http://www.pacificsymphony.org
BIG NIGHT! PACIFIC SYMPHONY CELEBRATES OPENING OF 2011-12 SEASON WITH “MASTERS OF THE MUSIC”—DINNER, PARTY AND CONCERT FEATURING “SARAH CHANG PLAYS MENDELSSOHN”—SEPT. 22
Special appearances by Music Director Carl St.Clair, violinist Sarah Chang
and composer James Newton Howard
Orange County, Calif.—Aug. 26, 2011—With a nod to the greatest musicians, conductors and composers of all time, Pacific Symphony’s Opening Night celebration, “Masters of the Music,” launches the orchestra’s 2011-12 season in a grand flourish of cocktails, dinner and dancing—all surrounding the first concert of the Hal and Jeanette Segerstrom Classical series, “Sarah Chang Plays Mendelssohn.” Taking place Thursday, Sept. 22, the festivities, hosted by the Symphony’s board of directors and co-chaired by Ruth Ann and John Evans, begin at The Westin South Coast Plaza with a cocktail reception and entertainment, followed by a scrumptious dinner, intermission reception and post-concert party! It’s a night of endless enjoyment—and at the center of it all is classical music superstar Sarah Chang, performing Mendelssohn’s vibrant and soul-stirring Violin Concerto, in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, beginning at 8 p.m.
The presenting sponsor for this event is South Coast Plaza. Single tickets for the event are $500, with tables available from $7,500 to $25,000. Concert tickets are sold separately ($25-$110). Proceeds from the event benefit the Symphony’s artistic and education programs. For more information about the concert or to purchase tickets for the concert only, call (714) 755-5799 or visit www.PacificSymphony.org.
“As a longtime admirer and patron, I always get excited about Pacific Symphony, so I feel especially honored to co-chair this year’s Opening Night with my husband John,” says Ruth Ann Evans. “Our opening night is themed ‘Masters of the Music’ and is a perfect way to describe the music we have here in Orange County. With Pacific Symphony—
we experience music by and of the great masters from the master conductor himself Carl St.Clair—to the talented men and women of Pacific Symphony. We have the finest guest soloists and conductors here in Orange County, and all play the masterworks of the great composers, starting with one of the greatest masters of the violin, Sarah Chang, playing the beautiful Mendelssohn Violin Concerto.”
The evening gets underway at 5 p.m. at The Westin South Coast Plaza with a cocktail-and-appetizers reception and entertainment by Third Wheel Trio. A gourmet dinner follows at 6 p.m., when guests are escorted into the ballroom adorned in elegant black and gold décor and focusing on the great masters of music. Each table is being dedicated to a different “master,” some highlighted in the Symphony’s upcoming season, such as Beethoven and Tchaikovsky, plus some of today’s greatest talent, including soloists Joyce Yang, Vadim Gluzman and the Symphony’s own trumpeter Barry Perkins, plus the beloved Maestro himself, Music Director Carl St.Clair. With a special performance by opera soprano Georgia Jarman, singing the part of Musetta in the Symphony’s upcoming opera production of “La Bohème,” as well as a visit by Sarah Chang, this black-tie-optional event offers a peek at some of the most anticipated moments coming in 2011-12!
At the conclusion of dinner, a procession of guests makes its way to the hall for the concert. The true highlight of the evening, the opening concert, features one of classical music’s true superstars—Sarah Chang—performing Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. Led by St.Clair, the concert begins with Berlioz’s lively “Roman Carnival Overture,” gleaming in orchestral flourish and sheer fun, followed by the Mendelssohn concerto, one of the most beloved staples of the violin repertoire. After intermission, eight-time Academy Award nominee James Newton Howard’s first orchestral work, “I Would Plant a Tree,” returns, revised since its premiere with the Symphony in 2009. The concert concludes with Respighi’s alluring “Pines of Rome,” a shimmering portrait of the trees and fountains of the city.
The New York Times says of Chang: “Her gifts are at a level so removed from the rest of us that all we can do is feel the appropriate awe and then wonder on the mysteries of nature.”
The party continues during intermission in the Box Circle lobby of the concert hall, as the Symphony honors the Hal and Jeanette Segerstrom Family Foundation. After the concert, guests are invited back to the Terrace Pavilion of The Westin for dessert and dancing to the tunes of RamFunkshus, concluding an evening of celebration. Departing guests do not leave empty-handed, taking with them gift bags courtesy of Tourbillon and Omega.
“All in all, this will be a wonderful season, and our Opening Night will be one to remember, kicking off another spectacular year of Masters of the Music,” says Evans.
