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2008
December, 2008 – Leonard Slatkin makes his much anticipated debut as the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s new Music Director with inaugural concerts on December 11, 12, 13 and 14. These include the World Premiere of James Lee III’s A Different Soldier’s Tale as well as Carl Orff’s spectacular Carmina Burana. In addition, he will conduct the Civic Youth Orchestra in a special holiday program featuring arrangements for strings and piano (see news item below).
Click here for more information from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
November, 2008 – Naxos releases Leroy Anderson, Sleigh Ride and Other Holiday Favorites, with Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Concert Orchestra. Also included are Song of the Bells, Suite of Carols (version for brass), A Christmas Festival, and Bugler’s Holiday.
Click here for more information from Naxos.
November, 2008 –
Volume V of the orchestral music of Leroy Anderson, with Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Concert Orchestra, is released by Naxos, and features Goldilocks and Suite of Carols (version for winds).
Click here for more information from Naxos.
October, 2008 – In collaboration with leading music print publisher Hal Leonard Corporation, Leonard Slatkin has created a namesake series of educational publications. Holidays for Piano and Strings is the first collection to be published in the Leonard Slatkin Youth Orchestra Series. “In 2007, my then 13-year-old son, who plays the piano, asked his school’s music teacher if he could perform something for the annual holiday concert. He also plays viola in the string ensemble. This started me thinking about writing an arrangement that would be appropriate for his age group. If you are in middle school and play a string, wind or percussion instrument, most likely you can be in an ensemble. But when you play the piano, you are alone. There are few outlets for interaction with your fellow musicians at that point in your education. This new series is designed to fill that gap, and allow keyboard students the opportunity to show off a little and have fun with their musical colleagues at school. Some of the pieces are humorous and some serious, and there are references to works and styles from the classical canon.”
Click here for more information from Hal Leonard Corporation.
September, 2008 – Naxos releases Volume IV of Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Concert Orchestra playing orchestral music of Leroy Anderson, including the Irish and Scottish Suites, Alma Mater and A Christmas Festival.
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September, 2008 – Another new Naxos release features Leonard Slatkin leading the Nashville Symphony Orchestra in Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, with orchestrations compiled by Mr. Slatkin. Also included on the disc is Franz Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1, with the exciting young pianist, Peng Peng.
These eclectic selections, some more outlandish than others, invite us to revel in the high spirits and ingenuity of no fewer than fifteen different composers. The Chinese pianist PENG PENG, who was fourteen at the time of this recording, has won many competitions, including first prize in the 2002 China National Youth Piano Competition.
Click here for more information from Naxos.
October, 2008 – Leonard Slatkin leads the Royal Philharmonic on a tour of the Far East, featuring performances in Shanghai, Macau, Taipei, Taichung and Singapore. His first Asian tour with the RPO will include works of Walton, Elgar, Vaughan Williams, Copland and Mahler.
August 8, 2008 – Leonard Slatkin conducts the World Premiere of Chen Yi’s Olympic Fire, a BBC commission, whose inaugural performance coincides with the opening of the XXIX Olympiad in Beijing, People’s Republic of China. The program also features works of British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, in commemoration of the anniversary of his death 50 years ago, as well as Sergei Rachmaninov’s Variations on a Theme of Paganini, with pianist Olga Kern.
July 18, 2008 – Leonard Slatkin replaces Maestro James Levine in Tanglewood, conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra in a program including Mahler Symphony No. 1 and John Harbison’s Symphony No. 5. Mr. Slatkin had previously been scheduled to lead the BSO in the Saturday evening program, performing works by Vaughn Williams, Copland and the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with Midori.
June 2008 - Naxos releases Volume III of Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Concert Orchestra playing the first complete cycle of Leroy Anderson’s orchestral works, including the well-known “Sleigh Ride.”
Click here for more information from Naxos.
June 2008 - Leonard Slatkin conducts his final concerts as Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra, including three performances of a concert version of Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin,” an NSO debut by exciting young cellist Sol Gabetta, and a Gala Farewell featuring Yo-Yo Ma, world renowned cellist and long-time friend and collaborator of Maestro Slatkin.
May 9, 2008 - The Speakers Committee of the National Press Club, Washington, DC, features Leonard Slatkin, who shares with the luncheon attendees: "Reflections and Forethought - 12 Years in DC and Beyond."
April 30, 2008 - Members of The Philharmonic Orchestra of the Maryland Classic Youth Orchestras welcome Leonard Slatkin to Strathmore Hall to lead their rehearsal and lend his expertise as they prepare for their season concert.
April 29, 2008 - Leonard Slatkin conducts the National Chamber Players of Washington DC in a concert featuring Mahler Symphony No. 4 on behalf of the Autism Speaks organization.
April 2008 - Naxos releases Volume II of Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Concert Orchestra playing the first complete cycle of Leroy Anderson's orchestral works.
Click here for more information from Naxos.
February 10, 2008 - Leonard Slatkin, Composer Joan Tower and the Nashville Symphony Orchestra celebrate the announcement of their winning three Grammy Awards for the Naxos recording, “Made in America” - Best Classical Album, Best Orchestral Performance and Best Classical Contemporary Composition.
February 4,2008 - Leonard Slatkin, Artist-in-Residence at American University, hosts a panel discussion at the University featuring distinguished members from the corporate and private sector entitled: “Sound Investments: How Music Shapes Our Lives.”
January 2008 - On the Naxos label, Leonard Slatkin conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra playing the first complete cycle of Leroy Anderson’s orchestra music. Volume I is now available.
Click here for more information from Naxos.
Mr. Slatkin is represented exclusively by
Columbia Artists Management LLC