Sound Bite / Reimagine Vivaldi's Four Seasons with Audrey Wright!

This November 1st & 2nd, Music Director Nicholas Hersh has put together a fun and exciting program that reimagines the Classics-favorite, Vivaldi's Four Seasons with The Four Seasons Mixtape! Who better to take on the challenge of four different composers for each of the seasons than New York Philharmonic violinist Audrey Wright.

See Audrey & the MSO perform The Four Seasons Mixtape this November 1st & 2nd, 2024 at the Gallo Center for the Arts.

Read / A Season of Energy, A Season for Everyone

Read / A Season of Energy, A Season for Everyone

Conductor on conductor interview

After a summer break, we sat down with Music Director Nicholas Hersh and Principal Pops Conductor Ryan Murray as they chatted about our upcoming season.

Ryan Murray, Principal Pops Conductor (RM): Nick, I’m really excited for your Classics Series! I think every Classics concert this year has something for everyone—something that makes this music accessible. It’s a little bit away from the “overture-concerto-symphony” format, and although that may be scary to some people who are comfortable with that model, there are still giant symphonic pieces in there. Can you talk about how this season is going to appeal to the long-time classical music lovers, but also those that are thinking about coming to the concert hall for the first time?

Nicholas Hersh, Music Director (NH): Thanks for that! The thought behind our Classics Series was to provide a unique experience at every concert. You could come to all of them and have a completely different experience each time. Our first concert is probably the most traditional, but the concerto element of it is probably the LEAST traditional bit of it. It’s featuring a saxophone first of all, which is a very rare instrument for concertos, and featuring one of the absolute best in the world at it, Branford Marsalis. He’ll be playing two very jazz-inspired pieces by Milhaud and Williams, and that’s paired with the amazing ever-green Symphonic Dances of Rachmaninoff, which again, sort of takes that idea of what a symphony can be and takes it a step further.

“The thought behind our Classics Series was to provide a unique experience at every concert. You could come to all of them and have a completely different experience each time.”

And then we come to our second concert where the traditional format is tossed out the window! We’re doing this ‘mixtape’ idea, which in this case, is featuring the Four Seasons. We’ll be playing some of Vivaldi’s “Seasons”—but only one as a matter of fact. Each “Season” is written by a different composer, and each of them has their own voice. Some of the Seasons are inspired by Vivaldi, such as Max Ritcher’s ‘Autumn’, and it’s an exciting way to experience how music evolves.

We pair that “quartet of seasons” with a couple of other pieces that emphasize seasonality: Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream and “La Calaca” by Gabriela Oritz, which I’m very excited about. La Calaca is about Day of the Dead, which is the very weekend that we’ll be having that concert.

Then we come to your feature performance on the Classics Series, Fantasia in Concert, maybe you could talk a little about that, Ryan?

RM: I’m really excited about that, I just conducted it in May 2024 [with the Auburn Symphony], and it’s just an unbelievable show. It’s the greatest moments of classical music with the brilliance of Disney animation. There’s Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony, Firebird—it’s exciting music, but it’s an incredibly difficult show for the orchestra and the conductor. I’m looking forward to taking on that challenge again—it’s just a magical, magical thing.

It's going to be great fun to share with our audience in Modesto, in the beautiful Gallo Center, and it’s always nice when you can do a show a second or third or fourth or fifth time, because you find different things in it as a conductor. It’s like you’re starting from level two instead of level one or zero.

A question I get a lot about Fantasia from patrons is: “Is it the original or is it the new one?” It’s actually a mix of pieces from both the original Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 that Disney in Concerts has put together for us.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice, Dance of the Hours, The Nutcracker Suite, and Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony are from the 1940s version, as well as Clair de Lune, which didn't even make it into the original cut of the film, but was recorded and is also in this concert. Then we have Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Firebird, Pines of Rome, and a few other pieces from Fantasia 2000.

NH: The greatest hits, isn't it?

RM: Yeah, absolutely!

NH: Of course, we finish our Classics Series with two concerts, one featuring the talents of our Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra joining us on stage for a performance of Copland's Rodeo. As well as Carnival of the Animals, which is all about discovery and youth.

We’re finishing off the Series with Verdi's Requiem, which is as epic as it gets. It’s one of the great masterpieces of anything written for orchestra. It features our MSO Chorus in an unbelievably intrinsic way, even more so than Beethoven's Ninth Symphony last year. They’ll have to sing the entire way through, and I’m very much looking forward to working with our fabulous chorus and our chorus director, Daniel Afonso on that. And meanwhile… we have a great Pop Series coming on as well!

RM: We do! The Pops Series this year, in a way, is kind of like a season of second chances because we have some great things that we just slightly missed out on in the past.

Nikki Renée Daniels was going to sing Holiday Pops! with us two years ago but was unable to join us. Now, she's coming back this year, and I'm really excited! Her voice is just unbelievable, and she's been singing everywhere since then—with major orchestras and major Broadway shows and companies.

