Listen to 'Carnegie Hall Live' at 7 p.m. Tuesdays on YourClassical MPR

Carnegie Hall Live returns to YourClassical MPR for another season of stellar performances by major artists such as Sphinx Virtuosi and the Los Angeles Philharmonic with Gustavo Dudamel. This specially curated series, hosted by Jeff Spurgeon, features performances by some of classical music's most esteemed artists in an array of styles and repertoire, all captured live at New York City's world-famous concert hall.

Here’s what’s coming up in the WQXR-produced series, which airs from 7 to 9 p.m. central each Tuesday through Aug. 29. (Note: On-demand audio is not available for this series.)

June 6: Daniil Trifonov

Performance from Carnegie Hall Opening Night, 22-23 Season

Carnegie Hall’s 2022–23 season kicked off with the Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin. The ensemble simmers and bursts to life with Maurice Ravel’s orchestral wonder La Valse. One of the modern greats, pianist Daniil Trifonov, joins in Franz Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1. Chasqui is an engrossing movement from an early Gabriela Lena Frank work, called “more relevant than ever” by the Philadelphia Inquirer. The evening of musical celebration ends in uplifting fashion with Dvořák’s Eighth Symphony.

Philadelphia Orchestra
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor
Daniil Trifonov, piano *

MAURICE RAVEL La Valse
FRANZ LISZT Piano Concerto No. 1 *
GABRIELA LENA FRANK Chasqui from Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout, for string orchestra
ANTONIN DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 8

June 13: São Paulo Symphony Orchestra

Performance from Oct. 14, 2022

In celebration of the 200th anniversary of Brazil’s independence, the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra made its Carnegie Hall debut with a program fitting the historic occasion. The concert begins with Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s hugely popular Scheherazade, a symphonic suite inspired by the legendary heroine and folklore of One Thousand and One Nights. The second half of the performance treats audiences to the music of essential Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos. A majestic prelude from one of his Bach-meets-Brazil imaginings opens the proceedings. Harmonica master José Staneck, one of the preeminent players of this repertoire, maximizes the lyrical beauty of the Harmonica Concerto. The São Paulo Symphony Choir then joins for the simmering and ultimately explosive Chôros No. 10.

São Paulo Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop, conductor of honor
José Staneck, harmonica *
São Paulo Symphony Choir **

NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade
HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS Prelúdio from Bachianas brasileiras No. 4
HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS Harmonica Concerto *
HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS Chôros No. 10 **

June 20: Los Angeles Philharmonic

Performance from Oct. 26, 2022

The Los Angeles Philharmonic performs a program of music from the Americas, including a New York premiere by Gabriela Ortiz, whom Gustavo Dudamel has called “one of the most talented composers in the world.” Her work’s glorious brass-and-percussion opening is reminiscent of Aaron Copland’s iconic Fanfare for the Common Man, which is proudly quoted in Copland’s Symphony No. 3, also featured on this triumphant program. A second premiere rounds out the celebration of music: Arturo Márquez’s Fandango for violin and orchestra, featuring violinist Anne Akiko Meyers, who invited the great composer to create this virtuosic, rhythmically charged showcase.

Los Angeles Philharmonic
Gustavo Dudamel, music and artistic director
Anne Akiko Meyers, violin *

GABRIELA ORTIZ Kauyumari 
ARTURO MÁRQUEZ Fandango for Violin and Orchestra *
AARON COPLAND Symphony No. 3
(Encore) AARON COPLAND "Celebration After Billy's Capture" from Billy the Kid Suite

July 4: Sphinx Virtuosi

Performance from Oct. 13, 2022

Sphinx Virtuosi is the most prestigious group of musicians to represent the magnificently impactful Sphinx Organization. The 2021 Carnegie Hall performance by these “top-notch string players” received an extended standing ovation for music-making described as “splendid,” “vibrant” and “arresting” by the New York Times. In its anticipated return, the ensemble premieres exciting new works by Valerie Coleman, Jessie Montgomery and Xavier Foley alongside music by Heitor Villa-Lobos, Carlos Simon and Ludwig van Beethoven. Such a varied program is characteristic of Sphinx Virtuosi’s insightful, ongoing exploration of the classical canon’s evolution. 

