Orchestra Name: Berkeley Symphony

Title of Event/Program: Symphonic III: Enduring Stories

Day of Week, Month, Date, and Event Time: Sunday, June 4, 2023 | 4pm

Brief description of event: No work is as lush as Rimsky-Korsakov's masterpiece Scheherazade, as Berkeley Symphony weaves and performs three tales of its own based upon strong women. Scheherazade's 1,001 tales changed her life and the lives of all those around her and Rimsky-Korsakov's vivid and imaginative orchestration is a perfect pairing with Carlos Simon's Portrait of a Queen which, through spoken word and music, tells the history of Black America from the vantage point of a strong black female narrator. We are also thrilled to present the world premiere of a new work entitled Lotus Prayer by Chinese-born composer Xi Wang. An evocative evening of colorful and powerful works elevating the musical portraits of trailblazing women.

Event location: Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley

Name of conductor: Joseph Young, Music Director

Repertoire Summary

XI WANG Lotus Prayer World Premiere

Lotus Prayer was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation

CARLOS SIMON Portrait of a Queen

NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Scheherazade