Then when we head into spring, and Capathia Jenkins will return for her Aretha Franklin tribute show. I was so sad that the audience didn't get the chance to hear her at Picnic at the Pops in 2023 because of the unbelievable torrential rainstorm and lightning. But I can tell you just from the dress rehearsal—she is one of the finest artists I have ever worked with.

Capathia brings this amazing musicianship and subtlety and such incredible colors to her singing, and although it works outdoors—it's going to be even more exciting indoors, where people will be able to intimately hear all the amazing things that she's doing with her voice. It's a fantastic show, it's brilliant music, and I can't wait for Capathia to come back.

We’re finishing off the season with another film, and although we've made our way through the original Star Wars trilogy—we're sticking with John Williams. We're doing Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark! What a fun summer adventure movie with the incredible music of John Williams. It's just going to be another smash hit!

NH: Oh, yeah, that's one I haven't had the pleasure to conduct yet! Is this your first time as well?

RM: Yeah, I haven't done it before, either. It’ll be fun to dig into it. The great thing about John Williams is that every time you open a new score, it’s like visiting an old friend. There are new things, but there is this language he has that is so natural for the orchestra.

"The great thing about John Williams is that every time you open a new score, it’s like visiting an old friend. There are new things, but there is this language he has that is so natural for the orchestra.

NH: That's what it is, isn't it?  It's one of those amazing things with him where when you start rehearsing it, you look at it on paper and it seems very virtuosic, and very, very difficult. But then, it just fits, it just works.

RM: It just clicks, yeah.

NH: You don't have to futz with anything, every dynamic, every timbre is just *so*. It’s challenging and yet fluid at the same time. I can think of very few other composers like him who have that kind of flexibility.

RM: The rhythms are exciting, the melodies are beautiful, and the orchestration—it works brilliantly.

So, it's a great Pops Series with lots of different kinds of music for different audiences.

And of course, our Holiday Candlelight Concert. This is such a special concert in the unbelievable St. Stanislaus Catholic Church. It’s an amazing chance to showcase the traditional music of the holidays, and the incredible ability of our MSO Chorus.

I think it's so fitting and so perfect that Daniel Afonso conducts this concert. He does a beautiful job with it, and it’s a real chance for our audience to get to know him better as the incredible musician that he is, and to meet our chorus on a more intimate level. And paired with the Opus Handbell Ensemble, it's just such a fun and festive event and I always enjoy when I can be there as an audience member too.

NH: I think that ties in beautifully with the concept of the Classics Series. Each of these performances is its own experience. They bring a different kind of energy, and we’ve called this season, the “season of energy.”

Audiences will get to see something new and rewarding from each concert. It's been great fun putting this together with you, Ryan, and our wonderful staff of the MSO.

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A Season of energy!

Modesto Symphony's 2024/25 Season of Energy!

Welcome to a season of Energy! The MSO has a fantastic season of concerts that run the gamut of emotions: from Picnic at the Pops! Dancing in the Streets to a new spin on Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons to bringing Walt Disney’s beloved animated Fantasia to life on screen and stage! You’re guaranteed to move and be moved this season at the Modesto Symphony Orchestra.

Our 2024/25 Series:

Listen / Arts of the San Joaquin Valley: Nicholas Hersh Interview

Arts of the San Joaquin Valley

Episode 48: Nicholas Hersh

Nicholas Hersh, Music Director of Modesto Symphony Orchestra, talks with co-host Linda Scheller about becoming a conductor, music in education, balancing the canon, a music director's responsibilities, and the significance of live musical performances.

Sound Bite / Celebrating Brotherhood & Joy: Beethoven's 9

MSO Chorus Director, Daniel R. Afonso Jr. joins MSO Music Director, Nicholas Hersh as they discuss the joys of uniting two musical forces: orchestra & chorus in Beethoven's masterpiece: Symphony No. 9!

They also provide insight about the challenges of singing in acapella and English for the Chorus' performance of Amy Beach's "Peace I Leave With You" (Don't get them started on diphthongs!)

See the MSO & MSO Chorus perform Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 live this May 10 & 11, 2024 at the Gallo Center for the Arts.

Sound Bite / Reinventing Baroque: How These 3 Composers Were Inspired by Bach

Music Director Nicholas Hersh explores how composers Astor Piazzolla, Louise Farrenc, and Felix Mendelssohn were inspired by studying Bach and the Baroque period, and created fresh and innovative compositions.

See the MSO perform the works of Farrenc, Mendelssohn, and Piazzolla live this April 12 & 13, 2024 at the Gallo Center for the Arts.

Sound Bite / Curating a Concert with MSO Musicans

Programming a concert by yourself can get lonely, but with musicians to help: it's a party! Music Director Nicholas Hersh along with MSO musicians, Don Grishaw, violin and Rob Patterson, clarinet, introduce a brand new symphony experience: Symphonic Soundtrack! This performance will be a relaxed & fun concert featuring shorter pieces curated by the MSO, followed by an after-party for our audiences to meet & mingle with our musicians & music lovers.

