Henry Segerstrom News

Pacific Symphony, led by Music Director Carl St.Clair, prepares to kick off the month of December and everyone's favorite holiday season with a tribute to the charming Viennese waltz that is sure to sweep the audience off its feet! Featuring Richard Strauss' Suite from "Der Rosenkavalier" and Johann Strauss Jr.'s "On the Beautiful Blue Danube," the concert transports the listener back to Vienna's golden age. During the 1800s, Vienna was the glittering cultural jewel at the heart of Europe and it was the place where Johannes Brahms spent his entire life.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts will celebrate Mexico's revered Dia de los Muertos with performances by Perla Batalla, La Santa Cecilia, Pacifico Dance and Quetzal on November 2, 2016 in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall starting at 7:30 p.m. Four performances will take place in a single concert: Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Perla Batalla, LA bands La Santa Cecilia and Quetzal and Pacifico Dance Company.

Pacific Symphony's annual Class Act Welcome Lunch recently took place, followed by the first Prelude Assembly of the 2016-17 season-marking another beginning for one of the organization's oldest partnership programs. It has now been 22 years since the Symphony first joined forces with Orange County schools and parents to create the Frieda Belinfante Class Act program in an effort to bring quality music education to elementary school children. At the heart of the program are Pacific Symphony musicians, who take on the role of teaching artists and provide personal connections with students.

Pacific Symphony's annual Class Act Welcome Lunch recently took place, followed by the first Prelude Assembly of the 2016-17 season-marking another beginning for one of the organization's oldest partnership programs. It has now been 22 years since the Symphony first joined forces with Orange County schools and parents to create the Frieda Belinfante Class Act program in an effort to bring quality music education to elementary school children. At the heart of the program are Pacific Symphony musicians, who take on the role of teaching artists and provide personal connections with students. During Class Act, children learn basics of music such as tempo, rhythm and melody, along with classical music appreciation, beginning in the fall and culminating in late spring with Youth Concerts and Bravo Assemblies.

Pacific Symphony's upcoming concert presents Spain's pre-eminent pianist Joaquin Achucarro, performing Grieg's sweepingly dramatic Piano Concerto. Sir Simon Rattle said: "There is something special with Joaquin Achucarro. Very few musicians can extract this kind of sound from the piano," while Zubin Mehta remarked, "I have only heard this sound from Rubinstein." This not-to-be-missed Symphony debut by one of today's most talented pianists is part of a program that includes selections from Grieg's ever-popular "Peer Gynt," fairy-tale music from Stravinsky's iconic "Firebird" ballet, and a magical, mystical concerto by Rautavaara infused with bird songs. On the podium is the highly acclaimed, dynamic young Norwegian guest conductor, Rune Bergmann.

Pacific Symphony's upcoming concert presents Spain's pre-eminent pianist Joaquin Achucarro, performing Grieg's sweepingly dramatic Piano Concerto. Sir Simon Rattle said: "There is something special with Joaquin Achucarro. Very few musicians can extract this kind of sound from the piano," while Zubin Mehta remarked, "I have only heard this sound from Rubinstein." This not-to-be-missed Symphony debut by one of today's most talented pianists is part of a program that includes selections from Grieg's ever-popular "Peer Gynt," fairy-tale music from Stravinsky's iconic "Firebird" ballet, and a magical, mystical concerto by Rautavaara infused with bird songs. On the podium is the highly acclaimed, dynamic young Norwegian guest conductor, Rune Bergmann.

Hop on the Hogwarts Express! Young Witches, Wizards and Muggles unite as they find themselves transported to the fantastical world of Harry Potter, when Pacific Symphony's Family Musical Mornings series returns just in time for Halloween. Featuring the beloved music of John Williams and more, this concert event is the perfect way to get a jump on Halloween (all are invited to come in costume!).

Expect fireworks to shoot from the strings during a breathtaking performance by young star-on-the-rise, Arnaud Sussmann, as he joins Music Director Carl St.Clair and Pacific Symphony for the second concert of the 2016-17 Classical Season, celebrating 10 years in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.

