One of the ways that Marcelo Lehninger has put his stamp on the New West Symphony’s Masterpiece Series concerts during his four-year tenure as music director has been to include a new work of note on each program, or a unique way of presenting the program to enhance audience enjoyment. The final concert of the Symphony’s 2015-2016 Season, The Symphony Rocks, may be one of his most intriguing programs yet.
On May 12 at 7:30 pm Maestro Lehninger will lead the orchestra at Santa Monica’s Barnum Hall in the West Coast premiere of Stewart Copeland’s new work, Tyrant’s Crush. Internationally known as one of rock’s foremost drummers, Stewart Copeland also composes for orchestra, film and television. Tyrant’s Crush is a three-movement score that features Mr. Copeland on drum set and highlights the percussion and timpani sections, and is accompanied by the rest of the orchestra. The world premiere of Tyrant’s Crush was performed in February 2016 by the Pittsburgh Symphony, which commissioned the work. That concert was also led by Marcelo Lehninger as guest conductor.
Two well-known classical works will also be presented on the New West Symphony program: Johann Strauss’ Jr.’s sparkling Overture to Die Fledermaus and Richard Strauss’ Suite from Der Rosenkavalier.
Maestro Lehninger is enthusiastic about the program. “The audience is going to have a lot of fun; Tyrant’s Crush is easy to listen to and really entertaining. The other pieces that I have chosen are from operettas, or comic operas. The sparkling Die Fledermaus Overture and the dramatic yet delightful Der Rosenkavalier Suite provide moments that range from extreme happiness to very dramatic, and end in the grandest way.”
“When we premiered Tyrant’s Crush in Pittsburgh, Marcelo Lehninger and I found that there’s no reason a supposedly ‘classical’ orchestra can’t burn the house down as well as any rock band,” said Mr. Copeland. “I hope the folks on the West Coast get that same excitement when we fire up the percussions in May with the New West Symphony.”
The performance will be repeated Friday, May 13 at 8:00 pm at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center, located at 800 Hobson Way in Oxnard; and Saturday, May 14 at 8:00 pm at the Thousand Oaks Civic Art Plaza, located at 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. in Thousand Oaks.
Tickets are available by phone 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday at 866-776-8400; at the New West Symphony office 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday; and through the Symphony web site 24/7 at newwestsymphony.org. Tickets are also available at the respective concert hall box offices the day of performance.
About the Music
The first movement of Tyrant’s Crush, entitled “Poltroons in Paradise”, is about those who ride in on the back of a revolution and then discover the temptation of things against which they had revolted. The movement is followed by “Monster Just Needed Love (but ate the children anyway)”, and “Over the Wall (or up against it)”. The work speaks of the profound social awareness that Stewart Copeland finds inherent in music.
Die Fledermaus (“The Bat”) is filled with mistaken and concealed identities, glittering balls, assignations and an unquenchable joie de vivre, and the Overture perfectly reflects the heady world of champagne, Schlag and chambres séparées. The Suite from Der Rosenkavalier includes a rousing selection of waltzes and some of the most memorable music to emerge from the opera house in the 20th century. For complete program notes, click here.
Hear & Now Live, a lively, 30-minute pre-concert talk, will take place one hour before each performance. The commentator for this talk is director and composer Veronika Krausas.
Stewart Copeland’s appearance is underwritten by generous gifts from Karen and Dr. Paul Finkle and Penny and Doug Yarrow. The concert is sponsored by Pepperdine University, Lawrence Janss, Guitar Center Westlake Village and Pacific Western Bank. The West Coast Premiere of Tyrant’s Crush is sponsored by the Zobelein Debut Fund. In-Kind Sponsorship is provided by Hyatt Regency Westlake Village; Meet the Artist sponsorship is provided by University Village of Thousand Oaks; and Los Robles Hospital is the Symphony’s community partner in conjunction with National Healthcare Worker’s Week.
About the New West Symphony
Founded in 1995, the New West Symphony is a professional orchestra that draws it’s players from the rich talent pool of professional Los Angeles-area musicians. Led by music director Marcelo Lehninger, the Symphony is the resident company of the Oxnard Performing
Arts Center, the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, and Barnum Hall in Santa Monica. It presents six Masterpiece Series concerts annually, performing major works from the symphonic repertoire with internationally-acclaimed artists as guest soloists.
The Symphony also provides quality outreach and educational opportunities for the communities it serves through its annual Symphonic Adventures concert programs for youth, its traveling Music Van, and its New West Symphony Harmony Project of Ventura County, a year-round, tuition-free music and leadership program for underserved students.
New West Symphony
2015/2016 Masterpiece Series Concert No. 6
Marcelo Lehninger, conductor
Stewart Copeland, drums
COPELAND Tyrant’s Crush
JOHANN STRAUSS, JR Overture to Die Fledermaus
RICHARD STRAUSE Suite from Der Rosenkavalier
Thursday, May 12, 2016 7:30 pm
Barnum Hall 600 Olympic Blvd, Santa Monica
Friday, May 13, 2016 8:00 pm
Oxnard Performing Arts Center
800 Hobson Way, Oxnard
Saturday, May 14, 2016 8:00 pm
Thousand Oaks Performing Arts Center
2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks
