Jeannette Sorrell
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Jeannette Sorrell is an American conductor and harpsichordist. A Grammy Award winner, she is the founder and music director of
Apollo's Fire Apollo's Fire Baroque Orchestra is a period-instrument ensemble specializing in early music (Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, and early Romantic). The ensemble is based in Cleveland, Ohio and, since 2021, also in Chicago. The ensemble is compo ...
Baroque Orchestra. She is the subject of the 2019 documentary by Oscar-winning director Allan Miller,
Playing With Fire: Jeannette Sorrell and the Mysteries of Conducting
' (commercially released in 2023).


Biography


Youth

Jeannette Sorrell was born in San Francisco in 1965. Her father, a Jewish Romanian immigrant, was a drama critic, linguist, and professor. Her mother, an American, was a nursing professor. According to th
London Jewish Chronicle
Sorrell's father was a Holocaust survivor who completely hid his story and his Jewish identity from the family until he was 87. Jeannette Sorrell grew up studying piano, violin, ballet and theatre. In an interview with the ''
Cleveland Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio; it is a major national newspaper. In the fall of 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily an ...
'', she describes how she spent her first year of piano lessons (at the age of 9) practicing on a paper keyboard that she made, because the family had no piano. Her family moved to the
Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia in the United States. The Valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the east ...
area of
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
when she was 14. This is where she first encountered early American folk music and shape-note hymns, which later developed into an artistic interest for her. At 16 she began studying conducting and composition, and founded an instrumental and vocal ensemble for which she arranged all of the music.


Studies: 1988-91

Sorrell received a full scholarship to the Artist Diploma program of
Oberlin Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory of Oberlin College, a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in ...
, where she studied harpsichord with Lisa Crawford and orchestral conducting with
Robert Spano Robert Spano ( ; born 7 May 1961) is an American conductorDavidson, Justin. "Classical Music: Looking for Magic: Mixing visuals and language into a performance is just part of conductor Robert Spano's pursuit of orchestral risk" (Fanfare); ''Ne ...
. At age 24 she became one of the youngest students in the conducting program at the
Tanglewood Festival The Tanglewood Music Festival is a music festival held every summer on the Tanglewood estate in Stockbridge and Lenox in the Berkshire Hills in western Massachusetts. The festival consists of a series of concerts, including symphonic music, cha ...
, where she studied under
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...
and Sir Roger Norrington. She was the only woman in the conducting class. Upon graduating from Oberlin in 1990, she was chosen as a conducting fellow at the
Aspen Music Festival The Aspen Music Festival and School (AMFS) is a classical music festival held annually in Aspen, Colorado. It is noted both for its concert programming and the musical training it offers to mostly young-adult music students. Founded in 1949, th ...
. She then moved to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
to study harpsichord with
Gustav Leonhardt Gustav Maria Leonhardt (30 May 1928 – 16 January 2012) was a Dutch keyboardist, conductor, musicologist, teacher and editor. He was a leading figure in the historically informed performance movement to perform music on period instruments. Leo ...
. The following year she won First Prize and the Audience Choice Award in the 1991 Spivey International Harpsichord Competition held in Atlanta, GA, competing in a field of 70 contestants from Europe, the former Soviet Union, Israel and the U.S.


Founding of Apollo's Fire

In 1991, Sorrell returned to the U.S. and was immediately invited to interview for the position of Assistant Conductor with
The Cleveland Orchestra The Cleveland Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1918 by the pianist and impresario Adella Prentiss Hughes, the orchestra is one of the five American orchestras informally referred to as the " Big Five". T ...
. She had not applied for the job, but was recruited as a candidate based on her conducting work at Aspen and Tanglewood. In various media interviews, Sorrell has recounted her meeting with Cleveland Orchestra Music Director
Christoph von Dohnanyi Christoph is a male given name and surname. It is a German variant of Christopher. Notable people with the given name Christoph * Christoph Bach (1613–1661), German musician * Christoph Büchel (born 1966), Swiss artist * Christoph Dientzenho ...
, who told her that he could not give her an audition because the audience in Cleveland would never accept a woman as a conductor. Sorrell replied that she had actually not sought this post and she really wanted to work with period instruments. Following this interview, the orchestra's artistic administrator Roger Wright offered to help Sorrell launch a period-instrument orchestra in Cleveland. Sorrell was 26. The ensemble made its debut in 1992 under the name o
Apollo's Fire
- The Cleveland Baroque Orchestra. The debut concerts were sold out. Apollo's Fire began receiving touring invitations within a few months. Since then, Sorrell has led Apollo's Fire as Artistic Director and has developed an international reputation for creative programming.


