Dear Fellow Music Lovers,

It’s my pleasure to welcome you to my second season with the newly reborn Brooklyn Philharmonic. In 2011 – 12 we embarked on a mission to make the Philharmonic Brooklyn’s true orchestra, connecting with the people of the borough through unique events that reflected and emerged from Brooklyn’s communities. This mission led us on an adventure that produced the most exciting and challenging musical experience of my career, and I’m thrilled to now be taking the next step together with you!

This season we return to the communities we partnered with during our last season to create all new musical events. The result is an eclectic season that has us collaborating with Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter Erykah Badu, composer, conductor and performer Ted Hearne, Russian poet Vera Pavlova and 2012 New York Youth Poet Laureate Ishmael Islam – among many others!

As always, we continue to welcome creative Brooklyn artists of all types into the orchestral world through our revolutionary Outside-In program. This fall, we’ll offer our first full orchestra open reading so you can look behind the scenes at the orchestral works that were created by our 2011 – 12 Outside-In Fellows Tim Fite, Charlie Looker and Natalie Elizabeth Weiss. In the spring, we premiere the string quartets of a new batch of Outside-In Fellows including indie rocker Jesse Krakow, singer-songwriter Toshi Reagon and oud player Hadi Eldebek.

And we’re absolutely delighted to be announcing the formation of the Brooklyn Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (BPYO), which will add a whole new dimension to the Philharmonic’s work in Brooklyn’s communities.

All of this aims to make the Brooklyn Philharmonic not only an organization that creates inspiring, original and beautiful art; but one that brings together people along with their own ideas and cultures in our remarkable and diverse community. We’re excited to see where all of this takes us. And where it takes you.

Yours,

Alan Pierson
Artistic Director

(c) 2012 – 2013 Brooklyn Philharmonic