The Xian Zhang era at Seattle Symphony begins with her first subscription concerts as Music Director on 18 and 20 September at Benaroya Hall. The programme includes Michael Abels’ Delights and Dances, Zoltán Kodály’s Dances of Galánta and Modest Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition and features Sphinx Soloists violinists Melissa White and Rubén Rengel, violist Celia Hatton and cellist Gabriel Cabezas.
Throughout 25/26, Zhang and the Seattle Symphony explore a wide range of repertoire, from Beethoven and Mozart symphonies to Mahler 7, Rachmaninov 2, and an all-Gershwin programme featuring soloist Hélène Grimaud. By pairing Shostakovich 5 with Qigang Chen’s Iris Dévoilée next spring, Zhang also brings the sound world of Peking Opera to Seattle through a cast of Peking and Western singers, as well as Chinese instruments. Later this season, Zhang joins forces again with Daniil Trifonov in an all-French programme featuring Franck 2 in the second half, before concluding her first season as Music Director with Beethoven’s monumental Symphony 9 featuring the Seattle Symphony Chorale.
“Joining the Seattle Symphony feels like coming home,” says Zhang. “I have long felt a special bond with these incredible musicians. Visiting Seattle has always been a treat as well, for its beautiful landscapes, and of course, to see the clear devotion the people have for their local arts community. As Music Director, I look forward to connecting with audiences on a deeper level, experiencing inspiring concerts together and discovering new music at Benaroya Hall, one of my all-time favorite performance halls to conduct in. I look forward to a wonderful future together!”
The Seattle Times’ Gemma Wilson writes, “In many ways, Zhang, 52, epitomizes a new kind of leader in the classical music world, a far cry from the old-world maestro who ruled with an iron baton. Her colleagues praise her energy, her collaborative and adventurous nature, her skill with traditional classical repertoire and her appetite for championing new works, developing new audiences and working with other arts organizations.”
Nicole Pasia, in her Seattle Times
review of the Season Opening Gala writes, “That energy was palpable from the moment she strode onstage, smiling warmly at the audience and greeting the orchestra before launching into the opening bars of Jessie Montgomery’s “Hymn for Everyone,” composed in 2021 as a response to challenges from the pandemic. Guiding the orchestra through the meditative piece, Zhang used sharp and at times explosive gestures to bring the song to its cathartic pinnacle.” She continues “Zhang exemplified masterful control from the podium, deftly switching from exuberant movements to restrained calm while maintaining razor-sharp precision. …Maintaining her energy throughout the night, Zhang called up the prelude to Richard Wagner’s “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.” With a flourish of the arms, Zhang called forth the joyful and triumphant anthem to an opera of optimism and hope. As the final note rang out to the nearly packed auditorium, the audience leapt to its feet to laud Zhang and the Symphony on a performance full of conviction and joy.
“…It was an auspicious beginning to a history-making tenure.”
See Music Director Xian Zhang Conduct the Seattle Symphony
Photo credits: Everything Time Studio