Career


Apollo's Fire

Sorrell's focus with Apollo's Fire has been the 18th-century ideal of ''Affekt'', in which the performers use rhetoric and dramatic inflection to move the emotional moods of the listeners. She has been credited with "forging a vibrant and life-affirming approach to the re-making of early music" (BBC Magazine). Twelve of her CD recordings have become bestsellers on the ''Billboard'' classical chart. In addition, she has led Apollo's Fire on tour at
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
, the BBC Proms, London's
Wigmore Hall The Wigmore Hall is a concert hall at 36 Wigmore Street, in west London. It was designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt and opened in 1901 as the Bechstein Hall; it is considered to have particularly good building acoustics, acoustics. It specialis ...
, the Royal Theatre (
Teatro Real The Teatro Real () is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace, and known colloquially as "''El Real''" (The Royal One). it is considered the top institution of the performing and musical arts ...
) of Madrid, the Heidelberg Spring Festival,
St Martin-in-the-Fields St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, there has been a church on the site since at least the medieval pe ...
, the Grand Opera House of Bordeaux, the Aspen, Tanglewood, and Ravinia Festivals, the
Boston Early Music Festival The Boston Early Music Festival (BEMF) is a non-profit organization founded in 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts, to promote historical music performance. It arranges an annual Boston and New York City concert series, produces opera recordings, and ...
and extensive North American tours of the ''
Brandenburg Concertos The ''Brandenburg Concertos'' ( BWV 1046–1051) by Johann Sebastian Bach are a collection of six instrumental works presented by Bach to Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg-Schwedt, in 1721 (though probably composed earlier). The origi ...
'' and the Monteverdi ''Vespers''. In Cleveland, Sorrell's concerts with Apollo's Fire are admired for consistently drawing one of the largest audiences in the country for period-instrument music. Since 2021, Apollo's Fire is also in residence in Chicago. In 1999 Sorrell launched the multicultural folk wing of Apollo's Fire, consisting of hand-picked artists who are steeped in world music traditions as well as historical performance.


Discography

In 2010, Sorrell received international attention when the British record label AVIE released her CD recording of Bach's ''Brandenburg Concertos'' and two harpsichord concertos into the European market for the first time. ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...
'' (London) called it "a swaggering version… The most is made of the instrumental colours Bach so exhilaratingly put on show. The keyboard part in the 5th Brandenburg is brilliantly played by Sorrell." ''Early Music America'' called it "stunning... A fabulous harpsichord cadenza played with gusto by Sorrell... perfectly polished." ''Audiophile Audition'' wrote, "Nothing short of spectacular... Jeannette Sorrell is something of a wunderkind." The ''American Record Guide'' wrote, "Sorrell leads from the harpsichord and delivers a brilliant take-no-captives rendition of the big solo in No. 5. In all, these performances are lively and unfailingly attractive — the best in what historical performance can be." Shortly thereafter, AVIE released Sorrell's recording of the Monteverdi ''Vespers''. This too received international attention, and become a Top 10 best-seller on the ''Billboard'' classical chart in October 2010. ''The Sunday Times'' called it "Exultant... instrumental colours blaze brilliantly." ''Fanfare'' hailed the disc as "a stunning achievement.... Wins out handily over William Christie's versions and other recent issues." The ''International Record Review'' wrote that "Sorrell and her fine young choir lavish attention on every phrase and inflexion. The exhilaration and sense of discovery is utterly infectious... an unanticipated delight."ideastream, October 24, 2014, Apollo’s Fire Presents: The Monteverdi Vespers of 1610 Sorrell won a GRAMMY in 2019 for the concept-album “Songs of Orpheus,” with Apollo’s Fire and tenor Karim Sulayman. Sorrell has over 30 CD recordings, including the Bach ''St John Passion'' and Vivaldi’s ''Four Seasons'' which have been chosen as best in the field by the SUNDAY TIMES of London (2020 and 2021) Her Monteverdi ''Vespers'' recording was chosen by BBC Music Magazine as one of
30 Must-Have Recordings for Our Lifetime
(September 2022). Her discography also includes the complete Brandenburg Concerti and harpsichord concerti of Bach (Billboard Classical Top 10 in 2012), four discs of Mozart, Handel’s ''Messiah'', and five creative crossover projects, including ''Sephardic Journey'' (Billboard World Music #2, Classical #7) and ''Christmas on Sugarloaf Mountain'' (Billboard Classical #3, and named “Festive Disc of the Year” b
GRAMOPHONE
.


