Orange County's Pacific Chorale Presents TIS THE SEASON, 12/20 - 12/21

By: Dec. 16, 2009
Get Access To Every Broadway Story

Unlock access to every one of the hundreds of articles published daily on BroadwayWorld by logging in with one click.




Existing user? Just click login.

Pacific Chorale Artistic Director John Alexander and President and CEO Kelly Ruggirello are pleased to announce details for Tis the Season!, Pacific Chorale's much anticipated holiday concert in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. The concert, one of the most popular Christmas events in the region, will delight audiences with the sound of favorite carols and seasonal masterpieces sung by the 140-voice Chorale and the Southern California Children's Concert Chorus, along with the glorious sounds of Pacific Symphony and the William J. Gillespie Concert Organ, played by Lori Loftus. 

Pacific Chorale's annual gala and major fundraising event of the year, A Dickens Feast, takes place following the Sunday, December 20th Tis the Season! performance. The Dickens Feast event, chaired by John and Lori Loftus, will be held at the elegant Center Club, just steps from the hall, and beautifully decorated for the season. Guests will savor a traditional seasonal dinner prepared by the Center Club's Chef Bruno, and enjoy being serenaded by a quartet of carolers from Pacific Chorale. This gala event is a fundamental contributor to Pacific Chorale's annual operating budget. Revenue from ticket sales covers only 35% of the costs required to provide the concert experiences our community has valued for decades. Each seat for the dinner is $250, with tables of 10 for $2,500, along with underwriting opportunities ranging from $1,000 to $15,000.

Concerts: Sunday, December 20, 2009 at 5:30 p.m. and Monday, December 21, 2009 at 8 p.m. at Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, Orange County Performing Arts Center located at 615 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626.

Featuring: Pacific Chorale; Southern California Children's Concert Chorus; Pacific Symphony; Lori Loftus, organ; David Clemensen, piano; John Alexander, conducting.

Single tickets for Pacific Chorale's Tis the Season! holiday concert as well as the rest of the 2009-2010 season are currently on sale. Concert tickets may be purchased now online at www.pacificchorale.org, or through the Chorale's ticket office: 714-662-2345, open 9 am–5 pm, Monday–Friday through December 18th. Concert tickets are priced from $25 to $89, with box seats at $150.

Ticket availability for the Sunday, December 20th performance is already limited, but excellent seats are still available for Monday, December 21st.

"Flex Series" subscription packages to the remaining concerts of Pacific Chorale's season, including the John Alexander Singers' A Romantic Affair and Pacific Chorale's Rachmaninov by Candlelight as well as Tis the Season!, are still available through the Chorale's ticket office until December 18th. "Flex Series" subscription prices begin as low as $48.

Founded in 1968, Pacific Chorale is internationally recognized for exceptional artistic expression, stimulating American-focused programming, and influential education programs.  Pacific Chorale presents a significant performance season of its own at the Orange County Performing Arts Center and is sought regularly to perform with the nation's leading symphonies.  Under the inspired guidance of Artistic Director John Alexander, Pacific Chorale has infused an Old World art form with California's hallmark innovation and cultural independence.

In addition to its long-standing partnership with Pacific Symphony, the Chorale has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Disney Hall on numerous occasions.  Other noted collaborations include the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, the Boston Symphony, the National Symphony, and the Long Beach, Pasadena, Riverside and San Diego symphonies.  John Alexander and the Chorale have toured extensively in Europe, South America and Asia.

Artistic Director of Pacific Chorale since 1972, John Alexander has received consistent acclaim for his inspired leadership, both on the podium and as an advocate for the advancement of the arts.  In his long and distinguished career, he has conducted hundreds of performances of choirs and orchestras in 27 countries around the globe.  Noted as a specialist in conducting the choral/orchestral masterworks, he is also a strong proponent of American music, programming groundbreaking works by California composers and bringing twelve West Coast and world premieres to Southern California performance halls in the past thirteen years.  Choruses prepared by John Alexander have performed under many of the most renowned conductors on the world stage, including Zubin Mehta, Pierre Boulez, Seiji Ozawa, Michael Tilson Thomas, Leonard Slatkin, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Gustavo Dudamel, Lukas Foss, Max Rudolf, Carl St.Clair, Gerard Schwarz, Marin Alsop, John Mauceri, John Williams, and Keith Lockhart. This past June, Alexander was honored with the "Michael Korn Founders Award for Development of the Professional Choral Art" from Chorus America.

Accomplished on organ, piano and harpsichord, Lori Loftus is in constant demand throughout the Southland both as an accompanist and as a keyboard adjudicator. Since 1983, Ms. Loftus has worked with John Alexander and Pacific Chorale. Ms. Loftus has also served as accompanist at California State University, Fullerton, assistant organist at the Crystal Cathedral, principal organist at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, and the accompanist/artist at the Oregon Bach Festival, assisting Helmuth Rilling. Ms. Loftus is the founding director of the Southern California Children's Chorus.

David Clemensen is active as a pianist, teacher, church musician and composer.   A native Californian, he holds degrees from Chapman University, CSU Fullerton, and USC.   2009-10 will be his seventh season as pianist for Pacific Chorale and the John Alexander Singers. He has taught at Biola University and Orange Coast College, and currently teaches and coaches privately in Irvine. In 1995 he won the American Orff-Schulwerk competition for his William Blake setting The Tyger and the Lamb.  David makes his home in Irvine with his wife and son.

Founded in 1996, the Southern California Children's Chorus (SCCC) is Orange County's only chorus dedicated exclusively to meeting the educational and performance needs of children. The organization seeks to do more than introduce youth to music and singing. It strives to enrich the lives of its members through programs stressing musical aptitude, teamwork, discipline, self-confidence and personal growth. Music camps, social outings, concert tours and an annual, child-involved fundraiser are combined with weekly rehearsals and live performances to create the type of nurturing environment that enables members to mature musically and socially. The SCCC and its musical directors serve as mentors, coaches and friends to students in a variety of socioeconomic levels.

Over 300 children are enrolled in a sequential choral program consisting of seven choirs: Ensemble, Concert, Advanced, Intermediate, Apprentice, Primary and Kinder levels. Choral members perform locally throughout the year at special events and venues like the Orange County Performing Arts Center. The SCCC has provided singers for Touchstone films, MGM films, music videos, commercials, the Hollywood Bowl, symphony concerts, operas, television specials for Disney and many musical productions. The Concert Chorus has been honored to present concerts at world–renowned venues, including Westminster Abbey, the White House, the Washington National Cathedral, Carnegie Hall, the Basilica San Marco in Venice, Italy, and Australia's Sydney Opera House.

Founded in 1978, Orange County's Pacific Symphony is the third largest orchestra in California, and the largest orchestra formed in the United States in the last 30 years. The Pacific Symphony has played a central role in the spectacular growth of the performing arts in Orange County, touching people with a rich array of musical programs and outreach activities. Every year more than 250,000 Orange County residents - from school children to senior citizens - enjoy the magic of live Pacific Symphony performances.

Under the artistic supervision of Music Director Carl St. Clair, the Pacific Symphony offers a variety of music for every taste and audience, including the great classical masterworks with the world's most outstanding soloists, pops concerts headlined by the brightest stars in entertainment, chamber music and chamber orchestra series, Saturday morning concerts for children and parents, an annual American Composers Festival dedicated to profound American and American–influenced composers, and annual holiday performances of Handel's Messiah.



Videos