NEWS
Cover Story: "Brett Mitchell talks about new SBSO season"
On the eve of his second season as music director of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra, Brett Mitchell sits down with 360 Main Street's Jeanne Lesinski to discuss the orchestra's 2011-12 offerings. To read this story, please click here.
The Philadelphia Orchestra, 2011-12
Brett Mitchell will continue for a third season as cover conductor for The Philadelphia Orchestra, covering several weeks of subscription programs with the Orchestra during their 2011-12 season. In February 2012, Mitchell will cover for Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos and Emanuel Ax in a program of Mozart and Brahms, while he will cover a program of Bernstein, Gershwin, and Tchaikovsky in March 2012. For more information, or to purchase tickets for these events, please click the "SCHEDULE" link above.
Brett Mitchell returns to Houston Symphony for three programs in October
Brett Mitchell will return to the Houston Symphony for the first time since his four-year tenure as assistant conductor concluded in May for three concerts this October. Mitchell will first lead a special outreach concert at The Methodist Hospital on October 27, then the orchestra's annual Halloween concert in The Woodlands on October 28. He will then lead his fifth consecutive "Lunada," a free concert celebrating the music of Latin America on October 29. For more information, or to purchase tickets for these events, please click the "SCHEDULE" link above.
Preview: SBSO's 2011-12 season
The cover story of the current issue of The Review features an in-depth interview with Brett Mitchell, as he previews of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra's upcoming 2011-12 concert season. To read this story, "Conductor Brett Mitchell picks up the baton for a season showcasing 'Purely Michigan' music," please click here.
Two additional programs added with the Houston Symphony in 2011-12
In addition to five already-scheduled concerts, Brett Mitchell will lead another two programs with the Houston Symphony during their 2011-12 season. Mitchell will first lead a special outreach concert at The Methodist Hospital on October 27, then the orchestra's annual Halloween concert at the Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands on October 28. For more information or to purchase tickets for these events, please click the "SCHEDULE" link above.
Return engagements with the National Symphony Orchestra
After leading a dozen concerts with the National Symphony Orchestra both at The Kennedy Center and on tour during the 2010-11 season, Brett Mitchell has been invited to return to the orchestra for another pair of family concerts in March 2012. For more information or to purchase tickets for these events, please click the "SCHEDULE" link above.
"5,000 Conroe ISD students get musical experience at Mitchell Pavilion"
The Courier of Montgomery County has published an article about Brett Mitchell's recent education concert with the Houston Symphony for 5,000 elementary schoolers at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. To read this article, please click here.
Brett Mitchell to return to Moores Opera Center for two productions in 2011-12
Following successful runs of Mozart's "The Magic Flute" and Daniel Catán's "Il Postino" on the Moores Opera Center's 2010-11 season, Brett Mitchell has been engaged to lead two new productions with that company during their 2011-12 season. Mitchell will first lead four performances of Verdi's "Falstaff" in October 2011, then three performances of Daron Hagen's new work, "Amelia," in January 2012. For more information or to purchase tickets for these events, please click the "SCHEDULE" link above.
2011-12 concerts with the Houston Symphony
Brett Mitchell will return to the Houston Symphony as guest conductor for three programs during their 2011-12 season. He will first lead "Lunada"--the orchestra's annual celebration of Latin American music--in October, followed by his fifth consecutive New Year's Eve Gala in December. He will return in April 2012 for three Pops subscription performances celebrating the Great American Songbook. For more information or to purchase tickets for these events, please click the "SCHEDULE" link above.
Review: "An ode to the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra's final concert of the season"
Janet Martineau has published a review of the final concert of Brett Mitchell's first season as Music Director of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra. "What a remarkable and fascinating piece of programming maestro Brett Mitchell came up with to conclude the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra’s 75th season. We can't stop mulling it over, and although Beethoven’s mighty Symphony No. 9 was the main feature of the night, it is the opening piece on the program [Christopher Theofanidis's Rainbow Body] that continues to enchant us. Can you tell? We loved it... The ensemble as a whole was superb." To read the complete review, please click here.
Preview: "Brett Mitchell calls on Beethoven as he celebrates his first year with the SBSO"
The Saginaw News has published a preview of the final concert of Brett Mitchell's first season at the helm of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra. The concert, featuring Christopher Theofanidis's "Rainbow Body" and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, will take place this Saturday evening at the Temple Theatre. To read this article, please click here.
Preview: "Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra readies for new season"
WNEM TV5 (CBS) has published a preview of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra's 2011-12 concert series. The season--called "Pure Music, Pure Michigan"--will be Brett Mitchell's second as music director. To read the article, please click here.
Review: "Truly a quality young conductor..."
"360 Main Street" has published a review of the third subscription concert of Brett Mitchell's inaugural season as Music Director of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra. "Led by Music Director Mitchell, a fine and engaging maestro, there were some glorious moments and times when the ensemble really shone. He is truly a quality young conductor and has a bright future ahead." To read the complete review, please click here.
Brett Mitchell: ‘Schools must celebrate music education to build leaders of the next generation’
SAGINAW, Mich. — Brett Mitchell has written an op-ed in today's Saginaw News about the importance of music education in public schools to build the next generation of leaders.
Music education must not only be embraced but celebrated in Saginaw Public Schools, for it is a crucial component of building the next generation of leaders in mid-Michigan.
