2023 FALL CONCERT
SUNDAY | NOVEMBER 5, 2023 Soka Performing Arts Center
WELCOME FROM THE MUSIC DIRECTOR Dear Friends & Supporters of Orange County Youth Symphony, Thank you for joining us for our fall concert at Soka! The orchestra celebrated many students’ achievements and graduations last year. A new crop of young musicians has worked diligently to (re)form this new orchestra. Every year we remake our group anew and learn what makes an orchestra play together. There is so much to look forward to this year. Some of the repertoire choices were determined by our plans to tour in central Europe this summer (Korngold, Gibbs); other very difficult works (Brahms’ Second Symphony) were chosen for the side-by-side with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra this January. We are presenting two movements of that symphony today, as the full piece is still a work in progress. We cannot wait to play for the 5th grade students again in the spring, and also feature our concerto winner in our side-by-side concert with the RPO. Thanks to the parents and student musicians alike for their dedication to this organization. Also, I want to express a BIG THANK YOU to all the OCYS and Philharmonic Society staff who work behind the scenes to ensure a smooth operation. We have so much to be grateful for; what better way to celebrate than with great music-making! Musically yours, JOHANNES M. STOSCH Music Director | Orange County Youth Symphony
FROM THE VP OF EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT First and foremost, I want to express my gratitude to the parents and families of OCYS for your support and enthusiasm for your young musicians. Your time, dedication and presence have been invaluable to nurturing their passion and growth as musicians. As I begin my first season with the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and OCYS, I feel so honored to work alongside such a talented team and to witness the artistic leadership of Maestro Johannes Stosch with OCYS and Ms. Lucy Lu with the String Ensemble. Our first concert of the 2023-24 season marks only the beginning of what lies ahead for OCYS/E! In addition to our season concerts, major highlights include having the opportunity to learn and perform alongside the renowned Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in early 2024 and preparing for our OCYS Tour to Europe! Thank you for being a part of our journey to create unforgettable musical moments for these young musicians this season and beyond. Enjoy the concert! Musically yours, KATHERINE YANG Vice President of Education and Community Engagement | Philharmonic Society of Orange County 2
ABOUT THE PROGRAM Sunday, November 5, 2023, 3pm Soka Performing Arts Center
ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH STRING ENSEMBLE Lucy Lu, Conductor Sinfonia in G major
GLUCK (1714 - 1787)
I. Allegro
Brook Green Suite, H. 190
HOLST (1874 - 1934)
I. Prelude II. Air
High Speed Rail
FINE (b. 1959)
ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH SYMPHONY Johannes Müller Stosch, Music Director/Conductor Carnival Overture, Op. 92
DVOŘÁK (1841 - 1904)
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73
BRAHMS (1833 - 1897)
I. Allegro non troppo IV. Allegro con spirito
Dance Suite, Op. 82, “Fancy Dress”
GIBBS (1889 - 1960)
III. Dusk
Straussiana
KORNGOLD (1897 - 1957)
I. Polka II. Mazurka III. Waltz
ocyouthsymphony.com
FOLLOW US
@ocyouthsymphony
#ocyouthsymphony
All dates, times, artists, programs and prices are subject to change. Photographing or recording this performance without permission is prohibited. Kindly disable pagers, cellular phones and other audible devices.
3
ABOUT THE PROGRAM ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH STRING ENSEMBLE PROGRAM NOTES
the clangor of instruments, mingled with shouts of joy and the unrestrained hilarity of people giving vent to their feelings in their songs and dance tunes.”
GLUCK: Sinfonia in G major While in Milan, Gluck studied under the composer and symphonist Sammartini where he would have observed the development of the symphony from Baroque opera overture into something approaching the conventional classical form we are familiar with today. The symphony is written in the gallant style, which favored simple melodies and harmonic progressions over the complex polyphony of the Baroque period.
The opening syncopated rhythmic motive drops us right into the atmosphere of dancing and shouting. There is a contrasting middle section that brings us back to the perspective of the “contemplative wanderer” in a lovely interlude on English horn and flute, backed by shimmering strings.
—Anya Hancock
BRAHMS: Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 73 Brahms spent the summer of 1877 in Pörtschach, a tiny Austrian village on Lake Wörth. It was there, between the months of June and September 1877, that Brahms composed his Second Symphony. The first performance of the Brahms Second Symphony took place on December 30, 1877, at the concert hall of the Musikverein in Vienna. The eminent conductor, Hans Richter, led the Vienna Philharmonic.
