Featuring Helene Grimaud with The Orchestra of St. Lukes led by
Peter Oundjian On July 16 at 8 p.m.

Katonah, New York - On Saturday, July 16 at 8 p.m. three great musical collaborators join forces to bring three masterpieces to the Venetian Theater in Fantastic & French. Hélène Grimaud, piano, and The Orchestra of St. Luke's led by Peter Oundjian perform Rossin's Overture to Guillaume Tell, Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major and Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique.

According to Peter Oundjian, Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor, "I have long looked forward to presenting Berlioz' Symphony Fantastique at Caramoor. It is such a dramatic and evocative piece and our setting is ideal. Combining this with the Ravel piano concerto creates a wonderful balance and contrast. Hélène Grimaud's interpretation mustn't be missed."

Following Rossini's Overture to Guillaume Tell, Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major, which he completed in 1931, will be heard. Ravel had intended to appear as soloist in the première of the work, then to take it on a world tour, but his health, always delicate, was poor and getting worse, and he was not up to the task. Instead, he conducted the orchestra at the première, in Paris, on January 14, 1932; the French pianist Marguerite Long played the solo part, and later she and Ravel toured Europe for several months, performing the new concerto to great acclaim. Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique closes the program. This autobiographical work embodies the supreme love of his life, Harriet Smithson, who became the theme of the work. It consists of five movements. The long-breathed, unpredictable melodic lines give the work a decidedly discursive feel, something of a musical metaphor for the work's literary intentions.

Artists

Hélène Grimaud, piano, performs regularly in most of the leading concert halls and with major orchestras worldwide, including the Cleveland Orchestra, London Symphony, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester, Tonhalle Zürich and St Petersburg Philharmonic orchestras. She continues to appear with conductors of the highest calibre such as Boulez, Ashkenazy, Eschenbach, and Neeme Järvi. Today she balances her acclaimed international performing and recording career with a less public avocation:  raising wolves at her Westchester home.  Recent engagements have included performances with the Philharmonia Orchestra under Christoph von Dohnányi and Hugh Wolf, with the NHK Symphony Orchestra and Vladimir Ashkenazy, and with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In the autumn of 2004 she undertook major tours of Europe with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Paavo Järvi, and with the Australian Youth Orchestra and Lawrence Foster.
In 2002 Hélène Grimaud signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Gramophone, and her first highly successful release on the label, entitled Credo, features works by Beethoven and Pärt with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. A recording artist since the age of 15, her catalogue includes works by Chopin, Liszt, Schumann, Brahms, Ravel, Rachmaninov, Strauss and Gershwin. Her recording of Brahms Concerto No 1 with Berlin Staatskapelle Orchester and Kurt Sanderling received the 1999 Classical Award. At the French 'Victoires de la Musique' she also received the 'Victoire d'honneur' in 2004, and in January 2002 she was appointed an Officier dans l'ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministère de la Culture. Grimaud's first book, Variations Sauvages, was published recently by Editions Robert Laffont and is being translated into several languages.

Peter Oundjian, Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor, brings to Caramoor impeccable musical credentials and the wisdom and energy of a visionary.  He has firmly established himself as one of the premier artists of our time as a conductor, soloist, and chamber musician.  His probing musicality, spirit of collaboration, and engaging personality have earned him appointments as the principal guest conductor of the Colorado Symphony, and most recently, as music director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, a post he began in the 2004-05 season.  As Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor of Caramoor's International Music Festival, Mr. Oundjian is part of a team that makes decisions that shape the young artists programs, long-range plans, and the development of new programs.
Mr. Oundjian's association with Caramoor began in 1981 when he performed at the International Music Festival as a member of the Tokyo String Quartet.  In the summer of 1995, he made his conducting debut with the Orchestra of St. Luke's at Caramoor's 50th Anniversary Gala Celebration, a performance so enthusiastically received he was immediately engaged to conduct two concerts at the 1996 Festival.

The Orchestra of St. Luke's, which has been Caramoor's orchestra-in-residence since 1979, is one of America's foremost and most versatile chamber orchestras. Formed at the Caramoor International Music Festival in the summer of 1979, the Orchestra evolved from the St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble (1974), with Ensemble members forming the Orchestra's artistic core as principal players. The Ensemble and the Orchestra still co-exist today, and the collaborative chamber aesthetic that is the St. Luke's hallmark has resulted in consistent critical acclaim, both for mastery of a diverse repertoire spanning the Baroque to the contemporary, and for vibrant music-making of the highest order.

