In March 2018, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra (BPO) will embark on its first overseas tour since 1988, traveling to Poland for four concerts and several master classes by BPO brass and percussion ensembles. The centerpiece of the tour will be a performance at the Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival in Warsaw.
BPO Music Director JoAnn Falletta will be the first woman to conduct at that festival. She has programmed works by American composers and by Krzystof Penderecki, in celebration of his 85th birthday.
“The opportunity to tour Poland at the invitation of the Beethoven Easter Festival will be a transformative artistic benchmark in the history of our Buffalo Philharmonic,” says Falletta, a member of Local 125 (Norfolk, VA). “We are very proud to be able to represent Buffalo and Western New York at the festival.”
BPO has announced that attendance increased by 11.5% in the 2016-2017 season, with more than 212,000 adults and children experiencing its concerts. With a budget of $11.6 million, the orchestra gives 129 performances during its 38-week season. BPO musicians are members of Local 92 (Buffalo, NY).