Margaret Hill News

Now everyone can enjoy Christmas at Walt Disney Concert Hall with the Los Angeles Master Chorale's release of 'Festival of Carols,' a CD and digital download album recorded live at Disney Hall featuring favorite Christmas carols performed by the Grammy nominated-chorus and conducted by Artistic Director Grant Gershon.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale (LAMC), led by Artistic Director Grant Gershon, presents two performances of Handel's Messiah, his most popular oratorio, on Sundays, December 6 and 20, at 7 pm, at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

The five-time Grammy Award-winning San Francisco Girls Chorus will give a free public performance tonight, May 28, in the rotunda of San Francisco City Hall to celebrate the legacy of Elizabeth 'Beth' Avakian, who will retire after 32 years as a beloved teacher and SF Girls Chorus School Director in June.

New York Arts Executive Jean Davidson, who has been affiliated with some of the country's most innovative and successful arts organizations, has been named President & CEO of the Los Angeles Master Chorale (LAMC), the nation's largest professional chorus and Walt Disney Concert Hall resident chorus led by Artistic Director Grant Gershon and heralded around the globe for its unparalleled artistry, announces LAMC Chair David Gindler. She assumes the post on August 31, 2015. Davidson has served since 2011 as Executive Director & CEO of New York Live Arts, an internationally acclaimed interdisciplinary performing arts center under the artistic direction of Bill T. Jones. Guiding its phenomenal growth and success since its inception, she was instrumental in leading the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company through its merger with Dance Theater Workshop to create New York Live Arts, a new model of artist-led, producing and presenting arts organization unique in the United States. Today New York Live Arts, noted for commissioning cutting-edge new works, its vibrant community partnerships and as home base for the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, presents more than 100 performances annually in its theater and studios inside its 20,000-square-foot facility in Chelsea, operating with a $5.8 million budget. Davidson is cited for her forward-thinking management style, fostering artistic innovation, developing and expanding creative partnerships with disparate educational and cultural organizations, and overseeing tremendous revenue development and programmatic growth. She previously served as Executive Director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company in New York City for six years prior to the merger, when the company launched two successful initiatives entitled Partners in Creation and Partners in Education; Managing Director of The Silk Road Project, Inc., a non-profit arts and cultural organization founded by cellist Yo-Yo Ma which during her tenure commissioned 25 chamber works, launched a worldwide tour, released three recordings; and Production Administrator for the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco. Davidson replaces LAMC President & CEO Terry Knowles, who steps down at the end of the season following a tremendously successful 15-year tenure with the chorus, during which time the Chorale experienced unsurpassed financial and artistic growth, toured around the world to critical acclaim, released six commercial CDs, created a recording partnership with Decca Classics, and twice received the ASCAP/Chorus America Award for Adventurous Programming as well as Chorus America's prestigious Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence, the nation's highest choral music award. Davidson's appointment comes at a critical time in the Chorale's history, as it is poised to launch its 52nd season and a new period of strategic growth. The national executive search for Knowles' successor was led by Arts Consulting Group, the leading provider of executive search and other services for the arts and culture industry.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale wraps its 51st season with a compelling program showcasing the boundless harmonic imaginations of American composer Eric Whitacre, a noted pioneer who has embraced the artistic potential of social media, and the music of Estonian "mystic minimalist" Arvo Part, celebrated for his beautifully sensuous and reflective chant-like compositions, today, May 16, 2 pm, and Sunday, May 17, 2015, at 7 pm, at Walt Disney Concert Hall. 

The Chorale was previously honored with the organization's ASCAP/Chorus America Award for Adventurous Programming three times in 1995, 2003 and 2010, the Education and Community Engagement Award twice in 2000 and 2008, and also earned Chorus America's prestigious Margaret Hillis Award for Choral Excellence in 2012.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale wraps its 51st season with a compelling program showcasing the boundless harmonic imaginations of American composer Eric Whitacre, a noted pioneer who has embraced the artistic potential of social media, and the music of Estonian "mystic minimalist" Arvo Part, celebrated for his beautifully sensuous and reflective chant-like compositions, on Saturday, May 16, 2 pm, and Sunday, May 17, 2015, at 7 pm, at Walt Disney Concert Hall. 

Distinguished attorneys Jon Rewinski and David Scheidemantle have been appointed to the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Master Chorale, announces LAMC Chair David Gindler.

Water becomes an extraordinary and transformative musical instrument taking center stage as it flows, drips, gurgles, splashes, bubbles and crashes to create a staggering array of percussive sounds when the Los Angeles Master Chorale, conducted by Artistic Director Grant Gershon, presents Oscar and Grammy Award-winning composer Tan Dun's riveting Water Passion After St. Matthew, 'a masterpiece for the ages' (AllMusic), on Saturday, April 11, 2 pm, and Sunday, April 12, 2015, 7 pm, at Disney Hall.

