On Tuesday, June 25 at 5 p.m. EST, there's going to be a party. Even better? This fête is free.
It will take place at Faneuil Hall Marketplace in Boston, Mass. (If it rains, things will simply move indoors, to the nearby and historic Faneuil Hall Rotunda.)
Said shindig is being thrown by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, whom you might have heard have themselves a brand new music director.
That music director's name is Andris Nelsons. He's Latvian. He's a former trumpeter. He has both a wife, Kristine, and a 17-month-old daughter.
And his official arrival in Boston deserves more than a dinky brass quintet.
To wit, we quote from the Boston Symphony Orchestra's press release: "Join us at 5 p.m. in Faneuil Hall for an event to mark [Andris Nelsons'] recent appointment as the BSO's 15th music director. Hear remarks from Maestro Nelsons and a performance by the BSO Brass Ensemble!"
No, no exclamation needed.
At only 34 years old, Maestro Nelsons is the youngest music director to lead the BSO in over a century. (Georg Henschel was 31 when he became the orchestra's first music director; the legendary Arthur Nikisch was 33 when he opened his first season in 1889.) This fact alone--to say nothing of his brilliance at Tanglewood's 75th--should warrant the presence of a full consort of strings, winds, brass and percussion.
After all, when he took over for Sakari Oramo in the City of Birmingham, Andris Nelsons was indeed greeted by the entire orchestra--from principal on down to utility.
Marathon bombing or not, Boston, it's not too late to hire more entertainment for your party. In fact, we dare say it's what James Levine would have wanted.
