Palm Beach Symphony returns to CBS 12 News and CW34 for the second consecutive year with a brand new holiday-themed Sounds of the Season this December with airings that include Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve broadcasts. Music Director Gerard Schwarz, who recently received the eighth and ninth Emmy® Awards of his distinguished career, conducts.
“We are thrilled to be invited into people’s homes again this holiday season and have created a wonderful concert for the entire family to enjoy,” said Palm Beach Symphony CEO David McClymont. “I want to thank the Sinclair Broadcast Group CBS 12 for creating this new tradition and all the Symphony supporters who enable us to pursue our mission such as the Thaler Foundation that is matching donations to the Symphony dollar for dollar through the end of this year.”
The concert will feature music from the spirited dances of The Nutcracker as well as carols and seasonal favorites. Palm Beach Symphony will also perform Maestro Schwarz’ arrangement of Handel’s Concerto for Brass Quintet, Movements 2 and 4 and several selections from Handel’s Messiah joined by guest artists Virginia Mims and Kim Josephson.
A South Florida resident who attended Dreyfoos High School for the Arts, Mims is an emerging American soprano who performs “Rejoice Greatly” with the Symphony. She holds prizes from prestigious organizations such as YoungArts Foundation, Orpheus Vocal Competition, Classical Singer Competition, NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing), Voice of the Future at Eisteddfod Competition, National Society of Arts and Letters, National Italian American Foundation, Indianapolis Matinee Musicale, and Il Circolo of the Palm Beaches.
Performing “The Trumpet Shall Sound,” Josephson is hailed as one of opera’s most versatile baritones and a regular guest of leading opera companies. His title roles include Rigoletto, Falstaff, Simon Boccanegra, Germont in La Traviata, Enrico in Lucia di Lammermoor, and Belcore in L’Elisir d’Amore. He has also appeared at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, most notably as Eddie Carbone in the world premiere of William Bolcom’s A View from the Bridge. His many honors include the William Sullivan/George London Foundation Award, Baltimore Opera Vocal Competition, Enrico Caruso International Vocal Competition, Loren Zachary Foundation Award, Puccini Foundation Award, Bagby Foundation Award, Bruce Yarnell Award, Singer’s Development Foundation Award, and a Richard Tucker Career Grant.
Maestro Schwarz is also the Music Director of the Eastern Music Festival and Mozart Orchestra of New York. His extensive catalogue of more than 350 recordings includes The Gerard Schwarz Collection, a 30-CD box set, and a recently released recording of Schubert’s Symphony No. 9 with the New York Chamber Symphony. His memoir, Gerard Schwarz: Behind the Baton, was published by Hal Leonard Performing Arts Publishing Group in 2017. In South Florida, he is also the Distinguished Professor of Music, Conducting and Orchestral Studies at University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and Music Director of the Frost Symphony Orchestra.
“As a joyful part of our CBS 12 News Eye on Community initiative, we are pleased to once again offer this seasonal gift to our viewers,” said Michael J. Pumo, vice president and general manager of Sinclair West Palm Beach.
CBS 12 News will air Sounds of the Season on Thursday, December 23 at 7 p.m.; Friday, December 24 at 8 p.m.; Saturday, December 25 at 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.; and Friday, December 31 at 10 a.m. The concert will also air on CW34 on Friday, December 24 at 6 p.m.; Saturday, December 25 at 4 p.m.; and Sunday, December 26 at 7 p.m.
The holiday concerts are generously sponsored by Dodie and Manley Thaler and the Thaler/Howell Foundation and the Addison Hines Charitable Trust. Peter M. Gottsegen, The Lachman Family Foundation, Patrick and Milly Park, Felicia Taylor/The Mary Hilem Taylor Foundation, DeLuca Foundation, Leonard and Norma Klorfine Foundation, Charles and Ann Johnson/The C and A Johnson Family Foundation, Patricia Lambrecht, Dodie and Manley Thaler and the Thaler/Howell Foundation, NetJets, Lugano Diamonds, Findlay Galleries, HSS Florida, PNC Private Bank, The Colony Hotel, Related Companies, Provident Jewelry, IYC, Palm Beach Design Masters, Braman Motorcars, and Gent Row LLC are proud sponsors of Palm Beach Symphony. Programs are also sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture.