L.A. Master Chorale Performs Mendelssohn's Elijah January 25, 2009

Celebrated Bass-Baritone Eric Owens Sings Title Role of
Mendelssohn’s Elijah with Los Angeles Master Chorale

Sunday, January 25, 2009, 7 p.m., at Walt Disney Concert Hall
Music Director Grant Gershon Conducts Concert, which Marks Choir’s 45th Anniversary;
Soprano Mary Wilson, Mezzo-Soprano Diana Tash and Tenor Robert MacNeil also Featured

Bass-baritone Eric Owens, who has garnered tremendous critical acclaim for his recent opera roles with LA Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, Paris Opera, San Francisco Opera and other noted companies, joins the Los Angeles Master Chorale as guest soloist for a highly anticipated performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah on Sunday, January 25, 2009, 7:00 p.m., at Disney Hall. Other featured soloists include Mary Wilson, soprano; Diana Tash, mezzo-soprano; and Robert MacNeil, tenor. Music Director Grant Gershon conducts the concert, which marks the renowned choir’s 45th Anniversary nearly to the day. The Chorale gave its first independent performance on January 27, 1965 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion with a performance of Bach’s B Minor Mass, cementing the choir’s place in the cultural fabric of Los Angeles and beyond.

“Listen Up!,” the Chorale’s lively pre-concert conversation with KUSC’s Alan Chapman and Gershon is open to ticket holders at no charge at 6 p.m., inside Disney Concert Hall.

“To commemorate the Chorale’s anniversary and rich history,” says Gershon, “We’re presenting a great piece of theater for the voice – a gripping and masterful oratorio, which is based on the life of the Old Testament prophet, Elijah.”

Completed in 1846, Elijah had a resounding first performance about which the composer wrote to his brother, “No work of mine went so admirably the first time of execution, or was received with such enthusiasm by both the musicians and the audience.” Filled with imaginative orchestration, beautiful arias and choruses and a highly dramatic style that, at times, borders on the operatic, it was influenced by the choral masterpieces of Bach and Handel. But it is the dramatic impact of his vivid characterization of Elijah that has made it a work for the ages.

Acclaimed for his commanding stage presence and inventive artistry, Owens has carved a unique place in the contemporary opera world as both a troubadour of new music and a powerful interpreter of classic works. Called “consistently charismatic, theatrically and vocally” by New York Magazine and “absolutely remarkable” by The Philadelphia Inquirer, Owens is equally at home in concert, recital and opera performances, bringing his powerful poise, expansive voice and instinctive acting faculties to stages around the globe. He performed the Verdi Requiem with the Chorale in March 2006 and in October 2008 made his Metropolitan Opera debut in the role of Gen. Leslie Groves in John Adams’ Doctor Atomic, for which the Associated Press praised his “soaring vocal lines.” New York Magazine also proclaims, “Eric Owens may not be a household name to operaphiles yet, but the striking bass-baritone is well on his way.”

Tickets to the Los Angeles Master Chorale’s concert range from $19 to $124. Student Rush seats are $10 and are available at the box office two hours before the performance. For tickets and information, please call (800) 787-5262 (outside California call 213-972-7282), or visit www.lamc.org. (Tickets can no longer be purchased at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office except on concert days starting 2 hours prior to the performance.) The Walt Disney Concert Hall is located at 111 South Grand Avenue at First Street in downtown Los Angeles.
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EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: Calendar Listing
Event: Los Angeles Master Chorale – Mendelssohn’s “Elijah”
Los Angeles Master Chorale
Grant Gershon, Conductor
Mary Wilson, soprano
Diana Tash, mezzo-soprano
Robert MacNeil, tenor
Eric Owens, bass-baritone
Performance Date: Sunday, January 25, 2009, 7:00 p.m.
(Listen Up! pre-concert talk with Grant Gershon, KUSC’s Alan Chapman, 6 p.m.)
Program: FELIX MENDELSSOHN Elijah
Venue: Walt Disney Concert Hall 111 S. Grand Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90012
Ticket Prices: $19 - $124; Student Rush seats available at box office two hours before the performance
Ticket Information: 800-787-5262
outside California call 213-972-7282
www.lamc.org
(Tickets can no longer be purchased at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office except
on concert days starting 2 hours prior to the performance.)

Artists, program and ticket prices subject to change. # # # 10/16/08

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