Peninsula Symphony: The Americas featuring 2022 Klein Competition Winner Gaeun Kim

Mitchell Sardou Klein Music Director & Conductor

THE AMERICAS

Featuring GAEUN KIM, cello

2022 International Klein Competition Winner

MARCH 15 & 16 at 8PM

FRI / San Mateo Performing Arts Center

SAT / Heritage Theatre, Campbell

Welcome from PSO Board of Directors

Welcome to Peninsula Symphony’s “The Americas”, featuring cellist Gaeun Kim, the recent Irving M. Klein International String Competition winner! As a board member and violist in the orchestra, I know I speak for all of us when I say we are truly grateful to you, our audience, for choosing to spend your time with us!

As a board member and Chair of the Governance Committee, I invite you to learn more about how our Board of Directors contributes to the operation of our orchestra. How do we choose repertoire and soloists and bring you the music (both familiar and unfamiliar) you want to hear? How do we invest our resources and budget for future seasons? How do we seek new audiences and find new ways to market our concerts in a world of constantly changing technology? And how do we cultivate and sustain the community support we need to continue offering such high-quality music to our audiences? Our Board of Directors is dedicated and passionate about uplifting our community through music-making and with their wisdom and expertise, plays a crucial role in helping us move forward in these and many other ways.

My service on the Peninsula Symphony board has been deeply satisfying. I very much enjoy the work of supporting our talented maestro and musicians, and working closely with our staff and other board members - all in the interest of bringing you incredible musical offerings such as what you will experience here tonight.

Our board meets four to six times per year both online and in person after regular working hours. We are currently seeking diverse candidates who will bring new perspectives and skills to our board. We are especially looking for those with expertise in the finance, legal, human resources, event planning, fundraising, and education sectors, but welcome anyone who is interested in learning more about service on our board! Please reach out by emailing our Executive Director, Chelsea Chambers, at chelsea@peninsulasymphony.org, or our CoChairman, Ben Hollin at ben@peninsulasymphony.org.

Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to hearing from you!

Warmly,

Katherine Bukstein

Chair, Governance Committee & Violist Peninsula Symphony Board of Directors

Season 75: A Celebration

The Peninsula Symphony is thriving as we celebrate 75 years of presenting great music and great musicians to our audience and our community. I’m so energized by the high quality of musicianship and orchestral camaraderie that our magnificent players bring to every rehearsal and concert. Our repertoire has expanded and diversified in challenging and rewarding new ways. We perform with some of the most celebrated and brilliant soloists in the world in fine concert venues. And, as we reflect back on the last three turbulent years, it is deeply uplifting and gratifying that we have returned to the stage better than ever.

In fact, the challenges of the Covid era brought us closer together than ever, as a musical ensemble and as a community partner. During the year when we could not perform together, we developed on-line assets that kept the musicians knitted together as musical colleagues and broadened our reach to our audience. We now are able to present our concerts and outreach events to the larger web world with beautifully produced programs that hugely expand the notion of community. Our audiences, like those of many performing arts organizations, are gradually returning to live presentations. Our deeply engaged and loyal audience can see us in Campbell (Heritage Theater) and San Mateo (SM Performing Arts Center) for the traditional four pairs of Subscription Concerts, an annual Fall collaboration with the Stanford University Music Department at the magnificent Bing Concert Hall, a Springtime Family Concert, a summer outdoor pops concert, and special events like brass ensemble concerts at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, an outdoor Wind Ensemble concert in Los Altos, the Marilyn Mindell Piano Competition at Stanford, our Young Musicians Competition and special events throughout the year.

Amazing guest artists elevate our performing standards and thrill Peninsula audiences. Recent years have seen illustrious musicians like Jon Kimura Parker, Lara Downes, Anthony McGill, Joyce Yang, Natasha Paremski, Jon Nakamatsu, Tessa Lark, and a new generation of Klein Competition virtuosos join us in concert. Special musical events, like the Violins of Hope, our Jazz Reunion with David Benoit, Taylor Eigsti, and Chris and Dan Brubeck, and Broadway musicals like South Pacific and Brigadoon with 42nd Street Moon continue to expand our programming scope. Our musical vision grows and deepens as we explore superb works in previously neglected repertoire categories, with new and old music composed by inspiring minority diverse voices and underrepresented cultures. We look to new and more imaginative, multimedia-focused, and engaging ways to present all of this rich musical fabric.

Our superb volunteer musicians, our hard-working Board and our magnificent professional staff are dedicated to an ever-expanding vision of musical service the Peninsula. It is my privilege to work with them to bring great music to you, our wonderful audience, and to our wider community as we embark on the Peninsula Symphony’s next 75 years. Thank you for being with us tonight and into the future.

Mitchell Sardou Klein

Mitchell Sardou Klein, Music Director & Conductor

The Americas

March 15, 2024 / San Mateo Performing Arts Center

March 16, 2024 / Heritage Theatre, Campbell

Mitchell Sardou Klein, Music Director & Conductor

Nathaniel Berman, Resident Conductor

Gaeun Kim, cello

Arturo Márquez, Danzón No.2

William Grant Still, Poem for Orchestra

Alberto Ginastera, Malambo, from Estancia

Victor Herbert, Cello Concerto No.1, Op.8

i. Allegro con spirito

ii. Andante - Scherzo: Vivace - Andante

iii. Finale: Allegro

Clarice Assad, Sin Fronteras

Gaeun Kim, cello

- Intermission -

Nathaniel Berman, conducting

Leonard Bernstein, Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

i. Prologue

ii. Somewhere

iii. Scherzo

iv. Mambo

v. Cha-cha

vi. Meeting Scene

vii. Cool Fugue

viii. Rumble

ix. Finale

THESE CONCERTS ARE GENEROUSLY SPONSORED BY Mary Gundelach in memory of Charles M. Gundelach

PROGRAM NOTES

By Larry Laskowski

Introduction

Western classical music: a general designation for “art music” rooted in the traditions of Western European culture. Today the planet is small, and political and economic developments as well as ease of travel and communication have enabled the spread of that European musical culture to the rest of world. Indeed, it has taken root and is thriving in many places, including the United States, Latin America and Asia. But cultural expansion is never a one-way street. It’s not a simple transfer, but rather an exchange, an ongoing two-way conversation in which artists learn from each other and create new hybrid forms of expression.

