Notes from the Middle East April 20 Concert Program

Moses and Susan Libitzky present

Notes From the Middle East

SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2013 • 8:00 PM • PARAMOUNT THEATRE, OAKLAND Conductors: Michael Morgan and Daniel Alfred Wachs

Joseph C. Frank Sr. and Wells Fargo Advisors are proud to sponsor Oakland East Bay Symphony

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

Message from the Chair I am very pleased to welcome you to tonight’s performance in a series in which we proudly feature musicians and composers from around the world.

We focus this evening on works with roots in Egypt, Israel and Palestine.

Our artistic director Michael Morgan has once again brought together remarkable musical talent - composers Nader Abbassi, Avner Dorman and John Bisharat as well as the extraordinary guest artists who will perform their works. We hope you enjoy tonight’s program and we thank you for your on-going support of both our performances and our music education programs for children in our community.

– Bette B. Epstein, Chair, East Bay Performing Arts

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

Message from the Maestro Our “Notes from” series continues tonight with a stop in the Middle East, an area with political challenges that have lasted for centuries as well as many vibrant musical traditions. While we only cover a few of the many types of music from that region, our goal is the same as in any of our concerts: to show the commonalities between the various countries’ arts and the similarities between peoples.

We welcome several outstanding guest artists to our stage including composer John Bisharat and the conductor who led me to him, Daniel Wachs.

Musicians have always found ways to work across artificial boundaries with the hope that others would follow suit. We are greatly helped in this effort by the James Irvine Foundation and their support which has allowed us to commission the world premiere you will hear tonight. We are very grateful to them and to you for joining us for another adventure.

– Michael Morgan, Music Director, Oakland East Bay Symphony

Thank you to the Oakland East Bay Symphony for continuing to enrich our community with music!

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Moses and Susan Libitzky are proud to sponsor Notes from the Middle East and to support Michael Morgan’s vision and commitment to music as a path for intercultural dialogue.

When outstanding musicians of diverse backgrounds come together and share beautiful music from their vibrant traditions, we take another step towards peace and understanding.

Oakland East Bay Symphony Building Community Through Music Music transforms lives, and Oakland East Bay Symphony has provided high-quality music education and enrichment activities to Oakland and beyond for over 20 years.

The Symphony is a leader in music education for young people, making classical music accessible, particularly to those in the community who might otherwise never experience live symphonic music.

Our Music for Excellence (MUSE) program is a multicomponent music education and enrichment initiative that serves young people at public schools and community sites throughout Oakland. By providing these programs free to participants, the Symphony ensures that each year, over 18,000 young people have access to a variety of music education and enrichment activities, regardless of their economic situation. One third of the Symphony’s budget is dedicated to MUSE. The ongoing and generous support of our donors has been integral to our work and the fulfillment of our mission. Contributions to the MUSE program are used to support: the In-School Mentor and After-School Programs, free annual Young Peoples’ Concerts, Young Artist Competition, Ensemble Visits to the Schools, School Visits by Maestro Morgan, and more.

For more information about how to get involved and support our education programs, please contact us at (510) 444-0801.

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

Moses and Susan Libitzky PRESENT

Notes from the Middle East

SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 2013 • 8:00 PM • PARAMOUNT THEATRE, OAKLAND Conductors: Michael Morgan and Daniel Alfred Wachs

Program

Nader Abbassi (b. 1963) The Nile Bride Daniel Alfred Wachs, Conductor

Edvard Grieg (1843 – 1907) Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 I. Allegro molto moderato II. Adagio III. Allegro moderato molto e marcato Eliran Avni, Piano Michael Morgan, Conductor

Intermission

Avner Dorman (b. 1975) Astrolatry Daniel Alfred Wachs, Conductor

John Bisharat (b. 1964)

Ya Way Li (World Premiere)

New Visions/New Vistas Commissioning Project. Commissioned by the Oakland East Bay Symphony with support from The James Irvine Foundation.

Ahmed El-Asmer, vocals & percussion John Bilezikjian, oud Pedro Eustache, woodwinds Susu Pampanin, Fatima Z. Lahlou & John Villa, percussion Michael Morgan, Conductor

Media Sponsors: Oakland Magazine, Bay Area News Group, East Bay Express, KDFC, J. Weekly Season Guest Artist Accommodation provided by: The Hills Bed & Breakfast The 2012-2013 season is supported by grants from the California Arts Council, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The James Irvine Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Oakland’s Cultural Funding Program.

Give online and buy tickets at oebs.org

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

Michael Morgan, Music Director

Founded in 1988, Oakland East Bay Symphony is a critically acclaimed and community-focused leading regional orchestra dedicated to serving the diverse population of the East Bay. It has gained regional and national recognition for its unique convergence of artistic excellence, community service and education programs.

Under the artistic leadership of Maestro Michael Morgan, OEBS reaches over 60,000 people annually, with more than one-third of its operating budget dedicated to education and outreach programs. On the concert stage, OEBS has become an important positive force in bringing together the talents and resources of diverse artists, performing arts organizations and audiences from throughout the Bay Area. (Information about these programs can be found at www.oebs.org.)

OEBS has fostered collaborations with local arts organizations from children’s choruses to jazz ensembles to dance and opera.

The Symphony showcases new American works in performance and encourages young artists. In its efforts to support new music, OEBS formed a multi-year partnership with The James Irvine Foundation to initiate various commissioning projects including the New Visions/New Vistas initiatives. In June of 2010, OEBS forged a closer partnership with Oakland Youth Orchestra and Oakland Symphony Chorus in a merger that resulted in the formation of East Bay Performing Arts.

Michael Morgan was born in Washington, DC, where he attended public schools and began conducting at the age of 12. While a student at Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, he spent a summer at the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood, studying with Gunther Schuller and Seiji Ozawa. He first worked with Leonard Bernstein during that same summer.

His operatic debut was in 1982 at the Vienna State Opera conducting Mozart’s The Abduction from the Seraglio. In 1986, Sir Georg Solti chose him to become the Assistant Conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, a position he held for seven years under both Solti and Daniel Barenboim. In 1986 he was invited by Leonard Bernstein to make his debut with the New York Philharmonic. As a guest conductor he has appeared with most of America’s major orchestras, as well as the New York City Opera, St. Louis Opera Theater and Washington National Opera.

In addition to his duties with OEBS, Maestro Morgan serves as Artistic Director of Oakland Youth Orchestra, Music Director of Sacramento Philharmonic and Artistic Director of Festival Opera in Walnut Creek. He also teaches the graduate conducting course at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

He makes many appearances in the nation’s schools each year, particularly in the East Bay, and is highly regarded as a champion of arts education and minority access to the arts. Michael received an Honorary Doctorate from Holy Names University. He makes his home in Oakland with his mother and sister.

Oakland East Bay Symphony Orchestra FIRST VIOLIN Dawn Harms, Concertmaster Vivian Warkentin, Asst. Concertmaster Jeremy Preston, Assoc. Concertmaster Patrice May Ellen Gronningen Deborah Spangler Emanuela Nikiforova Lina Bouze Aaron Requiro Joseph Maile Stephanie Bibbo Antoine Van Dongen SECOND VIOLIN Liana Berube, Principal Sharon Calonico, Asst. Principal Candace Sanderson Sergi Goldman-Hull Robert Donehew Alison Miller Jory Fankuchen Josepha Fath Maxine Nemerovski Nicola Gruen

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VIOLA Margaret Titchener, Principal Darcy Rindt, Asst. Principal Janice Negherbon Betsy London David Gilbert Patricia Whaley Stephanie Railsback Katy Juneau CELLO Daniel Reiter, Principal Joseph Hébert, Asst. Principal Michelle Kwon Elizabeth Vandervennet Jeff Parish Paul Rhodes Jan Volkert Elizabeth Struble STRING BASS Patrick McCarthy, Principal Carl Stanley, Asst. Principal Randall Keith Andy Butler Abraham Gumroyan Andy McCorkle

FLUTE Alice Lenaghan, Principal Rena Urso-Trapani PICCOLO Rena Urso-Trapani OBOE Andrea Plesnarski, Principal Denis Harper ENGLISH HORN Denis Harper CLARINET Bill Kalinkos, Principal Diane Maltester BASS CLARINET Diane Maltester BASSOON Deborah Kramer, Principal David Granger CONTRABASSOON David Granger

FRENCH HORN Meredith Brown, Principal Alicia Telford Stuart Gronningen Ross Gershenson Eric Achen

TIMPANI Ito Kumiko, Principal PERCUSSION Ward Spangler, Principal Timothy Dent Stan Muncy Loren Mach

TRUMPET William Harvey, Principal Leonard Ott John Freeman

PERSONNEL MANAGER Carl Stanley

TROMBONE Bruce Chrisp, Principal Thomas Hornig

LIBRARIAN Candace Sanderson TECHNICAL DIRECTOR Seth Ducey

BASS TROMBONE Steven Trapani TUBA Scott Choate, Principal HARP Natalie Cox, Principal

RECORDING ENGINEER Tom Johnson, Johnson Digital

ORGAN/PIANO Ellen Wassermann, Principal

Oakland East Bay Symphony

Daniel Alfred Wachs, Conductor

Conductor Daniel Alfred Wachs emerged on the international scene following his debut with the Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg, leading a world première by Toshio Hosokawa at the Grosses Festspielhaus. The Austrian press praised “Engaging, rhythmically inspired, precise in its execution, the “Mambo” was equal to a performance by Gustavo Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra!” Wachs has been entrusted with preparing orchestras from Valery Gergiev to Vladimir Spivakov, and has served as Assistant Conductor to Osmo Vänskä at the Minnesota Orchestra and at the National Orchestra of France under Kurt Masur. He has served as cover conductor for the Houston Symphony and the Rotterdam Philharmonic. Wachs has guest-conducted Orange County’s Pacific Symphony, the Auckland Philharmonia, the National Orchestra (as part of the National Conducting Institute), the Sarasota Orchestra, the Fort Worth Symphony, Sinfonia Gulf Coast, the Monterey Symphony, the Spartanburg Philharmonic, and is a frequent guest conductor at New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center. Wachs has also served as assistant conductor at the Cincinnati Opera and for the French première of Bernstein’s Candide at the Théâtre du Châtelet, A pianist as well as a conductor (“Wachs proved a revelation, delivering a technically impeccable, emotionally powerful performance of two Mozart piano concertos and a pair of solo works…” – St. Paul Pioneer Press) Wachs was auditioned by Zubin Mehta at the age of eight and was a student of the late Enrique Barenboim. He subsequently pursued studies at the Zürich Academy as well as The Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School. He has participated at such festivals at Aspen, Tanglewood and Verbier

Nader Abbassi, Composer

In his conducting career, Nader Abbassi benefits from his exceptionally wide professional experience as a singer, bassoonist and composer.

Nader Abbassi was awarded the Citation of Excellence and Outstanding Music Award in 1980 and 1982 (USA). He won several 1st prizes from the Egyptian Ministry of Culture for bassoon and composition in 1986, 1995 and 1996. He is the winner of the Mozart Chamber Music Competition in Geneva, 1992. Among others, the Geneva Ballet Company, Geneva Chamber Orchestra, Swiss Romande Orchestra, Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra and the Swiss Clarinet Players commissioned him new compositions. From 2002 until 2011, he held the position of Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Cairo Opera Orchestra. He is also the Artistic Director of the “Orchestre pour la Paix” in Paris. From 2009 to 2011 he was the first Musical Director & Principal Conductor for the newly formed “Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra” (QPO). He continues his regular collaboration with the QPO as a Guest Conductor. In July 2011, Nader Abbassi was appointed Artistic and Musical Director of KATARA Culture Foundation, Doha - Qatar.

Nader Abbassi has conducted various international orchestras, such as Sinfonieorchester Basel, Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, Philharmonisches Orchester Heidelberg, Orchester des Richard Strauss Konservatoriums München (Germany), Orchestre Philharmonique de Marseille, Orchestre National Pays de la Loire, Orchestre National Bordeaux Aquitaine (France), and Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (Switzerland).

Avner Dorman, Composer

Avner Dorman has quickly risen to become one of the leading composers of his generation. Dorman’s unique approach to rhythm and timbre has attracted some of the world’s most notable conductors, including Zubin Mehta, Christoph Eschenbach, Riccardo Chailly, David Robertson, Andris Nelsons, Marin Alsop, and Justin Brown, to bring his music to audiences of the New York Philharmonic, the Israel Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, the San Francisco Symphony, the Musikverein, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the NHK Symphony, Salzburg Festival, Lucerne Festival, Cabrillo Music Festival, and others. Dorman’s music achieves a rare combination of rigorous compositional construction while preserving the sense of excitement and spontaneity usually associated with Jazz, Rock, or Ethnic Music. Dorman’s percussion concerti, Spices, Perfumes, Toxins! and Frozen in Time, are quickly becoming staples of the repertoire. They are performed and studied around the world.

Avner Dorman holds a Doctorate in Music Composition from the Juilliard School where he studied as a C.V. Starr fellow with John Corigliano. He completed his Master’s degree at Tel Aviv University (where he majored in music, musicology, and physics) studying with former Soviet composer Josef Bardanashvili.

John Bisharat, Composer

Palestinian-American composer John Bisharat has been active professionally in the commercial music business as a composer, arranger, orchestrator, producer and conductor for 25 years.

Bisharat was selected as a finalist from over 400 international applicants to attend American Music Center’s “Synergy,” an international symposium for composers and conductors led by Esa-Pekka Salonen and the LA Philharmonic in 2002. In 2000, he was selected from over a thousand composers to compose a work that would celebrate the culture and heritage of the city of St. Joseph, MO. This was a partnership of the NEA, American Composer’s Forum and the White House Millennium Council.

Bisharat has conducted live performances at such prominent venues as Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center, Los Angeles’ Greek Theater and Denver’s Red Rocks Amphitheater. He has composed the Internet logo for Microsoft Network and the national advertising campaigns of Guess Jeans and Coca-Cola. Film credits include writing for One Night with the King (2006) starring Omar Sharif and Peter O’Toole; Magdalena (2006); the Jesus movie (2013) and Rivka series (2012) as well as several Disney and MGM productions.

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Eliran Avni, Piano

Hailed as “The new hope of Israeli music” by Ma’ariv and described as possessing both “ironclad technique” and “ample suppleness” by the New York Times, Eliran Avni is an emerging force in the contemporary classical music scene. Having made his debut with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Mehta at age seventeen, Mr. Avni has appeared as a soloist and chamber collaborator throughout Europe and North and South America, as well as in his native Israel, and has made numerous recordings for the Naxos label and the Israeli and German broadcasting systems. A preeminent interpreter of the music of Israeli composer Avner Dorman, Mr. Avni has recorded two CDs of Dorman’s music. The first, The Piano Works of Avner Dorman, was recorded at Tanglewood’s Ozawa Hall in 2006, was produced by Grammy winner David Frost and was released on the Naxos label. The second CD, of Dorman’s Chamber Concerti with the Metropolis Ensemble and Maestro Andrew Cyr, was released in 2010, also on Naxos. Mr. Avni is also the Creative Director of SHUFFLE Concert, an original performance concept which allows the audience to select the music performed in a concert. Since its inception in February 2010, the ensemble has been in high demand, and has performed at the Rose Studio at Lincoln Center, Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, and has toured the West Coast and Israel. Mr. Avni received his BM, MM and Doctorate from The Juilliard School.