About Caramoor
Caramoor is the legacy of Walter and Lucie Rosen, who built the great house and filled it with their treasures. Walter Rosen was the master planner for the Caramoor estate, bringing to reality his dream of creating a place to entertain friends from around the world.  Their musical evenings were the seeds of the International Music Festival of today.  Realizing the pleasure their friends took in the beauty of Caramoor - the house with its art collection; the gardens; and the musical programs on summer evenings - the Rosens established a Foundation to open Caramoor to the public in perpetuity.    
Lucie Rosen survived her husband by seventeen years.  During those years, she expanded the Music Festival:  The Spanish Courtyard was used as a setting for musical events, as it is today. Under her direction, the great stage of the Venetian Theater was built.

Caramoor is a Garden of Great Music.  "We invite people to come early, explore our beautiful grounds, take a tour of the House Museum, visit our gift shops, enjoy a pre-concert picnic, and discover beautiful music in a relaxed setting," advises Paul Rosenblum, Caramoor's Managing Director.  With its unique heritage, Caramoor remains a place where magical summer days and nights are shared and enjoyed by thousands.  "Caramoor is the loveliest Festival of them all." - The New York Times

Art and Gardens
Concerts take place in two outdoor theaters - the large, acoustically superb Venetian Theater, and the more intimate, romantic Spanish Courtyard.  Caramoor is more than just music - there is beauty at every turn.  The House Museum, the former summer home of Caramoor's founders, Lucie and Walter Rosen, contains a vast collection of Renaissance, 18th-century, and Eastern art objects - furniture, tapestries, sculpture, paintings, fabrics, porcelain and jade. Twenty rooms, imported in their entirety from European palaces and villas, are open to the public. On Thursdays and Fridays, Afternoon Tea is served in the Summer Dining Room, which overlooks the Spanish Courtyard.

A special exhibition, "If These Walls Could Talk:  17th, 18th, and 19th Century Wall Decorations at Caramoor," will be on view in the House Museum from May 14 through December 2005.  There will be a Preview Party Benefit and Silent Auction on May 13, 2005.
Caramoor's gardens are also well worth the visit.  Nine unique perennial gardens - including a Sense Circle for the visually handicapped, a Butterfly Garden, and a Medieval Mount- may be seen on a guided tour or on one's own.

House Museum
Guided tours of the House Museum are provided Wednesday through Sunday, 1:00-4:00 p.m., with the last tour at 3:00 p.m.  On Saturdays during the Festival, tours are given from 1:00-5:00 p.m., with the last tour at 4:00 p.m. Tickets are $9 (children 16 and under free).  Admission includes the special exhibition, "If These Walls Could Talk."

Getting to Caramoor
Caramoor is easy to get to by car or mass transportation.  From Manhattan, take the Caramoor Caravan and ride comfortably in a luxurious, air-conditioned coach.  Round trip service is $21 and is available for all Saturday and Sunday performances during the festival. The Caravan departs from the Port Authority Bus Terminal and Upper West Side and East Side locations. Call the Box Office (914-232-1252) for further information and reservations.  By train, take the Harlem Division of the Metro-North Railroad to Katonah, New York. Taxi service from the station to Caramoor (5 minutes away) is available.  By car: (West Side Manhattan and New Jersey) Take the Saw Mill River Parkway north to Katonah.  Exit at Route 35/Cross River. Turn right, and at the first traffic light make a right turn onto Route 22 south.  Travel 1.9 miles to junction of Girdle Ridge Road. Follow the signs to Caramoor.  (Detailed directions:  914-232-5035, press 2, or online at www.caramoor.org).

Tickets may be ordered by calling the Box Office at 914-232-1252 or online at www.caramoor.org.

Fantastic & French

July 16   
Saturday, 8 p.m. Orchestra of St. Luke's
Venetian Theater Peter Oundjian, conductor
Tickets: $65, $50 Hélène Grimaud, piano
$40, $30, $17.50   
 
   Rossini  Overture to Guillaume Tell   
   Ravel  Piano Concerto in G Major (1929)
   Berlioz  Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14