Orchestra 2001 To Present Philadelphia Premiere Of Frank Zappa’s ‘The Yellow Shark’

In November of 1993, The Yellow Shark, the last album of Frank Zappa’s music to be issued during his lifetime was released, just one month before his passed away. The orchestral work has never been performed in Philadelphia, but that will change on April 28.

Orchestra 2001 will celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Yellow Shark by performing the 17-movement, 75-minute piece at The Fillmore Philadelphia on April 28. All told, an ensemble of 26 musicians will tackle the work on a wide range of instruments including percussion, standard orchestral instruments, banjo, cymbalom, lion’s roar, didgeridoo and alphorn. The concert program will pair selections of Zappa’s chamber music with works by composers who were influential to his artistic development, such as Anton Webern, Igor Stravinsky, Pierre Boulez, and Edgard Varèse. One of the nation’s leading Zappa experts, Dr. Joseph Klein, will lead a pre-concert discussion.

Tickets are on sale now via Live Nation.

Watch Frank Zappa rehearse Ensemble Modern ahead of The Yellow Shark’s 1992 debut: