Sarasota Orchestra: The Magic of Music

The Sarasota Orchestra’s 2019-2020 Season

By Ryan G. Van Cleave

After a six-year run of memorable music events, Anu Tali, the Music Director of the Sarasota Orchestra, has left to focus on her international career and do more guest conducting. As the ongoing search for a replacement continues, the 2019-2020 season will commence on November 8th with a series of guest conductors and plenty of guest artists, such as world-renowned violinist Sarah Chang and pianist Jeremy Denk and Shai Wosner.

To get a better sense of what’s to come, here’s a Q&A with Sarasota Orchestra’s concertmaster, Dan Jordan, who gives us a musician’s perspective on the exciting new season.

As a musician, which concert from the upcoming season are you most excited about?

It’s hard to pick only one concert in a season of so many “must see” events. What I’m most excited about is our entire roster of guest conductors. This group is a dream for us to play with in a single season, and I expect it to be a special treat for our audiences. I’d also highlight that this season marks the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, so naturally we’ll be playing a variety of interesting musical selections by him in honor of this milestone.

You’re talking about the two special programs in his honor: the Discover Beethoven Series, and a special mid-season concert that includes a performance of the entire Symphony No.3. Those do look terrific. But tell us—what are some of the challenges/benefits of working with so many guest conductors in a single season?

While we do have nine guest conductors coming for our Masterworks and Discover Beethoven series, I’ll also point out that we have far more than that if you include our Pops and Great Escapes series.

The first thing that comes to mind is that the entire organization has to be on the top of its game, as these world-class artists are having their first experiences with our orchestra and organization. This can make for some amazing music making! But it can be tricky to get to know someone that quickly, so the weeks are intense, demanding, and exhausting—yet also exhilarating. 

What’s the process of choosing a guest conductor? 

We have a nine-person search committee that has been working for the last 18 months on our process of hiring a new music director. This committee is made up of Sarasota Orchestra Board members, musicians, and staff. In the case of the nine guest conductors on our Masterworks and Discover Beethoven series, the idea was to find conductors capable of putting on an incredible concert, whether or not they decide to be candidates for the position.

It’s a pivotal time for our organization as we try to move forward on building our own facility, and the conductors on our roster for this coming season all demonstrate the level of artistic excellence worthy of a new, acoustically brilliant concert hall.

Let’s talk a bit more about the musical selections. You’ve got lots of classics onboard for the season—Mozart, Debussy, Beethoven, Vivaldi, etc. (I’m especially looking forward to the Titans of Two Centuries evening on October 10th, featuring Prokofiev’s Sonata in C Major for Two Violins, Op. 56, and Beethoven’s Septet in e-flat Major, Op. 20.) What are some of the newer pieces that audiences should really be looking forward to?

Variety is the name of the game this season. Yes, our bread and butter is still the classics, and every concert will likely feature a piece or two that are recognizable. I also think it’s part of our mission to challenge audiences and expand their horizons, but always in an accessible way. So almost every concert has at least one piece on it that I’ve never played before, which is quite a feat at my age!

For those who’ve never attended a Sarasota Orchestra concert, why should this be the season that they give it a shot?

Someone could always come to any of our concerts purely to enjoy the music. We have a young, vibrant orchestra that can beautifully play all genres of repertoire. Yet I think the most exciting part of this season comes from being part of something special as we experience outstanding guest conductors during a transitional period in our Orchestra’s evolution. That’s a rare treat.

In addition to being the Sarasota Orchestra’s concertmaster, Dan, you’re also the Assistant Principal 2nd violinist of the Sante Fe Opera orchestra, and you’ve been part of other groups before in Miami Beach, Kuala Lumpur, and elsewhere. What makes the Sarasota Orchestra stand out in your mind?

Although Sarasota is a small town and we’re technically a “regional orchestra,” what has been built here is truly remarkable. Audience members come up to me all the time who can’t believe the quality of the music making. That said, we’re at a crossroads as we look to advance artistically and build our own Music Center with perfect acoustics where we can control our own schedule. As an example, we often don’t even get to rehearse in the halls we’re to perform in!

As concertmaster, it’s been exciting and rewarding for me to be part of the incredible growth these last 20 years. Now I can’t wait to see what comes next!

Anything else about the upcoming season that Sarasota Scene readers should know about?

Although I’ve focused here on the guest conductors, we also have a wonderful roster of internationally recognized soloists, of varying ages and backgrounds.

In terms of this season’s programming, my personal favorite is our Chamber Series—a repertoire chosen by our musicians who then get to move to the front of the stage and really showcase what they can do individually. I’m also quite excited that Jeffrey Kahane has been engaged by the Sarasota Orchestra to be our “Artistic Advisor” during our period of transition as we search for a new music director. He’ll lead a concert in February of Beethoven’s 3rd “Eroica” Symphony that should be one of our season highlights.

One final thing—I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Anu Tali for her six years of leadership that have brought us to where we are today. We’ll miss her, but I couldn’t be more excited for the future!

Thanks so much, Dan. We look forward to hearing you and your colleagues bring more wonderful music to life this coming season.

For more information on the Sarasota Orchestra, please visit www.sarasotaorchestra.org or call 941.953.3434.