Press Release Contact: Andy Buelow For Immediate Release (253) 272-7264 August 26, 2008 abuelow@tacomasymphony.org www.tacomasymphony.org TSO Unplugged: Tacoma Symphony's Behind the Stands brings musicians up close and personal The Tacoma Symphony Orchestra's 2008-2009 Season opens in full glory with a concert of majestic Russian romantic works for a big orchestra in late October. For those who can't wait, the TSO is offering a special performance that takes the audience "Behind the Stands," at 7:30 p.m. Friday, September 26 at Tacoma Art Museum. Where the Russian concert is orchestral music writ very large indeed, Behind the Stands is a study in understatement: small ensembles of TSO musicians - a different grouping for each piece - will perform works by Mozart, Schubert, Tchaikovsky, Taffanel and Britten. Audience members will enjoy gourmet desserts, coffees, fine wines and other refreshments, and will have the opportunity to mingle with and ask questions directly of the musicians and Maestro Felder. Behind the Stands is sponsored by the law firm Gordon Thomas Honeywell Malanca Peterson & Daheim, PLLC. For tickets, $50, call 253-272-7264 or visit www.tacomasymphony.org. "10 or 15 years ago, the pop music world went through a phase of performing 'unplugged' (acoustic) concerts," explained Music Director Harvey Felder. "These pop music concerts, because they avoided the normal electronic amplification, were much more intimate than usual. Of course, symphonic music does not normally require amplification. However, Behind the Stands captures this same kind of intimacy and is our way of presenting the 'unplugged' experience. Additionally, it gives our musicians the chance to shine as solo chamber artists; and it gives our audience the opportunity to encounter the musicians up close, personal, and in a new way." The program showcases many of the TSO's finest players. It will open with the Oboe Quartet in F by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, followed by Paul Taffanel's Quintet for Winds. The principal string players will be featured in Tchaikovsky's String Sextet in D Major, "Souvenir de Florence." Next will be Schubert's Octet in F Major. The program will close with a rare performance of Benjamin Britten's Sinfonietta, Op. 1. "We are looking forward to sharing wonderful music, conversation and refreshments with our audience," said Executive Director Andrew Buelow. "Behind the Stands takes away the inherent separation between audience and performers. It will be as if we were sitting right in those sections of the orchestra. Each ensemble will be bigger than the last - from the oboe quartet to Britten's 10-piece Sinfonietta." #### For interviews, contact Andy Buelow, abuelow@tacomasymphony.org Attachments: News Release PDF; photo of Concertmaster Svend Ronning and Associate Concertmaster Sara Hancock. Photo credit: Dane Gregory Meyer. To be removed from this distribution list, hit "reply" and enter "remove" into the subject window.