L.A. Chamber Orchestra Presents Beethoven's Emperor Concerto April 16, 2011

JEFFREY KAHANE LEADS LACO IN BEETHOVEN’S EMPEROR CONCERTO
WITH ACCLAIMED PIANIST JON KIMURA PARKER

USC THORNTON SCHOOL DOUBLE BASSIST PARTICIPATES IN CONCERTS
UNDER NEW LACO-THORNTON STRINGS MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

SATURDAY, APRIL 16 AT 8 PM (ALEX THEATRE)
SUNDAY, APRIL 17 AT 7 PM (ROYCE HALL – UCLA)

March 25, 2011 (Los Angeles) Music director Jeffrey Kahane leads the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra on Saturday, April 16 at 8 pm at the Alex Theatre in Glendale and on Sunday, April 17 at 7 pm at UCLA’s Royce Hall. The program includes John Harbison’s Gli accordi piú usati, Dvoøák’s Serenade in E major for Strings and Beethoven’s incomparable Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73, “Emperor” featuring guest soloist Jon Kimura Parker in his first appearance with LACO since 1999. Marking the launch of the new LACO-Thornton Strings Mentorship Program, USC Thornton School master’s student Mary Reed joins the bass section for these concerts.

The three works on the program draw inspiration from very different sources. An accidental discovery of a chord chart inspired John Harbison’s Gli accordi piú usati (“The Most Often Used Chords”), Dvořák wrote his Serenade in E major for Strings in 1875 during a particularly prosperous and happy time in his life, and Beethoven composed his Piano Concerto No. 5 as a gift for his close friend, Archduke Rudolph of Austria.

Traveling in Italy in the 1990s, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Harbison purchased a notebook that featured a printed chart of the most often-used chords. When he played them in the order they were printed, Harbison uncovered the inspiration for his LACO commission Gli accordi piú usati (“The Most Often Used Chords”). Premiered by LACO in 1993 under then-music director Christof Perick, the piece has been described as a “charming spoof of pedantic rudimentary music instructions” (The New York Times) and “full of cheeky fun-some parts” (The Boston Globe).

Beethoven began writing his Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major in 1809 just prior to Napoleon’s invasion of Vienna. There is little trace of this crisis in the vivacious mood of the Concerto dubbed the “Emperor.” Praised by The New York Times as “an agile communicative pianist,” Jon Kimura Parker is the guest soloist, returning to LACO for the first time in more than a decade. Parker also joins Jeffrey Kahane to perform a four-hand piano work at Concert Preludes, one hour before the concert start time, as an optional free bonus for all ticket holders.

Double bassist Mary Reed, a master’s student at the USC Thornton School of Music, joins the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra bass section for these concerts. She plays alongside LACO veterans, Oscar Hidalgo, acting principal bass, and Edward Meares, acting associate principal bass. Reed won this opportunity in a mock orchestral audition for strings as part of the exciting new LACO-Thornton Strings Mentorship Program, a unique collaboration between USC’s Thornton School of Music and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra that strives to enhance the preparedness of strings students for a professional career. Reed competed against violinists, violists, cellists and fellow double bass players before an esteemed panel of judges including LACO concertmaster Margaret Batjer and principal cello of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Peter Stumpf, who are both members of the USC Thornton School faculty, and LACO principal viola Roland Kato. The mock audition was held in September 2010.

“The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra prides itself on forging unique artistic partnerships with institutions such as the Thornton School,” said LACO executive director Rachel Fine. “This particular collaboration will provide talented students with a preliminary professional experience, helping to ease the transition between training and a professional orchestral career.”
“We are very pleased with this partnership with LACO,” said Midori Goto, chair of the Thornton Strings Department and Heifetz Chair in Violin. “Events such as the Mock Orchestral Audition and its Special Award give our students unparalleled experience in preparing for successful professional lives, which is a critical component of their education and one of our Department’s missions. Mary Reed’s participation in these concerts is one of the milestones a young musician encounters in a path that leads to a competitive career.”

Tickets ($18 - $100) are on sale now and may be purchased online at laco.org, by calling LACO at 213 622 7001 x 215 or at the venue box office on the night of the concert, if tickets remain. Discounted tickets are also available by phone for seniors 65 years of age and older and groups of 12 or more. College students may purchase a season pass for $25 in advance, or buy rush tickets one hour before curtain.

Guggenheim Partners, LLC is an official sponsor of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. These concerts are sponsored by Ann Moore Mulally and James Mulally.

Official Website: http://www.laco.org