Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Concludes Season with World Premiere May 14, 2011

LOS ANGELES CHAMBER ORCHESTRA,
CONDUCTED BY MUSIC DIRECTOR JEFFREY KAHANE,
CONCLUDES SEASON WITH WORLD PREMIERE
OF COMPOSER-IN-RESIDENCE DEREK BERMEL’S
MAR DE SETEMBRO ("SEPTEMBER SEA"),
AN HOMAGE TO LA’S LATIN COMMUNITY
WRITTEN FOR AND PERFORMED BY
RENOWNED BRAZILIAN VOCALIST LUCIANA SOUZA

Works by Mendelssohn and Mozart Bookend Program

Saturday, May 14, 2011, 8 pm (Alex Theatre)
Sunday, May 15, 2011, 7 pm (Royce Hall – UCLA)

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO), one of the nation’s leading orchestras renowned for its wide-ranging repertoire and adventurous commissioning initiatives, concludes its 42nd season with a performance conducted by Music Director Jeffrey Kahane featuring the world premiere of Composer-in-Residence Derek Bermel’s highly anticipated homage to LA’s Latin American community, Mar de Setembro ("September Sea"), written for and performed by Grammy®-winning Brazilian vocalist Luciana Souza on Saturday, May 14, 8 pm, at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, and Sunday, May 15, 2011, 7 pm, at UCLA’s Royce Hall. Musically bookending the program are two classics, Mendelssohn’s Concerto in D minor for Violin and Piano, led by Kahane from the piano and spotlighting Concertmaster Margaret Batjer, and Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D major, “Prague.”

The performance celebrates the 10th anniversary of LACO’s Sound Investment. The program gives members the rare opportunity to create a legacy in music and to observe first-hand the development of a new work from the composer’s earliest ideas to the finished composition. Investing members pay a minimum of $300 for a year-long membership and are invited to three salons throughout the season that feature in-depth discussion with the composer about his creative process and previews of the final work.

One hour before curtain, Bermel discusses the intricacies of his new composition at Concert Preludes, designed to illuminate the evening’s program and free for all ticket holders.

Bermel, hailed by critics as "one of America's finest young composers," uses Brazilian themes and rhythms and the poetry of Portugal's Eugénio de Andrade as the basis of Mar de Setembro, a vocal tone poem. "My compositional style has been deeply enriched by studying and experiencing global music and cultures," says Bermel. "Music is inspiration but also an education, and what better tutor than the mesmerizing voice of Luciana Souza to express the Latin American heritage of Los Angeles."

Both Bermel and Souza are celebrated for their originality in blending such musical genres as classical, jazz, pop, folk and gospel. Billboard describes Souza as "the singer for a new generation of firebrands eager to push the boundaries," New York Magazine calls her "phenomenal" and the Boston Herald proclaims she is "one of today’s most inventive and stylistically far-reaching vocalists."

Mendelssohn's Concerto in D minor for Violin and Piano, written in 1823 when the composer was just 14, showcases the orchestra's force as well as the virtuosity of the violin and piano.

Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D major, debuting in Prague after the successful reception of his beloved opera The Marriage of Figaro, needed only three movements instead of the typical four to thrill audiences then and now with operatic flourishes and theatrical flair.

Tickets ($18 – $100) are on sale now and may be purchased online at laco.org, by calling LACO at 213 622 7001, 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 rush tickets one hour before curtain.

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