October 23, 2018 :: California Symphony goers know her as the sharply dressed orchestra executive who addresses the audience before every concert. To peers in the field, she is a thought leader and sought-after speaker, with a reputation for challenging traditional thinking and established practices in orchestra management. Since becoming Executive Director in 2014, the California Symphony has been...
October 19, 2018 :: California Symphony Orchestra: What have you been up to since the premiere of your first piece with the California Symphony in May? Katherine Balch: After an amazing week with the California Symphony, I had a fun time celebrating with the folks at Broadcast Music Inc., at the 66th Annual BMI Student Composer Awards ceremony in NYC, where...
October 11, 2018 :: Last summer, 60 people—from classical music novices to dedicated aficionados—joined the California Symphony for a pilot adult education course led by instructor Scott Foglesong (Chair of Musicianship and Music Theory at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music), which was designed to throw light on the symphony and the music we play. Course instructor Scott Foglesong delivered...
:: Beyond music training and the teaching of life skills like commitment, perseverance, and how to work together, the Sound Minds music education program is also about exposing students in one of the poorest parts of the state to experiences that inspire and encourage them to imagine possibilities beyond anything they could ever have dreamed of before....
October 9, 2018 :: California Symphony percussionist Allen Biggs has been performing with the California Symphony since the first ever concert more than three decades ago. He is a one of a quartet of percussionists who will perform under the dome of the planetarium at Chabot Space & Science Center for Symphony Surround, June 8, 2019. We caught up...
October 3, 2018 :: Presenting the six winners of the 2018 California Symphony audition winners… The group includes four international artists, two Juilliard School graduates, a student of Itszhak Perlman, and a self-described corgi-whisperer. Clockwise from top left: Sarena Hsu Giarrusso (Assistant Principal Violin II), Xander Abbe, Sheng-Ching Hsu, Mijung Kim, Junghee Lee, Yulee Seo. One hot day in June,...
:: Imagine a job interview where you get to say anything you want and your interviewers have no idea who you are or where you’re from. Where your anonymous artistry is left to speak for itself, and where you never see your interviewers’ faces until AFTER you’re offered the job… We lift the lid on the mysterious...
September 17, 2018 :: Christine Keller has taught at the Sound Minds music education program and other California Symphony education initiatives for more than two decades. In addition to being a teacher, Christine is a professional pianist and one half of the “Keller Duo” with her concert pianist mom, Alice Mae Keller, who has been struggling with dementia since...
August 25, 2018 :: Music Director Donato Cabrera and pianist Charlie Albright reprise a celebrated collaboration for the California Symphony’s 2018–19 season opener. We asked Music Director Donato Cabrera and returning virtuoso Charlie Albright about the upcoming BEETHOVEN & BERNSTEIN concert at the Lesher Center — Sept. 23 at 4PM. California Symphony: Donato, you intended for the 2018–19 season opener to commemorate...
August 21, 2018 :: This California-born, Grammy award-winning composer was included in the Washington Post’s list of the 35 most significant women composers in history. In case you hadn’t heard of her before, here’s a quick primer. View from Frank’s Timberstone Mountain Farm, part of the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music (pictured left) and composer Gabriela Lena Frank...
