Pacific Symphony
From Screen to Score
May 8 — May 10, 8:00 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
Carl St.Clair, conductor
Sophie Shao, cello
Richard Guerin, curator
Major film composers present exciting new concert works for Pacific Symphony’s 14th American Composers Festival, spotlighting four of Hollywood’s biggest and best: John Williams (“Star Wars,” “Lincoln”), Howard Shore (“Lord of the Rings,” “The Hobbit”), James Horner (“Titanic,” “Star Trek”) and Elliot Goldenthal (“Alien 3,” “Batman Forever”). Without a storyline, plot or sound effects, they have the freedom to explore larger and longer musical forms, which are not bound to the timing or script of a film.
JOHN WILLIAMS
Tributes! For Seiji
HOWARD SHORE
Mythic Gardens, Concerto for Cello and Orchestra (West Coast Premiere)
JAMES HORNER
Flight (Concert Premiere)
ELLIOT GOLDENTHAL
Symphony in G# Minor (World Premiere)
GUEST ARTIST
Sophie Shao
At the age of 19, cellist Sophie Shao received the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, and has since performed throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. Winner of top prizes at the Rostropovich and Tchaikovsky competitions, The New York Times has applauded her “eloquent, powerful” interpretations of repertoire ranging from Bach and Beethoven to Crumb.
Highlights of this season include recitals for the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society and Middlebury College, a performance of the complete Bach suites at Union College and in New York City, and her popular “Sophie Shao and Friends” tour including performances from Brattleboro, Vt. to Sedona, Az. Shao recently collaborated with film composer Howard Shore resulting in a commission of “Mythic Gardens” – a concerto written for her and premiered with the American Symphony Orchestra in April 2012. In 2012-13, she appeared as soloist with the BBC Concert Orchestra and Keith Lockhart in performances of the Elgar and Shostakovich concertos on a two-week tour of the west coast.
