Issue
No. 4,
2006-07 Season

Magazine
HOME

Special Event
Sir James Galway with the
Detroit Symphony Orchestra

Hans Graf, conductor
Sir James Galway, flute

Robert Schumann
(1810-1856)

Manfred Overture, Op. 115

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
(1756-1791)

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
(1756-1791)

François Borne
(1840-1920)
orch. Sir James Galway

Richard Strauss
(1864-1949)

Sir James Galway

Sir James Galway, nicknamed “the man with the golden flute,” is widely regarded as both a supreme interpreter of the classical flute repertoire and a consummate entertainer whose appeal crosses all musical boundaries.

Born in Belfast, Galway began playing the penny whistle as a small child before switching to the flute. He continued his studies at the Royal College of Music and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, followed by the Paris Conservatory. He began his career at the Sadlers Wells Opera and the Royal Opera Covent Garden, which led to positions with the BBC Symphony Orchestra where he played piccolo, the London Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra where he was Principal Flute.

Through his extensive touring, over 30 million albums sold and his frequent international television appearances, Galway has endeared himself to millions worldwide. In addition to keeping a busy touring schedule in which he gives recitals and performs with the world’s leading orchestras, he conducts annual master classes. He devotes much of his free time discharging his duties as president of Flutewise, a volunteer-based nonprofit organization which encourages young flute players and donates instruments to low-income students and young people with disabilities.

Galway tours extensively in the United States, Asia and Europe. Highlights of his 2006-07 season include an U.S. recital and orchestral tour – including selected guest appearances by his wife, renowned flutist Lady Galway – which will travel to 20 cities including Phoenix, Santa Fe, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Boston and Washington, D.C.

In conjunction with the tour was the September 15th release of My Magic Flute distributed by Deutsche Grammophon. The album is a Mozart extravaganza recorded with the Sinfonia Varsovia and featuring Galway, his wife, and superstar harpist Catrin Finch. The recording includes a new version of Mozart’s Concerto for Flute and Harp.

Hans Graf

Known for his intensely musical interpretations of a wide range of repertoire and creative programming, the distinguished Austrian conductor, Hans Graf, is one of today’s most highly respected musicians.

Graf is currently the Music Director of the Houston Symphony, a post for which he was unanimously chosen in 2000. He completed his eighth and final season as Music Director of the Calgary Philharmonic in 2003 and concluded a six year tenure as Music Director of the Orchestre National Bordeaux Aquitaine in 2004.

Graf is a much sought after guest conductor in North America and has led the orchestras of Cleveland, Philadelphia, New York, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Toronto, Cincinnati, Detroit and Montreal. He participated in many prestigious festivals including Blossom, Wolftrap and the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center. Over the past decade he has developed a close relationship with the Boston Symphony and appears regularly with the orchestra. He made his Carnegie Hall debut with the Houston Symphony in 2006 and during the 2006-07 season makes first appearances with the San Francisco Symphony and with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s.

Internationally, Graf conducts in the major concert halls of Europe, Japan and Australia. He has appeared with the Vienna Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony and Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra as well as with the St. Petersburg, Czech and Israel Philharmonics.

An experienced opera conductor, Graf first conducted the Vienna State Opera in 1981 and has since led productions in the opera houses of Berlin, Munich, Paris and Rome. His extensive opera repertoire includes several world premieres.

Graf’s discography includes the complete symphonies of Mozart and Schubert and the premiere recording of Zemlinsky’s opera Es war einmal. He has recorded for the EMI, Orfeo, Erato, Capriccio and JVC labels as well as the complete works of Dutilleux. A disc of works by Bartok and Stravinsky with the Houston Symphony was released by Koch International in 2005.