Henry Segerstrom News

Aaron Copland once characterized "The Rite of Spring" as the foremost orchestral achievement of the 20th century, and The New York Times proclaimed the significance of the work to be "to the 20th century as Beethoven's Ninth is to the 19th." With the arrival of the centennial of Stravinsky's iconic masterwork, a reverberation of celebration can be heard around the symphonic world-and Pacific Symphony is no exception, offering a variety of activities throughout the rest of the 2012-13 season. In conceiving "The Rite of Spring," Stravinsky broke all the rules and defied convention, and it is very much in this spirit that the Symphony approaches its celebration.

Featuring four world-class vocalists, soprano-Sharla Nafziger, mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer, tenor Brian Stucki, bass-baritone Derrick Parker-and the angelic voices of the Pacific Chorale, the program also includes Mozart's Masonic Funeral Music, Fantasia in F Minor for solo organ, featuring organist Jung-A Lee, Ave verum corpus, plus, excerpts from and the Overture to 'The Magic Flute.' Taking place Today through Saturday, Jan. 31-Feb. 3, at 8 p.m., in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, the concert includes a preview talk at 7 p.m. and a post-concert talkback with Symphony advisor Joseph Horowitz and Maestro St.Clair.

Broadway legend Barbara Cook returns to Segerstrom Center to celebrate her 85th birthday year with a performance in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall on Saturday April 13 at 8 p.m.

Pacific Symphony performs Puccini's passionate and beautiful music in its full glory for the orchestra's second semi-staged opera production. The new opera-vocal initiative "Symphonic Voices" launched last season with three sold-old nights of "La Boheme," in an effort to bring opera back to Orange County following the loss of Opera Pacific. Inspired by Music Director Carl St.Clair's successful career as an opera conductor in Europe, the Symphony once again takes the music out of the pit and onto the stage to reveal the composer's brilliant orchestration, which paints the scenery and emotion behind the tragic tale. The production stars a cast of world-renowned opera singers, Pacific Chorale and the Southern California Children's Chorus.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts presents Blues at the Crossroads 2: Muddy & The Wolf on March 13 in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. The performance celebrates the music of two legends and friendly rivals - Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf - both revered as the "father of modern Chicago blues." The Fabulous Thunderbirds anchors this musical tribute, backing such greats as James Cotton, Jody Williams, Bob Margolin and JJ Grey. Each musician brings his own distinctive talent, producing a timeless mix of blues, rock and R&B.

As a kid growing up in the Philippines, I remember being completely enamored by the incredibly talented Lea Salonga, one of my native country's premier superstars. Much to my delight, this Tony Award-winning international star agreed to answer a series of silly, rapid-fire questions from me before her cabaret concert appearance on January 19 at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa.

Universal Pictures Stage Productions, Working Title Films Old Vic Productions and NETworks Presentations, LLC bring the multi-award-winning Billy Elliot the Musical to Segerstrom Center for the Arts from April 16 - 28, 2013. Based on the international smash-hit film and featuring music by Elton John, book and lyrics by Lee Hall, choreography by Peter Darling and direction by Stephen Daldry, Billy Elliot the Musical has earned critical acclaim around the world and was the winner of ten 2009 Tony Awards including Best Musical.

The Segerstrom Center for the Arts has announced its calendar of events for February 2013. Details below!

The Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour 55th Anniversary Celebration makes its way to Segerstrom Center for the Arts today, January 13 in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. The all- star ensemble will perform classic jazz and original compositions by critically acclaimed, Grammy Award-winning artists: bassist and musical director Christian McBride, vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater, saxophonist Chris Potter, trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, pianist Benny Green and drummer Lewis Nash.

Top off the old cliché of roses, chocolates and heart-shaped candies with the sexy, smooth sounds of saxophone sensation Kenny G, as he makes his debut with Pacific Symphony for a romantic holiday program this Valentine's Day. With a recording career that spans almost three decades and 23 albums, the Grammy Award-winning saxophonist has sold more than 75 million records worldwide (45 million in the U.S. alone) and enjoyed more than a dozen climbs to the top of Billboard's contemporary jazz chart.

Skyscraping grandeur, sheer beauty and energy to match the excitement of the New Year-Pacific Symphony rings in 2013 with a concert featuring two timeless masterpieces: Beethoven's Violin Concerto and Rimsky-Korsakov's astonishing 'Scheherazade.'

LA Opera announces the 2013-2014 season, including Bizet's Carmen, Verdi's Falstaff, Mozart's The Magic Flute, Britten's Billy Budd, Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Massenet's Thaïs, L.A. premiere of Wilson/Glass collaboration Einstein on the Beach.

Featuring four world-class vocalists, soprano-Sharla Nafziger, mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer, tenor Brian Stucki, bass-baritone Derrick Parker-and the angelic voices of the Pacific Chorale, the program also includes Mozart's Masonic Funeral Music, Fantasia in F Minor for solo organ, featuring organist Jung-A Lee, Ave verum corpus, plus, excerpts from and the Overture to 'The Magic Flute.' Taking place Thursday through Saturday, Jan. 31-Feb. 3, at 8 p.m., in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, the concert includes a preview talk at 7 p.m. and a post-concert talkback with Symphony advisor Joseph Horowitz and Maestro St.Clair.

For the third consecutive year, Pacific Symphony asks "OC Can You Play With Us?" and invites community musicians from across Orange County to play with the orchestra onstage in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. A popular event from the outset, last year the program doubled in size from its launch in 2011 as musicians from all over the community raced to sign up for their spot to play next to Pacific Symphony musicians. This year, the Symphony is again offering four sessions over two nights to allow up to 180 adult amateur musicians (ages 22 and older) the unique opportunity to rehearse and perform under the direction of Music Director Carl St.Clair. Participants perform the fourth movement of Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 on Monday, April 8, and Tuesday, April 9, at 7 p.m. New Assistant Conductor Alejandro Gutierrez leads an optional rehearsal on March 9, and participants are invited to attend a private reception with the musicians the night of their performance.

Rich, bright and highly expressive, chamber works by the masters showcase Pacific Symphony's woodwind musicians at their finest during "Woodwind Magic," the next concert in the Cafe Ludwig chamber series. Charming piano sensation and host Orli Shaham leads principal Symphony musicians in works from the 18th to 20th centuries. On flute, Benjamin Smolen captures the expressive melodies and quick trills of Prokofiev's energetic Flute Sonata in discourse with piano. Then the velvety smooth sound of the clarinet, played by Benjamin Lulich, is featured in four movements from Bruch's Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Viola and Piano, with Robert Becker on viola, and Stravinsky's Three Pieces for Clarinet Solo. The concert concludes as Jessica Pearlman, oboe; Rose Corrigan, bassoon; and Keith Popejoy, horn, join Lulich and Shaham for Mozart's Quintet in E-flat Major, known for its perfect balance among the five instruments.

Enveloping the audience in a magnitude of musical splendors, the $3.1-million William J. Gillespie Concert Organ, played by world-renowned organist Todd Wilson, captures the beauty, range and colors of popular and traditional holiday music during Pacific Symphony's annual "Holiday Organ Spectacular."

The national tour of THE ADDAMS FAMILY, a new musical based on the bizarre and beloved family of characters created by legendary cartoonist Charles Addams, which will make its Orange County premiere tonight, December 18 - 30 at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.