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PETER BOYER’S RHAPSODY IN RED, WHITE & BLUE
TO BE PERFORMED IN ALL 50 STATES BY
MORE THAN 50 DIFFERENT U.S. ORCHESTRAS
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NAXOS TO RELEASE THE LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA RECORDING OF BOYER'S NEW WORK CELEBRATING THE CENTENNIAL OF GERSHWIN'S RHAPSODY IN BLUE | |
Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue, composed by Peter Boyer and commissioned by pianist Jeffrey Biegel, will be performed by 54 orchestras in all 50 of the United States, a rare milestone for any new musical work. Biegel commissioned the celebratory piece to mark the centennial of George Gershwin’s iconic Rhapsody in Blue, which received its premiere on February 12, 1924. In addition, reaching beyond the United States, Boyer and Biegel recorded the Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue with the world-renowned London Symphony Orchestra for the Naxos American Classics series. The label will release this recording on February 23, 2024, with a pre-release exclusivity for Apple Music starting on February 9. | |
Recorded at AIR Studios Lyndhurst Hall, Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue (Naxos # 9.70359), features Boyer conducting the London Symphony Orchestra with Biegel as piano soloist. Simon Rhodes of Abbey Road Studios, known for his work on such projects as the first two Harry Potter film scores, the Avatar film scores, and hundreds of classical albums, was producer and engineer for the recording. This is Boyer’s fourth release for the American Classics series, and his third with the London Symphony Orchestra as composer and conductor. | Boyer’s ca. 18-minute Rhapsody was premiered on June 30, 2023—with an audience of more than 3,000—featuring Biegel and the Utah Symphony conducted by Benjamin Manis, on the opening night of the Deer Valley Music Festival in Park City, Utah. | Since 2020, Jeffrey Biegel has pursued a highly ambitious “Rhapsody National Initiative,” with the goal of performing Boyer’s new work with at least one orchestra in each of the 50 United States. As of January 2024, this remarkable vision has been fulfilled, and Boyer’s new Rhapsody will be performed by orchestras in all 50 states by the 2026-27 season, believed to be an unprecedented accomplishment for a new soloist-and-orchestra work by an American composer. | Rhapsody National Initiative | The commission of Boyer’s Rhapsody in Red, White & Blue was made possible through a generous consortium of sponsors. The Billy Rose Foundation was the lead sponsor of the commission, and the exclusive sponsor of the recording. | |
Peter Boyer is one of the most frequently performed American orchestral composers of his generation. His works have received over 700 performances by more than 250 orchestras, and tens of thousands of broadcasts by classical radio stations around the United States and abroad. He has conducted recordings of his music with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. His Grammy-nominated major work Ellis Island: The Dream of America has received over 275 performances, and was nationally televised with the Pacific Symphony on PBS’ Great Performances. Boyer has received commissions from prestigious American institutions and ensembles, including the Kennedy Center for the National Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops, Cincinnati Pops, and “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band, for the inauguration of President Biden. | | | | |