HOLST: Brook Green Suite, H. 190 Holst’s Brook Green Suite was written in 1933 during a stint in the hospital. It was written for his pupils, the junior orchestra at St. Paul’s Girls School. He planned to write a piece in a contemporary mature style that was easy enough for his pupils to perform, as he felt they deserved better than simple orchestrations from keyboard originals. The suite was most likely named after the location of his wedding to his wife, Isobel, in 1901, and the close proximity Brook Green was to St. Paul’s. The “Prelude” is based on a descending C major scale, heard in two octaves in the cellos. The “Air” is reminiscent of an English folk song. Holst had become so acquainted with folk song during his life that a lot of his created melodies were very similar to them (like his choral piece, This Have I Done for My True Love, which audience members thought was a folk song arrangement when in actuality the melody was Holst’s own.) The structure of the “Air” is reminiscent of the counterpoint of the Lyric Movement, full of enharmonic relations and somewhat austere. This is a trait of most of his later works. —Kenric Taylor FINE: High Speed Rail Elaine Fine began her musical life as a violinist, but received a Bachelor of Music Degree in flute performance from The Juilliard School of Music, where she was a student of Julius Baker. She also studied recorder in Vienna, baroque flute in Boston, and composition at Eastern Illinois University. She has over 70 pieces of chamber music written for just about every instrument and has also written three operas, several songs and song cycles, and orchestral music, including High Speed Rail, inspired by the idea of high-speed travel.
—Susan Key
The D major Symphony seems to reflect the composer’s relaxed state of mind during the happy summer of 1877. The lyrical character of the work—sometimes referred to as Brahms’ “Pörtschach” or “Pastoral” Symphony—certainly is in marked contrast to the storm and stress that pervades the C minor First (although to be sure, the Second Symphony has its moments of conflict as well, particularly in the first two movements). Brahms referred to his Second Symphony as a “charming new monster” and, in typically self-deprecating fashion, told his friend, Elisabeth von Herzogenberg, that it was merely a little Sinfonia. That of course, is hardly the case, and in spite of Brahms’ protestations to critic Eduard Hanslick that “there is nothing clever about it,” the Second Symphony is a remarkably intricate and unified composition. The Symphony No. 2 is in four movements. The first (Allegro non troppo) opens with the cellos and basses intoning a three-note motif that will return in various guises throughout the Symphony. The movement also includes a waltz-like theme that recalls the composer’s beloved “Lullaby,” Opus 49, No. 4 (1868). The concluding [fourth] movement (Allegro con spirito), the most cheerful finale among Brahms’s four symphonies, radiates energy and optimism from start to finish. —Ken Meltzer
ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH SYMPHONY PROGRAM NOTES DVOŘÁK: Carnival Overture, Op. 92 Dvorák’s 1892 triptych “Nature, Life, and Love” consists of three overtures: In Nature’s Realm, Carnival, and Othello. The work served as both a musical farewell and greeting for the conductor/ composer, who premiered it in Prague just before heading to New York to assume his post as director of the National Conservatory of Music and reprised it at Carnegie Hall on his first American program. His description of Carnival juxtaposes an observer and the scene he observes: “The lonely, contemplative wanderer reaches the city at nightfall, where a carnival is in full swing. On every side is heard 4
GIBBS: Dance Suite, Op. 82, “Fancy Dress”, III. “Dusk” The ever-popular “Dusk” was, in fact, the third movement of Armstrong Gibbs’s dance suite for orchestra, “Fancy Dress,” Op. 82, written in 1935. The other movements are “Hurly-Burly”, “Dance of the Mummers” and “Pageantry (Processional)”. In her biography of the composer, Angela Aries explains that the work “was composed at the suggestion of Leslie Boosey (of the publishers, Boosey & Hawkes)…that [Armstrong Gibbs] should write a light suite for orchestra.” The entire suite is both charming and well-constructed. In “Dusk”,