So, when European classical music came to “The Americas”, it was itself changed and enriched by the vibrant cultural traditions it encountered there. Tonight’s program highlights some outstanding examples of music by prominent composers in the Americas, composers who embraced the heritage of European music and added exciting elements from the New World.

Arturo Márquez, Danzón No.2

Danzónes (1994) is an iconic work by the Mexican composer Arturo Márquez (b. 1950). Márquez received much of his training in California and has become one of the most important Latin American composers of our time. In his many orchestral works, chamber pieces, solo works, and ballets, Márquez eschews more advanced modernist trends and instead leans heavily on cultural tradition and history. Dance, such an important element in Mexican culture, makes its presence felt in many of his works.

In Cuba in the second half of the 19th century, the danzón was born. Traditionally the dance begins with casual flirtations and gradually builds to more fully sensual dance moves. The genre quickly spread to other Latin American countries, including Mexico, where it is still especially popular. Márquez’s highly stylized version of the danzón draws on the ballroom dance culture of the Veracruz region of Mexico, here transported to the concert hall. The piece seduces with the dance’s intoxicating rhythms and barely controlled sensuality as it sparkles with brilliant orchestration. Danzón No. 2 has become so wildly popular and symbolic of Mexican musical culture that it is sometimes referred to as Mexico’s second national anthem. And so ………..¿Bailamos? …………. (Shall we dance?)

William Grant Still, Poem for Orchestra

PROGRAM NOTES

During his lifetime William Grant Still (1895-1978) was fondly and respectfully known as ‘the dean of African American composers”. He grew up in the American South, played a significant role in the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920’s and 1930’s, and lived his later years in Los Angeles. A broad musical education brought him into close contact with many musical styles, including traditional classical music, progressive music, the avant-garde, folk music, and popular music. A prolific composer, Still composed significant classical works in many genres; he also worked in film music and with the likes of Eubie Blake, Paul Whiteman, and Artie Shaw in popular music. His prose writings express deeply felt reflections about modern musical trends and the role of the African American in contemporary America. In his works we hear diverse threads of musical tradition and thought woven together, always for a serious purpose. His words: “I believe that a real composer is a sort of medium for the transmission of higher thoughts to those on earth.”

Still’s Poem for Orchestra (1944) combines traditionally classical compositional technique with distinctly American sonorities. The work was inspired by a poem by Verna Arvey, Still’s wife and collaborator. With hope and conviction, Arvey describes a new optimism that she sensed was around the corner after the darkness of the war years:

Soul-sick and weary, Man stands on the rim of a desolate world.

Then from the embers of a dying past Springs an immortal hope.

Resolutely evil is uprooted and thrust aside; A shining temple stands

Where once greed and lust for power flourished. Earth is young again, and on the wings of its re-birth Man draws closer to God.

Still himself wrote that “…the opening is purposely dissonant, to express desolation and spiritual poverty. But the thematic material grows more consonant and more melodic as it rises to express man’s rapture in approaching God.” The gorgeous and comforting final section resolves the expressionistic angst of the opening, yet the ending (including the final chord) retains a trace of underlying existential uncertainty. The spiritual journey is strenuous, complex, and satisfying.

PROGRAM NOTES

Alberto Ginastera, Malambo, from Estancia

Argentinian by birth, Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983) was among the most important twentieth century classical composers of the Americas. His works span virtually all genres of the classical repertoire, and his style displays a command of the progressive music of his time as well as a deep affinity for the cultural traditions of his homeland. Ginastera was also a respected teacher and academic who

contributed significantly to the development of music education in Argentina and Latin America. The music schools he founded and his dedication to teaching were important in nurturing the next generation of composers and musicians in the New World.

Estancia Op. 8A (1942) was originally composed as a ballet. Malambo is the last of four dances that Ginastera took from the ballet to form an orchestral suite. Estancia in Spanish means a large estate or cattle ranch, and the malambo is a fast, energetic, and athletic Argentinian folk dance, a dance of the gauchos. The cowboys stomp, sing, whirl, and jump in a loud, aggressive display of strength and agility. The insistent intense rhythms are inspired by galloping horses and the intricate syncopations add complexity to the assertive masculine sensuality.

Ginastera’s Malambo puts the strength, joy, and pride of the gaucho on full display. The orchestration sizzles and the rapid dissonant clashes produce coloristic effects that skillfully blend folk tradition with progressive musical trends.

Victor Herbert, Cello Concerto No.1, Op. 8

In the early 1900’s New York City surely had its share of traditional classical music. There were symphony orchestras, opera companies, ballet companies, recitals, music schools, etc. But we shouldn’t forget that music in more popular styles drew bigger audiences. Tin Pan Alley was enjoying its heyday, ragtime was popular, jazz was in its early stages, and the music halls and revues played to full houses. Another popular genre was the operetta (a light musical comedy and precursor of today’s Broadway show). Its most notable American composer was Victor Herbert (1859-1924), who wrote over forty of them, including hits like Babes in Toyland and Naughty Marietta. For his time Herbert uniquely straddled the worlds of

PROGRAM NOTES

classical and popular music. Born in Europe, he began his career there as a classical cellist, conductor, and composer. He moved to New York at the age of 27 and quickly became an important and influential figure on the American music scene. He may be best remembered today for his lighter music, but he also composed an impressive list of serious classical works, including orchestral music, concerti, opera, choral works, piano music, and songs.

