press
The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Wins Award for Adventurous Programming from ASCAP and LAO
June 26, 2008
THE LOS ANGELES CHAMBER ORCHESTRA WINS AWARD FOR ADVENTUROUS PROGRAMMING FROM ASCAP AND LAO
LOS ANGELES (June 16, 2008) — The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra was presented with a 2007-08 ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming at the League of American Orchestras National Conference on June 16.
“LACO is honored to be acknowledged for its adventurous programming for the third time in four years. We are committed to presenting new music to our audience and we embrace the unique opportunity to expand the chamber orchestra repertoire,” commented Jeffrey Kahane, the music director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.
The annual awards, presented by ASCAP(The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) and LAO (League of American Orchestras), recognize American orchestras whose concert programs demonstrate a strong commitment to the works of contemporary composers. “2008 marks the 51st year that ASCAP has saluted those orchestras and music directors whose past season prominently featured music written within the past twenty-five years. Through their adventurous programming, these are the orchestras that enrich the repertory and keep our great concert music tradition relevant, vibrant and alive,” remarked Frances Richard, ASCAP Vice President & Director of Concert Music. Since the establishment of the awards in 1959, ASCAP and LAO have awarded more than $600,000 to American orchestras of all sizes.
The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s 2007-08 season included a number of contemporary selections including a world premiere by Kevin Puts entitled Night, which was the first piano concerto ever written for Jeffrey Kahane to lead from the keyboard; the US premiere of Joseph Swensen’s orchestration of Brahms’s Sinfonia in B; and the west coast premiere of Reza Vali’s Toward that Endless Plain, performed by Persian ney virtuoso Khosrow Soltani. The season was highlighted by a two-week, eight-city European tour during which LACO performed the European premiere of composer-in-residence Uri Caine’s Mosaics for Piano and Orchestra in Ferrara, Italy; Vienna, Austria and San Sebastiàn, Spain.
The Orchestra continues its commitment to adventurous programming during the 2008-09 season, which has the distinction of being the 40th anniversary season for LACO. To celebrate this momentous milestone, LACO’s first music director, Sir Neville Marriner, serves as guest conductor for the 40th anniversary season opening gala. This season features three world premieres, including a Sound Investment commission from Christopher Theofanidis and commissions from LACO musicians Richard Todd and Damian Montano; two US premieres, including Pierre Jalbert’s Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra and Lalo Schifrin’s Tangos Concertantes, as well as the west coast premiere of Osvaldo Golijov’s Azul performed by cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra was founded in 1968 as an artistic outlet for the film and recording studios’ most gifted musicians. Renowned pianist and conductor Jeffrey Kahane has led the group since 1997, continuing the standard of excellence set by the Orchestra’s first four music directors, Sir Neville Marriner, Gerard Schwarz, Iona Brown and Christof Perick. The orchestra performs repertoire ranging from Baroque masterpieces to new works commissioned annually by its Sound Investment program and is recognized for championing young artists on the brink of major careers, as well as working with some of today’s leading artists. The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra maintains its local presence with its Orchestral Series at the Alex Theatre and Royce Hall; its acclaimed Baroque Conversations series at Zipper Concert Hall; a series of three family concerts at the Alex Theatre and its new chamber music series, Westside Connections, at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica. Visit www.laco.org to learn more.
The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers
Established in 1914, ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) is the first and leading U.S. Performing Rights Organization representing the world’s largest repertory totaling over 8.5 million copyrighted musical works of every style and genre from more than 285,000 composer, lyricist and music publisher members. ASCAP also represents the repertories created by the international affiliates of 90 foreign performing rights organizations. ASCAP protects the rights of its members and foreign affiliates by licensing the public performances of their copyrighted works and distributing royalties based upon surveyed performances. ASCAP is the only American Performing Rights Organization owned and governed by its writer and publisher members. www.ascap.com
League of American Orchestras
Founded in 1942 and chartered by Congress in 1962, the League of American Orchestras leads, encourages and supports America’s orchestras while communicating to the public the value and importance of orchestras and the music they perform. Its vision is to be a transformative and unifying force for the orchestra field — a catalyst for understanding and innovation, a place for conversations that matter and a champion for orchestras. The League provides a wealth of services, meaningful information, learning and leadership opportunities, and grass-roots advocacy to its diverse membership, which encompasses nearly 1,000 member symphony, chamber, youth and collegiate orchestras of all sizes, and links a national network of thousands of instrumentalists, conductors, managers, board members, volunteers, staff members and business partners. Visit www.americanorchestras.org to learn more.
LACO Contact: League Contact:
Misty Espinoza Russell Jones
312-854-8145 646-822-4075
mespinoza@rogersandcowan.com rjones@symphony.org