Teddy Leads Adams & Beethoven

Join Curtis Symphony Orchestra and Grammy Award-winning conductor-composer Teddy Abrams (’08) for an afternoon of vivid symphonic storytelling. The program opens with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8, showcasing the composer’s knack for mischief and irony, complete with a witty imitation of a metronome and a tip of the hat to Haydn. Tania León’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Stride, written to honor the legacy of suffragist Susan B. Anthony, follows. Composed for the New York Philharmonic’s project marking the centennial of the 19th Amendment, it combines the sounds of León’s Cuban American heritage with a dark, restless energy.

The afternoon culminates with John Adams’ Harmonielehre. A modern symphonic classic since its 1985 premiere, this exhilarating work marked Adams’ breakthrough as one of today’s most influential composers. Inspired by a vivid dream, its three movements surge with pulsing rhythms and shimmering waves of color in celebration of the composer’s 80th birthday.