On Friday, August 18th, Andris Nelsons will conduct The Boston Symphony Orchestra in a program featuring works by Saint-Saëns, Simon, and Gershwin featuring soloist Jean-Yves Thibaudet on piano in The Shed at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts.
The “Simon” of those listed composers is Carlos Simon and his piece, “Four Black American Dances,” is a BSO commission. The piece celebrates the composer’s heritage and the presence of dance in Black culture as a medium for ritual, worship, celebration, and social connectivity.
Simon attended Georgia State University and Morehouse College, studying piano and composition. He earned his doctorate in music composition from the University of Michigan.
He is the current Composer-in-Residence for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and frequently writes for the National Symphony Orchestra and Washington National Opera, with the 2022/23 season seeing premieres with Boston Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Brooklyn Art Song Society and Minnesota Orchestra. These follow recent other commissions from the likes of New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic, and performances from Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, and American Ballet Theatre.
Acting as music director and keyboardist for GRAMMY Award winner Jennifer Holliday, Simon has performed with the Boston Pops Symphony, Jackson Symphony, and St. Louis Symphony. He has also toured internationally with soul GRAMMY-nominated artist Angie Stone and performed throughout Europe, Africa, and Asia.