Ahmed El-Asmer, Vocals and Percussion

Ahmed El-Asmer: Extraordinary vocalist specializing in motion picture industry and other studio recordings.

Ahmed specializes in soundtrack recordings for feature films and documentaries including: Passion of the Christ, The Matrix- Reloaded, West Bank Story, The Crow- City of Angels, The Siege, The Shakel, Showtime TV Series Sleeper Cell, and PBS TV Series American Family. Solo spots at the Hollywood Bowl and the Greek Theater are among just a few of his accomplishments. He has performed live concerts throughout the United States and the world, including Broadway shows. Ahmed sings a wide variety of languages, including Arabic, Hebrew, Aramaic, and English. Ahmed has conducted workshops for belly dancers, teaching rhythms, entrances and finales (percussion w/live music) for many years.

John Bilezikjian, Oud

John Bilezikjian is “America’s Oud Virtuoso.” The Oud is an ancient Persian stringed instrument dating back some 2,500 years, having 11 strings and no frets. It is played with an eagle’s feather quill. John is the foremost Oudist of this era and has been acclaimed as having a flawless technique. His renditions of Middle-Eastern Classical repertoire are considered the finest in this genre and set the standard for other players to follow.

He has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Los Angeles Mandolin Orchestra, and Pacific Palisades Symphony. He has also performed with the Boston Pops, marking the first time that the Oud was featured on the east coast as a solo instrument with an Orchestra. John has written and recorded background music for some 81 film and television shows and has his own record company, Dantz Records located in Laguna Hills, CA. He has over 30 recordings available on his web site: www.dantzrecords.com.

Pedro Eustache, Woodwinds

An award winning Venezuelan-born multidirectional multi-winds soloist/composer, Pedro graduated as a flute soloist from two European conservatories in Western classical and avant-garde disciplines, has more than seven years of orchestral symphonic experience, and an MFA in Jazz from the California Institute of the Arts.

He studies various World music disciplines, including the legendary Pandit Ravi Shankar, & Pdt. Hariprasad Chaurasia, Armenian duduk with maestro Djivan Gasparian, and Arabic ney with Dr. Nabil Abdmouleh. As a composer-soloist he premiered his Suite Concertante for World WWs and Orchestra, conducted by maestro Gustavo Dudamel in 2009. He is the first call world-winds specialist for many top composers and producers in the L.A. film-music recording studios. He soloed in two CD tracks of the ex-Beatle Sir Paul McCartney and has toured, recorded and/or performed with various international artists. He has around 600 world-music instruments, many of which were designed, modified and/or built by himself.

Susu Pampanin, Percussion

One of a very few female Middle Eastern percussionists, Susu started her studies at the age of 12 and has grown to become a respected musician in the genre of Arabic music. Her first album, Susu and the Cairo Cats, Live at the Giza Club was released in 1990 and was followed by her solo album, Susu Pampanin, Hands of Time in 2001.

She has recently returned form a trip to Egypt where she recorded with an all Egyptian ensemble and is excited to soon be releasing this new album. Susu has played with many artists and groups, including Wild Mango, Keith Terry and Crosspulse, Stellamara, Jazayer, BlueNile, Vince Delgado Quintet, and Holly Near. Currently she is teaching and performing in the San Francisco Bay Area, and is a member of the Arabic musical and singing ensemble, ASWAT.

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

Fatima Z. Lahlou, Percussion

Fatima Zohra Lahlou grew up in the musical traditions of Moroccan music. At 15 years of age she began her musical career under the guidance of Haj Mohammed Bennis, the leading Sufi singer in Morocco. She also studied at the Fes Conservatory of Music, focusing on Arab-Andalusian vocals, percussion and piano. She went on to become a choral singer for the leading singers of Morocco. In 2008, she directed and performed in a musical theater performance in celebration of the 1200 Year Anniversary of the city of Fes. The event started her international career and she became the soloist for the Ensemble Rhoum al-Bakkali and performed in festivals in France, Spain, Switzerland, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates. She recently immigrated to the USA and hopes to continue to use her musical talents for cultural ambassadorship.

John Villa, Percussion

John Villa holds a BFA in World Music Performance from the California Institute of the Arts and a Masters in Music from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in the University of London, where he studied percussion and the music of North Africa and the Middle East. Since 1998, John has traveled to Morocco five times, engaging in musical research and studying with master drummers from the Sufi and Arab Andalusian music traditions. He recently completed a year of music studies focusing on the ney and percussion at the Rabat Conservatory of Music in Morocco. John has performed in festivals and concerts in the USA, Morocco, and the UK. He has given lectures and concerts and taught music in universities and schools and continues to practice, study and teach in the fulfillment of his love of music.

Program Notes The Nile Bride

Nader Abbassi (b. 1963) This story took place thousands of years ago in the city of Thebes, at a time when people had clear beliefs about life and death. They believed that life was only a passage to arrive at a more worthy existence after death. It was a means for immortality.

For them, a happy eternity could be reached through their good deeds in life and the sacrifices they made to their Gods. One of the Gods feared and worshipped by the ancient Egyptians was that of the Nile.

The Nile symbolized life, death and eternity. It was valued for its ability to turn barren land into green pastures and to provide the people with many other riches essential for sustaining human existence. The Nile was also feared, as once every year it would erupt with anger to flood and destroy any village that would dare to stand in its way. The never ending flow of the Nile resembled eternal movement and has inspired many musicians and poets past and present.

Indeed, the Nile was so feared and valued that, once every year, a ceremony was held in its honor, during which a beautiful young virgin woman was offered to it as a sacrifice to express gratitude and to humbly ask for its mercy during the flooding season. It was around this time that lived a beautiful young woman who was not frightened by the Nile; rather she was deeply in love with him in a special way.

She was attracted by the Nile’s overwhelming generosity, his gentle movement that would occasionally caress her body, and with his eternal power. Even his moments of rage were seen by her as a mere show of strength to impress her alone.

To express her love, she would go to the river bank and dance every day, especially for her lover, and in her moments of intimacy she would take off her clothes and would enter the water, where she would continue to dance for hours. Indeed, the beautiful young woman became increasingly obsessed with the Nile and was convinced that the time to join her lover for eternity was approaching.

Meanwhile, a young man from a village nearby had been watching her for many days and fell in love with her. One day, he came out and told her of his feelings. He explained how he had been bewitched by her and how he would like to marry her. They continued to meet many more times by the river. She grew fond of her admirer and began to imagine how wonderful life could be raising a family with this kind man. The beautiful young woman became very confused as she realized that she had to decide and choose between the Nile and the young man.

It was around the beginning of the flooding season, as the water levels started to rise with anger and jealousy, that our heroine made up her mind. One night she approached the river bank with a calm and confident stride, for she had already chosen eternity over life.

As soon as her feet touched the water she was swept by the violent currents into the depths of the Nile. Her last human thought was that of reassurance that her love with the Nile was mutual. That year, the people of Thebes did not need to sacrifice a virgin to the Nile in their traditional celebrations, as the following morning the Nile was calm again and the flooding season was the shortest one ever. – Nader Abbassi Program notes continued on page 12 >

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Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 Edvard Grieg (1843-1907) Grieg’s only piano concerto was written during the summer of 1868, while on vacation with his wife, Nina Hagerup, and their newborn daughter. The couple had wed only a year before.

The first performance took place in Copenhagen on April 3, 1869.

The soloist was Grieg’s friend, Edmund Neupert. “On Saturday your divine concerto resounded in the great hall of the Casino,” he reported to the composer. “The triumph I achieved was tremendous. Even as early as the cadenza in the first part the public broke into a real storm.

The three dangerous critics, Gade, Rubinstein and Hartmann, sat in the stalls and applauded with all their might… I was recalled twice and to finish up was accorded musical honors by the orchestra.”

When Grieg visited Franz Liszt in Rome that year, he found the great pianist surrounded by admirers. According to Grieg, they included ladies “who would like to eat Liszt, skin, hair and all, and whose adulation is simply comical.”

Liszt played through Grieg’s concerto at sight, and then told the

younger man: “You carry on, my friend; you have the real stuff in you.

And don’t ever let them frighten you!”

Grieg himself was the soloist in an 1879 performance with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. One review praised the work for “its great color, Nordic flashes, original details, and charming mixture of major and minor.”

In the next hundred years after its introduction, the Grieg Concerto has been threatened with over-exposure. Biographer John Horton writes: “Its success is due to a fortunate combination of factors: the composer at one of his rare high peaks of inventiveness, his willingness to follow Schumann’s concept of the Romantic concerto without being completely subservient to it, a bold admixture of Lisztian bravura in the writing for solo part, and a happy blending of his own inborn harmonic originality with the national coloring he had, during the past few years, been assimilating to his style.”

– Charley Samson, © 2013

Astrolatry (the worship of the stars) Avner Dorman (b. 1975) Dedicated to Justin Brown and the Alabama Symphony Orchestra While I was writing Astrolatry, I spent more time outside of large cities than ever before in my life. More than anything else, I found myself in awe of nature in a way I never felt before. Lightning, rain, winds, and the night sky were so much larger and more impressive than they are in the city; and for the first time in my life, I could truly understand why ancient peoples worshiped the stars.

Astrolatry is written in two sections played without pause: 1.

Celestial Revelations; 2. The Worship of the Stars. The piece begins with the sky, as it appears when one first looks up at night: complete darkness. Then, one by one, stars begin to reveal themselves, and as the pupils of the eye widen, more and more stars and constellations appear, and we notice colors, interactions, and motion.

The first section of the composition is a dance of the revelations of the stars. Some are isolated; some come in groups; some are pretty and naïve; and some are filled with motion and conflict. Towards the

end of the section, the southern star appears, calming the celestial objects with a soft tango and leading the section to its culmination in a peaceful and full-lit sky.

A swift falling gesture figuratively drops us back to earth where the worship of the stars is about to take place. A steady quarter note beat played by low drums propels the ritual. (Though the narrative deals with prehistory, musically the ritual takes its beat from genres of electronica such as techno.) The steady beat builds up the ecstasy of the ritual, only halted by the entrance of the tribe’s leader (in the Marimba). The leader, through the repetition of a simple melody in 5/8s over the 4/4 beat, brings the worshipers to catharsis.

Just before the piece ends, we all stop for a moment and take one last look at the cosmos, admiring its beauty and mystery.

– Avner Dorman

Ya Way Li (World Premiere) John Bisharat (b. 1964) New Visions/New Vistas Commissioning Project. Commissioned by the Oakland East Bay Symphony with support from The James Irvine Foundation Ya Way Li (“Woe, Oh Woe Is Me”) receives its world premiere this evening.

Written for symphonic forces, Ya Way Li is a single-movement work, which draws extensively on specialty Middle Eastern vocal, woodwind and percussion elements.

Bisharat is particularly interested in exploring micro-tonality and visually-based programmatic music. On first listening, this piece is an unusual combination of Middle Eastern and traditional Western orchestration.

The use of non even-tempered Arabic maqamat (Arabic quartertone scales) is exploited throughout the work through the use of the specialty instruments, as well as the Western orchestral instruments.

Several passages capitalize on the use of double-stops in the strings which employ the open strings, echoing the Middle Eastern oud (greatgrand-father of the acoustic guitar and itself a featured instrument

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tonight). This brings an almost ancient quality to the sound that is heightened further by the addition of Arab vocals.

The composition reveals a personal diary of John Bisharat’s family history - the fear and desperation at the 1948 expulsion from Papa’s Villa Harun ar-Rashid (the beloved family home in Jerusalem), and the subsequent loss of identity as John’s father ultimately sought to make a new life in the United States.

The original poetry that inspired this work was penned in 2005 by John’s late uncle, Emile Bisharat. The poem laments the loss of one’s homeland and the first verse closes with the phrase….“whittles me down until I have become a ghost with no shadow.”

The lamenting quality of this poetry manifests itself musically in the spacious, ethereal backdrop that supports the sparse, wailing solo vocals.

– John Bisharat

Oakland East Bay Symphony

Program Notes Music for the Royal Fireworks George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) On October 7, 1748, a peace treaty was signed, ending the War of Austrian Succession. England’s King George II decreed a day of national celebration, including a massive display of fireworks.

Handel was commissioned to write the accompanying music. The fireworks display took place in London’s Green Park on April 27, from six until about eleven in the evening. The program promised “after a large-scale overture for military instruments composed by Mr. Handel, a signal was given, whereupon the fireworks began with a 101-gun salute to the King.”

The King originally wanted only “warlike instruments,” an odd request for a celebration of peace. Indeed, the original score calls for 9 trumpets, 9 horns, 24 oboes, 12 bassoons, one contrabassoon, 3 pairs of kettledrums and one or more side drums.

Handel added strings for a benefit concert at the Foundling Hospital on May 27, 1749.

Four Sea Interludes, Op. 33a from Peter Grimes Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) During the summer of 1941, Britten was in California, dreaming of his native Suffolk.

He was reading an article by E.M. Forster about the Suffolk poet George Crabbe (1755-1832). Then he read Crabbe’s The Borough, a long narrative poem about Aldeburgh and the villainous Peter Grimes.

Britten knew the area well. While still a teenager, he had purchased an abandoned mill at Snape, near Aldeburgh, later the site of the annual Aldeburgh Music Festival.

Later, in Boston, Serge Koussevitzky commissioned Britten to write a fullscale opera on the Crabbe poem. The first performance of Peter Grimes took place at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London on June 7, 1945. The New York Times critic called the opera “a milestone in the history of British music.” Within a week of the opera’s première, Britten conducted the Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes at the Cheltenham Festival.

The Sea Interludes function as orchestral introductions to various parts of the opera.

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“Dawn” is the prelude to the first act, and follows the prologue, in which Peter Grimes is tried and acquitted of responsibility for the death of his apprentice. The prelude to the second act, “Sunday Morning,” depicts a scene near the village church. The third act prelude, “Moonlight,” hints at Grimes’ disturbed state of mind. “Storm,” separating the two scenes of the first act, contrasts the tranquility of the Boar Inn with the tempest outside.

by heart. I wanted to write something different.”

According to Fauré’s pupil Nadia Boulanger, who conducted the first English performances of the Requiem, “no external effect detracts from its sober and somewhat severe expression of grief: no disquiet or agitation disturbs its profound meditation, no doubt tarnishes its unassailable faith, its quiet confidence, its tender and peaceful expectation… Everything is usual; but with an alteration, a passing note, some special inflection of which he has the secret, Gabriel Requiem, Op. 48 Fauré gives a new and inimitable character Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) to all that he touches…. If anything could truly mitigate for us the thought of death, Fauré began the Requiem after the death it would be the image of hope, of serenity, of his father. He finished it early in 1888; which he has made for us.” by then, his mother had died. The first performance took place at the church – Notes by Charley Samson, © 2013 of La Madeleine in Paris on January 16, 1888. Scored for small orchestra, this initial version included “Introït et Kyrie,” “Sanctus,” “Pie Jesu,” “Agnus Dei,” and “In Paradisum.”

Fauré added the “Offertoire” and “Libera me” for a performance at La Madelaine on January 21, 1893. This version retained the boy soprano from the first version and added a baritone soloist, as well as horns, trumpets and trombones.

