Directory
Now in its fourteenth season, New York Scandia Symphony, an exceptional regional orchestra, has delighted New York listeners with its warm and vibrant tone, a lovely clarity of expressive detail and interesting and exciting programs. It has a valuable mission as well: a commitment to presenting imaginative and creative programs of music by Classical, Romantic and Contemporary Scandinavian composers, introducing previously unknown and seldom performed compositions to American audiences. With 90% of its repertoire presented as US premieres, the orchestra revives and preserves the work of Scandinavian composers, which would otherwise not have been brought to the attention of the public.
Scandia's home is the beautiful New York landmark, Trinity Church, Wall Streets' "other" famous edifice. The performances are part of the "Concerts at One" award winning concert series. Concerts and rehearsals are open to the public and attract a large and diverse audience from the entire metropolitan area. However, much of Scandia's following are listeners who have become familiar with the Scandinavian music and welcome the challenge of listening to music introduced to the audience for the first time. The orchestra also serves a vast population of Scandinavians, who are proud of their heritage and value the experience of their own culture being presented in a new environment.
The Scandia Symphony engages 46 of the finest musicians in New York City. Critics attending our concerts have acknowledged their dedication and noted that Scandia's efforts to provide excellent performances exploring Scandinavia's musical heritage is a very special contribution to the cultural life of New York City.
Scandia has recorded three critically acclaimed compact discs on the Centaur Records label. These include recordings of Carl Nielsen's violin and flute concerto, the clarinet concertos of Bernhardt Crusell, and the orchestral works of Lars-Erik Larsson.
Photo © Steve J. Sherman
Music Director and Conductor Dorrit Matson is a native of Copenhagen, Denmark. Acclaimed for her performances of Scandinavian music, Ms. Matson has a vast repertoire of European and American masterpieces and an expanding list of performances in concert and theater. Her performances are broadcast regularly on National Public radio and local classical stations. Ms. Matson holds degrees in conducting and musicology from the University of Miami, the Royal Danish Academy of Music, and the University of Copenhagen. She has received numerous awards, including the Fulbright, the American-Scandinavian Society of New York Award, the Italian State Scholarship, the Denmark-American Fund Prize, and the American Women's Club Award.
Reviews
- "So unfailingly lovely that those lucky enough to purchase the disc [of Lars-Erick Larsson's orchestral works] will be surprised that the composer has eluded their attention for so long a time".
- Gramophone Magazine
- "Danish conductor Dorrit Matson matches the soloist's intensity and draws from the New York area players both the muscularity and ingenuity of this extraordinary score".
- "Vital, idiomatic, vigorous, exciting, propulsive, gorgeous."
- Robert McColley, Fanfare
- "Dorrit Matson, the Danish born conductor led a lush, shimmering statement of Carl Nielsen's delightful Aladdin's Dream""
- John Rockwell, the New York Times
- "The real surprise is the New York Scandia Symphony, a gem of an ensemble that delivers one suave, spirited and technically irreproachable performance after another…Not one to leave any interpretive stone unturned, Matson, who has a fine ear for instrumental and registrational balance, draws a sterling sound from her colleagues."
- John Bell Young, The St Petersburg Times
- "The sound is gorgeous - it is amazingly good"
- Donald Vroon, American Record Guide
Contact details and further information
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For more information on the Scandia Symphony and its progrmas, and to learn how you can lend your support, please contact SCANDIASYMPHONY@aol.com