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WHO KILLED THE COMPOSER?? IT’S SPOOKY, MYSTERIOUS AND ALL IN GOOD FUN, WHEN PACIFIC SYMPHONY’S FAMILY MUSICAL MORNINGS KICKS OFF WITH AN ALL-NEW HALLOWEEN WHODUNIT!
Just in time for Halloween! A fun and exciting musical mystery unfolds for Pacific Symphony’s first Family Musical Mornings concert of 2011-12, “A Halloween Whodunit.” A suspicious cast of instruments are being held suspect in the death of a composer, as the orchestra performs Nathaniel Stookey’s “The Composer is Dead,” with text written by Lemony Snicket, popular children’s author of “A Series of Unfortunate Events.” Children and families are invited to come dressed in their favorite Halloween costumes and help the inspector, played by actor David Stoneman, solve the mystery by humorously interrogating the orchestra. Was it the strings? The trumpets? How about that organist lurking around up above the stage? Certainly, it wasn’t the conductor… or was it? Led by Assistant Conductor Maxim Eshkenazy, the concert features organist Kristen Lawrence performing Bach’s spooky Toccata and Fugue in D minor and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 finale.
The concert takes place on Saturday, Oct. 22, at 10 and 11:30 a.m., (Musical Carnival with hands-on activities for children at 9 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.), in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. Tickets are $19-$36; for more information or to purchase tickets, call (714) 755-5799 or visit www.PacificSymphony.org.
“This is a little like Sherlock Holmes trying to find out who committed a crime—within a musical scenario—and we all get to enjoy the excitement of figuring it out,” says Maestro Eshkenazy. “And in the process, we learn about the four major instrument sections in the orchestra—the strings, the woodwinds, the brass and percussion—because each one might have committed the crime.
“Helping to tell the story is one of our favorite actors David Stoneman and three mimes, plus the greatest horror movie tool—the organ,” he continues. “The audience will be very involved with the action on stage and everything will be in IMAG. In fact, every Family concert this season will include video projection on the giant screens. Kids will not want to miss this chance to solve a mystery! In the end, we have an unexpected twist that I really love! It’s very funny!”
Nathaniel Stookey is the youngest composer ever commissioned by San Francisco Symphony’s New and Unusual Music Series for “The Composer is Dead,” which premiered at Davies Symphony Hall in July 2006. The piece was also made into a book and recording by publisher Harper Collins. Similar to Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf” and Benjamin Britten’s “The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra,” the piece is intended to introduce young audiences to the instruments in the orchestra.
“Through our family concerts, we aim to spark the imaginations of children and curiosity in the orchestra in hopes that it will pull them in to one day play an instrument of their own,” says Pam Blaine, vice president of education and community programs. “Nathaniel Stookey has written a great piece to give them a taste of all the instruments in the orchestra and we are excited to present it to our Orange County families.”
Children and families dressed in their Halloween best are invited to participate in the Musical Carnival—beginning at 9 a.m. (for those attending the 10 a.m. performance) and at 12:15 p.m. (for those attending the 11:30 a.m. concert). Taking place outside the concert hall, the carnival is chock full of entertaining activities for kids, including a meet-and-greet with Symphony musicians, Halloween crafts, a spotlight on the organ, an instrument test-drive and musical entertainment for everyone.
Family Musical Mornings, which offer charming 45-minute concerts designed for children ages 5-11, continue on Dec. 10, when sugar-plum fairies dance across the stage in “Nutcracker for Kids,” an abridged version of the seasonal favorite ballet by Tchaikovsky. On Feb. 4, 2012, explore the solar system with “Symphony in Space,” featuring footage from NASA, “Star Wars” and more. Then, travel through a magical forest to find a house made of candy for the enchanting story of “Hansel and Gretel” in a condensed version of Humperdinck’s opera featuring talented singers on March 3. The season concludes with “Happily Ever After?” with selections from Tchaikovsky’s classic “Sleeping Beauty” on May 12.