San Francisco, CA March 16, 2015 - The five-time Grammy Award-winning San Francisco Girls Chorus will give a free public performance Thursday, May 28, in the rotunda of San Francisco City Hall to celebrate the legacy of Elizabeth "Beth" Avakian, who will retire after 32 years as a beloved teacher and SF Girls Chorus School Director in June. During the course of more than three decades, Avakian has been responsible for the music education of thousands of girls and young women. The dedication, inspiration, professional values and joy of music she has inspired in them and their families and friends have influenced their careers in music and other fields and the community. The 40+ voices of the San Francisco Girls Chorus will be conducted by Music Director Valerie Sainte-Agathe. For more information, visit www.sfgirlschorus.org

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Music Director Jeffrey Kahane serves as musical 'tour guide' for LACO's annual 'Discover' program, which this season features a special one-night-only exploration of Mozart's incomparable and deeply moving Requiem in D minor with special guests Alison King, soprano; Emily Fons, alto; Nicholas Phan, tenor; Aubrey Allicock, bass; and the Los Angeles Master Chorale, tonight, February 19, 2015, 8 pm, at Pasadena's Ambassador Auditorium.

The 110-member Los Angeles Master Chorale continues its vital role of expanding the choral music repertoire when Artistic Director Grant Gershon conducts two highly anticipated world premieres based on the theme of ascension by Swan Family Composer in Residence Shawn Kirchner and distinguished Korean-American composer Nackkum Paik on Sunday, March 8, 2015, 7 pm, at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Music Director Jeffrey Kahane serves as musical 'tour guide' for LACO's annual 'Discover' program, which this season features a special one-night-only exploration of Mozart's incomparable and deeply moving Requiem in D minor with special guests Alison King, soprano; Emily Fons, alto; Nicholas Phan, tenor; Aubrey Allicock, bass; and the Los Angeles Master Chorale, on Thursday, February 19, 2015, 8 pm, at Pasadena's Ambassador Auditorium. The evening is designed to lead patrons to a greater understanding of Mozart's musical capstone and to appreciate the work with 'new ears.' Kahane, lauded for his 'eloquence' (The New York Times), explores a different work each year for LACO's annual Discover concert. According to LA Opening Nights, 'Some conductors are born educators, and Jeffrey Kahane is one of them.' Adding a special flourish to Kahane's introduction to the work are Antaeus Company actors John Sloan (Mozart ) and JD Cullum (Salieri).

On February 23 and 24, 2015, the pilot episode of composer Lisa Bielawa's serial opera Vireo: The Spiritual Biography of a Witch's Accuser will be videotaped at The Yost Theater in Santa Ana (307 North Spurgeon St.). Two taping sessions, each of a different scene from the opera, will be open to the public, free of charge, at 7pm on February 23 and 5pm on February 24 (limited availability, online RSVPs are required at http://bit.ly/RSVPVireo).Vireo's 25-minute pilot episode will air on March 31, 2015, and will feature the Kronos Quartet, mezzo-sopranoLaurie Rubin, the San Francisco Girls Chorus, the Orange County School of the Arts Middle School Choir, mezzo-soprano Maria Lazarova, baritone Gregory Purnhagen, drummer Matthias Bossi, and in the title role ofVireo, 16-year-old soprano Rowen Sabala.

Utah Symphony announced today the appointment of Rei Hotoda as the new Associate Conductor, starting September 2015. Ms. Hotoda is the first female to hold this post with Utah Symphony.

Adding a final flourish to the holiday season, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, led by Artistic Director Grant Gershon, presents two concerts of Handel's Messiah on Wednesday, December 17, 7:30 pm, and Sunday, December 21, 2014, 7 pm, at Disney Hall. Featuring 40 members of the acclaimed chorus, orchestra and four gifted soloists from the Chorale's ranks, the concert provides the opportunity to hear this riveting oratorio - rich with soaring high notes, powerful bass, majestic brass and lush orchestrations - performed by what many critics consider to be the best chorus in the country. The soloists are Christina Bristow, soprano; Nike St. Clair, mezzo soprano; Arnold Livingston Geis, tenor; and Chung Uk Lee, baritone. Composed in a mere 24 days, Handel's 1741 English-language oratorio continues to be the composer's most popular work and may be the most performed classical work of all time.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale's holiday offerings continue with "Rejoice! A Cappella Christmas," showcasing the Chorale's astonishingly pure sound and exquisite balance in an all a cappella program that celebrates the 20th anniversary of former composer-in-residence/National Medal of Arts recipient Morten Lauridsen's monumental O Magnum Mysterium, on Sunday, December 14, 2014, 7 pm, at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Los Angeles Children's Chorus (LACC) - acclaimed for its pure, agile, bel canto sound that has made it one of the most in-demand children's choirs in the county - presents its popular annual Winter Concert, celebrating American song, on two consecutive Sundays, December 7 and 14, 2014, 7:30 pm and 7:00 pm, respectively, at Pasadena Presbyterian Church.

Highly regarded and beloved arts luminary Terry Knowles, longtime President & CEO of the Los Angeles Master Chorale (LAMC) who has led the organization since 2000 through the most phenomenal growth period in its 50-year history, has announced that she will step down from her current post at the conclusion of the 2014-15 season.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale (LAMC), led by Artistic Director Grant Gershon, presents an all-a cappella program of soaring Renaissance choral gems that promises to resonate in the sparkling acoustics of Disney Hall on Sunday, November 16, 2014, 7 pm. The Chorale, which is particularly adept at performing this musical style with crisp, clear intonation, performs William Byrd's Sing Joyfully, Josquin des Prez's Ave nobilissima creatura, John Taverner's Western Wind Mass, Thomas Tallis's If Ye Love Me and Orlando di Lasso's O Crux Splendidior, among other 16th and 17th century works.