Formerly The Londontowne Symphony Orchestra
In a study of contrasts, the Naptown Symphony’s Season Opening Concert will begin with Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol and Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme, the latter featuring soloist Diana Curtis on cello. Then the audience will be treated to five pieces that celebrate the rich musical repertoire of Latin America in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.
Featured composers are Gabriela Ortiz, Mexico; Ernesto Lecuona, Cuba; Astor Piazzolla, Argentina; Carlos Chávez, Mexico; and American Leonard Bernstein.
Music Director Anna Binneweg conducts the Naptown Philharmonic, the orchestra you know and love, in this exciting start to the 2024-2025 season, A New Chapter Begins.
Soloist Dr. Diana Curtis will perform the stunning Variations on a Rococo Theme by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Dr. Curtis is first chair of the Naptown Philharmonic’s cello section and has been a music educator and professional musician for over 20 years.
Program
Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908), Capriccio Espagnol
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893), Variations on a Rococo Theme
Intermission
Gabriela Ortiz (born 1964), Mexico, Kauyumari (Blue Deer in the language of the Huichol people of Mexico)
Ernesto Lecuona (1895-1963), Cuba, Siboney
Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992), Argentina, Libertango —
with interpretation by talented tango dancers Aja Fenn and Gabriel Medeiros of Fábrica Tango
Carlos Chávez (1899-1978), Mexico, Symphony No. 2, Sinfonía India
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990), Mambo from West Side Story
About Diana Curtis
Cellist Diana Curtis maintains an active career as a freelance musician and strings teacher. Since moving to the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area in 2003, Dr. Curtis has performed with the Annapolis Symphony, the Maryland Symphony, the Harrisburg Symphony, and the York Symphony, and is frequently a guest performer in recitals and concerts around the D.C. and Baltimore area. She is currently principal cellist of the Naptown Philharmonic Orchestra (formerly the Londontowne Symphony Orchestra) in Annapolis, Md., and has served as principal cellist with the Gettysburg Chamber Orchestra and the Shippensburg Summer Festival Orchestra. She also regularly performs with the Chesapeake Strings and Canterbury Strings chamber ensembles.
In addition to performing, Dr. Curtis is a sought-after music educator, adjudicator, and clinician. She has been a strings specialist for Anne Arundel County Public Schools for over 10 years, and currently is the Orchestra Director at Crofton High School in Anne Arundel County, Md. Dr. Curtis has served as Lecturer in Music Lessons at Messiah University and has taught string pedagogy courses at both The Catholic University of America and Messiah University. She has also served as a guest conductor for honors orchestras in Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Dr. Curtis earned her B.M. in cello performance and music education from West Virginia University, and her M.M. and D.M.A. in cello performance from The Catholic University of America. Her principal teachers were William Skidmore, Robert Newkirk, and Michael Mermagen.
When not performing or teaching, Dee likes to stay active. She is an exercise enthusiast, enjoys cooking, loves discovering new recipes, and tends to clean whenever she realizes that she is standing still. Dr. Curtis resides in Severna Park, Md, with her husband, Bill, their son, Calvin, and their two Shiba Inus.
Our annual family-friendly “Halloween Spooktacular!” held just days before Halloween, is a great way to introduce kids to the beauty and fun of orchestral music.
Join us at Riva Trace Baptist Church as we combine the magic of Edvard Grieg in the Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, along with haunting themes and spooky tunes you know from blockbuster classics like Batman, The Addams Family, Harry Potter and Hook.
Other holiday favorites include Thriller and Monster Mash!
Don’t forget your costume – there will be a costume contest open to all ages, prizes will be awarded! Who says orchestral music can’t be fun!
The orchestra will be conducted by Anna Binneweg with guest narrator Michael Hughes.
Program
John Williams (b. 1932), Hook: Flight to Neverland
Vic Mizzy (1916-2009), Addams Family Theme
Bobby “Boris” Pickett (1938-2007), Monster Mash
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907), Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1
Intermission
Hans Zimmer (b. 1957), Batman: The Dark Knight Rises
Costume Contest Winners Announced
Rod Temperton (1949-2016), Thriller
John Williams (b. 1932), Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone: Suite for Orchestra
In February the Naptown Philharmonic will take the audience to the Great White Way. Get ready to be swept off your feet as the NPO performs “Broadway Legends.” in February.
This program is filled with show-stopping hits from Candide, Phantom of the Opera, Hamilton, Mama Mia! and Tick Tick Boom! interpreted by Soprano Sarah Burrell, Tenor Brian Shatt, and Baritone Michael Pistorio.
Conducted by Anna Binneweg, the concert will also feature the talent of violist Cameron Raeke in a performance of Hummel’s Potpourri for Viola and Orchestra.
