NEW WORLD SYMPHONY PRESENTS
TAKING THE PRIZE: A PULITZER CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION,
WITH PERFORMANCES OF PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING COMPOSITIONS BY
AARON COPLAND, PAUL MORAVEC, AND STEVE REICH
Performance to be live-streamed for free
Left: New World Symphony Fellows; Right: 100 Years of The Pulitzer Prizes
MIAMI BEACH, FL (October 31, 2016) — New World Symphony, America’s Orchestral Academy (NWS), commemorates 100 years of the Pulitzer Prize with Taking the Prize: A Pulitzer Centennial Celebration, featuring performances of Prize-winning works by Aaron Copland, Paul Moravec, and Steve Reich on Sunday, November 20 at 2:00 p.m. at the New World Center. Performed by NWS Fellows, this live-streamed chamber music program features Aaron Copland’s Suite from Appalachian Spring (1945 winner), Paul Moravec’s Tempest Fantasy (2004 winner), and Steve Reich’s Double Sextet (2009 winner). In addition to these performances, the evening will feature a discussion with Mr. Moravec, who will provide insight into his Prize-winning work. The concert is presented in partnership with The Pulitzer Prizes as part of the Pulitzer organization’s Campfires Initiative, a collection of grassroots centennial celebrations around the country.
All tickets are $15 and available from NWS by phone at (305) 673-3331; online at NWS.edu; or in person at the New World Center box office. The live video webcast is free to stream via the NWS web site (NWS.edu/Pulitzer), and the Pulitzer Centennial web site (pulitzer.org/centennial) will also provide a link to this webcast.
Now considered an American classic, Aaron Copland’s ballet Appalachian Spring won the Pulitzer Prize in 1945 and is here performed as a suite in its original 1944 chamber instrumentation. Paul Moravec’s Tempest Fantasy won nearly 60 years later and is described by the composer as “a musical meditation on various characters, moods, situations, and lines of text from [his] favorite Shakespeare play, The Tempest.” Recognized as one of this country’s leading composers, Steve Reich won the Prize in 2009 with his Double Sextet, the most recent piece on the program and an adventurous experiment in layered sound. Double Sextet is performed not only in honor of the Pulitzer Prize in its 100th year, but also in honor of Mr. Reich, whose 80th birthday is being celebrated by artists and ensembles nationwide. Prior to the performance of the Tempest Fantasy, Mr. Moravec will discuss the work on-stage with Michael Linville, NWS Dean of Chamber Music and Fellow Development, and for streaming audiences, The Pulitzer Prizes will present a special video at intermission tracing the history of the Prize.
A pioneer in the way music is taught, presented, and experienced, the New World Symphony also maintains a commitment to the continued development of the American repertoire. Through regular commissions and performances of music by contemporary American composers, NWS increases the canon and builds a legacy for recent American works. In addition to special programs like the Pulitzer Centennial Celebration, NWS highlights contemporary music in its annual New Work and Sounds of the Times concerts.
The Pulitzer Prizes, which are administered at Columbia University, were established by Joseph Pulitzer and first awarded in 1917 for work done in 1916. In January 2016, the Pulitzer Prize Board launched a centennial celebration of the Prizes that focuses on former Pulitzer winners, their Prize-winning work, and the journalistic and cultural values that the Prizes represent. The Campfires Initiative, of which this NWS event is a part, is a collaboration between the Pulitzer Prize Board and the Federation of State Humanities Councils.
# # #
Sunday, November 20 at 2:00 p.m.
New World Center, Miami, FL
TAKING THE PRIZE: A PULITZER CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
Presented by the New World Symphony and The Pulitzer Prizes
Chamber Music Series
New World Symphony Fellows
PAUL MORAVEC Tempest Fantasy (2004 Pulitzer Prize Winner)*
STEVE REICH Double Sextet (2009 Pulitzer Prize Winner)
COPLAND Suite from Appalachian Spring (1944 original orchestration; 1945 Pulitzer Prize Winner)
*Preceded by an on-stage discussion with the composer
All tickets are $15 and available from NWS by phone at (305) 673-3331; online at NWS.edu; or in person at the New World Center box office. The live video webcast is free to stream via the NWS web site (NWS.edu/Pulitzer), and the Pulitzer Centennial web site (pulitzer.org/centennial) will also provide a link to this webcast.
