Friday / October 3 / 7:30 pm

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Pierre-Laurent Aimard, conductor/piano
MANDEL HALL

Ives: The Unanswered Question
Messiaen: Oiseaux exotiques
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, op.58

Pierre-Laurent Aimard, newly appointed SPCO Artistic Partner, will make his Mandel Hall debut. The SPCO, kicking off its second three-year residency at the University, will present a program featuring one of the cornerstones of Messiaen's repertoire, Oiseaux exotiques. The second half of the program takes a cue from Messiaen's life, closing with a piece Messiaen himself toured with in Europe during the 1950s.

Friday / March 6 / 7:30 pm

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Cliff Colnot, conductor
Ruggero Allifranchini and Dale Bartrop, violins
MANDEL HALL

Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony No. 1
Mozart: Concertone in C major For Two Violins and Orchestra
World Premiere of Winning Competition Piece
Mahler/Colnot: Adagio from Symphony No. 10

Friday / May 1 / 7:30 pm

The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
Xian Zhang, conductor
Bernhard Scully, horn
MANDEL HALL

Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1 in D major, op. 25, "Classical"
Chen Yi: New York (Chicago Premiere)
R. Strauss: Horn Concerto No. 2 in E-flat major
Beethoven: Symphony No. 8 in F major, op. 93

Since being named associate conductor of the New York Philharmonic in 2005, Xian Zhang has been in demand throughout the world as a guest conductor. She will lead the SPCO in contemporary composer Chen Yi's New York--the third and final commission from the orchestra's composer-in-residence program. Newly appointed principal horn Bernhard Scully steps into the spotlight with Richard Strauss' Second Horn Concerto.

If you’d like to learn more about The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s entire 2008/2009 concert season, visit their website at www.thespco.org