From timeless classics to modern day hits, this concert promises to highlight the breadth and depth of Broadway’s rich musical history and guarantee an afternoon of entertainment that will leave you wanting more!
Program
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990), Overture to Candide
Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778-1837), Potpourri for Viola and Orchestra, Op. 94
Intermission
Andrew Lloyd Webber (b. 1948), Selections from Phantom of the Opera
Jonathan Larson (1960-1996), Louder Than Words (from Tick Tick Boom!)
Lin-Manuel Miranda (b. 1980) Highlights from Hamilton
ABBA, Mama Mia! Medley
About our soloists
Violist Cameron Raecke
Violist Cameron Marc Raecke, co-principal violist for the Naptown Philharmonic, is in high demand as a performer by orchestras and chamber ensembles alike. His musical travels have taken him to many places: Singapore, Canada, Mexico, even New Jersey. He is the Assistant Principal Violist of the Allentown Symphony Orchestra in Pennsylvania and member of the Mid-Atlantic Symphony, and he has performed with many other orchestras, such as the Baltimore, Fort Worth, Singapore, and Annapolis Symphonies. For his college education, Mr. Raecke attended the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and the University of Texas at Arlington. At the latter institution, he was a founding member of Bratsche con Brio, the resident all-viola ensemble that earned great acclaim during its tour in the Monterrey, Mexico, area and at the 27th International Viola Congress in Canada. His music festival education includes sessions at the Colorado College Summer Music Festival, the Killington Music Festival in Vermont, and the Aspen Music Festival in Colorado with a coveted three-year orchestral fellowship. More recently, Mr. Raecke is a founding member of the Movement in Music Ensemble, an innovative conductorless chamber orchestra founded in 2021 that presents memorized, choreographed musical performances.
In addition to his broad orchestral and chamber music career, Mr. Raecke has an expansive history of performing new and experimental music, having participated in many world premiere performances, from Allentown’s New Music Chamber Series — at which, in April 2022, he premiered ten new works in a single concert — to Baltimore’s High Zero Festival, the premier East Coast festival of improvised experimental music. He was an active member of his school’s New Music Ensemble when he was an undergraduate in Texas, and he has performed at Baltimore’s Red Room — a lynchpin of experimental music in the Mid-Atlantic region — and in concerts of new music at ArtScape, the largest free arts festival in the United States.
Mr. Raecke also runs a private teaching studio of both viola and violin students, some of whom have attended such presitigious institutions as the summer festival at the Brevard Music Center and Tanglewood. In its Spring 2022 issue, the Journal of the American Viola Society published Mr. Raecke’s paper, “The Three Laws of Sound Production,” in which he provides a comprehensive explanation of the basic mechanics of sound production for bowed string instruments.
Soprano Sarah Burrell
A Pasadena native, soprano Sarah Burrall currently teaches Choral Music and Theatre in Queen Anne’s County. A graduate of Salisbury University with a Bachelor’s in Music Education, Ms. Burrall Sarah has many performances under her belt in the Choral, Musical Theater, and Opera genres.
Ms. Burrall was most recently seen as Donna in Mama Mia! with the Chesapeake High School Theatre Company alumni production. In July of 2015, Ms. Burrall made her international debut in Assisi, Italy singing Vivaldi’s Gloria and as Mercedes in Bizet’s Carmen.
While attending Salisbury University, she performed with Musical Theater Workshop, Opera Workshop, and Theater. She also performed as Susan in Stephen Sondheim’s Company and as the Second Lady in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute). Ms. Burrall is very excited to be singing with the Naptown Philharmonic Orchestra.
Tenor Brian Shatt
Brian Shatt is a graduate from Towson University and holds a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Music Education and Psychology. During his time at Towson, Mr. Shatt studied voice under the direction of Grammy award winning tenor Aaron Sheehan. Mr. Shatt is the Director of Choirs at Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn, Maryland, from which he graduated in 2009. At Archbishop Spalding he conducts five choral ensembles, drama classes, and eaches AP Music Theory. Prior to Spalding, Mr. Shatt spent six years with Anne Arundel County Public Schools’ Performing and Visual Arts magnet program as its lead vocal teacher where he taught small and large ensembles and private voice lessons. Mr. Shatt has performed locally, internationally, and everywhere in between. He is excited to be a part of this performance.
Baritone Michael Pistorio
Baritone Michael Pistorio is a lyric baritone whose mission is to bring modern finesse to classical singing. As an artist he blends his commanding voice with intimate drama, making him an audience favorite.
