Santa Barbara Symphony Celebrates Paris in Season Finale

The Santa Barbara Symphony, under the baton of Maestro Nir Kabaretti, will bring its 2016-17 season to a memorable close with a festive celebration of Paris featuring Grammy Award-winning cellist Zuill Bailey at the Granada Theatre on May 13 and 14. In addition to Saint-Saëns' dramatic first Cello Concerto, the program will include Mozart's grandly charming Symphony No. 31 "Paris," Liszt's Les preludes, and George Gershwin's richly evocative An American in Paris. Concert times are 8 pm on Saturday, May 13, and 3 pm on Sunday, May 14. Tickets are now available.

"We are delighted to highlight these four composers' storied ties to the City of Lights," said Maestro Kabaretti, now in his 11th season as the Santa Barbara Symphony's music director. "Soloist Zuill Bailey has had a long, fruitful relationship with the Santa Barbara Symphony, and we couldn't be more pleased to have him on hand for these concerts. A fitting conclusion to a spectacular season!"

Widely considered one of the premiere cellists in the world, Zuill Bailey has been featured with the symphony orchestras of Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Detroit, Dallas, and Minnesota, among many others, and has collaborated with musical luminaries such as Leon Fleisher, Jaime Laredo, the Juilliard String Quartet, and Lynn Harrell. He has appeared at Disney Hall, the Kennedy Center, the United Nations, Alice Tully Hall, the 92nd Street Y, and Carnegie Hall, where he made his concerto debut performing the U.S. premiere of Mikis Theodorakis' Rhapsody for Cello and Orchestra. Mr. Bailey also presented the U.S. premiere of the Nico Muhly Cello Concerto with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. His international appearances have included notable performances with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra in its 50th anniversary tour of Russia, as well as concerts in Australia, the Dominican Republic, France, Spain, South Africa, Hong Kong, Jordan, Mexico, South America, and the United Kingdom. His extensive discography includes critically acclaimed recordings on Telarc of the Bach Cello Suites, Brahms' complete works for cello and piano with pianist Awadagin Pratt, and the complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas with pianist Simone Dinnerstein. The latter earned him Classical Recording Foundation Awards in 2006 and 2007. He recently received a 2017 Grammy Award (Classical Instrumental Solo category) for his performance of Michael Daugherty's Tales of Hemingway with the Nashville Symphony.

Mr. Bailey performs on a 1693 Matteo Gofriller cello, formerly owned by Mischa Schneider of the Budapest String Quartet. In addition to his extensive touring engagements, he serves as artistic director of El Paso Pro-Musica (Texas), the Sitka Summer Music Festival (Alaska), and the Northwest Bach Festival (Spokane, Washington); guest artistic director of the Mesa Arts Center (Arizona); and professor of cello at the University of Texas at El Paso.

Named music director of the Santa Barbara Symphony in 2006 and its and artistic director in 2008, Nir Kabaretti collaborates with many of the world's most renowned musicians, orchestras, and opera houses. Maestro Kabaretti has conducted the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta Filarmonica de Buenos Aires, the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, to name just a few. His extensive operatic experience includes productions at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence, Teatro Real in Madrid, Switzerland's Opéra de Lausanne, and Teatro alla Scala in Milan. Winner of the 1993 Forum Junger Kunstler Conducting Competition in Vienna, he was named the music director of the Southwest Florida Symphony in 2014.

The Granada Theatre is located at 1214 State Street in Santa Barbara.

The concerts on May 13 and 14 are generously supported by Daniel and Mandy Hochman, Sara Miller McCune, Joan and Geoffrey Rutkowski, and Nancyann and Robert Failing.

Tickets start at $29 and can be purchased at www.granadasb.org or by calling 805-899-2222. Group sales discounts of as much as 20 percent are available. Patrons ages 20-29 can purchase $20 tickets; students with valid ID can purchase $10 tickets. Seating in both cases is confined to selected sections of the Granada Theatre.

The Santa Barbara Symphony was founded in 1953 on the belief that a special city deserves a special orchestra. Consistently lauded for its unique ability to present brilliant concerts, engage the community, and deliver dynamic music education programs, the organization prizes both innovation and artistic excellence, and is widely recognized as one of the region's premier cultural institutions. Its award-winning Music Education Center serves more than 8,000 students throughout Santa Barbara County each year. Charismatic Israeli conductor Nir Kabaretti was appointed music director of the Santa Barbara Symphony in 2006. For additional information, visit www.thesymphony.org.

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