Here’s a look at the guest conductors leading the Phoenix Symphony in Michael Christie’s final season
Sarah Hicks
Opening night brings guest conductor Sarah Hicks. The principal conductor for pops and presentations for the Minnesota Orchestra, Hicks has toured with Sting, Ben Folds and Smokey Robinson. She’ll conduct one of Symphony Magazine’s emerging artists to watch, Elena Urioste, performing Beethoven’s “Violin Concerto in D Major.” The program also features Leonard Bernstein — Overture to “Candide” and Symphonic Dances from “West Side Story” — and Brahms’ “Hungarian Dances Nos. 5 & 6.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20; 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 22. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org. Also: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21. Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $33-$53. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Tito Muñoz
The current conductor for the Opéra National de Lorraine in France, the Queens native previously served as assistant conductor for the Cleveland Orchestra and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. He’ll lead the symphony in Barber’s “The School for Scandal” and Shostakovich’s “Symphony No. 10,” a piece reflective of the modern Russian school after the death of Joseph Stalin. Muñoz also conducts Benjamin Hochman, the winner of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant for 2011, in the jazz-influenced “Concerto in G Major” by Ravel.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 18; 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 19; 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 22. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony .org.
Ignat Solzhenitsyn
The former music director of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and principal guest conductor of the Moscow Symphony Orchestra is the son of Nobel Prize-winning author Alexander Solzhenitsyn. He conducts the music from Stravinsky’s ballet “Petrushka” and Bart�k’s “Viola Concerto,” the composer’s final work. The Bart�k piece will feature violist Nokuthula Ngwenyama, who won the Primrose International Viola Competition at 17 and was chosen as “Face to Watch” in the Los Angeles Times.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 8; 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 10. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org. Also: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 9. Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $33-$53. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Thomas Wilkins
The principal guest conductor at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles as well as the music director of the Omaha Symphony, Wilkins holds the distinction of being the first Black conductor to hold that title at the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He leads the Phoenix Symphony and one of the world’s preeminent violinists, Miriam Fried, in a concert that features Tchaikovsky’s “Symphony No. 5,” Márquez’s “Danz�n No. 2” and Brahms’ “Violin Concerto.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 31; 11 a.m. Friday, Feb. 1; 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org.
Andreas Delfs
Conductor Laureate of the Milwaukee Symphony, Delfs was instrumental in that orchestra’s rise to national prominence. He’s also worked with many of the world’s most renowned musicians, including Emanuel Ax, Joshua Bell, Yo-Yo Ma and Renée Fleming. In addition to conducting Anne Akiko Meyers in one of the most demanding concertos in the repertoire, Barber’s “Violin Concerto,” he’ll conduct both Meyers and symphony concertmaster Steven Moeckel in Bach’s “Double Violin Concerto.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 7; 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 9. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org.
Daniel Meyer
The music director of the Asheville (N.C.) Symphony and Erie (Penn.) Philharmonic is credited with having reinvigorated both orchestras with innovative programs. He leads the Phoenix Symphony and Van Cliburn Piano Competition finalist Chu-Fang Huang in Saint-Sa�ns’ “Piano Concerto No. 2.” The evening’s program also features Dvorák’s “Symphony No. 6,” among the Czech composer’s first large symphonic works to bring home international attention, and Theofanidis’ “Rainbow Body.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28. Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $33-$53. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Mei-Ann Chen
The music director of the Chicago Sinfonietta, Chen made her first guest-conducting appearance with the symphony during the 2010/11 season. Symphony CEO Jim Ward says, “Any time Mei-Ann Chen comes into town, it’s just electric. She has a unique conducting style. She has committed the entire score to memory and conducts from the podium without a score. She’s just a firecracker.” She leads the symphony in Elgar’s “Cello Concerto,” Dvorák’s “Symphony No. 7” and An-Lun Huang’s “Saibei Dance.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March. 7; 11 a.m. Friday, March 8; 8 p.m. Saturday, March 9. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony .org.
Andrew Constantine
Described by Classic FM as “a rising star of classical music” and the Independent as “electrifying,” Constantine makes his debut with the Phoenix Symphony. The program includes Rachmaninoff’s “Symphony No. 2” and Mozart’s “Clarinet Concerto in A Major,” which will feature clarinetist David Shifrin, one of only two wind players to have been awarded the Avery Fisher Prize since the award’s inception in 1974.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 11; 8 p.m. Saturday, April 13. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org.
Edwin Outwater
The music director of the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony in Ontario, Canada, conducts the final classical performance of the season. He leads the symphony in one of Prokofiev’s most popular works, his “Symphony No. 5.” The program also features William Wolfram, the bronze medalist at the Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in Moscow and silver medalist at both the William Kapell and Naumburg International piano competitions, performing Liszt’s “Piano Concerto No. 2.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 16; 8 p.m. Saturday, May 18. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org. Also: 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 17. Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $33-$53. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Prices subject to change.
