The Orchestre Métropolitain has a schedule of 13 concerts this summer, its most substantial summer season yet, including nine conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

The OM Alfresco series will see the Orchestra performing four free outdoor concerts, including the popular concert on Mount Royal, which has become one of the orchestra’s highlights of the summer. In response to the growing reputation of the Orchestra, its conductor, the event and to be able to accommodate more concertgoers; the sixth edition of the event will be held on Thursday, July 25, at 8pm at the foot of Mount Royal, specifically at the intersection of Avenue du Parc and Avenue des Pins, where the Montréal symphonique event was held during Montreal’s 375th anniversary celebration.

The same program, also conducted by the OM’s artistic director and principal conductor, will be offered free of charge to audiences on Ile-des-Soeurs and in Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot and Granby.

Besides these four concerts, the Orchestre Métropolitain and Yannick Nézet-Séguin was part of the festivities on June 27 surrounding the inauguration of Espace 67 at Parc Jean-Drapeau; titled L’OM Grandeur Nature. The Orchestra also performed in June as part of Festival Classica in TMR and at Maison Symphonique for Le Festival des Francofolies.

Front and centre at major festivals

The Orchestre Métropolitain returns for a number of concerts as part of the always popular summer festivals; including four performances at the Festival de Lanaudière. Three will be conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin and feature renowned soloists mezzo-soprano Susan Graham and pianists Seong-Jin Cho and Marc-André Hamelin. Young conductor Nicolas Ellis, the OM’s current artistic partner, will make his festival debut leading the ensemble in a concert with cellist Stéphane Tétreault.

Another tradition will be maintained at the Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur, where the OM and Yannick Nézet-Séguin will have the honour of closing the event.

Free Outdoor Concerts; The OM Alfresco

Under the direction of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, the OM will provide an opportunity for the general public to experience symphonic music outdoors in a magical, laid-back setting. The OM’s program centrepiece is Tchaikovsky’s celebrated Symphony No. 5, one of the composer’s most emblematic works. Among its more remarkable features are the fatum theme, which appears in each movement, the consoling melody that opens the second movement, the third movement’s graceful waltz and an especially tumultuous finale. The work will be preceded by Edvard Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, a musical gem that charms the ear and plunges us into the title character’s eventful journeys.

Thursday, July 25, 8pm Montreal, at the foot of Mount Royal (access to site at the corner of Parc and Duluth) Tuesday, August 6, 7:30pm Ile-des-Soeurs (Parc West Vancouver) Friday, August 9, 7:30pm on Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot (Parc historique de la Pointe-du-Moulin) Saturday, August 10, 7:30pm and Granby (Parc Daniel-Johnson) Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conducting Grieg, Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1; Tchaikovsky, Symphony No. 5

Tétreault, Shostakovich, Mussorgsky on Sunday, July 14 at 2pm Festival Lanaudière

Inspired by the works of his friend, the painter and architect Victor Hartmann, Mussorgsky wrote his Pictures at an Exhibition in a remarkable burst of creative energy within the space of just a few weeks. Through these “sounds and ideas suspended in air,” he takes us on an imaginary tour of an art collection. Cellist Stéphane Tétreault, a Lanaudière favourite, appears with the Orchestre Métropolitain and conductor Nicolas Ellis (making his Festival debut) in Shostakovich’s first cello concerto.

The debut of Seong-Jin Cho

Since winning first prize at the renowned International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw in 2015, Seong-Jin Cho has become one of the most in-demand pianists in the world. For his Quebec debut, he joins recording partner Yannick Nézet-Séguin in Beethoven’s ever-popular Piano Concerto No. 4, a work especially championed by Mendelssohn. The Quebec conductor also conducts Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7 whose quasi-mystical profundity holds lasting appeal to concertgoers. On Friday, July 26 at 8pm in the Amphithéâtre Fernand-Lindsay, Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin and pianist Seong-Jin Cho will perform Beethoven, Piano Concerto No. 4 and Bruckner, Symphony No. 7.

The OM and Yannick Nézet-Séguin at the Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur

Orchestre Métropolitain, (whose annual appearance in Saint-Sauveur is a tradition) closes the 2019 Festival on a high note. Monday, August 5, 8pm: Saint-Sauveur (under the big top), Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor Brahms, Hungarian Dances Nos. 1, 4 and 6 Grieg, Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1 and Tchaikovsky, Symphony No. 5.

For the complete information about the OM’s 2019-2020 season: www.orchestremetropolitain.com. Enjoy!