MILLS TO CONDUCT PROGRAM WITH ALL WOMEN SOLOISTS AND COMPOSERS INCLUDING WORLD PREMIERE OF RARE WORK FOR DOUBLE HARP BY HANNAH LASH
From the Seattle Symphony:
SEATTLE, WA – Seattle Symphony Associate Conductor Lee Mills will step in for Music Director Thomas Dausgaard to conduct the orchestra’s Beach Gaelic Symphony program on November 18 at 7:30 p.m. and November 20 at 8 p.m. Dausgaard has regrettably withdrawn from the performances due to illness.
Mills will join the orchestra to conduct a program featuring all women soloists and composers. Amy Beach’s “Gaelic” Symphony, one of the great American symphonies, is paired with the world premiere of American composer Hannah Lash’s The Peril of Dreams, a rare work for double harp commissioned by the Seattle Symphony. Lash will take the stage to bring her new work to life alongside the Symphony’s Principal Harp Valerie Muzzolini. Thursday’s November 18 performance will also be livestreamed on Seattle Symphony Live and be made viewable on demand for a full week after the initial airdate.
The Seattle Symphony is requiring all visitors to provide proof of vaccination (or present a negative COVID-19 test) with photo ID and wear masks at all times while in Benaroya Hall except in designated refreshment areas. This is in addition to numerous safety measures, including a hospital-grade air filtration system, increased cleaning and more. For additional information about how the Symphony is working to ensure a safe return to live music, please visit the Safety Page. Additionally, the Seattle Symphony is implementing a flexible exchange and return policy through the end of the year.
HANNAH LASH COMPOSER & HARP Hailed by The New York Times as “striking and resourceful ... handsomely brooding,” Hannah Lash’s music has been performed at such major venues as Carnegie Hall, Los Angeles Walt Disney Concert Hall, Lincoln Center, the Times Center in Manhattan, the Chicago Art Institute, Tanglewood Music Center and The Aspen Music Festival and School, among others. In 2016, Lash was honored with a Composer Portrait Concert at Columbia University’s Miller Theatre, which included commissioned works for pianist Lisa Moore and loadbang. In the 2017/2018 season, Lash's Piano Concerto No. 1, “In Pursuit of Flying” was given its premiere performances by Jeremy Denk and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra; the Atlantic Classical Orchestra debuted Facets of Motion for orchestra; and Music for Nine, Ringing was performed at the Music Academy of the West School and Festival. Last season, Paul Appleby and Natalia Katyukova gave the world premiere of Songs of Imagined Love, a song cycle commissioned by Carnegie Hall. Hannah Lash’s chamber opera, Desire, recently premiered at Miller Theatre to great acclaim. Lash’s Double Concerto for piano and harp was premiered last November by the Naples Philharmonic, and Forestallings, a musical response to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2 in D major, was premiered in January by the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. Hannah Lash's music is published exclusively by Schott Music Corporation (New York).
VALERIE MUZZOLINI HARP
Valerie Muzzolini is Principal Harp of the Seattle Symphony, a position she has held since the age of 23. In demand both nationally and internationally, she has performed as guest principal harp of both the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and the Nice Philharmonic, and has appeared with The Philadelphia Orchestra.
As soloist, she has performed with the Seattle Symphony, Nice Philharmonic and Vancouver Symphony. An active chamber musician and proponent of new music, she performs regularly with the Seattle Chamber Players and Music of Remembrance. Muzzolini began her musical education in Nice, France, and continued her studies at the Curtis Institute of Music, followed by graduate work at Yale University.
LEE MILLS CONDUCTOR
Associate Conductor of the Seattle Symphony and winner of the Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award in 2014, 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021, Lee Mills is internationally recognized as a passionate, multifaceted and energetic conductor. In his previous position as Resident Conductor of the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, he led performances hailed as having a “sonority of unequalled liveliness and quality” (movimento.com), working alongside such artists as Simone Porter, Conrad Tao, Eliane Coelho and the Smetana Trio. Mills has also previously led the National Symphony Orchestra (U.S.), Los Angeles Philharmonic, São Paulo State Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, through his project Vibe Sinfônica, in partnership with nightlife producer The Week Group in São Paulo, Mills has brought classical music to thousands of new listeners.
The League of American Orchestras selected Mills for the 2018 Bruno Walter National Conductors Preview, and in 2017, Mills was selected as a semifinalist in both the Sir Georg Solti International Conducting Competition and the Opera Royal de Wallonie-Liège International Opera Conducting Competition. Mills received the BSO-Peabody Institute Conducting Fellowship in 2011. He was a conducting fellow at the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen during the summers of 2012 and 2013. He received his Graduate Performance Diploma and Artist’s Diploma in Orchestral Conducting at the Peabody Institute and graduated from Whitman College.
SEATTLE SYMPHONY LIVE Seattle Symphony Live brings the Seattle Symphony’s dynamic performances to audiences anywhere in the world. Launched in 2020 to offer musical comfort despite the pandemic, the digital streaming service reached a global audience with its live concerts, behind the scenes interviews, educational videos and more. With subscriptions starting at $12.99 per month, Seattle Symphony Live makes engaging with the orchestra’s exceptional musical content more possible than ever before.
SEATTLE SYMPHONY Led by Music Director Thomas Dausgaard, the Seattle Symphony unleashes the power of music, brings people together and lifts the human spirit. Recognized as one of the “most vital American orchestras” (NPR), the Seattle Symphony is internationally acclaimed for its inventive programming, community- minded initiatives and superb recordings on the Seattle Symphony Media label. With a strong commitment to new music and a legacy of over 150 recordings, the orchestra has garnered five Grammy Awards, 26 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and was named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. The Symphony performs in Benaroya Hall in the heart of downtown Seattle from September through July, reaching over 750,000 people annually through live performances and radio broadcasts.
BEACH GAELIC SYMPHONY MASTERWORKS SERIES Thursday, November 18, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, November 20, at 8 p.m.
Lee Mills conductor
Hannah Lash harp
Valerie Muzzolini harp Hannah Lash The Peril of Dreams (Seattle Symphony Commission & World Premiere) Beach “Gaelic” Symphony
2021–2022 Masterworks Season Sponsor: Delta Air Lines This program is generously underwritten by The Richard E. Lang and Jane Lang Davis Living Music Program. Thomas Dausgaard’s position is generously underwritten as the Harriet Overton Stimson Music Director. Lee Mills’ position is generously underwritten as the Douglas F. King Associate Conductor. Hannah Lash's The Peril of Dreams was commissioned by the Seattle Symphony with the support of Elizabeth and Justus Schlichting. Hannah Lash's performances are generously sponsored by an anonymous donor. Valerie Muzzolini’s November 18 performance is generously sponsored by Chuck and Maria Schweizer.