In a Grammy Awards ceremony last night that saw some major snubs, including Super Bowl halftime performer The Weeknd and indie artist Phoebe Bridgers, the Albany Symphony again brought home a golden gramophone to the Capital Region. The orchestra won in the Best Classical Instrumental Solo category for its world premiere recording of Christopher Theofanidis’ Concerto for Viola and Chamber Orchestra, which was recorded on January 8, 2018 at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall and released by Albany Records.
Featured in the recorded performance was solo violist Richard O’Neill, and as always, the orchestra was under the baton of Music Director and conductor David Alan Miller. The concerto was originally written for American violinist Kim Kashkashian, with each of the four movements having a serious sentiment, at times foreboding and volatile, while others melancholic and questioning, lyrical and dramatic. Theofanidis wrote the work following the events of September 11, 2001, starting the piece before and finishing it afterwards.
It was the fifth time in seven years that an Albany Symphony recording received a Grammy nomination and subsequent win and marked the orchestra’s first Grammy win since 2013, when it won the award for its recording of John Corigliano’s Conjurer with percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie, also in the Best Classical Instrumental Solo category. This year marks the 63rd GRAMMY award ceremony to be held on January 31, 2021 and aired on the CBS network. Trevor Noah will serve as host.
The socially distanced 63rd Grammy Awards, which featured round-robin style performances and only award nominees either sitting, masked, at tables or beaming in via Zoom, was held last night in Los Angeles. Daily Show host Trevor Noah hosted.