John Beasley to Host JAZZ AND THE ORCHESTRA at LA Phiharmonic, 2/19

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association's 2010/11 Toyota Symphonies for Youth (TSFY) concert series at Walt Disney Concert Hall continues on Saturday, February 19, at 11 a.m., with an original concert production designed to educate young audiences about the differences and similarities of jazz for the orchestra and for a quintet. Young audiences will learn about listening and teamwork, how to "speak jazz," and be introduced to improvisation and scatting through participation and musical demonstrations featuring excerpts from Dvork's Symphony No. 9, Mingus' Better Git It In Your Soul, Bernstein's Times Square 1944, Ellington's It Don't Mean A Thing and two special arrangements of Itsy Bitsy Spider and Arachnology, arranged especially for this production. This concert repeats on Saturday, February 26 at 11 a.m.

John Beasley recently received a 2010 Grammy nomination, Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group for his ninth album Positootly! . With a music career spanning three decades, Beasley's credits reads like a Who's Who list in the music world. He has performed with illustrious artists including MiLes Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Carly Simon, Dianne Reeves, Christian McBride, Chaka Khan, and James Brown; took the lead as Music Director for Grammy Award-winning Steely Dan, Queen Latifah and A.R. Rahman tours; arranged for popular television shows American Idol and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno; played on box office hits Wall-E and Austin Powers; and composed for TV series Star Trek, Cheers and Fame. As a solo recording artist, Beasley's compositions and arrangements are inventive, explorative and exquisitely realized expanding musical thought.  The Los Angeles Times describes his  playing as reflecting "a variety of generational influences, incorporating the emphatic chordal clusters of Herbie Hancock, the rhythmic quirkiness of Monk and the lush intelligence of Art Tatum into a highly refined personal voice."Immediately after completing his Bachelor of Music in violin performance at the New England Conservatory in May 2009, 22-year-old Joshua Weilerstein was named the winner of the international 2009 Malko Competition for Young Conductors in Copenhagen. His first-prize honors include conducting engagements over three years with such major Scandinavian orchestras as the Oslo Philharmonic, the Helsinki Philharmonic, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, and the Danish National Symphony, among others. In June 2009, in the first of this series of Malko engagements, Weilerstein made his professional conducting debut with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. 

In the 2009/10 season he led the South Jutland Symphony Orchestra in Denmark, which quickly re-engaged him, the Danish National Symphony, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, the orchestra of the Skaneatelles Festival and the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuala with his sister, cellist Alisa Weilerstein, as soloist.  In addition to his re-engagement with the South Jutland Symphony, highlights of the 2010/11 season include appearances with the symphony orchestras of Norrköping, Aalborg, Aarhus, Tapiola, Malmö, South Jutland and Gävle as well as the CityMusic Cleveland Chamber Orchestra.

Before every concert, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., Walt Disney Concert Hall becomes a musical playground with hands-on art making, musical activities, dance, and storytelling or theater.  Workshops take place in the lobby spaces one hour prior to the performance. Judi Garratt, Los Angeles Unified School District Elementary Theatre Teacher for the Arts Education Branch, coordinates all pre-concert activities.
 
For full artist biographies, please visit:  http://www.laphil.com 
 
The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under the vibrant leadership of Gustavo Dudamel, presents the finest in orchestral and chamber music, recitals, new music, jazz, world music and holiday concerts at two of the most remarkable locations anywhere to experience music - Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to a 30-week winter subscription season at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the LA Phil presents a 12-week summer festival at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and home of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. In fulfilling its commitment to the community, the Association's involvement with Los Angeles extends to educational concerts, children's programming and community concerts, ever seeking to provide inspiration and delight to the broadest possible audience.
 
Toyota Symphonies for Youth is generously sponsored by Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
 
Additional support for the LA Phil's education and community programs is provided by Fidelity Investments, the Annenberg Foundation, Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts, Amgen Foundation, The Rose Hills Foundation, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, The Adele and Gordon Binder Foundation, the Eisner Foundation, Los Angeles Philharmonic Committee, Los Angeles Philharmonic Affiliates, JPMorgan Chase, Anita Hirsh, Ronus Family Foundation, City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
 

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