Cincinnati May Festival closes 150th season with a glorious Mahler 8

James Conlon and the Cincinnati Symphony

Mahler's “Symphony of a Thousand” in Music Hall

Briana Hunter, Kate Lindsey and Sarah Wegener

By Sam Jacobson, 03 June 2023

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“music that gets your blood flowing from bar one”

Reviewed at Music Hall, Cincinnati on 27 May 2023

Mahler, Symphony no. 8 in E flat major "Symphony of a Thousand"

Sarah Wegener, Soprano

Camilla Tilling, Soprano

Lauren Snouffer, Soprano

Kate Lindsey, Mezzo-soprano

Briana Hunter, Mezzo-soprano

Barry Banks, Tenor

José Antonio López, Baritone

Christian Immler, Baritone

May Festival Chorus

The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus

May Festival Youth Chorus

Cincinnati Boy Choir

Cincinnati Youth Choir

Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

James Conlon, Conductor

Red rocks, interstellar calls, exotic birds... in Cincinnati

Sam Jacobson, 1st March

The Cincinnati Symphony vividly brings to life sprawling vistas of the American West in a stellar performance of Messiaen’s vast Des Canyons aux étoiles…

****1

Requiem, eternal light and hummingbirds at Cincinnati May Festival

Sam Jacobson, 25th May

The Cincinnati May Festival pairs a deeply-felt Mozart Requiem with a new work for chorus and orchestra by Julia Adolphe.

****1

Remarkable survey of 20th-century works by the Cincinnati Symphony

Sam Jacobson, 29th October

The Cincinnati Symphony thoughtfully illuminates a diverse cross-section of 20th-century repertoire with conductor Michael Francis and pianist Behzod Abduraimov.

****1

Death and renewal: Mahler in Cincinnati

Cameron Kelsall, 27th March

Conductor Matthias Pintscher and soloists Michelle DeYoung and Sean Panikker offered a moving but uneven interpretation of Das Lied von der Erde.

***11

Langrée conducts Cincinnati Symphony in folk-inspired concert

Sam Jacobson, 26th February

The CSO packed much excitement into an hour-long program, featuring folk-inspired works of Walker and Kodály, along with the irresistible charm of Shostakovich’s Second Piano Concerto.

***11

You Have the Right to Remain Silent: Anthony McGill in Cincinnati

Timothy Robson, 21st November

Music Director Louis Langrée leads a program of Schubert, Julia Perry's Homunculus CF and Anthony Davis's You Have the Right to Remain Silent, featuring Anthony McGill as an outstanding clarinet soloist.

***11

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Sam Jacobson

Sam Jacobson has been writing for Bachtrack since 2015 and is currently in Pittsburgh, having previously lived throughout the Midwest. A keen traveler, he endeavors to see all the great orchestras and opera houses across the US and abroad. Outside of music, he works as a software engineer. He also maintains a blog which can be read here.

Cincinnati May Festival closes 150th season with a glorious “Symphony of a Thousand”