Tanglewood 75th Anniversary Celebration, featuring many of the iconic artists identified with the fete, will air on THIRTEEN'S Great Performances Friday, August 10 at 9 p.m. ET as part of the PBS Arts Summer Festival.
Located in the beautiful Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts, Tanglewood is one of the world's most beloved music festivals and serves as the summer home for the famed Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO).
Tanglewood 75th Anniversary Celebration features the BSO, the Boston Pops Orchestra and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, under the direction of conductors Keith Lockhart, Andris Nelsons, John Williams and David Zinman.
Performers include pianists Emanuel Ax and Peter Serkin, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and vocalist James Taylor, as well as the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, John Oliver, conductor. The wide-ranging program, taped on July 14, includes Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man"; Leonard Bernstein's Three Dance Episodes from On the Town; selections from the Great American Songbook ("Over the Rainbow," "Shall We Dance" and "Old Man River"); Franz Joseph Haydn's Piano Concerto in D, 2nd and 3rd movements; Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Andante cantabile for cello and strings; Pablo de Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy, for violin and orchestra; Maurice Ravel's "La Valse"; and Ludwig van Beethoven's Choral Fantasy.
"The BSO is one of the many great regional arts institutions to be featured on Great Performances over its four decade history," said David Horn, executive producer, Great Performances. "GP has enjoyed a long association with the BSO and its summertime home at the Tanglewood festival, dating back to our extensive broadcast collaborations with Leonard Bernstein. We are delighted to return to Tanglewood for this 75th anniversary concert, which also represents a wonderful homecoming celebration for us."
The Tanglewood concert is the seventh program in the PBS Arts Summer Festival, which includes documentaries from independent filmmakers that explore a wide spectrum of international art forms and offer an in-depth look at music, theater, art, architecture and cultural history from some of the world's unique locations. Award-winning television, film and stage star Anna Deavere Smith serves as weekly host for the Summer Festival.
Great Performances is a presentation of THIRTEEN for WNET, one of America's most prolific and respected public media providers. For 50 years, THIRTEEN has been making the most of the rich resources and passionate people of New York and the world, reaching millions of people with on-air and online programming that celebrates arts and culture, offers insightful commentary on the news of the day, explores the worlds of science and nature, and invites students of all ages to have fun while learning.
Major funding for the Great Performances telecast of Tanglewood 75th Anniversary Celebration is provided by the Irene Diamond Fund, The Mugar Foundation, the Lillian Goldman Programming Endowment, the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Arts Fund, the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, Victor and Sono Elmaleh, Vivian Milstein, The Starr Foundation, the Filomen M. D'Agostino Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation and PBS.
Tanglewood 75th Anniversary Celebration is a production of THIRTEEN in association with WNET, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Inc., C Major Entertainment, ZDF and Unitel/CLASSICA.
Tanglewood 75th Anniversary Celebration is directed by Bill Cosel. For Great Performances, John Walker and Mitch Owgang are producers; Bill O'Donnell is series producer; David Horn is executive producer.
Visit Great Performances Online at www.pbs.org/gperf for additional information about this and other programs.
For full season details about the 2012 Tanglewood season, including downloadable photos and video, program listings, artist photos and biographies and a Tanglewood 75 timeline and history, click here: www.tanglewood.org.
About WNET
New York's WNET is America's flagship public media outlet, bringing quality arts, education and public affairs programming to over 5 million viewers each week. The parent company of public television stations THIRTEEN and WLIW21 and operator of NJTV, WNET produces and presents such acclaimed PBS series as Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, Need to Know, Charlie Rose and a range of documentaries, children's programs, and local news and cultural offerings available on air and online. Pioneers in educational programming, WNET has created such groundbreaking series as Get the Math, Oh Noah! and Cyberchase and provides tools for educators that bring compelling content to life in the classroom and at home. WNET highlights the tri-state's unique culture and diverse communities through NYC-ARTS, Reel 13, NJ Today and the new online newsmagazine MetroFocus.
About PBS
PBS, with its nearly 360 member stations, offers all Americans the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and online content. Each month, PBS reaches nearly 123 million people through television and more than 21 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front-row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS' broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry's most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. PBS' premier children's TV programming and its website, pbskids.org, are parents' and teachers' most trusted partners in inspiring and nurturing curiosity and love of learning in children. More information about PBS is available at www.pbs.org, one of the leading dot-org websites on the Internet, or by following PBS on Twitter, Facebook or through our apps for mobile devices. Specific program information and updates for press are available at pbs.org/pressroom or by following PBS Pressroom on Twitter.
(Press Release)