The third and final version appeared on July 12, 1900, when Paul Taffanel conducted the Lamoureux Orchestra in a performance at the Trocadéro in Paris. This time, Fauré retained the baritone, but dropped the boy soprano in favor of an adult soprano. He also added woodwinds.

Fauré’s text is a combination of the Mass for the Dead and the Order of Burial. In it, he sought to de-emphasize the tone of fear and terror found in most requiems. Some critics were outraged, one accusing him of “voluptuous paganism.”

Fauré explained: “It has been said that my Requiem does not express the fear of death and someone has called it a lullaby of death. But it is thus that I see death: as a happy deliverance, an aspiration towards happiness above, rather than as a painful experience…. Is it not necessary to accept the artist’s nature? As to my Requiem, perhaps I have also instinctively sought to escape from what is thought right and proper, after all the years of accompanying burial services on the organ! I know it all

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Bryan Nies, Assistant Conductor

Bryan Nies is the Principal Conductor of Festival Opera, Assistant Conductor of Oakland East Bay Symphony, and former Principal Conductor of Oakland Youth Orchestra, which he led on international tours, including to Australia and New Zealand during the orchestra’s 40th season.

With “superb musical direction,” Bryan conducted sold-out performances of Puccini’s Turandot, Loesser’s The Most Happy Fella, and Bizet’s Carmen at Festival Opera to rave reviews that stated, “Nies is undeniably a talent to watch.” In addition, he has been a cover conductor for the St. Louis Symphony, and conducted performances with Opera Idaho (Cosi fan Tutte and Barber of Seville) and the Oakland Chamber Ensemble.

With Eugene Onegin, Bryan Nies made his Opera San Jose debut as Principal Conductor, after serving as Assistant Conductor for nine company productions between 2003 and 2010: Don Pasquale, Die Zauberflote, The Crucible, Un Ballo in Maschera, Manon, La Rondine, Werther, Barber of Seville, and the west coast premiere of Anna Karenina, becoming the second conductor to perform the work Pursuing an avid interest in all musical genres, Mr. Nies served as Associate Music Director with American Musical Theater of San Jose and Theatreworks in Palo Alto. He is on the faculty at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

John Kendall Bailey, Pre-Concert Speaker John Kendall Bailey is Principal Conductor of Oakland Youth Orchestra; Music Director, Principal Conductor and Chorus Master of Trinity Lyric Opera; Music Director and Conductor of Mesopotamia Symphony Orchestra, and Associate Conductor of San Francisco Composers Chamber Orchestra.

In 1994, Mr. Bailey founded the Berkeley Lyric Opera and served as its Music Director and Conductor until 2001. Since then he has been a guest conductor with the Oakland East Bay Symphony, American Philharmonic-Sonoma County, Diablo Symphony Orchestra, Oakland Ballet, Festival Opera, West Bay Opera, North Bay Opera, Pocket Opera, Mission City Opera, the Crowden School, Dominican University, and numerous others. He has taught conducting at the University of California at Davis and Notre Dame de Namur University.

As a choral director, Mr. Bailey has been Music Director of Voices of Musica Sacra, Chorus Master of Festival Opera of Walnut Creek and Opera San Jose, and has been guest conductor for the University of California-Berkeley Chamber Chorus, the University of California-Davis Chorus, Chamber Singers, and Alumni Chorus, and the Berkeley Broadway Singers.

Mr. Bailey is also a composer, and his works have been performed and commissioned in the Bay Area and abroad. In 2010, Carlos Santana and Oakland East Bay Symphony performed two of his arrangements. As a performer – baritone, oboist, and pianist – he has performed with the San Francisco, Santa Rosa, Oakland East Bay, Berkeley, Redding, Napa, and Sacramento symphonies, among others. He has been a pre-concert lecturer for other organizations including San Francisco Opera and American Bach Soloists.

THE RICHMOND CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU wishes Michael Morgan and the Oakland East Bay Symphony continued success while looking forward to another stellar season of wonderful performances and service to the community

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

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One Concert Remaining in 2012-2013 Season Friday, May 3, 8pm

SEASON FINALE:

Saints & Sinners Bach Magnificat, Beethoven Emperor Concerto and more.

NEW: Faster, Easier Online Ticketing!

oebs.org • (510) 444-0801

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Oakland East Bay Symphony

Artistic

Michael Morgan, Music Director & Conductor Bryan Nies, Assistant Conductor EAST BAY PERFORMING ARTS BOARD OF DIRECTORS Officers & Committee Chairs Bette B. Epstein, Chair Monique Stevenson, President Dian J. Harrison, MSW, Vice President & Chair, Governance Committee Lawrence Lohr, Vice President & Chair, Development Committee Steve DeVetter, Treasurer & Chair, Finance Committee Linda Lipner, Secretary James A. Hasler, Chair, Marketing Committee & Programs Committee Donna M. Williams, Chair, Investment Committee Kline A. Wilson, Jr., Chair, Education Committee James F. Bell, At Large Steve Nicholls, At Large Board Members Michael Cartmell Margery F. Eriksson Joseph C. Frank, Sr. Margaret Hegg Carol Henri Harry Howe Karen E. Ivy Conway B. Jones, Jr. Jean-Luc Lamirande Amy Likar, Players Committee Debrenia F. Madison, Esq. Robert Marshak, MBA, CFA Ralph McDonald Karl L. Mettinger, MD, Ph.D. Mary Oram Katie Pickard Andrea Plesnarski, Players Committee Linda Martin Purkiss Daniel C. Quintero, Esq. James Schultz Tom Schunn Deborah Spangler, Players Committee Loni Williams Debbra Wood-Schwartz ADMINISTRATION Donna M. Williams, Interim Executive Director Andrea Bell, Director of Development Debbi Hersh, Marketing Director Patrice Hidu, Administrative Assisstant & IT Manager Scott Horton, Communications Consultant Birgit Hottenrott, Annual Giving Manager Claude Kientz, Development & Subscriber Services Associate Ann Moen, Development Associate & Special Events Coordinator Maya Rath, Finance Director & Concert Manager Candace Sanderson, Librarian Carl Stanley, Orchestra Personnel Manager Elizabeth Vandervennet, Education Manager Ingeborg Wells, Office Volunteer

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Annual Fund Donors

Oakland East Bay Symphony gratefully acknowledges these generous donors whose annual support enables us to build community through our artistic and educational programs. The following list reflects gifts recorded between 10/1/2011 – 3/25/2013.

BATON SOCIETY IMPRESARIO’S CIRCLE $20,000 and Above

Jim and Bonnie Bell John Lee Richmon Family Foundation Dr. and Mrs. Philip D. Schild Anonymous

PRESENTER’S CIRCLE $10,000 - $19,999

Jack Klingelhofer Moses and Susan Libitzky Cornell C. Maier James and Beryl Potter Owen and Erma Smith The Eugene and Nancy Sweetland Charitable Fund Donna M. Williams Anonymous

DIAMOND BATON CIRCLE $7,500 - $9,999 Bette and Bob Epstein James A. Hasler Karl and Miki Mettinger

GOLD BATON CIRCLE $5,000 - $7,499

Lance A. and Katherine M. Gyorfi Lawrence and Emily Lohr Steve and Karen Nicholls J.R. Orton, Jr. Charitable Lead Annuity Trust Berniece and Pat Patterson Robert Schwartz Donor Advised Fund at the East Bay Community Foundation Susan and Paul Sugarman Frank and Mary Ann Tataseo Paul and Jennifer Vetter

