GBS Announces 2006-07 Season

BRIDGEPORT — Greater Bridgeport Symphony (GBS), one of the oldest fully professional orchestras in Connecticut, will celebrate internationally acclaimed conductor Gustav Meier’s 35th year as GBS music director, starting in October with a series of five musical events showcasing some of the best talents on today’s music scene.

“Our 2006-07 season will be our 61st anniversary, and each concert will be an outstanding event,” promises Jena Maric, GBS’s executive director. “We are currently offering music lovers the opportunity to subscribe to the five-concert series – at a deeply discounted rate – and to receive an extra pair of free tickets to the concert of their choice.

“Last season three out of five concerts were sold out. Our audience growth is due to many factors, including very appealing programming, the artistic quality of the orchestra and our greatest asset: Maestro Gustav Meier,” Ms Maric continued.

 “Maestro’s Top Picks” — the theme of the opening concert on Saturday, October 7 — will present some of the greatest 20th Century Russian music ever written. Award winning pianist Andrew Armstrong, who has been compared to the legendary pianist Vladimir Horowitz, will be the featured guest soloist.

“Romeo and Juliet” will be the theme on Saturday, November 4. The all-orchestral program will feature the music of the eminent composers Bellini, Tchaikovsky, Berlioz, Kabalevsky and Bernstein.

“Gershwin’s Greatests” — scheduled for Saturday, December 2 — will celebrate one of the giants of American music, George Gershwin, and will feature rising young star of today’s music scene, conductor and pianist Benjamin Loeb, who will make his debut. The concert will conclude with a holiday sing-along.

“Latin Passion” on Saturday, March 3, will feature Allen Vizzutti as trumpet soloist, in his fourth engagement with GBS.

Puccini’s dramatic opera Tosca (concert version) will climax the 2006-07 series on Saturday, April 21. The performance will feature four stars of the opera world as well as actress and GBS trustee Kathryn Hays, known for her role on the long-running soap opera As the World Turns, who will narrate the tragic love story.

All concerts will take place at 8 pm at the 1,452-seat Klein Memorial Auditorium, 910 Fairfield Avenue, which is easily reached from all major routes and is accessible to persons with disabilities. Free attended parking is provided for symphony patrons.

A pre-concert program, featuring members of the orchestra, will take place in the inner lobby prior to each performances.

GBS is currently accepting new subscription orders. Subscribers may save more than 35 percent off the price of individual tickets, receive the best seats in the hall, and are entitled to priority renewal and notices to special events. Subscription costs for the five-concert series range from $75 to $195.

Single tickets to individual concerts will go on sale in September. Students under age 21 may purchase box office tickets at half-price in certain price categories. Organizations interested in presenting a fundraising event or social affair around one of the symphony’s upcoming concerts may inquire about group rates and benefits.

To receive the symphony’s new season brochure, describing programs and soloists, call the GBS Office at 203-576-0263, visit BridgeportSymphony.org, or write to Greater Bridgeport Symphony, 446 University Avenue, Bridgeport CT 06604.