NOI Philharmonic: Festival Closing Performance – Alsop conducts Simon, Higdon, & Brahms

• Svet Stoyanov, percussion
• Alana Wiesing, percussion
• Marin Alsop, conductor
• Julia Cruz, guest conductor

NOI+F Music Director Marin Alsop closes our 2023 festival by combining powerful works by Carlos Simon and Jennifer Higdon, two of today’s leading compositional voices with Johannes Brahms' first symphony. Beethoven's 7th symphony meets the 21st Century in Carlos Simon's beautifully fluid homage Fate Now Conquers, led by Taki Alsop Conducting Fellow Julia Cruz. Tucson Symphony Orchestra principal percussionist and NOI+F alum faculty member Alana Wiesing and award-winning contemporary percussionist Svet Stoyanov come together for Jennifer Higdon's virtuosic concerto for double percussion Duo Duel. The program concludes with Brahms' Symphony No. 1, a masterwork composed over the course of two decades that carries on the great symphonic traditions of Haydn and Beethoven.

About National Orchestral Institute + Festival (NOI+F)

https://theclarice.umd.edu/noi

About National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic

https://theclarice.umd.edu/noi/Philharmonic

About Svet Stoyanov, percussion

Praised by The New York Times for his "understated but unmistakable virtuosity" along with a "winning combination of gentleness and fluidity," Svet Stoyanov is a driving force in modern percussion. Winner of the prestigious Concert Artists Guild International Competition, Svet was also presented with the Johns Hopkins University Alumni Award. He has been a featured concerto soloist with the Chicago, Seattle, and the American Symphony Orchestras, as well as solo performances in Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, and Taiwan National Concert Hall.

About Alana Wiesing, percussion

https://music.arizona.edu/people/directory/awiesing/

About Marin Alsop, conductor

https://www.marinalsop.com/

About Julia Cruz, guest conductor

Spanish born conductor Julia Cruz has an enthusiastic, dynamic, and communicative personality that allows her to connect with orchestras and audiences. Her repertoire ranges from Haydn to contemporary music, with a special focus on Italian Opera. Since 2022, she is an Award Recipient of the Taki Alsop Conducting Fellowship.