Prelude
Sponsored by Fluor

Calling all ticket holders! The Houston Symphony invites you to attend a free, 20-minute, pre-concert lecture at Jones Hall beginning 50 minutes prior to each Classical Subscription performance. Music scholars and occasionally special guests from the performance give you insights and background about the concert to follow.

Copland’s Appalachian Spring
October 18, 20, 21
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Popular lecturer Ira J. Black discusses how composers Aaron Copland and Samuel Barber captured the American spirit through classical composition.

Graf’s Mozart and Zemlinsky
November 9, 10, 11
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Discover how wind instruments can serenade and strings can sing when associate principal oboist Anne Leek discusses instruments in song.

Emanuel Ax Brahms 1
November 15, 17, 18
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Music Director Hans Graf and discusses Sibelius and Brahms with concert-goers in this special edition of Prelude.

Romeo and Juliet Plus Glennie
November 30, December 1, 2
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Percussionist Matthew Strauss talks about the beat, jingle and gong of compositions for the dozens of different instruments he plays – as well as their lyrical sides.

Graf’s Mozart and Haydn
January 10, 12, 13, 2008
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Composer Cindy McTee and principal trombonist Allen Barnhill discuss what part collaboration between composer and artist plays in commissioned works.

Strauss’ Alpine Symphony with Photomontage
January 18, 19, 20
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Photographer and acting principal bassoonist Eric Arbiter talks about how imagery inspires music – and vice-versa.

Mozart and Brahms
January 24, 26, 27
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Ira J. Black explores how dance rhythms and folk tunes influenced the music of Enesco, Mozart and Brahms.

Carmina Burana Plus Bernstein
February 22, 23, 24
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Find out how the poetry of medieval college dropouts became one of the most brilliant choral works of all time when Dr. Charles Hausmann discusses Carmina burana.

Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff
February 28, March 1, 2
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Nancy Bailey discusses the palette of orchestral sounds and colors with which composers paint.

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons
March 14, 15, 16
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Explore how Felix Mendelssohn incorporated Romantic sensibilities into his symphonies with University of Houston Moores School of Music professor and author Jeffrey Sposato.

Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony
April 3, 5, 6
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Explore the work of the three composers featured on this program, spanning two centuries of music.

Saint-Saëns Organ Symphony
April 18, 19, 20
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Of his Organ Symphony, Saint-Saëns said he had “given everything to it I was able to give.” Explore the riches that resulted with Rice University Shepherd School of Music professor and organist Thomas Jaber.

Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony
May 1, 3, 4, 2008
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Ira J. Black discusses how Gustav Mahler used his philosophies and song cycles to revolutionize the symphonic form.

Mozart’s Fourth Violin Concerto
May 9, 10, 11
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Symphony violinist Sergei Galperin gives audiences an inside look at Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 4.

Rodrigo’s Guitar Concerto
May 15, 17, 18
Prelude, sponsored by Fluor, begins 50 minutes prior to each concert. Local radio personality Tom Richards delves into the unique musical heritage of Spain, with its Moorish influences, emphasis on folk music and the central role of the guitar.

Houston Symphony Speakers Bureau

The Houston Symphony provides volunteer speakers from the board, staff and orchestra for school and community groups interested in learning more about how a symphony orchestra operates. Hear about the day-to-day life of a professional musician or get details of the work that goes on behind the scenes as we put together a season of concerts. Each presentation is about 45 minutes in length and includes a free pair of tickets as a door prize. Schedule a visit for your organization by contacting Melissa McCrimmon at 713-238-1458 or email melissa.mccrimmon@houstonsymphony.org