Award-Winning Cellist Leonard Elschenbroich Makes Pacific Symphony Debut

Acclaimed cellist Leonard Elschenbroich joins Pacific Symphony conducted by Music Director Carl St.Clair for three nights of performances to include Shostakovkich's First Cello Concerto, in a program that opens with Bernstein's energetic "Slava! A Political Overture" and closes with Rimsky-Korsakov's epic "Scheherazade," Thurs., Jan. 31 through Sat., Feb. 1. The Sunday Matinee on Feb. 3 at 3:00 p.m. is a 90-minute concert without intermission that features only "Scheherazade" on the program.

The evening concerts begin at 8 p.m., with doors opening at 6:45 p.m. for a preview talk hosted by Alan Chapman at 7 p.m. "Arabian Nights," the Friday, Feb. 1 concert is part of the "Classical KUSC at Pacific Symphony" series and will be hosted by KUSC's Brian Lauritzen. Tickets for these concerts start at $25. For more information or to purchase tickets, call (714) 755-5799 or visit the website, www.PacificSymphony.org. Pacific Symphony gratefully acknowledges sponsorship for these concerts as part of the Symphony's 2018-19 Hal & Jeanette Segerstrom Family Foundation Classical Series. The Thursday night performance is generously sponsored by the Ellie and Mike Gordon.

Inspired by legendary Middle Eastern folk stories, "Scheherazade" tells the story of a beautiful young bride who must use her charm as a storyteller to save herself from the wrath of a jealous sultan. Also featured are Bernstein's "Slava!" and Shostakovich's high-voltage Cello Concerto No. 1, both written for legendary cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.

Described by The New York Times as "a musician of great technical prowess, intellectual curiosity and expressive depth," cellist Leonard Elschenbroich performs as a soloist with the world's leading orchestras. A committed performer of contemporary music, Elschenbroich has commissioned several new works from composers including Mark-Anthony Turnage, Luca Lombardi, Arlene Sierra and Suzanne Farrin. He gave the world premiere of Mark Simpson's first Cello Concerto, written for him, with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at Bridgewater Hall, and Brian Elias' first Cello Concerto at the BBC Proms. In 2012 he co-founded the Orquesta Filarmonica de Bolivia, the first orchestra to perform a Mahler Symphony in the nation's history. Elschenbroich returns to Bolivia on a regular basis to lead educational projects and develop the orchestra. His many awards include the Leonard Bernstein Award, Förderpreis Deutschlandfunk and Borletti Buitoni Trust Award. In 2012 he was named BBC Radio 3's "New Generation Artist," he was Artist-in-Residence of Deutschlandfunk for the 2014-15 season, and Artist-in-Residence at the Philharmonic Society Bremen from 2013-16.

The "Classical KUSC @ Pacific Symphony" series feature concerts hosted by KUSC personalities who will guide audiences through each program, deepening their knowledge and appreciation of classical music. The final concert in the series, "Viva Italia," will take place on Fri., March 22 at 8 p.m. when KUSC host John Van Driel will guide the audience through a program that includes Mendelssohn's "Italian" Symphony. KUSC worked closely with Pacific Symphony Music Director Carl St.Clair on the programming for this series. St.Clair commented, "As we celebrate our 40th anniversary, looking back on four decades of serving the communities of Orange County, we also look ahead to a future of engaging more people in the joy of classical music. We think these concerts give audiences a chance to get to know more about the music and a chance to get to know us."