Greetings and welcome!
This season's programming reflects the SDSO's ongoing commitment to playing music for and engaging with our community in ways which are both exciting and relevant. Of course there are wonderful masterworks of the orchestra repertoire, along with exciting soloists. There are also threads tying the season together in ways that I hope you'll find interesting and meaningful.
The capstone of our season is the revival of Douglas Moore's opera "Giants in the Earth," based on the novel by Ole Edvart Rølvaag. This opera tells the story of Norwegian immigrants coming to eastern South Dakota during the late 19th century; not only a story of the hardship of those settlers but also of immigration and assimilation in general. This immigration thread begins in November with the premiere of Paul Moravec's song cycle "A New Country," composed to various texts by and about American immigrants. That program also includes Dvorak's Cello Concerto, written in New York City and inspired by the composer's time living and traveling in America.
There are a lot of stories being told throughout this season! Our opening concert features music of that ultimate femme fatale Carmen, followed by a narrated tale by jazz great Wynton Marsalis, then Symphonie fantastique of Berlioz which tells its own tale of unrequited love. Music of romance is of course the theme of Valentine's Day weekend: Romeo and Juliet, Samson and Delilah, and dances galore.
Innovation is always a part of each season; one example is our January concert which pairs a new violin concerto from former SDSO composer-in-residence Theodore Wiprud with the image wizardry of projection designer Camilla Tassi. This program also features our SDSO percussion section in the solo spotlight in a concerto by Viet Cuong. "New World Encounters" in March is a program curated by cultural historian Joseph Horowitz, exploring the influence of American jazz on European composers.
The SDSO Chorus will be featured on four of our programs this season. Director Timothy Campbell will lead the orchestra and chorus during our 'Tis the Season program as well as pieces by Bach and Mendelssohn in April.
We heartily welcome conductor Nicholas Sharma as SDSO assistant conductor and music firector of the South Dakota Youth Symphony Orchstra. Nicholas will conduct all three of our pops programs as well as the Concert for Kids and Families and our Young People's Concerts.
This is a rich offering, carefully put together for your enrichment and enjoyment.
Wishing you a wonderful listening experience!
Delta David Gier
Music Director
Welcome to the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra's 2024-25 season! It is an exciting season, and I am delighted you are a part of it.
The South Dakota Symphony Orchestra is here because of you. Without you, the audience, the music that comes off the stage simply dissipates. Your presence transforms this spectacular concert hall into a community gathering place and supports the SDSO's mission: To Inspire the Best in All of Us Through Music.
I am so honored to lead a devoted Board of Directors who share a united passion for the role of our orchestra in this community. In addition to filling this spectacular concert hall with the magic of music, these outstanding musicians are also performing over 150 times off the main stage, in our community, and throughout the state. What you hear on this stage is ultimately the result of an artistic vision nurtured by our beloved music director Delta David Gier, and his commitment to excellence. There is so much to be proud of at the SDSO!
This orchestra is successful because of all of you who support it - through your tickets, volunteering, and philanthropy. Ticket sales are critical, but they only cover 25% of the symphony's total annual revenue. Consequently, philanthropic support is the backbone of the SDSO. Thank you all for giving generously to South Dakota's premier arts organization through your donations to the all-important annual fund, and for attending the SDSO's Gala - our only fundraising event of the year. In my role as the Chief Operating Officer at Avera, I am particularly grateful to the many corporations whose generosity makes Sioux Falls a philanthropic leader among cities of our size. We are all the beneficiaries of our community's deep commitment to philanthropy, and as members of the wonderful SDSO audience, we all get to experience several immediate examples of this during this SDSO season.
There are great things happening at the SDSO! T. Denny Sanford's generous $2 million gift last year for children's programs is growing SDSO music education and bringing back the Concert for Kids & Families this season. Dean and Rosemarie Buntrock's $2 million donation is funding the SDSO's production of the opera Giants in the Earth at the end of this season. Thank you to these generous donors, and to all of you for building the palpable momentum at the SDSO and fulfilling its artistic excellence and community impact!
I look forward to sharing this exciting SDSO season with you. Thank you all and enjoy the music!
Sincerely,
David Flicek
President, South Dakota Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors
Chief Operating Office, Avera
Orchestras are asked to fill many roles in their communities -- perform the great masterworks with excellent execution and artistry, introduce new works, and educate future audiences. Ideally the orchestra is also creating an environment where everyone belongs. The South Dakota Symphony Orchestra does all of this and takes its responsibility one step further, by bringing the music off the main stage to audiences who might not otherwise have a chance to hear it. The symbiosis of all this activity is why the SDSO is continuously recognized for its community relevance – or as Alex Ross wrote in the New Yorker, the SDSO is “the model of an engaged orchestra.”
Delta David Gier’s community inspired vision for the SDSO is to view concerts as an opportunity to partner with other organizations with an invitation to new audiences to hear the music. There are three exciting examples of this happening in the 2024-25 season.
- The January “Beats and Beethoven” concert features two works about sustainability and climate change. SDSO is collaborating with Climate Music Project, University of South Dakota, and SoDak 350 to provide information to audiences about climate action.
- The "New World Encounters" concert on March 1 is a program developed by Joseph Horowitz which explores how early 20th century American popular culture influenced European and Russian composers. The week leading up to the concert is a packed schedule of residency performances at USD, SDSU, Augustana, and Sioux Falls schools.
- The pinnacle of SDSO’s 2024-25 season community engagement is the opera Giants in the Earth. Four years in the making, this expansive project involves over a dozen partners including South Dakota Public Broadcasting, South Dakota Historical Society, South Dakota Humanities Council, Augustana University, St. Olaf, Columbia University, Norwegian-American Historical Society, and the Norwegian Embassy.
The SDSO’s nine fulltime musicians who make up the Dakota String Quartet and Dakota Wind Quintet will perform 150 times this season for audiences closer to home and also around our state – in Sisseton, Rapid City, Pine Ridge, Mitchell, Pierre, Watertown, and Sioux City. Here in Sioux Falls, they are touring elementary and middle schools, and taking the therapeutic power of music to partner organizations like DakotAbilities, Lifescape, Avera’s Addiction Care Center, Avera Behavioral Hospital, and Dougherty Hospice House.
The SDSO is here because of you – audiences, donors, and volunteers. Your enthusiasm and involvement keep this great orchestra aspiring to new heights. Thank you for your support! Here’s to another great year of making music!
Jennifer Teisinger
Executive Director