Pacific Symphony Santiago Strings (PSSS), with instrumentalists in grades 6-9, led by Music Director Irene Kroesen (under the artistic advisement of Music Director Carl St.Clair). The concert features the Prelude Chamber Strings (PCS), grades 2-8, conducted by Helen Weed.

Pacific Symphony's Pops season undergoes a mighty launch with a stupendous opening night featuring six-time Grammy Award winner Amy Grant.

The music may not be the first thought that comes to mind when it comes to the hit 1990 movie, "Home Alone"-the highest-grossing live-action-comedy film of all time in the U.S.-but it will soon! It's not just another "movie night" when Pacific Symphony's Pops brings the exemplary "Hollywood" sound of the orchestra to the hilarious and heart-warming comedy classic starring Macaulay Culkin as 8-year-old troublemaker, Kevin McCallister.

Pacific Symphony Youth Wind Ensemble (PSYWE), led by Gregory X. Whitmore, kicks off its milestone 10th anniversary season with works from past and present. Celebrate during Ron Nelson's "Lauds," a piece that is sure to engage and inspire as the talented musicians of PSYWE are backed by the mighty William J. Gillespie Concert Organ, performed by organist Kristen Lawrence. And bask in the reverence of David Maslanka's "Requiem," which along with "Lauds," is rooted in antiquity. Then, look to today with Mason Bates' "Chicago 2012" from "Alternative Energy," a collaborative work for onstage electro-acoustics. Completing the program are two pieces by previous Symphony Composer-in-Residence Frank Ticheli: "Angels in the Architecture," featuring soprano Chelsea Chaves, and "Rest," led by special guest conductor, Pacific Symphony Music Director Carl St.Clair!

It may feel a little daunting to try to top its last triumphant season, but Pacific Symphony Youth Orchestra (PSYO), led by Assistant Conductor Roger Kalia, is up to the task! Energized by a year of artistic achievement and recently returned from its highly successful summer performance tour of China, Southern California's finest young orchestra musicians inaugurate their 2016-17 season with an array of charismatic works.

Disney aficionados, film buffs and musical theater lovers can expect an evening like no other when eight-time Oscar-winner Alan Menken comes to Segerstrom Center for the Arts performing his own music and sharing entertaining anecdotes about his unrivaled career.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts Proudly Presents the World Premiere of A WHOLE NEW WORLD OF ALAN MENKEN

Pacific Symphony Youth Wind Ensemble (PSYWE) is in the business of making not only music but also dreams come true, as the group enters its 10th anniversary season in 2016-17-culminating in a nine-day international tour next summer! Regarded as one of the few premier youth wind symphonies in the nation, PSYWE, an 81-piece band made up of woodwind, brass and percussion students in grades 8-12, flies off on July 4-12, 2017.

Hop on the Hogwarts Express! Young Witches, Wizards and Muggles unite as they find themselves transported to the fantastical world of Harry Potter, when Pacific Symphony's Family Musical Mornings series returns just in time for Halloween. Featuring the beloved music of John Williams and more, this concert event is the perfect way to get a jump on Halloween (all are invited to come in costume!).

Expect fireworks to shoot from the strings during a breathtaking performance by young star-on-the-rise, Arnaud Sussmann, as he joins Music Director Carl St.Clair and Pacific Symphony for the second concert of the 2016-17 Classical Season celebrating 10 years in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. While Sussmann performs Mozart's most beloved violin concerto, his Third, the orchestra delivers Tchaikovsky's astonishing Symphony No. 4, which the composer described as "a reflection of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony."

Pacific Symphony launches its upcoming 2016-17 season in glorious style this September with a one-night-only spectacular-'An Evening with Renee Fleming,' featuring 'America's reigning diva' (The Washington Post) for more than a decade in a rare Orange County appearance.

Expect fireworks to shoot from the strings during a breathtaking performance by young star-on-the-rise, Arnaud Sussmann, as he joins Music Director Carl St.Clair and Pacific Symphony for the second concert of the 2016-17 Classical Season, celebrating 10 years in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.