Our fourth decade story begins in the midst of George Thomson’s five years as Music Director (1992–1997). It also tells of the arrival of Eric Hansen in 1997, who remains our Music Director today.
The Prometheus experience with George was as varied as his own musical interests. One of his earliest programs featured Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, with Michelle Dulak playing the violin solo. Michelle is not only a musician but also a writer and music critic. She was our concertmaster while George was our conductor, and they got married. Nothing like romance in our midst! Maybe that’s what prompted a Valentine’s Day Concert, featuring Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, Fauré’s Pelléas et Mélisande, Goldmark’s Rustic Wedding Symphony, and Cimarosa’s Overture to The Secret Marriage.
30th Season Celebration
George presided over our 30th Anniversary Season celebration in the Fall of 1995. In the first of two celebratory concerts, we played Humperdinck’s Overture to “Hansel and Gretel” – harking back to the Orchestra’s very first performance in 1965. Our founder, Randy Hunt, attended this anniversary concert and Gala party. The second special concert featured Schubert’s “Unfinished” Symphony, quite apropos since Prometheus’s history was far from finished at age 30!
One of our more unusual concerts with George was in 1997, when we featured organist Randall Wurschmidt in Saint-Saëns’s Symphony No. 3 in C Minor — The Organ Symphony, taking advantage of the fine pipe organ at Saint Ambrose Church in North Berkeley. In 1996, we played Beethoven’s The Creatures of Prometheus, which we have done more than once in our 50-year history. George’s final curtain fell on the spectacular Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 in December 1997.
The “Hansen Period” Begins
Several fine conductors auditioned in 1997 to follow George. The competition was fierce, but the choice fell easily to Eric Hansen, who was named our Sixth Music Director. Eric’s résumé was impressive – a professional musician (violin, viola and trumpet), a dedicated music educator (lecturer at U.C. and Cal State-Hayward and a private instructor), an experienced conductor who had studied the demanding art of conducting with superior maestros, including Michael Senturia, Dennis deCoteau, and Herbert Blomstedt. He received a Master’s in Instrumental Conducting at the University of Michigan.
Eric “knew” Prometheus, having played with us as a teenager. He made a point of letting us know at the audition that he admired the Orchestra and had followed our progress over the years. With a gift of musicality and a positive attitude that seems imperturbable, he imparts musicality and encourages us to play better than we sometimes believe will be possible. And he makes us laugh! Our audiences love Eric, not only for his eloquent conducting, but also for his “music chats” at every concert, when he uses his encyclopedic knowledge of music and music history to entertain and enlighten them on the music they will hear.
Young Concerto Winners
By our fourth decade, our Felix Khuner Young Artist Concerto Competition, initiated in 1989, had achieved a solid reputation around the Bay Area, with applications pouring in from amazing young prodigies. Eric Hansen judges each season’s competition. One special winner was cellist Sharon Bogas who won in 1996 by playing Elgar’s Concerto in E Minor, then attended Julliard. Another outstanding example is violinist Andrea Segar, who played Sarasate’s Zigeunerweisen in 2001, winning the Heifetz Violin Competition for three consecutive years.
Featuring Our Own
With both George and Eric, Prometheus highlighted our own members by providing them the opportunity to perform concertos. Michelle Dulak, as our concertmaster, performed concertos several times when George was with us. An unusual combination was Hindemith’s Concerto for Trumpet and Bassoon, with Cynthia Behnke, then our principal bassoonist, and Ron Cohen, still our principal trumpet. In 2001, our long-time principal cellist, Dana Reese, performed Fauré’s gorgeous Élégie for Cello and Orchestra. In 2004, Adrienne Chambers played Mozart’s Horn Concerto.
Finding a Concert Hall
After moving from one performance venue to another (over a dozen different churches, schools and theaters since 1965), we found a great home in 2003 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in the Lake Merritt district of downtown Oakland. The beautiful and historic church provides a good setting for our concerts and continues to be a gracious and helpful host.