SILVER BATON CIRCLE $2,500 - $4,999

Erin Berkenkotter and Jim Ratliff Joanne F. Casey Giles “Bud” Cropsey Steve and Wendy DeVetter David and Melodie Graber Randy and Beverly Hawks Fred and Robbin Kroger Karen P. Long Robert Marshak and Judy Kelly Mike Moye Peter Myers Genevieve Power Evan and Linda Purkiss Daniel C. and Mary Quintero Margaret and Richard Roisman Bernard E. and Alba Witkin Charitable Foundation Anonymous

PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE $1,000 - $2,499

William Auer and David Berlant Dr. Max H. Bazerman and Dr. Marla Felcher, Ph. D. Andrea Haas Bell Robert and Marion Berges Michael Cartmell Charles Crane and Wendy Breuer Gary V. Depp and Lyn C. Andersen David Durand and Gwen Buchholz Patrick and Shirley Campbell Jennifer Duston and Evan Mapoles Erik and Florence Eriksson Joseph C. Frank, Sr. Lewis and Christiane Frederickson Paul E. Garrison Ronald and Lorraine Gazzano Paul and Eleanor Gertmenian Andrew and Teresa Gunther Susan and Richard Hansen Dian J. Harrison Stanley P. and Mary Lou Hébert Margaret Hegg Maxine Heiliger Debbi Hersh Darleane and Marvin Hoffman Judit Jackovics Mark Jacobs Sally Anne Johnson Ann L. Johnson Leslie and Conway Jones Terry Kulka Gary T. Lafayette Jean-Luc and Lina Lamirande Philip Leigh Rosanna Lerma Kara Levine Thomas and Holly Love Eugene and Geralyn Lynch Debrenia Madison B. Joyce McCullum Dorothy M. McIntosh Alison Miller Elder Jim Mitulski and Edward Cervantes Ann Moen Karen Nelson Sharon Noteboom Ron and Mary Olowin Michael and Elisabeth O’Malley Sterling and Barbara Parks Aaron and Eva Paul Keiko Pederson and Sabrina Dupont Angela Perry Andrea Plesnarski and Tom Nugent Marianne Robison Jim and Pamela Robson Kay Vinson Ruhland Melinda and Roy Samuelson James Schultz Wesley and Jill Smith B. Monique Stevenson Ama Torrance Sharon Vonderau Ted and Donna Weis Reinald A. and Ingeborg R. Wells Kline A. Wilson, Jr. Eugene J. Zahas

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CONDUCTOR’S CLUB $500 - $999

Mary Abinante Kenneth and Marvell Allen Robert Archibald and Mary Ellen Navas Bennie Banks Barry and Susan Baskin Allen and Naja Boyd Roberta Brokaw Wayne and Camille Brotze Stephen and Linda Brown Edmund and Sandra Bussey Susie Butler-Berkley David and Paula Byrens Helene Byrne and John Vallerga Barbara and Lawrence Cahn Patrick and Shirley Campbell Susan Chan Gregg Cook and Victor Rosario Donald and Lillian Cunningham Christopher and Kathryn Dann Denise and Steven Depper William and Kathy DeWolf David Durant Margery Eriksson and James Nelson Robert Evans Charmaine Ferrera David and Ellen Fineman Natalie Forrest and Douglas Sprague Susan Forsythe Dave and Katherine Foulkes Harold and Sheldon Furst Endowment Fund at East Bay Community Foundation Patricia M. Gannon Hal and Rose Gin Grace Glatze Judith and Lawrence Glendinning Joseph Gold, Debbie Dare and Dorothy S. Gold Miriam Goodley Reyla Graber Margaret Grover Earl and Bonnie Hamlin Margot Harrison Connie and Jon Hartung Bob Burch and Vonne Ann Heninger James Van Henry Robert and Carolyn Heywood Patricia Jeanne Howze Chenming and Margaret Hu Richard E. Hutson Russ Irwin Ogden and Jean Jones Michael A. and Susan T. Jordan Antoinette Konski Ellen and Barry Levine Louise T. Linford Doug Love Edward Love Pamela Magnuson-Peddle Bennett Markel Otis McGee and Valerie Lewis Merrilee H. Mitchell Barbara K. Moran and Charlie Haas Mabel Morgan Julie Nachtwey

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Ann M. O’Connor and Edward Cullen Elizabeth Orozco Jim Payne Jacqueline N. Phillips Margaret Pillsbury Honorable Jean Quan and Dr. Floyd Huen Frances and John Raeside Maya Rath and Jonathan Ring Laura and Chris Richardson Kennedy and Kathleen Richardson Anne Fay and Tom Schunn Lori Schweitzer and Steven Caccamo Ross Scroggs III and Karen Scroggs Peter and Helen Sheaff Ruth Sherer Robert and Wendy Shuken Tom Schunn and Anne Fay Michael and Katherine Slemmer Miriam Steinbock and Dennis K. Rothhaar Ann C. Steppan Michèle Stone and Harry Howe Marsha Sutherland Kenneth L. and Marian C. Thompson Fund John Torpey and Ana Rauch Patricia Troxel John Tuttle and Douglas Drummond John and Nobuko Vicars Jerry and Ruth Vurek Carole M. Watson Steve and Laura Wolff Charles W. and Nancy B. Wolfram Anonymous (2)

SUPPORTER

$250 ‐ 499 Ted Allen and Carla Moore Richard and Carlene Anderson Eugene and Patricia Angell John and Pat Annee Dion and David Aroner Carol and Claude Benedix Peter Benvenutti and Lisa Pearlman Gary and Judith Blank David and Cynthia Blumgart Marie Boss William D. and Evangeline C. Buell Mary Caning Tom Chavez Amy Chung Terrance Carroll and Linda Dardarian Gail Coney Kathleen Courts Joseph and Susan Daly Robert and Michele Davenport John Henry Douglas Joanne Drabek and Thor Start Sara and Emerson Dubois Sally A. Keane and Joel Francioca Mark Freitas and Susan Gallardo Nancy Friedman and Terry Hill Phyllis Gaines Gerhart Family Trust Dr. and Mrs. James Lowell Gibbs, Jr. Franco Giunta Michael Green Sheldon and Judy Greene Donald and Beverly Greenberg Sharon and Stuart Gronningen

Jerry and Patricia Hamilton James Hebert Diane A. Hill Faye and Lou Hinze Sally Houston William B. Hull and Janet Hashimoto Anne Bennett Jefferson Judith D. Jennings A. David and Barbara Johnson Linda Davis Jones Paul Gordon and Pat Kernighan Bruce and Candis Kerns Katherine Kiehn and Heinz Lankford Alan and Carol Koch Jacqueline Kolm David Koury and Chris Pappamichel Annis and Nicholas Kukulan Sarah Kulberg Jack Lapidos Amy Likar and Jack Paulus Mitzi Likar Peter M. Lundberg Robert and Jeanette MacDonald Hugh MacDonald and Dale Golden Jean E. Mangels Roger and Joan Mann Daniel and Kathleen McKinney Catherine McLane Larana and Jim McVay Jerene Meissert and Michael Robey Robert Middleton Beverly N. Moore Andrew and Mary Moyce Helen Nicholas Scipio Porter Joyce Putnam Wallace and Gayle Ransom Maxine Reynolds Ann and Mike Richter Kathryn Riddell Davis Riemer and M. Louise Rothman-Riemer Valda Sanders Robert G. Schock and Barbara Schaaf Schock Edgar J. and Fritzi Schoen Contee and Margaret Seely Robert Sinuhe Ian D. Smith and Sheri Jennings Janet Spencer Mark and Lori Spiegel Romer and John Stevenson Mary B. Strauss Ellen Switkes Denise K. Top and Mary Elizabeth Tham Kimberly Urbano Brett Turner and David Worden Kathy and Steve Wallcave Peter and Mary Weinstein Donna R. Weston Ann L. Williamson David Lee Woods and Phyllis D. Chambers Eva Mae Youngberg Tom and Anne Van Hagan Arthur Weil Esteban Zapiain Anonymous (1)

