(PRINCETON, NJ) — Kenneth Bean, the (PSO) Princeton Symphony Orchestra newly appointed Deputy Conductor Georg and Joyce Albers-Schonberg, makes its stage debut with performances on Saturday February 5 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday February 6 at 4:00 p.m. Rising star violinist Alexis Kenney also made his PSO debut with his interpretation of the Violin Concerto by Jean Sibelius. Also on the program is the Ballade in A minor, Op. 33 and Antonin Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, “From the New World”. Both concerts take place at the orchestra’s home, the Richardson Auditorium, on the campus of Princeton University.
All attendees are required to wear masks at all times inside the building, be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and must have received boosters, if eligible. Tickets are available through the PAHO website.
Music Director Edward T. Cone Rossen Milanov is happy to reunite with the orchestra in the Richardson Auditorium and see Mr. Bean open the 2022 spring season. He says, “We call Richardson home. It is a very special and intimate concert hall with a wonderful sense of history, and our musicians produce exceptional sound here. I’m delighted to have Kenneth Bean as my artistic partner, and I know he can expect a warm welcome from our clients.”
Kenneth Bean is a bandleader in the Philadelphia area, as well as an active freelance trumpeter. He received a Bachelor of Music from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and a Masters in Music Education from Jackson State University. He was appointed Georg and Joyce Albers-Schoberg Assistant Conductor of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra in October 2021 and, in this capacity, is conductor of the Youth Orchestra of Central Jersey’s Symphonic Orchestra. He has performed as a guest conductor at the Marywood String Festival, the Berks County Orchestra Festival and the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. His former positions as Music Director/Conductor include the Junior String Philharmonic of the Lehigh Valley, the Young People’s Philharmonic of the Lehigh Valley and the Luzerne Music Center. He is currently assistant conductor of Symphony in C, conductor of the Symphony in C Youth Orchestra in Collingswood, NJ, and director/conductor of the Young Musicians Debut Orchestra of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Music Institute.
Winner of a 2016 Avery Fisher Career Fellowship and a 2020 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award, violinist Alexis Kenney is also comfortable creating experimental programs and commissioning new works, and performing solo with major orchestras in the United States and abroad. During the 2021-22 season, in addition to his appearance with the PSO, he made his debut as a soloist with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Orchester de la Suisse Romande, Virginia Symphony, Reno Philharmonic, Eugene Symphony and the New Haven Symphony, and returns to perform with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, California Symphony Orchestra and Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra. Winner of the 2013 Concert Artists Guild Competition and winner of the 2012 Menuhin Competition, he was presented by Musical America, strings Review, and The New York Times, and wrote for The Strade. Born in Palo Alto, California in 1994, Alexi graduated from the New England Conservatory in Boston, where he graduated as an artist as a student of Miriam Fried and Donald Weilerstein. He plays a violin made in London by Stefan-Peter Greiner in 2009 and a bow by François-Nicolas Voirin.
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The Ballad of Coleridge-Taylor was written in 1898 for the Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester, England, at the suggestion of Edward Elgar, an early proponent of Coleridge-Taylor’s compositional prowess. Sibelius’ Solo Violin Concerto is the perfect showcase for a soloist’s virtuosity with its intricate passages and cadenzas, and Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony provides a window into the composer’s interpretations of musical elements he encountered during visits to the United States in the late 19th century. .
Tickets for the February 5 and 6 performances at the Richardson Auditorium start at $20, youth (ages 5-17) are half price and can be ordered from the Princeton Symphony Orchestra website at princetonsymphony.org or by calling 609-497-0020.
Health and security – In addition to adhering to the New Jersey Department of Health’s COVID-19 guidelines, the Princeton Symphony Orchestra is working closely with our venues to ensure your safety and comfort. Princeton University has a strict visiting policy in place. There will be a vaccination and booster requirement without exception. For more details and to keep up to date with the latest COVID safety requirements, please visit our Health and Safety webpage.
Accessibility – The Princeton Symphony Orchestra is committed to ensuring that all programs are accessible to everyone, working with venues to provide the necessary services. Contact ADA Coordinator Kitanya Khateri with questions about available services at [email protected] or 609 497-0020. Note: Some services require at least two weeks notice to arrange.
the Princeton Symphony Orchestra (PSO) is a cultural centerpiece of the Princeton community and one of New Jersey’s premier music organizations, a position established through performances of beloved masterpieces, innovative music by living composers and a vast network of educational programs offered free of charge to students in the region. Led by Edward T. Cone Music Director, Rossen Milanov, the PSO presents orchestral, pop and chamber music programs of the highest artistic quality, supported by lectures and related events that complement the concert experience. Its flagship summer program, the Princeton Festival, brings an array of performing arts and artists to Princeton for several weeks in June. Through PSO BRAVO!, the orchestra produces large-scale, impactful educational programs in partnership with schools and local arts organizations that result in students attending a live orchestral performance. The PSO receives tremendous support from the Princeton community and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, consistently earning the NJSCA’s highest honor. Recognition for residencies and engaging concerts came from the National Endowment for the Arts, and the PSO’s commitment to new music was recognized with an ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming and a Copland Fund Award. The only independent, professional orchestra to call Princeton home, the PSO performs in the historic Richardson Auditorium on the campus of Princeton University.
