FRIDAY AND SATURDAY, MAY 18 AND 19, AT 8 PM

SUNDAY, MAY 20, AT 2 PM

Acura is the sponsor for the May 18 Concert -
all Acura vehicles on that date park for free

Miguel Harth-Bedoya, music director of the Fort Worth Symphony and former Los Angeles Philharmonic Associate Conductor, returns to Walt Disney Concert Hall as guest conductor leading the orchestra on Friday, May 18, and Saturday, May 19, at 8 p.m., as well as Sunday, May 20, at 2 p.m. American soprano and three-time Grammy-winner Dawn Upshaw, in her first Walt Disney Concert Hall appearance since postponing dates in January for health reasons, sings Foss' Time Cycle and Golijov's Three Songs for Soprano and Orchestra. Highly sought-after organist Simon Preston is the soloist in Barber's Toccata Festiva, and Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from West Side Story close the program.

Harth-Bedoya, equally at home in orchestral repertoire and opera, has worked with Upshaw in the performances of Golijov's Ainadamar, at Walt Disney Concert Hall and with the Santa Fe Opera. Upshaw, a frequent collaborator with Golijov, is renowned for her operatic work, her concert performances and championing of numerous new works. Preston, who has worked with a number of famous composers including Bernstein, was recently named by Classic CD as one of "The Greatest Players of the Century" in a list drawn from the entire classical music world.

Composer/conductor Russell Steinberg of the Los Angeles Youth Orchestra discusses the concert program at Upbeat Live, a free event in BP Hall open to all ticket holders, held one hour before each performance.

MIGUEL HARTH-BEDOYA, winner of the 2002 Seaver/NEA Conductors Award, currently serves as Music Director of the Fort Worth Symphony and Music Director of the Auckland Philharmonia in New Zealand. In addition to his highly acclaimed six-year term as Associate Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Harth-Bedoya has served as Music Director of the Eugene Symphony in Oregon and the Philharmonic Orchestra of Lima. Recognized as one of the most exciting conductors on the international scene, Harth-Bedoya is an active guest conductor and has appeared with the Atlanta Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Boston Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Milwaukee Symphony, Minnesota Symphony, Montreal Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Saint Louis Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Utah Symphony and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. He led the Juilliard Orchestra on highly successful tours of France and Japan and has collaborated with such distinguished soloists as Mstislav Rostropovich, Yo-Yo Ma, Gary Graffman, Joshua Bell, Midori, Garrick Ohlsson and James Galway. Festival appearances include the Hollywood Bowl, Grant Park, Tanglewood, Rencontres Musicales d'Evian in France, the Domaine Forget International Festival in Quebec and the Musicarchitettura International Festival in Italy. Born in 1968, in Lima, Peru, Miguel Harth-Bedoya holds degrees in conducting from the Curtis Institute of Music and the Juilliard School.

Joining a rare natural warmth with a fierce commitment to the transforming communicative power of music, DAWN UPSHAW has achieved worldwide celebrity as a singer of opera and concert repertoire ranging from the sacred works of Bach to the freshest sounds of today. Her ability to reach to the heart of music and text has earned her both the devotion of an exceptionally diverse audience, and the awards and distinctions accorded to only the most distinguished of artists. Her acclaimed performances on the opera stage comprise the great Mozart roles (Pamina, Ilia, Susanna, Despina) as well as modern works by Stravinsky, Poulenc and Messiaen. From Salzburg, Paris and Glyndebourne to the Metropolitan Opera, where she began her career in 1984 and has since made nearly 300 appearances, Dawn Upshaw has also championed numerous new works created for her including The Great Gatsby by John Harbison; the Grawemeyer Award-winning L'Amour de loin by Kaija Saariaho; John Adams' nativity oratorio El Niño; and Osvaldo Golijov's chamber opera Ainadamar and song cycle Ayre, both recently recorded for Deutsche Grammophon. She is a favored partner of many leading musicians, including Richard Goode, the Kronos Quartet, James Levine, Sir Simon Rattle, and Esa-Pekka Salonen. In her work as a recitalist, and particularly in her work with composers, Dawn Upshaw has become a generative force in concert music, having premiered more than 25 works in the past decade. From Carnegie Hall to large and small venues throughout the world she regularly presents specially-designed programs composed of lieder, unusual contemporary works in many languages, and folk and popular music. She furthers this work around the country in master classes and workshops with young singers at major music festivals, conservatories and liberal arts colleges. She is a member of the faculty at the Tanglewood Music Center, and in 2006 began an association with the Bard College Conservatory of Music, for which she designed a master's degree program in the vocal arts.

SIMON PRESTON made his debut at the Royal Festival Hall in London in March 1962, performing the organ solos in Janá?ek's Glagolitic Mass. Shortly after his London debut, he was appointed sub-organist of Westminster Abbey and later that same year appeared for the first time at the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts at the Royal Abbey Hall. During that period he worked under many famous conductors, including Leopold Stokowski, Pierre Monteux and later Leonard Bernstein and Benjamin Britten. In 1965, he made his first tour to the United States and Canada, and by the time he left Westminster Abbey in 1967, Preston was already an internationally-acclaimed artist. In 1981, he was appointed organist and master of the choristers at Westminster Abbey, where his work with the choir received great acclaim. Since 1987, Preston has continued to pursue an active career as a highly sought-after concert organist. He recorded the Saint-Saëns "Organ" Symphony with the Berlin Philharmonic under James Levine, the Poulenc Organ Concerto with the Boston Symphony and the Copland Symphony for Organ with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Preston was named International Performer of the Year in 1987 by the New York Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and recently named by Classic CD as one of "The Greatest Players of the Century" in a list drawn from the entire classical music world.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, presents the finest in orchestral and chamber music, recitals, new music, jazz, world music and holiday concerts at two of the most remarkable places anywhere to experience music - Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to a 30-week winter subscription season at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the LA Phil presents a 12-week summer festival at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and home of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. In fulfilling its commitment to the community, the Association's involvement with Los Angeles extends to educational programs, community concerts and children's programming, ever seeking to provide inspiration and delight to the broadest possible audience.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

FRIDAY, MAY 18, 2007 AT 8 PM

SATURDAY, MAY 19, 2007 AT 8 PM

SUNDAY, MAY 20, 2007 AT 2 PM

WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL, 111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC

MIGUEL HARTH-BEDOYA, conductor

DAWN UPSHAW, soprano

SIMON PRESTON, organ

BARBER Toccata Festiva

FOSS Time Cycle

GOLIJOV Three Songs for soprano and orchestra

BERNSTEIN Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

Upbeat Live, a free event open to all ticket holders, is held in BP Hall one hour before these performances featuring composer/conductor Russell Steinberg of the Los Angeles Youth Orchestra.

Acura is the sponsor for the May 18 Concert. Complimentary parking is being offered to all Acura vehicles entering Walt Disney Concert Hall for the Friday, May 18 concert. Also, all members of the audience are welcome to enjoy desserts and coffee immediately after the concert, courtesy of Acura.

Tickets ($39-$135) are on sale now online at LAPhil.com, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, or via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000. When available, choral bench seats ($15) will be released for sale to selected Philharmonic, Colburn Celebrity Recital, and Baroque Variations performances beginning at noon on the Tuesday of the second week prior to the concert. 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 10 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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