Marin Symphony Presents Midori Residency And Concerts In January

Marin Symphony and Youth Orchestras and conductor Alasdair Neale welcome international violin phenomenon Midori for two concerts capping off a week's residency focusing on community and school programs in January. As the sole recipients of Midori's prestigious Orchestra Residency Program award this year, Marin Symphony and Youth Orchestra will host the violinist in a variety of venues and programs designed to enhance music education in the schools and community. She will then perform Britten's Violin Concerto with the Symphony on a program that also includes Bay Area composer Mason Bates' Devil's Radio and Bartok's Concerto for Orchestra at 8 pm Friday and Saturday, January 27 and 28, at the Marin Center Veterans' Memorial Auditorium in San Rafael. Pre-concert talks begin at 6:30 pm and are free for all ticket holders. All concert attendees are also invited to the post-concert gathering at Gaspare's Pizzeria in San Rafael, minutes away from the concert hall. Tickets for the concerts are $15-$80 and may be purchased at www.marinsymphony.org or by calling 415-473-6800.

"We are thrilled and honored to welcome Midori to Marin," says Music Director Alasdair Neale, "and are grateful to the generosity of her Foundation for making it possible for Marin Symphony and Youth Orchestras to be the only organizations this year to present a full week of residency programs and concerts with her. Those familiar with the extraordinary caliber of our musicians and our acclaimed education programs know that the Marin Symphony is an exceptionally accomplished orchestra with deep connections to the community. Midori's Award underscores this stature and recognition and supports an important bridge between it and the Youth Orchestra and our community."

About Midori's Marin Residency

Designed by Midori as a means of supporting the American youth orchestra, the Orchestra Residencies Program is a collaborative project which provides meaningful musical experiences for the next generation of classical musicians. The program aspires to help establish the youth orchestra as a presence in the community, as well as to build upon relationships with the local professional symphony, visiting artists and administrative staff.

In Marin, Midori will participate in a wide range of activities tailored to optimize the involvement of the youth orchestra. Through masterclasses, performance workshops, and meals with Q&A sessions, a substantial portion of the residency is devoted to the youth orchestra and its members. During her tenure in Marin, Midori will be participating in the following activities:

Symphony Day - Friday, January 27, 2017: 4th grade classes are invited to the concert hall at the Civic Center to hear Midori perform with the Marin Symphony Youth Orchestra. Concert will be 45 minutes and tickets are free to Marin County Schools. Interested schools should visit the Symphony Day page to learn more and sign up at www.marinsymphony.org

Midori School Visits: Midori will be available for 30 minute visits to Marin County schools Thurs-Fri, January 26-27, 2017.

Decision Makers meeting: Midori will address and confer with an assembled group of Marin County decision-makers, including county Supervisors, mayor, school superintendents, and others. The meeting will focus on the importance of music in school and community settings, and the need to support youth music programs.

Orch'apalooza! - Concert with Marin Symphony Youth Ensembles: In the grand finale of her residency, Midori will perform with all three of our youth orchestras on Sunday, January 29, 2017 at 3:00 pm.

For inquiries about school visits or Symphony Day, please contact Jenny Douglass at education@marinsymphony.org.

About Midori

Midori is one of the most admired violinists of her generation. In addition to performing at the highest levels internationally, giving master classes and participating in prominent artistic residencies, she has made a sustained commitment to the violin repertoire of the future, commissioning new concerto and recital works over a period of many years.

Beyond her performing and recording career, Midori has been recognized as a dedicated and gifted educator and an innovative community engagement activist throughout the US, Europe, Asia and the developing world. Among many honors she has received in recent years, she was named a Messenger of Peace by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and received the prestigious Crystal Award by the World Economic Forum in Davos.

In recent seasons, Midori has added several new recordings to her extensive discography: Bach's complete Solo Sonatas and Partitas, a recital of sonatas by Bloch, Janá?ek and Shostakovich with pianist Özgür Aydin, and Paul Hindemith's violin concerto with the NDR Symphony Orchestra and conductor Christoph Eschenbach in a recording that won a Grammy for Best Classical Compendium. In February 2016, Sony Classical released The Art of Midori, a 10-CD set containing some of her most important recordings for the label. DoReMi, the violin concerto written for her by Peter Eötvös and performed with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France under the baton of the composer, was released in May 2016.

In 1992 Midori founded Midori & Friends, a non-profit organization in New York City that brings music education programs to underserved schoolchildren. Two other organizations, Music Sharing, based in Japan, and Partners in Performance, based in the U.S., also bring music closer to the lives of people who may not otherwise have involvement with the arts. Midori's commitment to community collaboration and outreach is further realized in her Orchestra Residencies Program, which involves week-long residencies with American youth orchestras.

Midori was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1971 and began studying the violin with her mother, Setsu Goto, at an early age. In 1982, Zubin Mehta invited the11-year-old Midori to make her debut at the New York Philharmonic's traditional New Year's Eve concert, on which occasion she received a standing ovation and the impetus to begin a major career.

Today, in addition to her performing and outreach activities, Midori serves as Distinguished Professor of Violin and holds the Jascha Heifetz Chair at the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music. She is also a Guest Professor at Japan's Soai University and at Shanghai Conservatory and an Honorary Professor at the Beijing's Central Conservatory of Music.

Midori plays the 1734 Guarnerius del Gesù 'ex-Huberman'. She uses four bows - two by Dominique Peccatte, one by François Peccatte and one by Paul Siefried.