Read / Growing Together with Music

Growing Together with Music

by Nicholas Hersh

Nicholas Hersh & Pitman High School Orchestra

The 21st-century symphony orchestra should have two fundamental missions: presenting musical experiences for the community at the highest possible artistic caliber, and providing opportunities in music education for as many children as possible. The most cynical amongst us might say we're simply preparing the next generation of music lovers to come to the symphony! Of course, anyone who has taken music lessons, or been in a school or after-school musical ensemble, knows that there’s so much more to the experience than simply “how to music.”

Music educators teach a myriad of skills, like cooperation (“open your ears and play together!”), critical thinking (“who has the important line here?”), problem solving (“try this fingering!”), attention to detail (“don’t rush the eighth notes!”), and discipline (“practice!!!”). And there is nothing so satisfying for a student as mastering a piece of music and performing it in front of gathered friends and family.

Nicholas Hersh & Johansen High School Band

My own years in school orchestra and youth orchestra were formative for my life and career, instilling in me a deep appreciation for the symphonic experience that led me to become a conductor. It’s a core tenet of my vision for the MSO to continue to invest in music education, and to expand its reach as far as possible.

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Sound Bite / Discovering the Artistic Voices of Dawson, Boulanger, & Gershwin

Music Director Nicholas Hersh takes us back to experience what it was like to be an artist and composer during the period between World War I and World War II, both at home in America and abroad in Paris. He deep dives into three composers of the time: George Gershwin, Lili Boulanger, and William L. Dawson, and explores the connections between them.

See the MSO perform the works of Gershwin, Boulanger, and Dawson this February 9 & 10, 2024 at the Gallo Center for the Arts.

Get to Know MSO's New Music Director Nicholas Hersh!

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Get to know Nicholas Hersh!

We are so excited for Nicholas Hersh’s to join our Modesto community, and we can’t wait for you to meet him. We asked him to share a bit about himself from what instrument he plays to his favorite pizza topping. Keep reading to learn more about Nicholas!

If you weren’t a conductor/musician, what would you want to be?

Probably an astronomer—I’m fascinated by space and celestial bodies!

Star Wars or Star Trek? Lifelong Star Wars nerd, reporting in

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What instrument do you play?

Cello.

What was the first concert you went to? The first I really remember is The Magic Flute at the Chicago Lyric Opera when I was about 6 or 7.

Besides music, what was your favorite subject in school?
My high school had a fantastic curriculum called Chem-Phys, where you took Chemistry and Physics jointly. I wasn’t great with the Chem, but absolutely loved the Phys!

Dogs or cats?
Love them all, but seeing as I have two cats at home...

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Describe yourself in three words. Curious. Creative. Committed.

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A post shared by Nicholas Hersh (@nicholashersh)

Do you have a secret talent?
Not too secret (see Instagram), but I make sourdough bread.

What is your favorite pizza topping?
Cheese, cheese and more cheese!

What would be the theme music to your life?
John Williams’ “Adventures on Earth” from E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial

Go to the beach, or go to the mountains?
First one, then the other! But I just went skiing for the first time, and I LOVED it.

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Nicholas on joining the MSOA:

“I am beyond thrilled that my first music directorship will be in such a vibrant, music-loving city as Modesto. There was a certain electricity in the Gallo Center when the MSO musicians and I collaborated last year, shared not only onstage but with the audience as well; together we’ll grow that energy, creating bespoke artistic experiences for the entire Modesto community and cementing the role of music education for all ages as a driver of social good.

Orchestral music has endured, and I believe symphonies will continue to serve as a vehicle for great music. You have gathered onstage a group of virtuoso musicians working together toward a unified musical vision, and an audience gathered in the house to take it in. It’s a bit of an odd ritual—this mysterious congregation! But it’s the sense of community the orchestra creates, with every musician and concertgoer participating, that gives an orchestra concert its staying power: when the lights go down and the sound of some eighty acoustic instruments envelops you and those around you...well, there are few words to describe that sensation.”

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Sound Bite / A Celebration of Music with Music Director Nicholas Hersh

Conductor Nicholas Hersh is excited for his debut as the MSO’s new Music Director! He has put together a program that celebrates not only the partnership of MSO and himself, but also this new era for the MSO and our community.

Hear the MSO perform the works of Mozart, Tchaikovsky, and Copland live this October 13 & 14, 2023!

Hear What's Next: MSO's 2023/24 Classics Series with Nicholas Hersh!

Music Director Nicholas Hersh invites you to Hear What's Next in this Modesto Symphony Orchestra's 2023/24 Classics Season!

Our 2023/24 Classics Series:

Sound Bite / Soaring Swan Songs

Guest conductor Nicholas Hersh explores the great mysteries of life and death through the works of Schubert, Rachmaninoff, and Sibelius.

Hersh will lead the MSO for the Rachmaninoff & Sibelius concerts. This program gives us the opportunity to hear Hersh’s arrangement of the second movement of Schubert’s famous string quartet, Death and the Maiden. Then pianist George Li will be featured on Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini and the program will finish with Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5. This breathtaking beauty captures 16 soaring swans when the strings mimic the fluttering of wings and a glorious, arching theme played by the French horns.

Hear the works of Schubert, Rachmaninoff, and Sibelius performed live by the MSO this November 11th & 12th, 2022!