(Boston June 6, 2020) The Handel and Haydn Society has expanded its digital programing, providing hours of content free of charge to listeners. The new content includes a 9-week Summer of Beethoven festival, a podcast hosted by the orchestra’s principal cello Guy Fishman, and two new 24-hour internet radio stations. All the digital offerings can be found at handelandhaydn.org/watch-listen.
On July 4 H+H launched its Summer of Beethoven, a nine-week online festival celebrating the great composer’s 250th birthday and exploring H+H’s unique history with the famed composer. The festival will include live and recorded performances of symphonies, concertos, choral works and chamber music by Beethoven (many being released publicly for the first time), as well as a feature on H+H’s attempt to commission new music from Beethoven in the 1820s, and other behind the scenes glimpses from H+H’s storied past with the great composer. The festival will conclude the week of August 29 with a one-week, wall-to-wall 24/7 Beethoven takeover of Radio H+H, the Society’s new online radio station. During that week the station will be dedicated completely to music of Beethoven as performed by H+H. The station will revert to its regular programming on September 7. A complete schedule of Summer of Beethoven offerings is at https://handelandhaydn.org/summer-of-beethoven/.
Radio H+H is another new initiative of the Society, consisting of two separate 24-hour “stations” with performances by the Handel and Haydn Society Orchestra and Chorus, as well as other recordings by H+H musicians. One station exclusively features H+H instrumental recordings, while the second station mixes all recordings. The radio stations are available now at https://handelandhaydn.org/radio/.
The Handel and Haydn Society podcast “Tuning In” continues with part two of the interview with H+H Concertmaster Aisslinn Nosky discussing Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. The podcast is hosted by principal cellist Guy Fishman and provides behind the scenes insights from H+H musicians and staff all about the music that they love.
Other digital offerings from the Handel and Haydn Society include “Musicians From Home,” a collection of personal performances from H+H musicians filmed at their homes; “Musical Pairings,” during which H+H musicians discuss the connections, bonds, and creation of musical beauty through their unique instruments; and the “H+H Listening Room,” recordings of past H+H performances and clips about various musical offerings. All of these recordings are available at handelandhaydn.org/watch-listen.
The Handel and Haydn Society looks forward to returning in the fall with a complete season of historically informed performances. Subscriptions are on sale now at handelandhaydn.org or by calling the Box Office at 617.266.3605.
Handel and Haydn Society’s 2020–21 Season Performances include:
Brahms A German Requiem September 25 + 27, 2020 Symphony Hall
Bach + Vivaldi Gloria October 23 + 25, 2020 Symphony Hall
Handel Messiah November 27 + 28 + 29, 2020 Symphony Hall
Bach Christmas December 17 + 20, 2020 St. Cecilia Parish
Haydn + Mozart January 22 + 24, 2021 Symphony Hall
Mozart Great Mass February 5 + 7, 2021 Symphony Hall
Beethoven Symphony No. 7 March 5 + 7, 2021 Symphony Hall
Handel Israel in Egypt March 19 + 21, 2021 Symphony Hall & Sanders Theatre
Haydn The Creation April 30 + May 2, 2021 Symphony Hall
About the Handel and Haydn Society
Boston’s Handel and Haydn Society is dedicated to performing Baroque and Classical music with a freshness, a vitality, and a creativity that inspires all ages. H+H has been captivating audiences for 205 consecutive seasons (the most of any performing arts organization in the United States). Today, H+H’s Orchestra and Chorus delight more than 50,000 listeners annually with a nine-week subscription series at Boston Symphony Hall and other leading venues. Through the Karen S. and George D. Levy Education Program, H+H supports seven youth choirs of singers in grades 2-12 and provides thousands of complimentary tickets to students and communities throughout Boston, ensuring the joy of music is accessible to all. H+H’s numerous free community concerts include an annual commemoration of the original 1863 Emancipation Proclamation concert on December 31. The artistic director of the Handel and Haydn Society is Harry Christophers. Under Christophers’s leadership, H+H has released 12 CDs on the Coro label and has toured nationally and internationally. In all these ways, H+H fulfills its mission to inspire the intellect, touch the heart, elevate the soul, and connect us with our shared humanity through transformative experiences with Baroque and Classical music.
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