Sphinx Virtuosi
Amaryn Olmeda, violin
Hannah White, violin
Tommy Mesa, cello
Xavier Foley, bass

HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS Bachianas Brasileiras No. 9
VALERIE COLEMAN Tracing Visions
CARLOS SIMON Between Worlds
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Divided 
XAVIER FOLEY An Ode to Our Times 
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Finale from Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 9 in A Major (Bridgetower) (arr. for string orchestra by Rubén Rengel)

July 11: Brentano String Quartet

Performance from Dec. 1, 2022

“An ensemble of exceptional insight” (the Telegraph) and the “talk of the chamber music community” (Kansas City Star), the Brentano String Quartet performs masterworks with reverence and, with an admirable balance of creativity and restraint, achieves the “marvelous feat of bringing novel qualities to standard repertoire” (Classical Source). In its return to Zankel Hall, the quartet performs a piece by Joseph Haydn, the “father of the string quartet”; Fanny Mendelssohn’s wonderful, sole composition for string quartet; and an idiosyncratic Béla Bartók quartet that demands attention.

Brentano String Quartet
Mark Steinberg, violin
Serena Canin, violin
Misha Amory, viola
Nina Lee, cello

JOSEPH HAYDN String Quartet No. 4 in B-flat Major
BÉLA BARTÓK String Quartet No. 5
FANNY MENDLESSOHN String Quartet in E-flat Major

July 18: Cleveland Orchestra

Performance from Jan. 18, 2023

The Cleveland Orchestra, “one of the finest ensembles in the nation and the world” (the New York Times), returns with a program that highlights the versatility and incredible dynamic command of a top orchestra. The concert opens with a bold juxtaposition between the first and second Viennese schools, contrasting the dense, snaking harmonies of Alban Berg’s Lyric Suite with Franz Schubert’s passionate Symphony No. 8, which, although left unfinished at just two movements, remains one of his most enduringly popular works. The second half of the concert is a journey unto itself, as the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus and world-renowned soloists join in Franz Schubert’s dramatic Mass No. 6.

Cleveland Orchestra
Franz Welser-Möst, music director and conductor
Joélle Harvey, soprano
Daryl Freedman, mezzo-soprano
Julian Prégardien, tenor
Martin Mitterrutzner, tenor
Dashon Burton, bass
Cleveland Orchestra Chorus
Lisa Wong, chorus director

ALBAN BERG Lyric Suite
FRANZ SCHUBERT Symphony No. 8 (Unfinished)
FRANZ SCHUBERT Mass No. 6 in E-flat Major

July 25: Anne-Sophie Mutter and Mutter Virtuosi

Performance from Feb. 3, 2023

Anne-Sophie Mutter, the “undisputed queen of violin-playing” (the Times, London), returns with the Mutter Virtuosi, an exclusive, constantly evolving ensemble of soloists. Enjoy exemplary string music that includes the Carnegie Hall premiere of an uplifting Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, concerto as well as classics by Antonio Vivaldi —including The Four Seasons, one of the repertoire’s most beloved works. Adding to the excitement is the New York premiere of Unsuk Chin’s virtuosic violin duo Gran Cadenza, composed for Mutter, with thrilling violin dialogue that weaves between cooperation and eruptions of near combat. Both the program and the ensemble itself exemplify Mutter’s dedication to timeless works and commitment to the future of classical music.

Anne-Sophie Mutter, violin and leader
Mutter Virtuosi

ANTONIO VIVALDI Concerto for Four Violins, Strings, and Continuo
UNSUK CHIN Gran Cadenza for Two Violins
JOSEPH BOLOGNE Violin Concerto No. 2
ANTONIO VIVALDI The Four Seasons

Aug. 1: Vienna Philharmonic

Performance from March 3, 2023

The world-renowned Vienna Philharmonic opens its three-concert residency with a program of Arnold Schoenberg and Richard Strauss. The concert begins with Verklärte Nacht, a powerful early creation by one of Vienna’s most influential 20th-century composers. The second half of the program features Strauss’ tone poem Eine Alpensinfonie, in which an eventful Alpine mountain ascent is depicted across 22 continuous musical sections.

Vienna Philharmonic
Christian Thielemann, conductor

ARNOLD SCHOENBERG Verklärte Nacht
RICHARD STRAUSS Eine Alpensinfonie
Encore: JOSEPH HELLMESBERGER JR. Entr'acte-Valse

Aug. 8: Mitsuko Uchida

Performance from March 9, 2023

Mitsuko Uchida is an incomparable interpreter of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. From her deeply studied readings and performances to her leadership of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra from the keyboard, there is no better way to experience this repertoire. The program boasts two of Mozart’s late piano concertos, each of them a standout work even among the master’s timeless oeuvre. Also featured is Arnold Schoenberg’s Kammersymphonie No. 1, a work of constant motion and flowing interplay.

