March 18, 2024
With an impressive list of commissions and accolades to his name, Saad Haddad makes his California Symphony premiere as the 2023-2026 Young American Composer-in-Residence during BRAHMS OBSESSIONS. We talked to Saad to learn more about how he got here, his musical inspirations, and what he’s excited for as our newest resident composer. Welcome, Saad! Please…
April 3, 2023
Hector Berlioz (1803–1869) Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9 (1844) Hector Berlioz never met an applecart he didn’t want to upset, or an envelope he didn’t want to stretch. It was simply not in his nature to kowtow to prevailing fashion or to acquiesce to the dictates of the proletariat. Nor was he just some obnoxious…
May 18, 2022
This weekend’s EPIC FINALE concert was a fitting exclamation point on the season, as audiences got to hear Viet Cuong’s Next Week’s Trees (live and in-person, not on a screen!), Nathan Chan’s beautiful rendition of Elgar’s Cello Concerto, and Tchaikovsky’s triumphant Symphony No. 5.
April 21, 2022
Viet Cuong (b. 1990) Next Week’s Trees (2021) “Light is an invitation to happiness,” wrote beloved poet Mary Oliver in “Poppies”. We could all use such an invitation about now. We’ve been through a period of darkness, of present dread and future fear, a time of foreboding and separation. But such things don’t last. The…
May 6, 2021
Wonderful… Soul-refreshing…”—Kathryn Juneau, Viola This article was first published in May, 2021 When 30 California Symphony musicians came together last month to record the Poetry in Motion season finale series, it was the largest gathering of California Symphony musicians in one place since the February 2020 BRAHMS FEST concerts. We asked how it felt to…
May 3, 2021
It’s been hailed as “a model for residency programs across the country” (Mercury News), and former resident composer Dan Visconti calls it simply the best residency program in the country. California Symphony’s groundbreaking Young American Composer-in-Residence program turns 30 this year, helping to launch the careers of ten composers to date. We checked in with…
October 2, 2020
American violinist Robyn Bollinger made her Philadelphia Orchestra debut at age twelve. She came to national attention on the radio through her 2014 residency on PRI’s “Performance Today” and several appearances on NPR’s “From the Top.” In 2016, she was a recipient of a prestigious Fellowship from the Annenberg Arts Fellowship Fund. We talked with Bollinger,…
February 20, 2020
By California Symphony Music Director Donato Cabrera. I suppose I could wax philosophically, in maestro-like fashion, and list all of the incredible opportunities our Young-American-Composer-in-Residence residency affords our chosen composer over the three years that they are with us. And while I believe all of these opportunities to be true and worthwhile, I’ll leave other…
February 19, 2020
The New York Times has called his music “alluring” and “wildly inventive” and his compositions have already been featured in concerts at Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center. We sit down with our newest Composer-in-Residence Viet Cuong to talk marching band, his compositional style, and connections to former Young American Composers-in-Residence Chris Theofanidis, Kevin Puts,…
May 2, 2019
It’s been called “a model for residency programs across the country” (Mercury News). Not all orchestras around the country have resident composer programs, and among those that exist, the California Symphony’s Young American Composer-in-Residence program is different in three key ways, says California Symphony Executive Director Lisa Dell. 1. Real relationships take time Several…
