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  • CREATION FESTIVAL CONTINUES AS MUSIC DIRECTOR ESA-PEKKA SALONEN LEADS HAYDN’S THE CREATION AT WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL
  • Nov. 8, 2003
  • Soloists Camilla Tilling, Paul Groves, Sanford Sylvan, Jessica Rivera, and Nmon Ford Join Philharmonic and Los Angeles Master Chorale

    THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 6 and SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 8 AT 8 PM

    SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9 at 2 PM

    November 6 sponsored by Citibank

    November 8 sponsored by Foley & Lardner

    The Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Creation Festival continues with Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen leading sopranos Camilla Tilling and Jessica Rivera, tenor Paul Groves, and baritones Sanford Sylvan and Nmon Ford, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in performances of Haydn’s oratorio, The Creation. Concerts take place at Walt Disney Concert Hall on Thursday and Saturday, November 6 and 8 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, November 9 at 2 p.m. The Sunday performance is available with or without the brunch option.

    Upbeat Live pre-concert events take place one hour prior to each concert in BP Hall at Walt Disney Concert Hall, and are free to all ticket holders. Musicologist MaryAnn Bonino explores the connections among music, science and religion in an investigation of Haydn's Creation.

    Written between 1796 and 1798 in Vienna, The Creation was inspired by Handel’s oratorios. When he left London in 1795, Haydn was given a libretto that, tradition has it, was originally written for Handel. Haydn worked closely on the oratorio with Gottfried van Sweiten, who served as court librarian in Vienna and translated the libretto into German. The Creation became an unprecedented success for Haydn after its first performance in 1798.

    These concerts continue the Philharmonic’s Creation Festival (October 30 – November 15), which reflects the themes of creation, invention and renewal through various types of programs. The Festival includes repertoire such as Mahler’s “Resurrection” symphony, Haydn’s The Creation, and Milhaud’s La création du monde. The theme of creation also resonates throughout the season, which includes eight world premieres. The Festival is also complemented by additional programming on the Green Umbrella new music series and the Toyota Symphonies for Youth series, as well as within the Association’s other education and community initiatives.

    Swedish soprano CAMILLA TILLING has established herself as a versatile artist, equally at home on the opera stage, as soloist with orchestra, or in recital. Since her successful international debut in 1999 at the New York City Opera in Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims, she has performed at the Royal Opera Covent Garden, Aix-en-Provence, and the Proms. She studied at London’s Royal College of Music and is a resident artist with the Gothenburg Opera. Tilling is scheduled to perform with the Metropolitan Opera, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and San Francisco Opera, among other companies, in future seasons. Her Philharmonic debut is part of the 2003/2004 Creation festival, with Esa-Pekka Salonen leading Haydn's The Creation.

    American tenor PAUL GROVES, winner of the prestigious Richard Tucker Foundation Award in 1995, has embarked on an international career with engagements at the world’s leading opera houses and concert halls. A graduate of the Young Artist Development Program at the Metropolitan Opera, Groves made his debut there in 1992 in The Flying Dutchman. He has sung roles at Teatro alla Scala, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Paris’ Opera Bastille, Châtelet Theater, Deutsche Oper Berlin, and the Vienna State Opera. He has appeared with the Munich, Berlin and Los Angeles Philharmonics, and The Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras. He gave his New York recital debut at Alice Tully Hall in 1996 with James Levine at the piano. Groves has recorded various acclaimed roles for the Sony, Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Naxos, Sony Classics, EMI Classics, Teldec Classics, and Telarc labels.

    Grammy and Emmy Award-winning baritone SANFORD SYLVAN displays a remarkable range of vocal expression and communicative power. He is an acclaimed Mozartean, known for his portrayals of Figaro, Don Alfonso and Leporello, which have been seen internationally. The baritone has become closely associated with renowned directors and major composers. He has worked with Peter Sellars, Robert Wilson, Sir Peter Hall, and Andrei Serban; had roles written for him by John Adams (Nixon In China, The Death of Klinghoffer, The Wound Dresser) and John Harbison, as well as works by Peter Maxwell Davies, Philip Davies, and Sir Michael Tippett. He premiered Steven Stucky’s American Muse with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1999. Committed to the art of the vocal recital, Sylvan and his long-time collaborator, pianist David Breitman, have performed extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe.

    Soprano JESSICA RIVERA is a resident artist with Los Angeles Opera. She has performed with Opera Santa Barbara and, as an apprentice artist, with Santa Fe Opera. Her rich array of soprano roles includes Pamina in The Magic Flute, Valencienne and Sylviane in The Merry Widow, Frasquita in Carmen, Melisande in Impressions de Pelléas, Héro in Béatrice et Bénédict, and Masha in The Queen of Spades. With Los Angeles Opera this season, she performs Rosina in The Barber of Seville, Anna in Nabucco, and Damigella in The Coronation of Poppea. She made her Los Angeles Philharmonic debut in 2001 in Joaquin Rodrigo’s Ausencias de Dulcinea. In addition to her operatic and concert work, Rivera has given numerous recitals throughout the U.S. Upcoming engagements include her New York recital debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall and her debut with the Fort Worth Symphony in Mahler's Symphony No. 2.

    American baritone NMON FORD appeared with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Berlioz’ L’enfance du Christ and this season in Los Angeles Opera’s production of The Girl of the Golden West in the role of Happy during the 2002/2003 season. He has performed throughout the Americas, Europe, and Japan, singing roles at San Francisco Opera, Utah Opera, Portland Opera, Opera Memphis, Virginia Opera, and Opera San Jose, as well as Spoleto Festival USA. Ford is known for the roles of Iago in Otello, Amonasro in Aida, Escamillo in Carmen, the High Priest in Samson and Delila, and Scarpia in Tosca, among others. He has been a featured soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the San Jose Symphony, and the Cabrillo Music Festival. Upcoming engagements include appearances with the Milwaukee Symphony, the Pacific Symphony, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music (with the Brooklyn Philharmonic).

    ESA-PEKKA SALONEN, the tenth conductor to head the Los Angeles Philharmonic, began his tenure as Music Director in October 1992. Salonen made his American debut conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic in November 1984, and he has conducted the orchestra every season since. Among the many highlights of Salonen’s activities with the Philharmonic have been world premieres of new works by composers John Adams, Bernard Rands, Rodion Shchedrin, Steven Stucky and Salonen himself, well-received Ligeti, Schoenberg and Stravinsky Festivals, appearances at the Ojai Festival, numerous critically acclaimed international tours since 1992, and his extensive discography with the orchestra for Sony Classical. Salonen was born in Helsinki, Finland in 1958. He made his conducting debut in London with the Philharmonia Orchestra in September 1983. He served as principal guest conductor of the Philharmonia of London from 1985 to 1994 and as a principal conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1985 to 1995.

    EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

    Thursday, November 6, 2003 at 8 PM

    Saturday, November 8, 2003 at 8 PM

    Sunday, November 9, 2003 at 2 PM


    Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles

    Los Angeles Philharmonic

    Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor

    Jessica Rivera, soprano (Eve)

    Camilla Tilling, soprano (Gabriel)

    Paul Groves, tenor (Uriel)

    Nmon Ford, baritone (Adam)

    Sanford Sylvan, baritone (Raphael)

    Los Angeles Master Chorale

    HAYDN The Creation

    Upbeat Live pre-concert events take place one hour prior to each concert in BP Hall at Walt Disney Concert Hall, and are free to all ticket holders. Musicologist MaryAnn Bonino explores the connections among music, science and religion in an investigation of Haydn's Creation.

    Tickets ($15 - $120) are on sale now at the Walt Disney Concert Hall box office, online at LAPhil.com, or via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000. A limited number of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full time students may be available at the Walt Disney Concert Hall box office two hours prior to the performance. Valid identification is required; one ticket per person; cash only. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for special discounts for selected concerts and seating areas. For all information, please call 323.850.2000.

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  • Contact:

    Elizabeth Hinckley, 213.972.3034; Rachelle Roe, 213.972.7310