Mahler Chamber Orchestra
Mitsuko Uchida, piano and director
José Maria Blumenschein, concertmaster and leader

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Piano Concerto No. 25
ARNOLD SCHOENBERG Kammersymphonie No. 1
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Piano Concerto No. 27
ARNOLD SCHOENBERG Langsam from Sechs kleine Klavierstücke No. 2

Aug. 15: Jeanine De Bique and Concerto Köln

Performance from March 28, 2023

Internationally renowned soprano Jeanine De Bique makes her Zankel Hall debut alongside opera and early music ensemble Concerto Köln. The program features music from De Bique’s acclaimed debut album, Mirrors, which explores emotionally charged arias composed for heroines such as Cleopatra, Rodelinda and Alcina. By pairing and juxtaposing George Frideric Handel’s famous works with arias written by his contemporaries for these same female protagonists, the insightful project reveals the deep, multifaceted nature of these characters, even when derived from a single libretto. De Bique’s riveting interpretive gifts make these contrasting musical visions all the more profound.

Concerto Köln
Jeanine De Bique, soprano

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL Sinfonia from Partenope
CARL HEINRICH GRAUN "Risolvere non oso" from Rodelinda, regina de' Longobardi (New York Premiere)
HANDEL "Ritorna, o caro e dolce mio tesoro" from Rodelinda, regina de' Longobardi
LEONARDO VINCI Sinfonia from La Rosmira fedele (Partenope)
GRAUN "L'empio rigor del fato" from Rodelinda, regina de' Longobardi (New York Premiere)
HANDEL "Ballo: Entrée des songes agréables" from Alcina
HANDEL "Ah, Ruggiero crudel . . . Ombre pallide" from Alcina
HANDEL Selections from Suite from Rodrigo
GENNARO MANNA "Chi può dir che rea son io" from Achille in Sciro
HANDEL "M'hai resa infelice" from Deidamia
HANDEL Passacaille from Sonata No. 4
HANDEL "Che sento? Oh dio! ... Se pietà di me non senti" from Giulio Cesare in Egitto
HANDEL "Ballo: Entrée des Songes agréables effrayés — Combat des Songes funestes et agréables" from Ariodante
GRAUN "Tra le procelle assorto" from Cleopatra e Cesare
Encores:
HANDEL "Tu del ciel ministro eletto" from Il trionfo del Tempo e della Verità
ANDRÉ TANKER "Morena Osha" (arr. Michael Zephyrine)
GRAUN "Tra le procelle assorto" from Cleopatra e Cesare (extract)
RICCARDO BROSCHI "Mi restano le lagrime" from L’isola d’Alcina

Aug. 22: Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra

Performance from May 9, 2023

The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra returns to Carnegie Hall under the exceptional leadership of Susanna Mälkki, a conductor revered for “the absolute integrity of her music-making” (Chicago Tribune) and ability to “invest anything she touches with persuasive grandeur” (San Francisco Chronicle). Mälkki’s critically acclaimed Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage debut came in 2022, when she lent her talents to conducting the New York Philharmonic, and it’s a thrill to see her lead her nation’s Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra in this all-Finnish program. Hear masterworks by Jean Sibelius and a transportive piece by Kaija Saariaho — an ideal showcase for endlessly creative flute virtuoso Claire Chase.

Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
Susanna Mälkki, chief conductor
Claire Chase, flute *

JEAN SIBELIUS Lemminkäinen's Return from Lemminkäinen Suite
KAIJA SAARIAHO Aile du Songe *
JEAN SIBELIUS Symphony No. 2
Encores:
JEAN SIBELIUS Valse Triste
JEAN SIBELIUS Finlandia

Aug. 29: National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America

Performance from July 29, 2022

The extraordinary young musicians of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America return to Carnegie Hall under the direction of acclaimed conductor Daniel Harding. The future of the country’s orchestral tradition is displayed in a program of favorites, including Gustav Mahler’s magnificent Symphony No. 5 and Edward Elgar’s elegiac Cello Concerto, featuring Alisa Weilerstein.

National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America
Daniel Harding, conductor
Alisa Weilerstein, cello *

EDWARD ELGAR Cello Concerto
GUSTAV MAHLER Symphony No. 5
Encore: JOHN WILLIAMS Adventures on Earth from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial