BY ALAN SHERROD It is fair to say that our Christmas season today would be vastly different had Charles Dickens not treated us to the novella masterpiece that is A Christmas Carol. The work influenced and popularized many of…
Review: Pianist Park, Guest conductor Di Russo, and KSO Shine in ‘Rhapsody’ et al.
BY ALAN SHERROD With the beginnings of the holiday season now upon us, Knoxville Symphony Orchestra Maestro Aram Demirjian took the week off and handed the baton for its November Masterworks pair of concerts this past weekend to guest…
Review: A New Beginning – UT Opera Theatre Presents Rossini and Menotti Comedies
BY ALAN SHERROD As the Bijou Theatre’s red curtain closed on the University of Tennessee Opera Theatre’s performance of two one-act comic operas this past weekend, one had the distinct feeling that this was not a closing at all,…
KSO Extends Aram Demirjian’s Contract Through 2030
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra has announced that Music Director Aram Demirjian has signed a new four-year contract that will continue his leadership of the orchestra through the 2029-30 season. “We have made such inspiring strides together over the last 10…
Review: ‘The Book of Mormon’ at the Tennessee Theatre – Still Outrageous Fun
‘The Book of Mormon’ is now well-ensconced in a third U.S. tour—this one non-AEA— that took to the road in 2022. That tour is currently making a stop for eight performances at the Tennessee Theatre through November 16.
UT Opera Theatre Introduces a New Stage Director … and an Italian Double Feature
Stepping into the spotlight with his first production as Director of Opera Theatre at UT is James Kenon Mitchell.
For the fall production of the 2025-26 UTOT season, two one-act comic operas were chosen: La cambiale di matrimonio (The Marriage Contract) by Gioachino Rossini and Amelia al ballo (Amelia Goes to the Ball) by Gian Carlo Menotti.
Review: Knoxville Opera Brings a Superb Cast to Bizet’s ‘Carmen’
BY ALAN SHERROD Note for note, minute for minute, Georges Bizet’s Carmen can seem today like one hit tune after another. Interestingly, it didn’t start its operatic life that way, the premiere in 1875 being quite the disaster. Thankfully,…
Review: Demirjian, Fung, and Knoxville Symphony Orchestra Deliver a Magical Evening
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra concerts this past weekend, as programmed by Maestro Aram Demirjian and delivered by the orchestra, featured a brilliant take on Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto by the young dynamic cellist Zlatomir Fung. The orchestra players were in the spotlight for the 1947 concert hall version of Igor Stravinsky’s ballet Petrushka and its dramatic orchestral storytelling. And, the opener, Meilina Tsui’s Floridian Symphony, was a delightfully vibrant and atmospheric new work that calls on orchestral instruments and their players to explore and artistically replicate the natural sounds of a rural Florida environment and its world of insects, birds, and other animals.
Review: Amadeus Concert Ensemble Explores “Polish Classics”
The Amadeus Concert Ensemble opened its 2025-26 season on Sunday afternoon, continuing its exploration of gems of music history in superb performances that are a part of the ongoing Cathedral Concert Series. On this occasion, the theme was “Polish Classics,”…
KSO This Week: Essential Elgar, Storybook Stravinsky
Following its compelling opening Masterworks Series concerts last month, the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra embraces an intriguing program for its October concerts this week that feature Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor with guest soloist Zlatomir Fung, along with Igor Stravinsky’s delicious folk-fantasy ballet score, Petrushka. Maestro Aram Demirjian will be opening the concert with the eight-minute Floridian Symphony by Meilina Tsui—receiving its first performances in the state of Tennessee.
