News From Britt Hill – February 2020

Years ago when Britt was looking for a new Music Director for the orchestra, Teddy Abrams stood out with his hunger for creativity. As a young prodigy at the beginning of his career, we knew his creativity would bring something unique to the Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO). After six years, Teddy continues to capture our hearts and minds with his endless energy and visionary leadership. Hold on to your sunglasses because the 2020 BFO journey is going to be quite a ride.

The BFO season will begin with a special project, along the same lines as our 2016 Crater Lake Project. As part of the BFO’s efforts to expand the orchestral repertoire in ways that celebrate Oregon and advance the tradition of the orchestra as an important part of our community’s cultural life, Britt commissioned a site-specific work. Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Caroline Shaw is writing a piece to be performed on the Jacksonville Woodland Trail system in two free performances on July 28-29. We are planning this commission as an experiential piece of music, where the audience will hike through groups of musicians spread along the trail, experiencing the music as they go.

In commemoration of Beethoven’s 250th birthday, our core concerts begin on Friday, July 31, with a program featuring Beethoven’s iconic Ninth Symphony, widely considered the culmination of the great master’s genius. A celebration of joy, brotherhood, unity, and liberty, the Ninth has stood the test of time as a monument of music, forging new ground that fundamentally altered the course of music history.

Thanks to Cutler Investment Group, the Teddy’s Discovery Tuesday’s (TDT) series returns this season and includes the previously mentioned Hiking the Woodlands with the BFO. Back by popular demand, the TDT Family Show, on Tuesday, August 11, will feature actor Bruce Campbell narrating Nathaniel Stookey’s The Composer is Dead with text by Lemony Snicket, and the orchestra will perform Beethoven is Alive!, a children’s introduction to Beethoven’s life and music.

Several days later, Teddy will perform with acclaimed genre-bending solo artist and member of legendary rock band My Morning Jacket, Jim James. After collaborating for several years, in fall 2019 they released the album The Order of Nature: A Song Cycle. Recently, they were featured on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, and will bring the piece to life with the Britt Festival Orchestra on August 14.

The season closes with a BFO Spectacular featuring pieces by Handel, Bates and Teddy Abrams’s mentor, Michael Tilson Thomas. Mark your calendars, as you are not going to want to miss any of these concerts! The 2020 Britt Festival Orchestra Season runs from July 28 to August 16. More details to come in the months ahead.