The Cello Concerto No. 1, op. 8 is an early work (1884), composed when Herbert was still living and working in Europe. An accomplished cellist, Herbert performed the piece in Europe, but the concerto was not published at the time and was soon forgotten. It was further eclipsed by Herbert’s second cello concerto (1894), which enjoyed considerable success and entered the standard repertoire. Luckily the first concerto was revived in 1986 by the American cellist Lynn Harrell and was first published in 2021.

As an experienced conductor, orchestral musician, and soloist Herbert well understood a thorny problem of the cello concerto as a genre: the solo cellist can easily be drowned out by the orchestra. Herbert deftly manages the problem without paring the orchestra down to chamber dimensions. The concerto is a full-throated embodiment of late Romantic style, rich and varied in texture, tempo, color, and mood, and a rewarding challenge for the soloist.

The concerto is in three movements. The first is an unabashed expression of late Romantic style. The middle section of the movement with cello and harp is particularly ravishing. The second is both slow movement and scherzo built into one. And the last movement is a humorous, lighthearted, challenging polka that presages Herbert’s deft touch with popular genres in his later works.

Clarice Assad, Sin Fronteras

A powerful communicator renowned for her musical scope and versatility, Brazilian-American Clarice Assad (b. 1978) is a significant artistic voice in the classical, world music, pop, and jazz genres. She is active as a composer, pianist, vocalist, and teacher who in all of these roles encourages the imagination to break free of often self-imposed constraints.

Sin Fronteras (2017) is a playful, rhythmic, fresh, fanciful, and sometimes comedic work that was originally commissioned as a dance. Assad uses complex cross rhythms and syncopation, draws on multiple styles, genres, and ethnic traditions, and uses innovative sounds from the orchestra (orchestra members humming, speaking, blowing through instruments, hand clapping, etc.). Assad’s imaginative approach is in service of her sweeping vision of the Americas as a land “Without Borders”. Perhaps her own words best express her intentions:

PROGRAM NOTES

“Sin Fronteras emerged from a utopian state of mind in which I found myself one day, daring to erase imaginary lines that disconnect us geographically, culturally, and morally: Boundaries that the human race has willingly subscribed to for thousands of years. But what would happen if the walls that separate us from getting to know one another were not there? While this idea would generate a fair amount of confusion in the real world, in the realm of music of the 21st century, this does not need to be so!

As a South American woman living in the United States for two decades, I chose sounds of places that felt closest to home: The Americas. In Sin Fronteras, we journey from the bottom of South America, traveling up both coasts and navigating to the Northern hemisphere via Central America. The piece follows no storyline, but its central concept begins with a shocking reaction between two or more distinct cultures coming into contact for the first time. After the initial resistance, everyone collectively begins aggregating each other’s ethnic fragments into their culture spheres to create something new – while still preserving their original roots.”

Leonard Bernstein, Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) was undoubtedly the best-known figure on the American classical music scene in the second half of the 20th century. He made his mark on the conductor’s podium, at the piano, in the theater, in the classroom, and on the speaker’s platform. His innovations (the NY Philharmonic’s Young People’s Concerts and the Thursday Evening Preview Concerts, for example) broadened the audience for classical music and endeared him to many. So many people, even those who never met him, refer to him fondly as “Lenny”.

Perhaps above all else, Bernstein was a thoroughly theatrical person. His strong presence as a conductor, musician, teacher made it seem as if he were always on stage and in the spotlight. His personality inevitably took over the room, be it a living room or Carnegie Hall. It’s no

PROGRAM NOTES

surprise that we continue to be fascinated by him more than thirty years after his passing. Recently we’ve had a 2023 Netflix movie about him (Maestro), a revival of the stage version of West Side Story on Broadway (closed in 2020), and a new 2021 Spielberg film version of West Side Story, not to mention the library of recordings of a wide variety of music that we continue to enjoy today.

Bernstein did his best to find time in his busy public schedule for the solitary process of composing, though late in life he regretted that he had not written more. His works for the theater are perhaps the best known, and West Side Story is the most popular of all. Written in collaboration with Arthur Laurents, Stephen Sondheim, and Jerome Robbins, the show opened on Broadway to tremendous acclaim. A feature film that won ten Oscars followed shortly thereafter (1960). The plot is based on Romeo and Juliet, but here the clan rivalry is between two street gangs in NYC in the 1950’s. One gang is white, the other is Puerto Rican. Bernstein had long been interested in racial and ethnic issues in the arts. His undergraduate thesis at Harvard was titled “The Absorption of Race Elements into American Music”. In West Side Story Bernstein incorporates Latin American musical elements (Mambo, Cha-Cha, etc.) as well as a strong jazz influence. The score also has traditional classical elements, including a fugue (albeit in jazz swing time), and the orchestration blends splashy modern symphonic colors with ethnic and popular traditions; the expressive range includes yearning for love, sadness, violence, and tragedy. The intricate details of the composition are carefully worked out; the wide variety of tempo, mood, and styles is unified by a tightly knit tonal and motivic framework. This is an entertaining and dramatically effective score that is also a serious musical work. Perhaps at that time only Bernstein had the ability to pull that off?

The Symphonic Dances is an orchestral work that Bernstein put together from the show’s music, mostly the dance numbers. That it holds up so well on its own without singers, dancers, and a stage is a tribute to Bernstein’s skill and imagination as a composer. With Bernstein you don’t need an actual stage. The drama is in the composer himself.

MUSIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR

Mitchell Sardou Klein

Music Director & Conductor

Music Director and Conductor Mitchell Sardou Klein brings extensive conducting experience in the US, Europe, Australia and Japan to his leadership of the Peninsula Symphony. During his 39 years on the Symphony’s podium, he has guest conducted the Seattle Symphony, New Polish Philharmonic, Suddetic Philharmonic, Richmond Symphony, Eastern Philharmonic and many other orchestras in the US and Europe. In California he has led Symphony San José (formerly Symphony Silicon Valley), the San José Symphony, the Santa Rosa Symphony, the Inland Empire/Riverside Philharmonic, Ballet San José, the California Riverside Ballet and the Livermore-Amador Philharmonic and others. He co-founded and is Music Director of the Peninsula Youth Orchestra, which he has taken on concert tours of England, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Belgium, Holland, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Finland, Latvia, and Estonia.

Maestro Klein directed over a hundred concerts as Associate Conductor of the Kansas City Philharmonic (where he was also Principal Pops Conductor and Principal Conductor of Starlight Theater, the Philharmonic’s summer home), and also served as Music Director of the Santa Cruz Symphony. He also has extensive experience in conducting ballet orchestras, including the Kansas City, Lone Star, Oakland, and Westport Ballets, as well as the Theater Ballet of San Francisco and les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. Before turning to the podium, he performed as a cellist for many years. Known to most everyone as Mitch, he enjoys travel, photography, jazz and visual arts in his spare time.

Since 1984, he has been Director of the Irving M. Klein International String Competition. Held in San Francisco each June, the Competition has become one of the most prominent in the world, featuring prizes totaling over $35,000, attracting applicants from more than twenty nations annually, and launching numerous major international concert careers.

Critics have consistently praised his work. The San José Mercury described his performance with Symphony Silicon Valley in 2012 as a “gorgeous performance; big, enveloping and wonderfully luxuriant.” The San Mateo County Times described him in 2007 as “Super Conductor: Mitchell Sardou Klein, music director of the Peninsula Symphony, led his musicians through another triumphant concert. The Peninsula Symphony just keeps getting better and better. Great works and great performances by all.” The Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza proclaimed, “The American conductor quickly established a fine rapport with his orchestra. Klein is a musician who has the musical score in his head, rather than his head in the score, which he demonstrated ably. The creative conception and artistic shape which he brings to his work comes from deep inside him.”

MUSIC DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR

Maestro Klein is a winner of many prestigious awards, including the 2008 Diamond Award for Best Individual Artist, the Silver Lei Award from the 2009 Honolulu Film Festival (for the World Premiere of Giancarlo Aquilanti’s La Poverta), the 2000 ASCAP Award for Programming of American Music on Foreign Tour, the 2001 Jullie Billiart Award from the College of Notre Dame for Outstanding Community Service, a 1996 award for the year’s best television performance program in the Western States (for the one-hour PBS program about him and the Peninsula Symphony) as well as the 1993 Bravo Award for his contribution to the Bay Area’s cultural life.

Mr. Klein was born in New York City, into a musical family that included members of the Claremont and Budapest String Quartets. He began cello studies at age four with his father, Irving Klein, founder of the Claremont Quartet. His mother, Elaine Hartong Klein, danced with the Metropolitan Opera Ballet.

Cited for his “keen judgment, tight orchestral discipline, feeling for tempo, and unerring control,” Maestro Klein has conducted many significant world, American, and West Coast premieres, including works by Bohuslav Martinu, Meyer Kupferman, Joan Tower, Hans Kox, George Barati, Benjamin Lees, Giancarlo Aquilanti, Melissa Hui, Rodion Shchedrin, Brian Holmes, Ron Miller, Lee Actor, Michael Thurber, Jonathan Russell, Alvin Brehm, and Margaret Garwood. He has appeared frequently on national and international broadcasts, including National Public Radio, the Voice of America, the WFMT Fine Arts Network, PBS Television, and KQED television. He lives in Oakland, California with his wife, violist Patricia Whaley. Their daughter, Elizabeth, lives and works in Washington D.C.

RESIDENT CONDUCTOR

Nathaniel Berman Resident Conductor

Nathaniel Berman maintains an active presence as a performer and music educator in the San Francisco Bay Area. A faculty member at UC Santa Cruz since 2007, he is conductor of the UCSC Concert Choir and the UCSC Wind Ensemble and has appeared as guest conductor of the UCSC Orchestra and the University Opera Theater. Nathaniel has held the position of Music Director of the Santa Cruz County Youth Symphony since 2011 and has appeared as guest conductor of the Santa Cruz County Symphony in annual collaborative concerts with the Youth Symphony.

A strong advocate for new music, Nathaniel is Artistic Director of the San Franciscobased new music ensemble Ninth Planet (formerly Wild Rumpus), with whom he has led premieres of commissioned works by dozens of composers, and he appears as conductor of new music on Innova, Other Minds, and Pinna recordings. Nathaniel has appeared as guest conductor with Empyrean Ensemble at UC Davis in June of 2019, as well as leading the world premiere of The Pressure by Brian Baumbusch, at San Francisco’s Other Minds Festival at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater. In March of 2023, he conducted the premiere performance of Prospero’s Island, a new opera by Alan Shearer, at Herbst Theater in San Francisco.

Nathaniel has been a member of the professional new-music chorus Volti, where he also served as Assistant Conductor, and has sung with early music ensembles Pacific Collegium and Euouae. Originally a trumpet player, he now keeps up his brass chops playing euphonium in the Balkan brass band Inspector Gadje.

Nathaniel received his Master’s degree in conducting from UC Santa Cruz, where he studied with Nicole Paiement. He grew up playing duets with his dad, a jazz pianist and singer.

FEATURED ARTIST

Gaeun Kim cello

Gaeun Kim, a 20-year-old cellist based in New York, has been spotlighted as an outstanding virtuosic performer and a winner of numerous competitions worldwide since the age of four. Her journey began with winning both the first prize and the special award at the Antonio Janigro Competition in Zagreb, Croatia. She has also secured first prizes in the Liezen International Competition and the David Popper International Cello Competition.

