[138.1] FROM SAN FRANCISCO TO EUROPE

'Best of the rest'? Surely the Independent on Sunday newspaper had to be kidding? But no, with virtually no serious music coverage in its supplement this weekend, the news that Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony were touring Europe (or at least Dublin, London, Brighton, Brussels, Amsterdam, Düsseldorf, Cologne, Vienna, Prague, and Paris) from 7 - 25 May was merely noted in passing, with the Barbican date (9th - Adams, Copland, Stravinsky) as the only one detailed. This is, however, a major series of events. I don't often quote publicity shots, but this news release sums up the deal just fine:

Celebrated for their commitment to contemporary music, Tilson Thomas and the SFS will feature at least one 20th century composition on every program of the 2003 European Tour. The tour includes two works making their European premiere, a brand new John Adams work commissioned by the SFS, 'My Father Knew Charles Ives', and Tilson Thomas’s own 'Poems of Emily Dickinson'. Tour repertoire also includes Mahler’s 'Symphony No. 9 in D major', Tchaikovsky’s 'Manfred Symphony', and Copland’s 'Symphony No. 3'. Acclaimed violinist Hilary Hahn will join the orchestra in Stravinsky’s 'Violin Concerto in D major' in Dublin, London, Brighton, Brussels, Düsseldorf, Cologne, Vienna, and Prague. Soprano Barbara Bonney joins the SFS for Tilson Thomas’s 'Poems of Emily Dickinson' in London, Cologne, Vienna, Prague, and Paris. Renowned for its music education programs, the SFS will also take its music education abroad through a series of classes and appearances by orchestra members. SFS musicians will visit and perform in local European elementary schools and conduct master classes in music academies and colleges.