Nashville Symphony to "Kickstart" Joan Tower CD Project with Naxos Records

Nashville Symphony is launching a KickStarter project to record three works by celebrated American composer Joan Tower. The orchestra has set a goal of $15,500 to fund the recording of Chamber Dance, Stroke and Violin Concerto live in concert at Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville, Tennessee, during fall 2013.

Joan Tower is one of the most accomplished composers working today. For more than 50 years, she has made a huge impact on American music as a composer, conductor, teacher and performer. Nashville Symphony has a rich history with Tower, beginning in 2006 with its recording of Made in America, which garnered three GRAMMY® Awards.

In honor of Tower’s 75th birthday, the Nashville Symphony is seeking to make the first-ever recordings of these three pieces, to be released worldwide on Naxos. This project, which will feature renowned violinist Cho-Liang Lin on Tower’s Violin Concerto, is at the heart of the Nashville Symphony’s mission to foster the creation, promotion and preservation of a distinctly American repertoire. To learn more about this project or to donate, please visit http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/65177967/nashville-symphony-records-joan-tower.

One of the most active recording orchestras in the country, the Nashville Symphony has released 19 recordings on Naxos, the world’s leading classical label. These recordings have received a total of 14 GRAMMY^® nominations and seven GRAMMY^® wins, including two for Best Orchestral Performance — one awarded to Tower’s Made in America and the other to Michael Daugherty’s Metropolis Symphony. Throughout its history, the Nashville Symphony has maintained a commitment to championing the music of America’s leading composers, including an invitation in 2012 to perform a commission by Terry Riley at Carnegie Hall’s Spring for Music Festival.

By documenting the work of today’s leading composers, the Nashville Symphony is helping to keep classical music relevant for the audiences of today and tomorrow. The Joan Tower project will cost about $15,500 total, and public support provided via Kickstarter will help close the funding gap to ensure that this composer’s works are preserved in her lifetime.
 

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Led by Music Director Giancarlo Guerrero and President and CEO Alan D. Valentine, the Nashville Symphony has established an international profile with its innovative programming and steadily expanding discography. Founded in 1946, the orchestra is today the largest performing arts nonprofit in the state of Tennessee. With more than 100 performances annually, the Symphony’s concert schedule encompasses a diverse mix of classical, pops, jazz and family programs, along with extensive community outreach efforts. During the past year, the orchestra’s artistic excellence has been recognized by the Copland Fund for Music’s Performing Ensembles Program and the ASCAP Awards for Adventurous Programming.
Photo credit Bill Steber.