Mr. Pistorio has performed as a professional chorister, concert soloist, and opera principal in the Mid-Atlantic region for over a decade. Of note was his performance of Adam in Haydn’s The Creation which The Star Democrat noted, “Pistorio knew his role well and his magnificent voice echoed with conviction and power…”
Mr. Pistorio made his international solo debuts in 2015 and 2016 as an invited artist of the Assisi Performing Arts Festival, performing the concert roles of Dancäire (Carmen), Masetto (Don Giovanni), and Marcello (La Bohéme), additionally soloing in Faure’s Requiem, Mozart’s Mass in C, and Schubert’s Mass in G. Further principal opera and concert credits include The Tender Land (Copland), The Consul (Menotti), Die Zauberflöte, Don Giovanni, Le Nozze di Figaro (Mozart), Tosca (Puccini), Der Corregidor (Wolf); Messe solennelle en l’honneur de Sainte-Cécile (Gounod), Messiah (Händel), The Creation (Haydn), Son of Man (Hall Johnson); Fantasia on Christmas Carols, Five Mystical Songs, and Songs of Travel (Vaughan Williams).
Aside from his interpretations for stage and theater, Mr. Pistorio is also a reputable sacred singer, predominantly of Christian denominations. His voice has carried in houses of worship including the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen (Baltimore), Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Baltimore), Sacred Heart (Trenton), Washington National Cathedral (District of Columbia), and multiple houses of worship in Assisi, Italy including the Chiesa di Santa Maria Maggiore and Santa Maria sopra Minerva, the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, Cattedrale di San Rufino di Assisi, and the Basilica di San Frencesco d’Assisi both in the main sanctuary and lower chapel where St. Frances is interred.
For the 2023-24 season, Mr. Pistorio performed in the ensemble of Craig Hella Johnson’s ‘fusion-oratorio’ Considering Matthew Shepard, also covering the roles of The Fence and Soloist; was featured with Ark & Dove Presbyterian for its performance of the new sacred cantata These Ancient Words by Heather Sorenson; and joined the Heritage Signature Chorale for an inspiring performance of Beethoven’s 9th Symphony under the baton of internationally acclaimed conductor, Marin Alsop, singing a new English language text by 2017 National Poet Laureate, Tracy K. Smith.
This season, Mr. Pistorio is thrilled to make multiple role and company debuts starting with a new Christmas chamber opera by Eric Whitacre, The Gift of the Magi, a debut in the principal role as Jim Young alongside soprano Rachel Sitomer as Della Young; performing with the Naptown Philharmonic Orchestra for an evening of musical theater favorites with soprano Sarah Burrall and tenor Brian Shatt; and in a new production of Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking making his role debut as convicted Death Row inmate, Joseph de Rocher.
Our April concert, “An Earth Day Tribute,” is dedicated to environmental awareness through the power of music and community collaboration. From serene and vibrant melodies, our artists will deliver a performance that resonates with the theme of preserving our planet.
Conducted by Anna Binneweg, this concert features the choruses from Arundel Vocal Arts Society (AVAS) and Apex Arts Vocal Ensemble, with director Lauren Walker in Jake Runestad’s Earth Symphony, with guest conductor JoAnn Kulesza, who is director of AVAS.
The concert will open with Strauss’ timeless, picturesque waltz, the beautiful Blue Danube. We are excited to highlight Polish female composer Grażyna Bacewicz in the East Coast premiere of her piano concerto performed by Bulgarian piano virtuoso, Daniela Mineva.
This program promises to be heartfelt, soul-stirring and thought provoking – you don’t want to miss it!
Program
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899), Blue Danube Waltz
Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969), Piano Concerto
Intermission
Jake Runestad (b. 1986), Earth Symphony
Jonathan Larson (1960-1996), Roger Emerson (b. 1950), Seasons of Love (from Rent)
About Daniela Mineva
Our season finale brings an orchestral experience like no other – a family-friendly sports themed concert, “Let’s Play Ball!”
This program is inspired by the great all-American game of baseball, featuring timeless favorites such as Take Me Out to the Ball Game, Rookie of the Year and Home Stretch and will captivate audience members of all ages.
And speaking of our youth, this concert also highlights the winners of our annual, state-wide Young Artist Concerto Competition (open to all high-school students throughout the state of Maryland). A heart-warming, entertaining evening for all!
What a great way to bring the 2024-2025 season to a close.
Program
John Adams (b. 1947), Short Ride in a Fast Machine
Performances by the Young Artist Concerto Competition Winners, to be announced
Intermission
Bill Conti (b. 1942), Rookie of the Year
Tim Berens, Fernie’s Up!
Albert von Tilzer (1878-1956), Take me Out to the Ball Game
John Denver (1943-1997), Thank God I’m A Country Boy (the Orioles’ Seventh Inning Stretch Song)
Leroy Anderson (1908-1975), Home Stretch