FRIEND

$100 ‐ 249 Leorah Abouav-Zilberman Maureen Alano and George Zolinsky Bobbie Altman and Jurgen Weber

Ross Armstrong Diane Arney Aimee Arrieta and Simon Pearce Joyce Baker Martha V. Baker William M. and Deborah A. Baldwin Michael Banister and Nora Privitera Nancy Barber and Carol Huffine William Barlow, Jr. Kathy Barrows and Jack Elliott Cathlene Bennet Lisa Benton Eileen Benway Toby C. Berger Herb and Dorie Behrstock Peter Berkenkotter Cyrus and Judith Berlowitz Richard S. Bertelsen Patricia Biasca Clarence Binninger Clifford and Gladys Block Eileen Blood-Golden Bonnie Bogue Lindy Boyes Marion Brackett Marilyn Braiger William Branca Lisa Brinner Samuel and Judith Broude Howard and June Browne Richard Mercouris and Erika Bruce Gaylord Burke Melody Burns Ross J. and Lillian Cadenasso Helen M. Cake Sharon and Bob Calonico Helene and Norman Cavior Frances Carstensen Wade Cartwright Michael Cating and Theresa Roeder Tony and Louise Caviglia Malca Chall Robert and Shelly Chamberlin Bing Chan Alfred and Shirley Clancy Elizabeth Clark Tricia Clark Willetta Clark Monica Clyde George E. and Shirley A. Coaston Ira Mark Cohen and Susan Isabel Boyd Dwight and Zipporah Collins Douglas and Rosemary Corbin Patricia Couture Carol Copeland Afton Crooks Duane Cropsey and Ann Cropsey Jean Cunningham Paul Dannhauser Harold and Roberta Davis Janet Davis Ronald Davis Karen De Valois Katherine Delucchi Mick Diede Mario and Kathleen DiGiovanni Ron Dion Christine B. Diskon Dinah Dittman Paul and Barbara Dries Susan Driscoll Daniel Druckerman Susie Elkind Henry Elson Richard Espinoza Sarah Everett Richard Fairly Pat and Mike Fast Veronica Fauntleroy

Oakland East Bay Symphony

Judy and Richard Finch Denise Fleig John and Barbara Flores Lawrence R. Foster Peter Fowler Nancy H. Francis Ednah B Friedman Richard Friedman Lorraine Gaskin Steven and Phyllis Gee Elaine and Pete Geffen Linnea and Irving Gershenberg Ralph and Alice Gillibert Candace Goldman Stewart Gooderman Joyce Goodlatte and Don Russell Joseph P. and Martha E. Goralka Teri Gorman Outi and Warren Gould Marian and Roger Gray Aaron and Frances Greenberg Herbert and Leonore Griffin Duane Grummer Randolph Hall Melanie Hamburger Anthony Hare John Hargraves Nancy Harrington William L. Hartrick Frederic and Marietta Harvey Howard and Pamela Hatayama Richard L. Hawkins Joan Gabriella Heinsheimer Carol Henri Jefferson Hilliard Rose and Fred Hoffman Robert B. Hofmann Kenneth Holford Keith Hollon and Gayle Reynolds Don and Barbara Holmgren Will Hoover Gregory Horn and Karen Petitjean Steven Horn Carol Ann Hudson Campbell and Nancy Hunter Patrick and Catherine Hurley Sally and Ian Hussey Michael and Saralinda A. Jackson Jonathan and Joy M. Jacobs Naima Jahi-Coleman Katherine Jarrett Ken and Ladonna Jensen Odell and Virginia Johnson Nancy Johnson Rose Marie Johnson Annie Lou Kane Stephen and Ruth Kass Robert Kattenburg and Jill McFadden Steven Katz Nicholas Keefe Kathleen Kelly Anna Keim Armand and Tamar Kilijian Lucy Carolyn Kinchen Howard Kirsch E. Myrtis and Roderick Klugh Tanya Knoop Sarah Miller and Jonathan Konrath James Kormier Deborah Kramer Paul and Didi Kubicek Roger Lambert and Linda Mehren Jane Ann Lamph Doris Larsen Almon E. Larsh, Jr. Joan Larson Joyce Lashof Jason and Susan Lauren Pierre and Judith Le Bris

Amelia Lemmon Alice Lenaghan George and Maureen Lenahan William A. Lester, Jr., Ph.D. Jean Levin Elizabeth and Charles Lewis Betsy and Karl Livengood Kathie Long Nancy Lowenthal Dennis and Sally Lum Bob and Ruby MacDonald Lesli MacNeil Carol MacNulty Kim Malcolm John and Margaret Maloney John and Diane Maltester Jacquelyn Marie Jerri Mariott and Michael Silpa Jack K. Marks Toni Martin David Matson and Susan Gerson John McCall-Taylor Jean McCarter Bonnie McKean Marilyn Chilcote and Robert McKenzie Brenda M. McKinley Marilyn McPherson June Melchior K. and S. Mikaelian Les and Martha Miller Katherine Moore Roger and Paula Moore Jill Moran James Morris M. Gwaltney Mountford Norma Murphy Roderick Murray Alice Myerhoff Mary Yvonne Napoleon Leonard Nathan Eli and Lauren Naor Russell Nelson Jim and Kitty Nemecheck Pamala Noli David and Ellen Noller Mark and Carol Norberg Stuart and Judith Offer Linda Okahara and Balaram Puligandla Patrick O’Reilly Patricia Overshiner Brandy Pacheco Maurizia Palmieri Paul and Roselyn Perazzo Andrea Pearlstein Margaret Peterson Margaret Pinter Patricia Pishny David and Naomi Pockell Jim Puskar Charlie Quaid Mary Beth and Greg Read Sonjia Parker Redmond David and Lois Reed Harry Reppert and Sheri Stock Kimberly Ridge Gail and James Rigelhaupt Edward and Maureen Rinne Arlene Roberton Mary M. Roberts J. Michael Robertson James C. Robinson Agnes Rogacsi Michael and Marcie Roosevelt Doug Rose Warren and Marta Rose Fred Rosenblum Seth and Molly Rosen Marcia and Willard Ross

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Nancy Rowenthal Lisa Ruhland Carol Saidian Miyo Saiki Ralph Samuel Barbara Sayre Nancy and Gregg Schluntz Rosalee Schubert Ann-Catrin Schultz Patricia Schwartz Elida Scola Mary Seastrand Gordon Seligson Marie B. Shahoian Brenda Shank Jude Sharp Dick Sharpnack Gabriel Shin Linda Skaar Mel and Janice Silverman Mary Sloan-Oliva Curtis B. and Barbara A. Smith Virginia Smyly Magen Solomon Janet Sovin Chris Stapp Mary Stevens Sandy and Jack Summerfield Jon and Barbara Sylvester Barbara Szudy and Graham Bird Richard Taft Vincent Tamariz Gloria Taylor Jim Taylor, III John B. Taylor Naomi Teplow Charlotte M. Thompson Dolores and Jim Thom James Tiemstra and Eliza Greene

Marta Tobey Sylvia Tobias Ralph and Johanna Tondre Elena and Christopher Toohey Evelyn Tregoning Leslie Trutner Laurie Umeh Linda Underwood Philip C. and Shantha N. Ursell Diana Valle Colleen Vermillion and Nancy Heastings Chaz Walker Jack Walker Winifred Walters Betty L. Watson David Watt and Rachel Medanic Elizabeth Wierzbianska Richard West Pat and Phil Williams Thelma Williams Joye Wilson Olly W. and Elouise Wilson Peter and Gertrude Wilson Forrest Winslow H. Leabah Winter Beverly B. Solo Carolyn Yale Jan Young and Pearl McCarthy Emily Zell Ron and Sally Zeno Irving and Ellen Zucker Anonymous (3)

ARE YOU OPEN FOR BUSINESS?