ARTISTS AND PERSONNEL the listener is in no doubt that the composer is painting a musical picture of evening. Armstrong Gibbs has written that “it sets out to portray the long, languorous twilight of a summer evening.” He considered that with the theme and the harmonic color, “Dusk achieves precisely what it aims at.” The orchestration which is effective in the entire suite is especially felicitous here. —John France KORNGOLD: Straussiana Johann Strauss II was one of Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s musical idols. Korngold possessed considerable knowledge of the Waltz King’s works as he had arranged for the Theater an der Wien new performing versions of Nacht in Venedig, Cagliostro in Wien, Fledermaus, Waltzer aus Wien and Lied der Liebe. Korngold was also a close friend and frequent guest at the salon of the composer’s widow Adele. When an American publisher was looking for new music suitable for school orchestra in 1953, Korngold fashioned a brilliant score in three parts based on little-known melodies by Strauss. Titled Straussiana, Korngold refused to provide an opus number for the work, superstitiously believing that he would not live to write beyond Opus 42. In the event, it would nevertheless turn out to be Korngold’s last completed orchestral work. The three short movements are based on a polka originating in the operetta Fürstin Ninetta, while the Mazurka is based on a Polka from Cagliostro in Wien. The concluding waltz comes from the operetta Ritter Pásmán, one of the Waltz King’s biggest failures. In this work, Korngold embellished Strauss’s original orchestrations with sparkling percussion and the addition of harp and piano. —Georg Predota THE ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH SYMPHONY Founded in 1970, the Orange County Youth Symphony (OCYS) and String Ensemble (OCYSE) is one of Southern California’s finest youth symphony programs. The diverse roster represents student musicians from nearly 60 middle school, high school, and college programs from San Clemente to Fullerton and beyond. In its 50+ year history, OCYS has traveled the world representing Orange County’s best young adult musicians presenting performances in Austria, China, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and New York. It has appeared and participated in many prestigious performances and projects, including U.S. and West Coast premieres by composers such as Mark-Anthony Turnage and Kurt Schwetsik and a season-long project with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 culminating in a documentary entitled Beethoven’s Ninth: Journey to Joy that was selected by PBS SoCal for multiple broadcasts.
OCYS is the featured orchestra for the Philharmonic Society’s acclaimed Concerts for Fifth Grade at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. This concert series has provided music education for more than a million students for more than thirty years. Additionally, OCYS and OCYSE appear in their own performances in prestigious venues across Orange County. JOHANNES MÜLLER STOSCH, MUSIC DIRECTOR/CONDUCTOR Currently, Johannes Müller Stosch serves as Director of Orchestral Activities at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music at California State University, Long Beach, as well as Music Director and Conductor of Holland Symphony Orchestra in Michigan. He has also held conducting positions with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Brockport Symphony in New York, Tri State Players in Ohio, and served repeatedly on the conducting and coaching staff at the Opera Theatre Festival in Lucca, Italy. Müller Stosch keeps an active guest conducting schedule both internationally and nationally, with recent engagements including concerts with Long Beach Symphony, Kunming Philharmonic in China, University Symphonies in Vancouver, Canada, and at the University of Oregon in Eugene. In 2009, he was a featured guest conductor with the Busan Sinfonietta in Korea in a concert that was broadcast on national TV (KBS). An avid operatic conductor, he previously served as Music Director of the Museumsinsel-Operafestival in Berlin, Germany; has frequently guest conducted new opera productions at Cincinnati’s famous College-Conservatory of Music; and worked repeatedly as visiting opera conductor at the Opera Theater at Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri. Aside from his passion for conducting, Müller Stosch has a special interest in performance practice and early music. In Germany, he worked with Hannover’s L’Arco, Bremer Ratsmusik, and Concerto Brandenburg. He also frequently appears on organ and harpsichord with the Pacific Symphony. Concert tours as a soloist and collaborative artist have taken him throughout the U.S., Germany, Italy, Chile, and Japan. Müller Stosch has several commercial recordings to his credit all of which have been played on public radio. Maestro Müller Stosch received his Doctorate of Musical Arts in Conducting from the Eastman School of Music. After winning the coveted Strader Organ Competition in Cincinnati, Ohio, he received two Master of Music degrees in organ performance and orchestral conducting from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