There are myriad, well-documented reasons to support music education in our schools. Practically speaking, many studies over the past three decades have shown the correlation between students enrolled in music classes and achieving higher test scores in other academic fields.
Playing a musical instrument fosters critical listening, both to oneself and to others, and inevitably translates to other classroom settings.
While critical listening skills learned in music classes are transferred directly to math, science and literature classes, they also lead to improved critical reading skills, increasing students’ comprehension and retention of materials learned throughout the school day.
Too often, the arts are seen as an “extra,” not an integral component of our children’s education. They are deemed an extracurricular activity, something outside the scope of standard childhood education.
Nothing could be more disappointing or further from what the successful leaders of tomorrow need. We live in a society that prizes completeness above all else; we demand our leaders be well versed in many subjects, and hire employees whose interests are similarly far-reaching. Unless we offer arts education to the youth of Saginaw, we are depriving our children of the opportunity to become these well-read, broadly educated, fully contributing members of our society.
When deciding where to pursue my college degrees some 15 years ago, I chose to pursue all three — bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate — at public liberal arts universities, first at Western Washington University, then at the University of Texas at Austin.
I had other offers from music conservatories, but ultimately chose not to constrain myself to what I felt would be an education too narrowly focused on just one subject. Science, mathematics, philosophy, literature — all are crucial components of becoming a well-rounded citizen of the world in the 21st century.
I desperately want children in Saginaw to have the same opportunity: to study subjects in every field today to prepare them to make their fullest contributions to our society tomorrow.
Offering students the opportunity to acquire these diverse skills by, for example, studying a string instrument in orchestra, is crucial if the Saginaw Public Schools are to turn out well-rounded, complete students.
We have an obligation to pass onto the next generation all the skills that will help them, and our society as a whole, to flourish.
Throughout history, our greatest leaders have understood the fundamental necessity of arts and arts education in our culture. As President Kennedy said in his final State of the Union address, “The future of any country which is dependent upon the will and wisdom of its citizens is damaged, and irreparably damaged, whenever any of its children is not educated to the full extent of his talent. ... This country cannot afford to be materially rich and spiritually poor.”
Several months earlier, President Kennedy also reminded us that “The life of the arts, far from being an interruption, a distraction, in the life of a nation, is very close to the center of a nation’s purpose — and is a test of the quality of a nation’s civilization.”
During World War II, Winston Churchill’s finance minister proclaimed that Britain should cut arts funding to support the war effort. Churchill’s response: “Then what are we fighting for?”
By offering music courses, Saginaw Public Schools have an opportunity to become a leader in our state, cultivating a culture of complete education for our children, embracing both academic and artistic excellence, and paving the way for a brighter, more rewarding tomorrow.
To read complete op-ed, please click here.
Review: "SBSO's 'American Valentine' better than a box of chocolates"
Janet Martineau has published a review of the second subscription concert of Brett Mitchell's first season at the helm of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra. "All the orchestra and its maestro Brett Mitchell had to do was deliver on the goods... and oh my goodness did they ever deliver on the goods. Collectively every single section of the orchestra got its moment to shine. Those strings just ached and shimmered in the Barber. The brass was so bold in the Dvorák. The percussionists bombastic in the Bernstein. And ya gotta love a conductor who follows the full-of-energy, sassy, jazzy, cocky West Side Story Overture with the quiet and introspective Adagio for Strings that just builds from the deepest of the strings to a fevered high pitch of angst so intense one fears the violin strings will snap and break.”
Preview: "Pianos, valentines, and more"
"360 Main Street" has published a preview of two upcoming Brett Mitchell performances: a solo piano recital at Saginaw's Castle Museum on Thursday, February 10, and his second subscription concert as music director of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra on Saturday, February 12. To read this article, please click here.
Preview: "3D glasses for the opera: Moores puts the Stars Wars into Magic Flute"
CultureMap has published a preview of the Moores Opera Center's upcoming production of Mozart's The Magic Flute, which opens tonight and runs for four performances through Monday, January 31. To read this article, please click here.
Brett Mitchell's complete Houston Symphony blog contributions
As a regular contributor to the Houston Symphony's blog, Brett Mitchell has penned five entries over the past year. These entries are archived below:
- It's almost showtime! (January 28, 2010)
- Downtime between concert times - what do we do now? (January 30, 2010)
- A celebration of music education (March 1, 2010)
- Wagner, his “Ring” and how Luke Skywalker comes in the picture (September 15, 2010)
- Music inspires faith in humanity (January 15, 2011)
Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra listed on "Top 10 arts events of 2010"
Brett Mitchell's first performance as Music Director of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra has been listed on Janet Martineau's "Top 10 Arts Events of 2010." "What would [Mitchell's] inaugural concert deliver? Goosebumps and fireworks. Mitchell said in program notes that he 'wanted to make a statement with this first concert.' Well, he and his musicians certainly did that to the rousing cheers of an appreciative audience." To read the complete article, please click here.
Brett Mitchell to co-host two episodes of KUHF's "Music from the Movies"
Brett Mitchell will return to one of his earliest musical loves--film scores--when he co-hosts two upcoming episodes of KUHF's "Music from the Movies." These episodes will air at 7 p.m. CST on Saturday, December 18, and Saturday, January 8, 2011. For more information on "Music from the Movies," please click here.