The Symphony’s Business in the Arts Networking Circle helps fund youth music education in Oakland.

Join and support these local companies who are part of the circle:

Bell Investment Advisors, Jim and Bonnie Bell Caldecott Properties, Andrew Read Donahue Gallagher Woods LLP, Mary Rudser La Salle Financial, John Glynn Mueller Nicholls Builders, Steve Nicholls Presidio Bank, Vern Padgett Vessel Gallery, Lonnie Lee & Ken Ehrhardt

BANC member listing as of December 31, 2012

For more information on this exciting collaboration of business and the arts, contact the Symphony at 510‐444‐0801.

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ENDOWMENT FUND Individuals who support the Endowment Fund help to ensure the long-term future of Oakland East Bay Symphony’s music, education and outreach programs. The donors listed below have made outright gifts, estate gifts, or irrevocable planned gifts through a charitable remainder trust. For more information contact our Development Department at (510) 444-0801.

LIFETIME LEADERSHIP CIRCLE

NATHAN RUBIN MEMORIAL FUND

Jim and Bonnie Bell Giles “Bud” Cropsey Lon and Mary Israel

Conway and Leslie Jones Marilyn Langlois Ralph Samuel

THE PAULINE WILKINSON MACAULAY MEMORIAL FUND In support of the Symphony’s education and outreach programs Anonymous

DAVID PAUL STEVENSON MEMORIAL FUND B. Monique Stevenson

THE EDWIN AND NANCY RICHARD FUND In support of the Symphony’s education and outreach programs Paul and Susan Sugarman

JAY T. LEVINE MEMORIAL FUND In support of Music for Excellence The Estate of Jay T. Levine The Estate of Doris B. Holerman The Estate of Herbert Chittenden David and Melodie Graber Andrew and Teresa Gunther The Estate of Anne Macpherson The Estate of John E. and Helen A. Manning The Estate of Thomas M. Price Eleanor Swent Arthur Weil Reinald A. and Ingeborg R. Wells The Estate of Elvera Wollitz Smith

CALVIN SIMMONS LEGACY SOCIETY We are grateful to those who have remembered Oakland East Bay Symphony with bequests.

These gifts will help establish and grow the Symphony’s endowment, providing support for future generations of students and music-lovers. For more information contact our Development Department at (510) 444-0801.

Marie Boss Edward Love Arthur Weil Gregg Cook and Samuel R. Miller and Donna M. Williams Victor Rosario Maude H. Pervere Joye Wilson Giles “Bud” Cropsey Irving and Muriel Schnayer † Mark Jacobs and Edgar J. and Fritzi Schoen deceased John B. Hancock † B. Monique Stevenson Terry Kulka Katherine Van Hagan Harold Lawrence † Albert J. Vizinho

TRIBUTE FUND

In honor of Alison Miller Les and Martha Miller In honor of Bette Epstein Lori Schweitzer and Steven Caccamo In honor of Jennifer Duston Peter and Helen Scheaff In honor of Jim and Bonnie Bell Deborah Medvick Jerene Meissert and Michael Robey In honor of Michael J. Borgerding Margaret Peterson In honor of Edwin Richard Paul and Susan Sugarman In honor of Michèle Stone Susan McKinnon Paul and Susan Sugarman

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In honor of Richard Sharpnack Sylvia Perez In memory of Phil Abinante da Silva-Cullinan Family In honor of Gregg Cook Peter Cook In memory of Frank and Frances Likar Mitzi Likar In memory of Fred Haworth Laura Haworth In memory of Joel Kelly Carol Bacig, Charles and Dena Brock Kristine and Alan Johanns In memory of Mike Sanford Steve and Kris Kozinchik In memory of Shirley Green Michael A. and Susan T. Jordan

CORPORATE AND INSTITUTIONAL GIFTS $50,000 and Above The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation The James Irvine Foundation Target $20,000 - $49,999 Bell Investment Advisors, Inc.* Sidney E. Frank Foundation Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation Walter & Elise Haas Fund National Endowment for the Arts City of Oakland The Bernard Osher Foundation Wells Fargo $10,000 - $19,999 Chevron The Clorox Company Foundation The Aaron Copland Fund for Music The Thomas J. Long Foundation Mueller Nicholls Builders* City of Richmond The San Francisco Foundation $5,000- $9,999 California Arts Council The Grubb Co. Mechanics Bank Music Performance Fund $1,000 - $4,999 Caldecott Properties* Donahue Gallagher Woods LLP* The Friendship Fund La Salle Financial Services* Presidio Bank* Richmond Convention and Visitors Bureau Ruth Stroup Insurance Agency* Union Bank * Business in the Arts Networking Circle Partners CORPORATE MATCHING GIFTS Chevron Johnson & Johnson The Clorox Company Union Bank Google The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation IBM

OAKLAND EAST BAY SYMPHONY A Program of East Bay Performing Arts

2201 Broadway, Suite 300, Oakland, CA 94612

T (510) 444-0801 • F (510) 444-0863 admin@oebs.org • www.oebs.org

Oakland East Bay Symphony

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A Special Thank You to our 2012-2013 Season Volunteers Marie Aleida Lyn C. Andersen Alex Bailey Dottie Baker Judith Berlowitz Ginny Blumberg Terry Boggs-Moura Linda Brown Steve Brown Judith Berlowitz Susie Butler Berkley Barbara Cahn Larry Cahn Sybil Carpenter Wendy Cilman Samm Collins Gregg Cook Terry Cullinane Susan Driscoll Janett Edrington Steven Edrington Gail Edwards Tariq El-Amin Bette Epstein Bob Epstein Margery Eriksson Ruth Fabros Barbara Flores John Flores Ellen Gierson Margot Harrison Jim Hasler Laura Haworth Margaret Hegg

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Tom Hornig Harry Howe Sandra Innes Russ Irwin Katie Johnson Rose Marie Johnson Virginia Johnson Conway Jones Leslie Jones Lucy Kim Roxanne King Vera Kirichenko Jeanne Korn Mark Lampkin Traci Leno Shirley Lindley Zahra Mahloudji Katie McLane Jerene Meissert Karl Mettinger Linda Mrnak Steve Murray Bill Neely Steve Nicholls Toni Novak Heather Ogden Paul Ogden Theresa O’Guinn Barbara Parks Bud Parks Aaron Paul Eva Paul Jacqueline Phillips Moriah Pierce

Linda Purkiss Mike Richmond Jim Robson Pam Robson Victor Rosario Kay Vinson Ruhland Sandra Schnabel Carrie Sealine Gordon Seligson Jan Smiley Debbie Spangler Ward Spangler John Stevenson Romer Stevenson Michèle Stone Luis Thompson Ama Torrance John Tuttle Martha Uhey Art Ungar Diana Valle Katherine Van Hagan Beverlee Wallace Rosalie Wallace Cynthia Webb- Beckford Inge Wells Ray Wells B. Mardiyya Williams Donna M. Williams Loni Williams Ann L. Williamson Bu Wirth Kline Wilson

FIRE NOTICE • There are sufficient exits in this building to accommodate the entire audience.

• The exit indicated by the lighted exit sign nearest your seat is the shortest route to the street.

• In case of fire, please don’t run — walk through that exit.

• Smoking is not permitted anywhere in the theatre.

• Refreshments served in the theatre are permitted in the foyers only.

• No cameras or tape recorders are permitted in the Paramount.

• For lost and found information inquire at the main floor aisle 3, or call the box office at (510) 465-6400.

Oakland East Bay Symphony

www.mnbuild .com Since 1981

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Oakland East Bay Symphony