Hollywood Master Chorale in concert June 12

For the first time in its 16-year history, the Hollywood Master Chorale (HMC) will collaborate with another long-established community choir, the Ebell Chorale, when it presents its final concert of the 2010-2011 season, Beethoven and Beyond, on Sunday evening, June 12, at 7 p.m. at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles.

But the collaboration does not stop there, adds Board President Lyndia Lowy. “We are also pleased to be performing with the oldest community orchestra in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Doctor’s Symphony,” says Lowy. “It brings the total number of performers to almost100 musicians, including some extraordinary soloists.”

Joining the chorales for Beethoven’s Fantasia for Piano, Chorus and Orchestra is upcoming piano virtuoso Esther Keel. A native of Los Angeles, Keel received music training at both Juilliard and the Coburn School. She has been featured in international competitions and concerts worldwide as well as performances throughout the greater Los Angeles area.

“Esther Keel is a terrific talent, a real young star,” says Jeffrey Bernstein, Music Director. “Her playing is pyrotechnical and sensitive, and I’m very much looking forward to our collaboration.”

In addition, HMC’s performance of Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms will feature another rising musical star – 12-year old boy soprano Caleb Glickman. A member of the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, Glickman has developed an impressive resume, singing throughout the Western US for the past 6 years. Most recently, he performed the title role in Amahl and the Night Visitors last December with Intimate Opera Pasadena and was cast in LA Opera’s Turn of the Screw this spring.

Bernstein numbers among Glickman’s most ardent fans. “Caleb is not only blessed with a sensational natural voice, but he is a very bright and skilled musician as well, ” explains Bernstein, who as music director for the production of Amahl and the Night Visitors, worked extensively with the boy soprano. “Leonard Bernstein specifically indicates that the solo in Chichester Psalms is to be sung by a boy and, the very first time I heard Caleb sing, I knew this solo was written for him.”

Audiences will share both his enthusiasm for Glickman’s performance and the work itself, Bernstein adds. “The Chichester Psalms is a delightful piece, written in Leonard Bernstein’s most lovable style,” says Bernstein. “It’s jazzy and syncopated in places, raucous and boisterous and, ultimately, serene and irresistibly romantic.”

Tickets for Beethoven and Beyond are reasonably priced at $20.00/person and available either through the Chorale’s website, www.hollywoodmasterchorale.org or through Tix.com. Immanuel Presbyterian Church is located at 3300 Wilshire Boulevard; Los Angeles, CA. 90010. For more information, call 323.960.4349

“This ambitious program recognizes some of the extraordinary talent available to Los Angeles,” concludes Lowy. “We are pleased that we have the support of both the City and County of Los Angeles to help support our endeavors and look forward to welcoming many members of the community to Beethoven and Beyond. They won’t be disappointed.”