Gaeun was recognized as one of “30 Representative Stars in the Culture & Arts Industry of the Republic of Korea,” a “Samsung Foundation Rising Star,” and as one of the six winners of the ‘Classe d’Excellence de Violoncelle,’ led by Gautier Capucon. She performed as a Louis Vuitton Foundation Artist until 2021. In 2023, she was invited as a special jury member at the “World’s Biggest Stage International Competition.”

Her recent accolades include receiving the First Prize and the Pablo Casals Special Award at the 2022 Irving M. Klein International Competition, and being a top prizewinner at the 2023 Paulo International Cello Competition. She also won the First Prize at the 2023 New York Young Artist Award and is scheduled for numerous concerts in the US in the upcoming season.

In the 2023-24 season, Gaeun will make concert appearances in major halls worldwide, including solo performances in Germany, Switzerland, Korea, New York, San Francisco, Palo Alto, St. Thomas, Poland, and others. Her engagements include performances with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Lahti Sinfonietta, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Santa Cruz Symphony Orchestra, Peninsula Symphony Orchestra, Master Sinfonia Chamber Orchestra, and Long Island Philharmonic Orchestra. She will also participate as a featured cellist and invited chamber musician at festivals such as “The Seoul Spring Music Festival,” “Music in the Vineyards,” “Water Island Music Festival,” “Moritzburg Festival,” and the “Jupiter Symphony Chamber Series.”

Nationally, Gaeun has won first prizes in numerous competitions, including the Seoul Classic Music Competition, the Music & Chunchu Competition, the Little Mozart Competition, the Yewon Competition, the Youngsan Music Competition, the Sungjong Music Competition, and the Ehwa & Kyunghyang Competition. She has also received the Shinhan Music Award, the Yewon Music Award, and the Director Award from the Korean National Institute for Gifted in Arts.

FEATURED ARTIST

Her performance highlights include concerts for the Queen of the Belgians and the First Lady of the Republic of Korea, participation in the Antonio Janigro Cello Festival, and appearances at the Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs, CBS’s 17th Anniversary Celebration Concert in Jeju Island, and various other prestigious events. As a soloist, she has played with ensembles like the Zagreb Soloists, the Euro-Asian Philharmonic Orchestra, the Long Island Philharmonic Orchestra, Master Sinfonia Chamber Orchestra, the Suwon Symphony Orchestra, and many more.

Beyond the stage, Gaeun has been featured on radio programs and TV shows including From the Top, MBC, KBS Radio, C Channel, and others. She has also appeared in major music magazines such as The Strad, New York Concert Review INC, and Music Journal. A proponent of contemporary music, she has performed and recorded premiere pieces by composers such as Gloria Justen, Julian Gargiulo, Seounyun Kim, Jacky Liu, Nichagarn Chiracha-rasporn, Yuxuan Lin, and more.

Currently studying at The Juilliard School under Richard Aaron as an honorary scholarship recipient since 2020, Gaeun is a Korean ambassador for Jargar Strings. Her educational background includes studies at Yewon School, Seoul Arts High School, and Korea National University of Arts.

