Tchaikovsky Spectacular

Philadelphia Orchestra Guest Conductor Marin Alsop returns to SPAC for the first time since 2017 leading the orchestra in a dazzling evening of Tchaikovsky featuring the 1812 Overture with live cannon fire and a brilliant fireworks display. Philadelphia Orchestra Principal Cellist Hai-Ye Ni performs Tchaikovsky’s beautiful and elegant Variations on a Rococo Theme, inspired by the composer’s love for Mozart. And Hamlet Overture, originally conceived as incidental music to Shakespeare’s play, receives its SPAC premiere.

Program

*Indicates SPAC premiere

Performers

Marin Alsop | conductor
Hai-Ye Ni* | cello

*Indicates SPAC debut

One of the foremost conductors of our time, Marin Alsop is a powerful and inspiring voice. Convinced that music has the power to change lives, she is internationally recognized for her innovative approach to programming and audience development, deep commitment to education, and championing of music’s importance in the world. The first woman to serve as the head of major orchestras in the United States, South America, Austria, and Great Britain, she is, as the New York Times put it, not only “a formidable musician and a powerful communicator” but also “a conductor with a vision.” 

The 2024-25 season marks Alsop’s sixth as Chief Conductor of the ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, which she leads at Vienna’s Musikverein and Konzerthaus, as well as on recordings, broadcasts, and international tours; her second as Artistic Director & Chief Conductor of the Polish National Radio Symphony; her second as Principal Guest Conductor of London’s Philharmonia Orchestra; and her first as Principal Guest Conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra. She is also Chief Conductor of the Ravinia Festival, where she leads the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s annual summer residencies, and is the first Music Director of the National Orchestral Institute + Festival (NOI+F) at the University of Maryland, where she launched a new academy for young conductors and leads the NOI+F Philharmonic each June. 

Alsop becomes the first U.S.-born woman to conduct the Berlin Philharmonic when she makes her long-awaited debut with the orchestra in February 2025, leading the world premiere of a new commission from Outi Tarkiainen. Other 2024-25 highlights include an evening devoted to Gustav and Alma Mahler with the Philharmonia Orchestra, a world premiere from Nico Muhly with the New York Philharmonic, a New Year’s Eve concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra, a reprise of Julia Wolfe’s Her Story with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., and return engagements with the symphonies of Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, and San Francisco.  

In 2021, Alsop assumed the title of Music Director Laureate and OrchKids Founder of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, which she continues to conduct each season. During her outstanding 14-year tenure as its Music Director, she led the orchestra on its first European tour in 13 years, released multiple award-winning recordings, and conducted more than two dozen world premieres, as well as founding OrchKids, its groundbreaking music education program for Baltimore’s most disadvantaged youth. In 2019, after seven years as Music Director, Alsop became Conductor of Honour of Brazil’s São Paulo Symphony Orchestra (OSESP), with which she continues to undertake major projects each season. Deeply committed to new music, she was Music Director of California’s Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music for 25 years, leading 174 premieres.

Hai-Ye Ni joined The Philadelphia Orchestra as principal cello at the beginning of the 2006–07 season after having served as associate principal cello of the New York Philharmonic since 1999. She first came into prominence after her critically praised New York debut at Alice Tully Hall in 1991, a result of her winning first prize at the Naumburg International Cello Competition. Other awards include first prize in the 1996 International Paulo Cello Competition in Finland and a 2001 Avery Fisher Career Grant. In the summer of 2023, Ms. Ni performed at the Sarasota Music Festival in Florida, Chamber Music Dolomiti in Italy, and gave a recital at the New England Conservatory. Upcoming performances include an appearance with the Apollo Orchestra in Washington, D.C., playing the Barber Concerto. She made her solo debut with The Philadelphia Orchestra in 2010 in Saint-Saëns First Concerto. She was also featured in Tan Dun’s The Map, Concerto for Cello, Video, and Orchestra; Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations; the Brahms “Double” Concerto; and the Beethoven “Triple” Concerto. 

Among the ensembles with which she has appeared as soloist are the Chicago, San Francisco, Vancouver, Shanghai, Singapore, and Finnish Radio symphonies; the Orchestre National de Paris; the Vienna Chamber Orchestra; and the Hong Kong and China philharmonics. Her recital credits include the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Smithsonian Institute, Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, and the Wallace Collection in London. She has performed at festivals such as Ravinia, Marlboro, La Jolla SummerFest, Kuhmo (Finland), Spoleto (Italy), Aspen, and the Pacific Music Festival. Highlights of Ms. Ni’s past performances include an all-Baroque concertos program with the Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra as soloist and conductor. She also played with Lang Lang at Carnegie Hall for Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture. She has been featured in Strad magazine, Strings magazine, and on NPR. Her 1998 debut solo CD on the Naxos label was named CD of the week by Classic FM London, and her CD Spirit of Chimes(Delos) is a collaboration with violinist Cho-Liang Lin and pianist Helen Huang of music by Zhou Long. 

A respected musician, Ms. Ni served on the jury of Finland’s V International Paulo Cello Competition in 2013 and has given master classes at the Curtis Institute of Music, the Mannes College of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, the Shanghai Conservatory, and the Central Conservatory in Beijing. Additional honors and awards include second prize at the Rostropovich competition in 1997. Born in Shanghai, China, Ms. Ni began cello studies with her mother and at the Shanghai Conservatory. She continued her musical education with Irene Sharp at the San Francisco Conservatory, Joel Krosnick at the Juilliard School, and William Pleeth in London. 

Ways to Save

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