In time for the celebration of its 50th season in 2019-2020, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County announced the appointment of Johannes Müller Stosch as the new Music Director and Conductor of the Orange County Youth Symphony and premiered an additional performance group, Orange County Youth String Ensemble. Highlights of past seasons include masterclasses with Ray Chen, Midori, Hilary Hahn, and Sheku Kanneh-Mason, as well as a mini residency by the Kronos Quartet. An annual tradition,
5
Artists and personnel LUCY LU, CONDUCTOR ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH STRING ENSEMBLE Lucy Lu is an active teacher, soloist, chamber and orchestral musician. Ms. Lu’s performances have taken her to numerous cities across the United States, China, and Europe, where she has played in some of the most prestigious concert halls. She served as Concertmaster of the Bellflower Symphony, Orchestra Collective of Orange Country and is currently the 1st violinist of Plaża String Quartet. Ms. Lu has performed with the Nie’Er Symphony Orchestra in China, Four Seasons Youth Orchestra, LA Chamber Choir, and Celestial Opera Company as a violin soloist and has performed at places such as the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Cerritos Performing Art Center, Irvine Barclay Theatre, Musco Center of the Arts, and Carpenter Performing Arts Center in the Los Angeles area. Ms. Lu also performs with the Dana Point Symphony Orchestra, Millennium Choir and Orchestra, Corona Symphony, La Mirada Symphony and Rio Honda Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Lu founded Violinbaby Music Studio where she trains young violinists, many of whom are accepted into renowned music organizations such as The Colburn School, Seattle Youth Symphony, Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra and Claremont Youth Symphony Orchestra. Her students have placed at many international violin competitions, such as the MAP International Music Competition where she was awarded the Honorable Instructor of the MAP-IMC 2022. Ms. Lu also coaches youth orchestras such as Orange County Youth Symphony, CSUN Youth Philharmonic, Arcadia High School Symphony Orchestra, Four Seasons Youth Orchestra and South Coast Youth Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Lu received her Master’s degree in violin performance from the Bob Cole Conservatory at California State University, Long Beach where she studied with Professor Linda Rose, Katia Popov and Moni Simeonov.
6
DANIELLE CULHANE, OPERATIONS AND PERSONNEL MANAGER Danielle Culhane received her Bachelor of Music and M.A. in Education from Vanguard University. She currently is the director of band and orchestra at Paramount Park Middle School, Paramount and has been the Operations and Personnel Manager for the Orange County Youth Symphony for more than ten years. Danielle has traveled throughout Europe with OCYS as a manager, performer, and passionate music educator who instills the knowledge and value of music for every student. She has been recognized as Teacher of the Year 2017-2018 for her school site as well as for the Paramount Unified School District. Ms. Culhane believes music education provides an opportunity for students to develop an appreciation for music and encourages the skills and discipline necessary for achieving musical success throughout a lifetime of experiences. Students learn the importance of a cooperative team effort while working with fellow members to accomplish the shared goals.
ORCHESTRA ROSTER ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH SYMPHONY Johannes Müller Stosch, conductor First Violin Candice Lee, concertmaster Jared Pepito, principal Alice Ahn Ariana Chen Claudia Cheng Nagyung (Anna) Cho Kayden Ishii Eric Kim Mason Leykauf Christine Nam Thalia Nguyen-Khoa Tiffany (Jieun) Oh Second Violin Allison Oh, principal Yasmin Dennis, assistant principal Katelyn Chang Aden Chen David Chung Ellen Kim Sari Nakajima Connor Ho Rassul (Xiang) Li Ella Yang Aileen Lee Yang Allison Yun Ruhan Harold Zhang
