Dear Friends,

As you may have already observed, there are some big changes at the Philharmonic this year. This season, for the first time, we’ll offer two different series of concerts: our traditional Masterworks series and our new Pops series. I hope you’ll choose both and join us all season long for great music and entertainment.

The Pops is a series of three concerts, and we are very excited about this new entertainment option for Las Vegas. In the Fall 2008, we’re joined by the spectacular and showy jazz trumpeter Byron Stripling with his tribute to Louis Armstrong. In December, subscribers to this series will hear our Christmas Celebration concert; in the Spring 2009, our new Pops series will close with a special performance of Broadway hits by Brent Barrett, star of the Phantom Las Vegas Spectacular.

On opening night of the 2008 2009 Masterworks series, we’ll welcome to Las Vegas my dear friend and colleague, the legendary pianist Misha Dichter. Misha’s playing is as fresh and dynamic now as the day he won the Tchaikovsky Piano Competition in 1966, and he’ll be performing the ever-popular piano concerto by Edvard Grieg.

In other concerts this season, we’ll be joined by the world’s reigning king of the saxophone, Eugene Rousseau, one of the ‘cello world’s brightest young stars, Zuill Bailey, and the dazzling young violinist Shannon Lee.

Our repertoire for the season includes many of your favorites, including the Paganini Violin Concerto #1, Dvorak’s fiery Symphony #7, and Rimsky-Korsakoff’s magical Scheherazade. In addition, we’ll have an all-Tchaikovsky program on Valentine’s Day, and close the season in May of 2009 with Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony featuring the Las Vegas Master Singers, The Desert Chorale, and four magnificent vocal soloists.

Once again during the 2008-2009 season, I’ll be giving our pre concert talks at 7:15, before all our Masterworks concerts. I hope you’ll join me for our talks, and all season long for great music with the Philharmonic.

With best regards,

David Itkin