Guest conducting

Sorrell made her
New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...
debut in 2021 to rave reviews (New York Times critic Anthony Tomasini). The following year she made her
Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...
debut, with Philadelphia Inquirer chief critic David Patrick Stearns writing, "The Philadelphia Orchestra performed its freshest Messiah in years. Jeannette Sorrell was on the podium, bringing revelations.” She returned to the New York Philharmonic in 2023, leading her own adaptation of Handel's ''Israel in Egypt''. Sorrell has repeatedly conducted the
Pittsburgh Symphony The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) is an American orchestra based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The orchestra is resident at Heinz Hall, located in Pittsburgh's Cultural District. Since 2008, the orchestra's music director is Manfred Ho ...
, St Paul Chamber Orchestra,
Seattle Symphony The Seattle Symphony is an American orchestra based in Seattle, Washington. Since 1998, the orchestra is resident at Benaroya Hall. The orchestra also serves as the accompanying orchestra for the Seattle Opera. History Beginnings The orchest ...
,
Utah Symphony The Utah Symphony is an American orchestra based in Salt Lake City, Utah. The orchestra's principal venue is Abravanel Hall. In addition to its Salt Lake City subscription concerts, the orchestra travels around the Intermountain West serving ...
, Florida Orchestra, Philharmonia Baroque in San Francisco, and
New World Symphony New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 19 ...
; and has also led the
Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...
,
Royal Scottish National Orchestra The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) () is a Scottish orchestra, based in Glasgow. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the Orchestra has played an important part in Scotland’s ...
,
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is a music organisation based in Liverpool, England, that manages a professional symphony orchestra, a concert venue, and extensive programmes of learning through music. Its orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmo ...
, Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center (NYC),
Baltimore Symphony The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore SO has its principal residence at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where it performs more than 130 concerts a year. In 2005, ...
, the
National Symphony National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
at the
Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...
, Houston Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony, Opera St Louis with the St Louis Symphony, the National Arts Centre Orchestra (Ottawa), Calgary Philharmonic (Canada), Royal Northern Sinfonia (UK), Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León (Spain), Grand Rapids Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, and the Orchestra of St Luke’s at
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
, among others.


Awards

Sorrell is the recipient of the Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society; and the Cleveland Arts Prize (2017). She is a 2-time winner of the "American Masterpieces" grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for her work on early American music. She holds an honorary doctorate from Case Western Reserve University. In 2024, she received th
Herrick Award
from the Early Settlers Association of the Western Reserve for her contributions to Cleveland.


Civic activist

Sorrell is a frequent speaker to civic and student groups on topics such as entrepreneurial leadership, women as leaders, and building new audiences for the arts. She has also been active as a political volunteer.


References


External links

*https://jeannettesorrell.com
Apollo's Fire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sorrell, Jeannette Aspen Music Festival and School alumni Living people 1965 births American women conductors (music) Founders of early music ensembles American harpsichordists Musicians from San Francisco American people of Swiss descent Oberlin Conservatory of Music alumni 20th-century American conductors (music) 20th-century American women musicians 21st-century American conductors (music) 21st-century American women musicians Classical musicians from California Classical musicians from Virginia