ORCHESTRA MARCH 2024

Music Director & Conductor

Mitchell Sardou Klein

Resident Conductor

Nathaniel Berman

Violin I

Debra Fong, Concertmaster

Kate Wahl, Assistant Concertmaster

Kim Bonnett

Peter Cheng

Daniel Cher

Jungmee Hwang

Tara Iyer

Jeff Lin

Girish Nanjundiah

Matt Springer

Alex Wang

Tracy Wang

Sarah Wu

Violin II

Deborah Passanisi, Principal

Moosa Azfar

Susanne Bohl

Brad Gibson

Vineet Mehta

Kristin Oro

Katharine Schmidtke

Jshon Thomas

David Williams

Angela Yeh

Hanna Yoshimoto

Jane Zhang

Viola

Elyse Ader, Principal

Alessandra Aquilanti

Katherine Bukstein

Andrea Hata

Jerry Saliman

Judy Beck Sumerlin

Charlie Tian

Jolynda Tresner

Jennie Yang

Cello

Kirsten Shallenberg, Principal

Sandy Baratoff

Garth Cummings

Victor Ha

Julika Huber

Tetsu Ishihara

Susan Magrini

Jason Shu

Ryan Toulouse

Bass

Suesan Taylor, Principal

David Herberg

Rahul Iyer

Bruce Moyer

Grant Parker

Michael Tong

Jeff Wachtel

Flute

Kay Saito Shafi, Principal

Yukoh Hammura

Patricia Harrell

Kristin Kunzelman

Piccolo

Patricia Harrell

Oboe

Audrey Gore, Principal

Dane Carlson

Lianne Araki

English Horn

Dane Carlson

Clarinet

Nicole Galisatus, Acting Principal

Nick Cotter

Jimmée Greco

Ron Miller

Alto Sax

Alex Lill

Bassoon

Juliet Hamak, Principal

Mia Stormer

Aidan Yang

Contrabassoon

Mia Stormer

Horn

Brian Holmes, Co-Principal

Randy Nickel, Co-Principal

David Dufour

Justin Privitera

Paul Schneider

ORCHESTRA

Trumpet

Mike Marmarou, Principal

Nicholas Toscan

Robert Fitt

Trombone

Dave Allmon, Co-Principal

Rami Hindiyeh, Co-Principal

Bass Trombone

Todd Weinman, Principal

Tuba

Johnathan Hsu, Principal

Timpani

Mike Bresler, Principal

Percussion

Emily Hendricks, Principal

Paul Burdick, Acting Principal

Aaron Balot

Michael Chen

Benedict Lim

Erica Richstad

Harp

Kristin Lloyd, Principal

Keyboard/Piano

Larry Laskowski

Music Librarian

Joel Greene

THE ELFENWORKS FOUNDATION

ADOPT-A-MUSICIAN PROGRAM

LIFETIME ADOPTED MUSICIANS

Mitchell Sardou Klein Conductor Paula Uccelli

Deborah Passanisi Violin II

Dr. Lauren Speeth Violin II

Frank & Annette Rahn

Elfenworks Foundation

MUSICIAN INSTRUMENT ADOPTED BY

Debra Fong Concertmaster Katherine & Roy Bukstein

Dave Allmon Trombone

Abraham Aragundi Cello

Lianne Araki Oboe

Kathryn Barnard Flute/Piccolo

Susanne Bohl Violin II

Jacqueline Smith

Friend of PSO

Patricia L. Griffin

Kenneth Shirriff

Diana Lloyd

Mike Bresler Timpani/ Celeste Everson Misfeldt Percussion

Katherine Bukstein Viola

Margrit Rinderknecht & Richard Siemon

Dane Carlson Oboe/ Kirt & Kelly Minor English Horn

Beatrice Chau Violin II

Daniel Cher Violin I

Garth Cummings Cello

Gayle Flanagan

Laura & David Francis

Sheri & Michael Frumkin

David Dufour Horn Hannelore Draper

Bob Fitt Trumpet

Nicole Galisatus Clarinet

Bradley Gibson Violin II

Don & Cathy Draper

Penny Barrows in memory of John Barrows

Teri Quick

John Givens Principal Bassoon Juliet Hamak & George Yefchak Emeritus

Audrey Gore Oboe

Monte Mansir & Susanne Stevens

Joel Greene Music Librarian Al & Liz Dossa; Jim Fung

Juliet Hamak Bassoon John Givens

Patricia Harrell Flute/Piccolo Krista & Jerry Terstiege

David Herberg Bass Suesan Taylor

Brian Holmes Horn

Johnathan Hsu Tuba

Elizabeth Ingber Viola

Rahul Iyer Bass

Tara Iyer Violin I

Sue Magrini Cello

Mike Marmarou Trumpet

Vineet Mehta Violin II

Ron Miller Clarinet

Bruce Moyer Bass

Randy Nickel Horn

Mary Gundelach

Yvonne Hampton; Teri Quick

Robert Fitt

Suesan Taylor

Pauline Roothman

Monte Mansir & Susanne Stevens

Ronald S. Miller

Sheree Kajiwara

Jacqueline Smith

Monte Mansir & Susanne Stevens

Diana Lloyd

ADOPT-A-MUSICIAN

MUSICIAN INSTRUMENT ADOPTED BY

Kristin Chesnutt Oro Violin II

Frank Rahn Violin II

Jerry Saliman Viola

Kay Saito Shafi Flute/Piccolo

Kirsten Shallenberg Cello

Matt Springer Violin I

Judy Streger Violin I

Suesan Taylor Bass

Jshon Thomas Violin II

Nicholas Toscan Trumpet

Jolynda Tresner Viola

Alex Wang Violin I

Carolyn Worthington Viola

Kyoko Yamamoto Bassoon

Karin Chesnutt, Dorothy Falman & Mildred Saxman

Jim Augustus & Nichole Edraos

Dorothy Saxe

Ronald S. Miller

Jacqueline Smith

Monte Mansir & Susanne Stevens

Alan & Spike Russell

Martin Chai & Gray Clossman

Sheri & Michael Frumkin

Robert & Karen Fitt

Brian Holmes; Roy & Victoria Sasselli; Maureen Thrush

Bichen Wang

Richard Izmirian

John Givens

Would you like to adopt a musician? It is our goal to have the entire orchestra adopted as a special way of supporting us.

For information on this meaningful program, please reach out to Chelsea Chambers, Executive Director at chelsea@peninsulasymphony.org or (650) 941-5291.

SUPPORTERS

We are grateful to the following contributors who have supported Peninsula Symphony as we embark on the next 75 years of music-making for our local community. Our donor listing below is a compilation of total giving received between November 1, 2022 and February 12, 2024. If you see an error in this listing or would like more information on ways you can contribute to Peninsula Symphony, please reach out to Executive Director Chelsea Chambers by emailing chelsea@peninsulasymphony.org.

Risoluto ($50k +)

California Small Business Administration

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

Fortissimo ($10k - $24,999)

Katherine & Roy Bukstein

Sheri & Michael Frumkin in honor of Mitchell Sardou Klein, Chelsea Chambers, and Jim Fung

Mary Gundelach in memory of Charles M. Gundelach

Mervyn L. Brenner Foundation

Maria Shim & Nicholas Fox

Paula Uccelli

Crescendo ($5k-$9,999)

John Givens

Joel Greene

Diana Lloyd in memory of Cliff Lloyd

Monte Mansir & Susanne Stevens

Deborah Passanisi

William & Diane Reuland

Shriners Hospitals

Jacqueline Smith in memory of Pieter Smith

Krista & Jerry Terstiege

SUPPORTERS

Presto ($2,500 - $4,999)

Janice Boelke

Nathan Brookwood & Patricia Hendriks

Barbara Erickson

Pamela Ferris

Brad Gibson

Russell Hurley

Richard Izmirian & Sheree Kajiwara in memory of Dr. Diana Koin

Alex Kurosawa

Michael Marmarou

Rehearsal Venue Sponsors: Vineet Mehta & Karishma Sharma

Ronald S. Miller

Teri Quick

Paul Schneider in memory of Amanda Smith Schneider

Jeff & Gwyn Wachtel

David A. Williams & Hilary Benton

Friend of PSO in appreciation of Jeffrey Wachtel

Friend of PSO in honor of Ruth and Roy Dunn

Friends of PSO (5)

Scherzo ($1,000-$2,499)

