Wolf Trap celebrates 50 years with concert during a storm

The National Symphony Orchestra, led at that inaugural concert by Julius Rudel, resumed their seats as the center’s longest-running artistic partner, this time under the baton of JoAnn Falletta, music director of the Buffalo Philharmonic. A nod to Van Cliburn (who had joined Rudel and the NSO for the opener) came in the form of Joyce Yang, who won the silver medal at the Van Cliburn competition in 2005 at age 19 — playing the very same Chopin piece. And the Filene Center’s rich operatic legacy, launched at the 1971 concert with a performance by the bass-baritone Norman Treigle, was represented by Christine Goerke, Wolf Trap Opera alumna (and new Michigan Opera Theatre associate artistic director). Treigle’s granddaughter, the mezzo-soprano Emily Treigle, now in her second season at Wolf Trap, also gave a short performance at a pre-show dinner.