recording category.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Eric Skelly: 713.337.8560, eric.skelly@houstonsymphony.org
Mireya Reyna: 713.337.8557, mireya.reyna@houstonsymphony.org
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