As the saying goes, “there is no rest for the weary!” Hot on the heels of our 11-12 season’s end, we at the Houston Symphony packed our bags and headed over to Moscow. We arrived safely on Wednesday and will have a little time to gather our bearings and familiarize ourselves with our surroundings before … Continued
Julie Thayer, French Horn, Houston Symphony, shares her personal thoughts and photographs from her time in New York. The Houston Symphony recently played Carnegie Hall to open the 2012 Spring for Music Festival. New York City, musically speaking, is like a Saharan Desert watering hole. It draws life and vitality to it with magnetic force … Continued
Meet Rian Craypo, Houston Symphony Principal Bassoon. In this video, Rian discusses the bassoon reed making process and key things to listen for in Mozart’s Bassoon Concerto in B-flat major, K. 191. Buy tickets for the concerts on May 11, 12, 13, 2012 here: http://bit.ly/K2jFYO
Make your gift of any amount online today to be counted amongst the 5,000 donors helping the Houston Symphony receive this second $1 million grant from Houston Endowment. Visit /annualfund
On Friday, Nov. 18, we’re embarking on a brand new concert adventure! While our regular Houston Symphony audiences can probably differentiate between Berlioz and Brahms at the drop of a hat, many people just don’t quite get what classical music is all about. Codas and concertos and cadenzas … what? We decided that enough was … Continued
Way back in August our Principal Cello, Brinton Smith, sent me a link to the Cervantes Collection at Texas A&M University Libraries, which houses one of the largest collections of Don Quixote iconography in the world. Brinton thought the Cervantes Collection would be a good starting point for the Sound Plus Vision element of this … Continued
On Sunday morning, the Houston Symphony announced its upcoming 2011-12 season of Classical, Pops and Family concerts. In line with the Symphony’s mission, enriching concerts fill each weekend with inspiration and bring innovative, first-class performances to the extensive cultural scene in Houston. Dynamic guest artists, Music Director Hans Graf and Principal Pops Conductor Michael Krajewski … Continued
We have had season tickets in row C or D at Sunday matinees since early in Eschenbach’s tenure as music director, right in front of the cellos, which he had at front. At one of our first concerts, we were intrigued by a now-retired Marian Wilson cellist’s small instrument. After the concert, we asked her … Continued
Assistant Conductor Brett Mitchell took the time to share a little about one of the musical loves of his life, Wagner’s “The Ring Without Words,” ahead of next week’s concert! We knew of the comparisons to the Lord of the Ring, but Star Wars? Learn more about it by reading below. It should come as … Continued
So, as I understand it, this blog is meant to put the reader inside the Houston Symphony team, so you can see what we are all about. It is with that in mind that I write the following … I have been with the Houston Symphony for about 6 months as the Director of Marketing, … Continued
The new Houston Symphony season promises to be a momentous one. With several new collaborations, a new concert master, orchestra member solo spotlights and unique explorations of works, Hans Graf and the Houston Symphony have brought new ideas and innovation back to the concert stage. This is a season you will not want to miss! … Continued
We’d like to introduce you all to Meredith Williams–the first of our Symphony staffer bloggers! Meredith is still considered a newbie (as many of us are by comparison–you wouldn’t believe how many people have been here 10, 20, even 25+ years!), and is the assistant to our general manager. She’s been the go-to gal for … Continued