From Kim Knox Beckius,
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Feb 11 2008

Tanglewood Quick Links: Tickets | 2008 Schedule | Directions | Picnicking | History | Photos

A 68th Summer of Music!

The Tanglewood Music Center in Lenox, Massachusetts, is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) and the setting for a wide variety of musical performances each year. There's no better place in all of New England to spread out a picnic blanket, feast on gourmet goodies and listen to live music as the sun sets and the stars unveil themselves. This summer, Tanglewood celebrates its 68th anniversary.

Highlights of the 2008 summer season include:

- The Tanglewood season officially opens with a concert performance of Berlioz' monumental opera Les Troyens, conducted by Music Director James Levine and featuring the BSO, a cast of internationally acclaimed singers and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus under the direction of John Oliver. This grand work will be performed in two parts over the course of two evenings. (July 5 and 6)

- Minnesota Public Radio's "A Prairie Home Companion" with host Garrison Keillor will broadcast live from the Koussevitzky Music Shed for the ninth consecutive year. (June 28)

- Legendary folk singer and Massachusetts native James Taylor returns to Tanglewood. (July 3 and 4)

- Broadway singer Barbara Cook makes her Ozawa Hall debut as part of a tour celebrating her 80th birthday this summer, following performances in New York, London, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. (July 13)

- The Boston Pops makes two Tanglewood appearances under the direction of Keith Lockhart, who will conduct Sondheim's A Little Night Music (July 8) and a program celebrating the 90th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein's birth (August 17). The Pops will also appear with conductor John Williams on Film Night, featuring music of cinema's great composers, as well as Mr. Williams' own score to his latest collaboration with Steven Spielberg, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. (July 26)

- Tanglewood on Parade will feature a full day of activities, culminating in a gala concert with Levine, Lockhart and Williams, plus Sir Andrew Davis and André Previn. The combined forces of the Boston Symphony, Boston Pops and Tanglewood Music Center orchestras will present works including the traditional performance of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture including fireworks over the Stockbridge Bowl. (August 5)

- Cellist Yo-Yo Ma joins the Boston Symphony Orchestra for Lalo's Cello Concerto. (August 3)

- Some of the world's most beloved violinists will play at Tanglewood this season including Midori (July 19); Sarah Chang (July 27); Joshua Bell (August 1); Janine Jansen (August 15); Pinchas Zukerman (August 17) and Stefan Jackiw, along with violist Lawrence Power (August 9). Violinist Julia Fischer joins pianist Jonathan Biss and cellist Daniel Müller-Schott to perform Beethoven's Triple Concerto for piano, violin and cello (July 11).

- The star-studded lineup of guest artists also includes pianists Emanuel Ax (August 18) , Yefim Bronfman (July 25), Imogen Cooper (July 10) and Jean-Yves Thibaudet (August 16).

- The Boston Symphony Orchestra presents an all-Mozart weekend (August 8-10) and an all-Beethoven weekend (August 22-24).

- Guest conductor Christoph von Dohnányi leads the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Tanglewood Festival Chorus and soloists in Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. (August 24)

- The Beaux Arts Trio presents its final two farewell performances, concluding a half-century of acclaimed chamber music. (August 20 and 21)

Check the complete Tanglewood 2008 schedule for other fabulous performances, then purchase your tickets, pack your picnic and head for Tanglewood. While you're anticipating the summer season, learn a bit about the history of Tanglewood and explore my gallery of Tanglewood photos.

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