Ravinia 2026 Issue 2

Marin Alsop led the Philadelphia Orchestra at its in-state summer residence, the Highmark Mann Center for the Performing Arts, earlier this summer, celebrating the venue’s 50th anniversary season. She also regularly conducts the ensemble at its summer homes in New York (Saratoga Performing Arts Center) and Colorado (Bravo! Vail Music Festival). Alsop has toured China with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and this fall she conducts the orchestra on a tour to South Korea with the sensational young South Korean pianist Yunchan Lim as soloist. (Lim was the soloist July 11 with Alsop and the Chicago Symphony to open the CSO’s 90th season at Ravinia.) But Philadelphia also appeals to her for more mundane reasons. “I would be lying if I didn’t say it’s really great to be working one hour from Baltimore, where I live,” Alsop said. “And Philadelphia is a really vibrant city, a lot of people moving in, lots of people going to the orchestra concerts, which is very exciting.” In contrast to her long relationship with the Philadelphia Orchestra, she had little experience with London’s Philhar- monia Orchestra before becoming prin- cipal guest conductor in 2023. Unlike US cities which usually have one dominant resident orchestra, London has several. “It’s interesting because, in London, I had a long relationship with the London Symphony Orchestra,” said Alsop, “and also with the London Philharmonic Orchestra; I recorded a Brahms cycle with them. But then I guested with the Philharmonia, and they asked me to be principal guest. And I thought, ‘Okay, let’s try it.’ ” Founded in 1945, the Philharmonia has a distinguished history. Past music directors include Otto Klemperer, Ric- cardo Muti, Christoph von Dohnányi, and Esa-Pekka Salonen. “The Philharmonia has been known for its innovative approach,” said Alsop, “not just to programming, but also to technology, especially when Esa-Pekka was there. I remember a whole installa- tion on [Stravinsky’s] The Rite of Spring in the lobby. It was very cool, trying to engage with the world of today.” [In 2017, Ravinia presented a virtual-reality conducting experience created by the Philharmonia, allowing guests to step into Salonen’s shoes for the finale of Sibelius’s Symphony No. 5.] In June, Alsop and the Philharmonia traveled to Barcelona for concerts mark- ing the centennial of the death of Antoni Gaudi, architect of the city’s famed Sagrada Familia cathedral. The program included choirs based in Spain and two new large-scale pieces commissioned for the centennial. “You know, it’s fun,” Alsop said of the Philharmonia’s easy access to the rest of Europe. “They’re able to get places. I can interest them in some of these crazy projects over there.” She signed on with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, she told the New York Times in 2024, because “the woman who runs the orchestra and the hall is brilliant. She’s a thinker, and we can sit down and talk about [my] ideas, and I love it.” FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS, Ra- vinia has been an enthusiastic partner in one of Alsop’s most innovative “crazy” ideas, the Breaking Barriers project. For one weekend each summer, Alsop and the CSO turn their focus to fields where women have been seriously underrepresented. The series opened in 2022 with a weekend of performanc- es, panel discussions, and workshops focused on women conductors. In 2023 women composers were in the spotlight. Breaking Barriers 2024 featured women involved in space exploration, and last summer the focus was female chefs. This summer’s Breaking Barriers weekend, July 24–25, highlights women who com- pose for film, TV, and video games. “It’s hard to believe it’s the fifth year of Breaking Barriers,” Alsop said. “The RAVINIAMAGAZINE • JULY 20 – AUGUST 2 , 2026 10 JORDANAUGUST / HIGHMARKMANN