David & Michelle Allmon

Apple Inc

Janet Averett

Barbara & Robert Brandriff in memory of Dorothy Lunn

Martin Chai & Gray Clossman

Chelsea & Gregory Chambers in honor of our dedicated musicians and staff

Tom Cooper & Mary Hom

Howard & Diane Crittenden

Stanley Dirks

Al & Liz Dossa

Hannelore Draper

Anne Esparza

Gene Esswein

Robert Fitt

Gayle Flanagan

Meiying Forney & Steve Shatas in appreciation of Sheri Frumkin

Laura & David Francis in appreciation of Daniel Cher

Alexandra Gillen & Harmut Koeppen

Mary Gundelach

Juliet Hamak & George Yefchak

Yukoh Hammura

Patricia Harrell

Benjamin & Kaoru Hollin

Mitchell Sardou Klein & Patricia Whaley

James Kleinrath & Melody Singleton

Lauren Koenig

Lillian Lee

Susan Lin in appreciation of everyone at PSO

Susan Magrini

Bill & Linda Malmstrom

Joe & Mollie Marshall

Debra McLean

Randy & Janie Nickel

Craig & Wendy Nishizaki

Nvidia

Kristin Oro

Prudential

Caroline & Chris Rackowski

Redwood City Arts Commission

David Sacarelos & Yvette Lanza

Jerry & Ellen Saliman

Sara & Phillip Salsbury

John & Christine Sanguinetti

Dorothy Saxe

Margrit Rinderknecht & Richard Siemon

Marianne & John Silva-Oba in memory of Sharon Nora Silva

Suesan Taylor in memory of Craig Barr Taylor

Todd & Andrea Weinman

Wells Fargo Foundation

Anne Wharton

Carolyn & Tim Worthington

Y&H Soda Foundation

Rachel Youmans

Friends of PSO (2)

Vivace ($500-$999)

Jim Augustus & Nichole Edraos

Kathryn Barnard & Kenneth Shirriff

Penny Barrows in memory of John Barrows

Michael & Adrienne Bresler

Kathleen Brown

Geoffrey W Burr

Albert & Cheryl Cha

Sylvia & Fun Pang Chau

Karin & Jim Chesnutt

Erika Crowley in memory of Margot Haygood

Don & Cathy Draper

Nicholas & Renée Toscan

Jim Fung in appreciation of Joel Greene

Google, Inc.

Jimmée Greco

Dawn Grench & Family in honor of Herb Grench

Patricia L. Griffin

Brian Holmes & Jolynda Tresner

Johnathan Hsu

SUPPORTERS

Mela & Peter Hwang

Douglas & Susan Jacobs

Kenneth Krieg & Carol Dolezal

Amy Lit

Harvey Lynch

Susan Macy in honor of the Anthony McGill concert

Richard & Beverly Marconi

Linelle Marshall

Marcia & John Mehl

Kirt & Kelly Minor in appreciation of Dane Carlson

Celeste Everson Misfeldt

Angela Mogielski & Peter Cassini

Pamela Moore in memory of Bill Moore

Beth Morris

Anna Newman & Mueen Ghani in memory of Richard Newman

Neil Panton

Pauline Roothman

Alan & Spike Russell

Gary Sears

Kay Saito & Sayed Shafi

Matt Springer & Wei Ai

Anita Stewart & Kaj Rekola

Sue Larson Family Fund

The Wachtel Pronovost Family in appreciation of Jeff Wachtel

Molly Wachtel in honor of Jeff Wachtel

Bichen Wang

Teri & Robert Whitehair

Linda Wilson

Hanna & Yoshihiro Yoshimoto

Friend of PSO

SUPPORTERS

Allegro ($250-$499)

Judith & David Anderson

Lianne Araki in memory of Edward C. Hattyar

Susanne Bohl

Katherine Boster

Andre & Marina Broido

David & Janet Cain

Dr. Patricia Campbell & John Miaullis

Louis Caputo

Jenny Chan-Sakauye

Sharon Chortack

Sloane Citron

Joseph Coha

Judy Davis in memory of Harold and Marilyn Mindell

John DeLong & Sharon Peters

Nancy Farmer

Madeleine Frankel

Mateo Go

Robert Goldware

John Gookassian

Alice Graham in honor of John and Dorothy Givens

David Greene in honor of Big Monkey

Yvonne Hampton

Charles Hanes

David & Elisa Herberg

IBM International Foundation

Sanjiv & Jazz Kaul

Ann & Ben Kong in honor of Linda Dunn

Sandy & Norman Koo

Jeffrey Koseff & Thalia Anagnos in honor of Jeff Wachtel

Ginger Kroft

Larry Laskowski

Eugene Lee & Claire Chang

Nora & Galen Lemmon

Marcia Leonhardt

Diane Merchant

Grant Parker

Wesley & Linda Petit

Laura Pitchford

Frank & Annette Rahn

J. Richard & Karen S. Recht

Cynthia Robbins-Roth

Alison Ross in appreciation of Linda Dunn

The Somersille Sibley Family

Nathaniel & Marcia Sterling

Laura Sternberg

Judy & Ivan Streger

Rachel Tasch

Jshon Thomas & Gary Carson

Michael Tong & Luna Wang

Barbara Weis in honor of Warren, Kay, and George Weis

Cameron Wessel & Sapna Upadhyay

Lan Zhang

Friend of PSO in honor of Hanna Yoshimoto

Friends of PSO (4)

Dolce ($100-$249)