Viola Yeeun Chung, principal Callista Kwan, assistant principal Seo Hyun (Grace) An Olivia Guo Grace Hsia Yejee (Gina) Kim Leona Lee Adarsh Pashikanti Peyton Tan Ruth Wu Cello Edelweiss Pak, principal Chih-Yu Chang, assistant principal Tyler Chang Justice Cheng Aidan Chien Tiancheng Dong Jason Ho Lauren Ko James Koo Alvina Lin Morgan Tien Caitlin Walsh Yirina Wang Joey Zhou Double Bass Joshua Calen, principal Alyssa Morrone Sophia Lin Samuel Yamarik
Flute Michael Lei, principal Seowon Han Riwon (Olivia) Lee Oboe Hannah Macias, principal Noah Chun Aidan Jio Lee
Tuba Hayden Smith Percussion TaeEun Jun, principal Jonathan Yu
Bassoon Kaitlyn Liu, principal Megan Liu Clarinet Eric Wong, principal Zoey Hui Samuel Lee Kenny Song French Horn Francis Samson, principal Julian Macy Teddy Nugent Mason Vu Trumpet Miles Petrick, principal Emily Eli Trombone Timothy McElroy, principal Toby Hung David Nguyen
ORANGE COUNTY YOUTH STRING ENSEMBLE First Violin Cadence Park, concertmaster Alicia Wu, principal Ariel Chan Taylor Burnett Emma Lee Claire Kim Isaac Lin Claire Song Jayden Wang
Second Violin Kaiden Surti, principal Duy Dang Eric Gao Aiden Han Ben Kang Erin Kang Andrew Kim Tristen Lee Jocelyn Wang Lyvia Wang
Viola Alice Wu, principal Joseph Bohman Julianna Hsu Xinyi Ouyang Maya Villa Cello Jacob Chen, principal Joseph Baek Elise Chang Aidan Chen Audrey Chen
Jamie Chen Beckett Cheng Elma Cheng Ethan Choi Grace Zhu Double Bass Jennah DiMartino, principal Kenya Rosales
SPECIAL THANKS OCYS and OCYSE Parent Volunteers 7
PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS John Flemming*, Chair / CEO Donna L. Kendall*, Deputy Board Chair Sabra Bordas*, Vice Chair Stephen Amendt*, Secretary / Treasurer BOARD OF DIRECTORS John W. Benecke, Development Chair Sabra Bordas*, Nominating and Governance Chair Jim Brophy Lauren Claus Hung Fan, Laguna Beach Music Festival Chair Jean Felder, Artistic and Marketing Chair Margaret M. Gates Kari Kerr*, President, The Committees Douglas H. Smith*, Member at Large Steven M. Sorenson, MD Kathryn Wopschall Sandi Wright-Cordes, Orange County Youth Symphony Chair PRESIDENT & ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Tommy Phillips IN MEMORIAM Douglas T. Burch, Jr. Jane Grier Wesley Kruse *Executive Committee
8
PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF PRESIDENT AND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Tommy Phillips MARKETING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS Jean Hsu, Chief Operating Officer / Vice President of Communications Daniel Acosta, Director of Marketing Marie Songco-Torres, Senior Marketing and Public Relations Manager Adaora Onyebeke, Marketing and Public Relations Associate DEVELOPMENT Mark Saville, Vice President of Development Halim Kim, Senior Director of Development Paige Frank, Development Coordinator Fatima Rizvi-Flores, Patron Stewardship Manager / Board Liaison Nicole Gonzales, Special Events Manager ARTISTIC OPERATIONS Emily Persinko, Artistic Operations Manager Kathy Smith, Piano Technician EDUCATION Katherine Yang, Vice President of Education and Community Engagement Courtney McKinnon, Manager of Volunteer and Education Services Jennifer Niedringhaus, Education and Engagement Operations Manager Chloe Hopper, Education Associate Penny Arroyo, Huntington Harbour Office Manager and Finance Coordinator FINANCE Roan Alombro, Vice President of Finance Fay Hu, Finance and HR Associate PATRON SERVICES Jonathan Mariott, Director of Patron Services Angelica Nicolas, Marketing and Patron Services Manager Randy Polevoi, Musical Concierge
9
7
The Philharmonic Society of Orange County celebrates 70 years of cultivating our community’s love and passion for music through presentations of internationally acclaimed orchestras, artists, ensembles and a commitment to dynamic education and community engagement programming.
2023 2024 SE AS ON
70 YEARS 1954 - 2024
Highlights include a residency with the
ROYAL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA and appearances by ITZHAK PERLMAN RHIANNON GIDDENS AND SILKROAD ENSEMBLE ANNE AKIKO MEYERS DANISH STRING QUARTET MIDORI WITH FESTIVAL STRINGS LUCERNE JOSHUA BELL WITH ACADEMY OF ST MARTIN IN THE FIELDS
and more!
949.553.2422 PHILHARMONICSOCIETY.ORG
Concerts at Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, Samueli Theater, Segerstrom Hall at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Irvine Barclay Theatre, Soka Performing Arts Center, and Laguna Playhouse. All dates, times, artists, programs, and prices are subject to change.
10
PRESENTING CONCERTS AT
VIEW THE FULL CALENDAR