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Eye on the Future: MIT Symphony Orchestra Welcomes Adam Boyles

Cambridge, MA...Adam Boyles will make his debut at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as Music Director of the MIT Symphony Orchestra on Friday October 26 at 8 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium, 84 Massachusetts Ave. Kresge Auditorium is handicapped accessible. This event is open to the public, and admission is $5 at the door.

The program will feature Puts' Millennium Canons, Elgar's The Wand Of Youth, Suite No. 1, Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, and Rachmaninov's Symphonic Dances.

"Although it was not a conscious decision from the outset to give this concert a 'theme,' the common thread that runs through the program is one of examining the past and how it affects one's look at the future,” explained Boyles. "Millennium Canons is a piece that embodies the spirit of innocent, yet powerful, optimism that we now associate with our country prior to September 11, 2001."

"The Brandenburg concerti came at a time in Bach's life after his discovery of the music of Vivaldi, and all six concerti use the conventions of Vivaldi while at the same time expanding the possibilities of the form," Boyles continued.

"Elgar wrote music as a child for plays that his siblings and childhood companions would create, and years later, as a man then entering his fifties, he reworked some of that music into what we now know as the Wand of Youth suites," Boyles said.

The concert will conclude with Rachmaninov's Symphonic Dances. Boyles noted that in knowing that this would be Rachmaninov's final work, he used self-quotation to explore his past. As Boyles observed, listeners can expect to hear themes from his First Symphony, All-Night Vigil, as well as the Dies Irae chant that plays an enormous role in many of Rachmanov's works.

Adam Kerry Boyles holds a D.M.A., University of Texas at Austin, M.M. University of Arizona and a B.M., voice, Indiana University. Dr. Boyles was Music Director of the Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra and of the University of Texas at Austin Orchestra. He participated in the Oregon Bach Festival, conducting and studying with Helmuth Rilling. Other guest conducting engagements include performances with the Muncie Symphony Orchestra, Austin Chamber Ensemble, Audio Inversions, University of Arizona Opera Theater and Opera in the Ozarks. An experienced singer, Boyles performed in numerous operas with the Indiana University Opera Theater and has sung with professional choral ensembles across the country.

"Many people who go to the MIT Symphony's concerts have probably thought to themselves: This orchestra must have a higher collective IQ than any other. This is probably true. In any case, bright, conscientious, spirited performances are the ensemble's proven norm."
-- Richard Buell, The Boston Globe