El Salon Mexico

Evening Music | May 6, 2010
"A Popular Type Dance Hall in Mexico City" is the misleadingly dry subtitle for this vivacious and popular piece by Aaron Copland. Leonard Bernstein loved it so much, he even arranged it for piano (so he could perform it himself, of course). Tonight Bernstein cedes the spotlight (but not the podium) to the New York Philharmonic in Copland's "El Salon Mexico."

We'll pair the Copland with a more intimate piece by Spanish Baroque composer Fernando Sor (the "Father of the Classical Guitar"). Guitarist David Starobin performs Sor's lovely "Fantaisie villageois." And in keeping with the theme, we'll enjoy Pablo Sarasate's wildly popular (not the least among violinists) "Carmen" Suite for violin and orchestra (based on themes from Bizet's opera). Violinist Akiko Suwanai is joined by the Budapest Festival Orchestra; Ivan Fischer conducts.

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