Norton Simon Museum summer concert series kicks off June 15

The Norton Simon Museum Presents the Sixth Season of its Popular Summer Concert Series
June – September 2012

Featuring musical performances held in the Museum’s galleries and theater on select Friday evenings at 7:00 p.m., the series includes favorite performers such as Polli Chambers-Salazar and the Odeum Guitar Duo, as well as new musicians.

Performances are free with Museum admission and no reservations are required. Stickers for ensured seating are distributed in the Main Entrance gallery starting at 6:00 p.m. Members enjoy early seating between 6:30 and 6:45 p.m.; general admission seating begins at 6:45 p.m.

Concerts include:

From Renoir to Ravel: Impressionism in Art and Music
Dr. Polli Chambers-Salazar, pianist
Friday, June 15, 7:00–8:00 p.m.
In the late 19th century, painters such as Monet, Renoir and Degas painted shimmering, light-filled pictures that came to be known as “Impressionist.” Not long after, Debussy and Ravel experimented with sound and harmonic color in their compositions in a manner that captured a fleeting impression or mood. Dr. Polli Chambers-Salazar performs a variety of piano works that feature the Impressionist style and discusses the connections between the art and music of that era.
Presented in the Museum’s theater.

Celebrating Sakura: Japanese Music for Clarinet Choir
Los Angeles Clarinet Choir, directed by Margaret Thornhill
Friday, June 29, 7:00–8:00 p.m.
Inspired by the exhibition Lessons of the Cherry Blossom: Japanese Woodblock Prints, the Los Angeles Clarinet Choir—an ensemble of 16 accomplished musicians performing on soprano, sopranino, alto, bass and contrabass clarinets under the direction of Margaret Thornhill—offers a unique, springtime-themed program of classical music and arrangements by contemporary Japanese composers. Featured works include Toshinari Ijima’s Prelude for Thawing, describing the seasonal thaw and spring flowering; Itaru Sakai’s romantic-sounding Journey of Leaf; and the traditional folk song Sakura (Cherry Blossom). Works by Western composers who were inspired by Japanese culture, such as Claude Debussy and the jazz composer Andy Scott, are also included.
Presented in the Museum’s theater.

Enchantments of Iberia
The Odeum Guitar Duo, Robert Wetzel and Fred Benedetti
Friday, July 27, 7:00–8:00 p.m.
Because of the unique sonority that two Spanish guitars can provide, the Odeum Guitar Duo unequivocally lends itself to expressing the intrinsic qualities of music from the Iberian Peninsula: sparkling virtuosity, expressions of ardor, elegant restraint, lucid and delicate webs of interacting melodic fluctuations inspired by Moorish elements as well as surprising rhythmic and harmonic combinations. Enjoy your evening as the Odeum Guitar Duo traces the music of Iberia expressed through the region’s most popular instrument, the Spanish guitar, times two. Musical works by Scarlatti, Albéniz, Granados, Turina, de Falla and others reflect the Museum’s collection of Spanish masterpieces from the 17th to 20th centuries.
Presented in the Museum’s theater.

Contemporary Solo Cello Music: A Retrospective
Maksim Velichkin, cellist
Friday, August 17, 7:00–8:00 p.m.
The cultural landscape of the 20th century brought about an unprecedented spectrum of diversity, bursting with unexpected, yet logical and necessary “revolutions.” Art and music were in the vanguard of this socio-cultural vortex. Cellist Maksim Velichkin performs music of the modern era in the Museum’s 20th-century gallery, allowing the artworks and music to mingle once again.
Presented in the Museum’s 20th-century gallery.

French Piano Music after Impressionism
David Rubinstein, pianist
Friday, September 14, 7:00–8:00 p.m.
In the mid-19th century, Impressionist painters offered an alternative to the excesses of Romanticism by experimenting with new combinations of color, texture and subject matter. At the same time, music began its own departure as composers experimented with new combinations of musical imagery. Pianist David Rubinstein presents an evening of delightful French piano works by Debussy, Ravel, Satie, Poulenc and Massenet.
Presented in the Museum’s theater.

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