Music Director JoAnn Falletta, Principal Pops Conductor John Morris Russell, and the BPO leadership team are closely monitoring the ever-evolving pandemic situation and have prepared alternative programs that will meet social distancing guidelines. The revised April through June 2021 BPOnDemand schedule is as follows:
BARBER Adagio for Strings
BERNSTEIN Serenade
RESPIGHI Botticelli Triptych (Trittico Botticelliano)
Three celebrated composers highlight a program depicting themes of love, loss, and renewal. Respighi’s Triptych was inspired by works of Italian Renaissance painter Sandro Botticelli, including ‘Spring’ and ‘The Birth of Venus.’ Virtuoso Blake Pouliot performs Bernstein’s violin masterpiece, musically interpreting love anecdotes written by Plato, and the haunting chords of Barber’s familiar Adagio, capture not only despair but an accompanying glimmer of hope.
Join Principal Pops Conductor John Morris Russell, vocalists Jessica Hendy (Cats, Aida) and Blaine Alden Krauss (Hamilton, Kinky Boots), and your BPO as they perform 100 years of Broadway’s best, from the golden age of Gershwin and Rogers & Hammerstein to contemporary classics from The Wiz, Wicked, and more!
SUPERB SHOSTAKOVICH
Tue Apr 27, 7pm
Guillermo Figueroa, conductor, violin
Adam Golka, piano
Alex Jokipii, trumpet
ERNESTO CORDERO Concertino Tropical
SHOSTAKOVICH Concerto No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Trumpet & Strings, Op. 35
SUK Serenade in E flat major
Lush and lyrical describes both Cordero’s sparkling and serene island travelogue, and the emotionally intense Serenade of Josef Suk, although composed over 100 years apart. Their beauty and tenderness are contrasted by the eclectic, spirited, and technically challenging Shostakovich concerto featuring exceptional pianist Adam Golka and BPO principal trumpet Alex Jokipii.
Much popular music of the past 100 years has Blues at its heart and soul, influencing countless artists like Eric Clapton, The Beatles, and Led Zeppelin. The BPO and vocalist Shayna Steele pay tribute to the musical legends who sang their way into history including Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Ma Rainey, and Louis Armstrong with songs like “House of the Rising Sun,” “Nobody Knows When You’re Down and Out,” “Baby Won’t You Please Come Home,” and more.
DVO?ÁK’S SERENADE
Tue May 11, 7pm
JoAnn Falletta, conductor
Nikki Chooi, violin
Roman Mekinulov, cello
Henry Ward, oboe
Glenn Einschlag, bassoon
STILL Mother and Child, for string orchestra
HAYDN Sinfonia Concertante in B-flat major
DVO?ÁK Serenade for Strings in E major, Op. 22
A colorful interplay of BPO musicians Nikki Chooi, Roman Mekinulov, Henry Ward, and Glenn Einschlag, performing solo as well as in duos and quartets highlight Haydn’s delightful and witty Sinfonia, his only effort at the genre. The theatrical, spirited work counters the serenity of Still’s heartwarming rhythms reminiscent of a lullaby, and the angelic, enchanting tone of Dvo?ák’s dream-like serenade.
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis
RODION SHCHEDRIN / BIZET Carmen Suite
Vaughan Williams’ popular and incandescent treatment of an ethereal 16th-century Renaissance chant is paired with the contemporary reworking of an iconic masterpiece. Shchedrin’s Carmen Suite ballet score infuses new interpretation into easily recognizable melodies with an inventive and unexpected use of percussion and strings.
Symbolic of our country’s ability to weather the storm, we honor those who have served and sacrificed to uphold our traditions in this annual celebration of song and spirit.
MAHLER & MOZART
Tue Jun 8, 7pm
JoAnn Falletta, conductor
Kyle van Schoonhoven, tenor
AARON JAY KERNIS Elegy for Those We Lost (2020)
MICHAEL ABELS Delights and Dances
MAHLER / arr. Schönberg Songs of a Wayfarer
MOZART Serenade No. 6 in D major, “Serenata Notturna”
Contradictions compel our highly-unusual season to its finale. Contemporary composers juxtapose heart-wrenching memorials and clever combinations of relaxed riffs and rapid rhythms, while tenor Kyle van Schoonhoven’s interpretation of Mahler’s song cycle of lost love and despair, contrasts with Mozart’s lighthearted serenity.
All artists and repertoire are subject to change. Further details about all programs on the 2020-2021 concert season can be found at bpo.org.
Plans for the BPO’s popular summer season and the announcement of its forthcoming 2021-22 season remain on hold until more is known about the pandemic response and the ability of the orchestra to safely play for live audiences once again.
Single tickets and ticket packages for the BPOnDemand series are on sale now and can be purchased at
bpo.org or by calling the Box Office at (716) 885-5000. Patrons are encouraged to sign up for the BPO e-mail list at
bpo.org to receive the latest updates, and to call the Box Office with any questions. Please note that the Box Office is working remotely during this time, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Major corporate support for the BPO is provided by M&T Bank, BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York, Calspan, Elderwood and Keybank. Government support is provided by Erie County, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.