John & Barbara Adams

Karen Alden

Michael & Merrie Asimow

Barbara Barth

Jeanne Bertini

Mark Beyer

Jill Biegenzahn

Lorraine Bodie

Juliette Bryson

Les & Nancy Burger

Frank & Charlotte Cevasco in honor of Debbie Passanisi

Faye Chapman

Mary Elise Clarity

Helen Cockrum

Ronald Danielson

Dolby

Suzanne & Allan Epstein

Ruth Evans

David Fernandez & Lori Krauss

Ruth Finkelstein

Alastair & Moira Fordyce

Shirley Foreman

Ann & Stan Forman

Kristine Forney

Nicole Galisatus

Priscilla Gitchev

Lisa L. Gruman

Ann Guerra

Hillel Hachlili

Linda Hagarty

Gayle Hansen in memory of James R. Hansen

Matthias Hausner

Kathie Hillier & Bob Boen

Ward Hoffman & Karlette Warner

Marshall & Roberta Hollimon

Perry Hopkins

Ben Hsu & Brenda Porter

Intel Corporation

Alan Kalman

Peter Klein

Lorrin & Stephanie Koran

Sandra Krakowski

Sharon Krawetz

Paul & Jackie Kuckein

Lena Kuhar

Kristin Kunzelman

Amy Kuo

Jay & Sylvia Ladenheim in appreciation of Randy Nickel

Lori Lambertson in memory of John Biegenzahn

Sandra Larragoiti & Brandon Martinez

Richard Leder & Cherrill Spencer in appreciation of Mitch Klein & the PSO staff

William & Lucille Lee

Kenneth Lum

Jan McKim

Judi McManigal

Amanda & Walter Mok

Joyce Monda

Bruce Moyer

Donna Ornitz

Chuck & Patty Ortenberg in honor of Jeff Wachtel

Karen & Doug Perry in appreciation of Chelsea Chambers

Charles Polanski

Marilyn Reisen

Cheryl & John Ritchie

SUPPORTERS

Stephen & Joanne Rovno

Bill & Sherrean Rundberg

Heather Sanders

Victoria & Roy Sasselli

Marian Schmidt

Marvin & Ellen Schwartz

Dana Scoby in memory of Robert T. and Jane Anderson Cheatham

Karen & John Scorsur in appreciation of Chelsea Chambers

Noel Shirley

Ruth A. Short

Gang Situ

Dr. Patrick L. Smith

Karl Talarico

Nicole Taylor

Chris & Carol Thomsen in appreciation of Jeff Wachtel

Maureen Thrush

Carolyn Tucher

Adam Wantz

Andrew & Abigail Wen in appreciation of Thomas Shoebotham

Alan Stern & Thomas Whatley

Raymond & Cecilia Wong

Friends of PSO (8)

“Sostenuto” Legacy Society

The future of Peninsula Symphony is sustained by the generosity of individuals who choose to give during or after their lifetimes. Their contributions safeguard the presence of symphonic music on the Peninsula for this and future generations to come. To find out more about how to join this special group of cherished supporters, please reach out to Executive Director Chelsea Chambers, chelsea@peninsulasymphony.org.

Sostenuto Legacy Society Members as of December 2023:

Ellis Alden

Anonymous

Elfenworks Foundation

Mitchell

Sardou Klein & Patricia Whaley

Judi McManigal

Frank & Annette Rahn

Genny Hall Smith

Lorraine Smith

Marguerite Szekeley

William Warren Wiesenfeld Trust

Peninsula Symphony is seeking board candidates!

Our current board is composed of devoted community members with experience in the realms of finance, high tech, education, volunteer musicians and marketing. Meetings are held virtually and in person four to six times a year. Board members may serve up to three consecutive 3-year terms. Elections are held on an ongoing basis.

We are seeking new board members from diverse backgrounds who bring additional skills and perspectives in order to continue to move our symphony forward. We want our board to reflect our community and strive to find members who will add diverse voices to the team. We are a working board, so if you are looking for a way to get out and live your best life by helping to govern a vibrant, innovative non-profit organization and contribute to your local community in a meaningful way, this is a great way to do it!

We would love to see candidates with experience in:

· Financial Management

· Legal Expertise

· Human Relations

· Fundraising / Grant-Writing

· Event Planning

· Education / Youth / Community programs

· Passion for music and PSO

If you or someone you know may be interested in a board position or just want to learn more about what is involved, please reach out to me or our board co-chairwe’d love to talk to you!

Chelsea Chambers (Executive Director) - chelsea@peninsulasymphony.org

Ben Hollin (Co-Chair, Board of Directors) - ben@peninsulasymphony.org

Guest Conductor Geoffrey Gallegos with PSO / At the Movies / January 2024

BOARD, STAFF & VOLUNTEERS

PENINSULA SYMPHONY BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ben Hollin, Co-Chair / Chair, Marketing Committee

Ron Miller, Co-Chair / Chair, Education Committee

Randy Nickel, Secretary

Katherine Bukstein, Chair, Governance Committee

Barbara Erickson, Treasurer / Chair, Finance Committee

Daniel Cher

Sheri Frumkin, Chair, Development Committee

Juliet Hamak, Orchestra Rep

Alex Kurosawa

Lillian Lee

Diana Lloyd

Deborah Passanisi

Jeff Wachtel

PENINSULA SYMPHONY STAFF

Mitchell Sardou Klein, Music Director & Conductor

Nathaniel Berman, Resident Conductor

Chelsea Chambers, Executive Director

Jim Fung, Director of Marketing & Digital Content

Jenny Ugale, Operations & Outreach Manager

Tara Kariat , Box Office & Administrative Assistant

Faye Chapman , Bookkeeper

Joel Greene , Music Librarian

Richard Le , Stage Manager

Elizabeth Quivey , Stage Manager

Samantha Paschner , Rehearsal Setup

Linda Dunn , Office Volunteer

Heidi Hau , Piano Competition Coordinator

Amelia Yee , Front of House & Volunteer Coordinator

The mission of the Peninsula Symphony is to enrich the lives of people in our community with inspiring, innovative, high-quality musical presentations at affordable prices, and to promote music education through engaging programs for children and adults.

The Peninsula Symphony Association of Northern California is a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Corporation, Federal Tax ID 94-6106974.

Peninsula Symphony

146 Main Street, Suite 102 Los Altos, CA 94022 (650) 941-5291 / info@peninsulasymphony.org

PeninsulaSymphony.org