Variations on Nutcracker Suite

March 17 & 18, 2023 | 7:30pm
March 19, 2023 | 2pm

Rossen Milanov, conductor
Aaron Diehl, piano 

Program 
Perry: Study for Orchestra 
Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F 
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker Suite 
Ellington: The Nutcracker Suite

A protégé of Nadia Boulanger and two-time Guggenheim Fellow winner, Julia Perry was an important voice in mid-twentieth century American music combining neo-classicism with African American culture in her art. 

Gershwin described the first movement of his Piano Concerto as “representing the young enthusiastic spirit of American life” and the second movement as “a poetic, nocturnal atmosphere, which has come to be referred to as the American blues…” 

The iconic Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky has thrilled audiences for generations with some of the most recognizable and charming melodies in music history. In this performance, Tchaikovsky’s Suite is brilliantly blended with jazz arrangements of the same tunes by the legendary American jazz composer Duke Ellington. Hear these magnificent works side-by-side! 

Aaron Diehl is the winner of the 2011 American Pianists Awards.