BEACH CITIES

SYMPHONY

NEWSLETTER

 

VOLUME VIII, NO. 4

MAY  2001

 

May 25, 2001 CONCERT PROGRAM

 

BIOGRAPHIES OF SOLOISTS & THEIR TEACHERS

 

CELEBRATING OUR CULTURES ON JUNE 3

 

MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL: FIRST CALL

 

2001-2002 CONCERT SCHEDULE

 

 

 

 

THE BEACH CITIES SYMPHONY PRESENTS

ARTISTS OF THE FUTURE

CONCERTO COMPETITION WINNERS

FRIDAY, MAY 25, 2001

CONCERT TIME: 8:15 P.M.

Pre-concert lecture: 7:30 P.M.

Marsee Auditorium, El Camino College

Information: (310) 379-9725 or (310) 539-4649

An Outdoor Overture by Aaron Copland

Piano Concerto in G, K. 453 (first movement) by W. A. Mozart
Kevin Hsieh, soloist

Capriccio Brillant, Opus 22 by Felix Mendelssohn
David Shieh, soloist

Piano Concerto in B Flat, K. 595 (first movement) by W. A. Mozart
Monica Liu, soloist

Totentanz: Paraphrase on "Dies Irae" by Franz Lizst
Eric Chang, soloist

Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 by Franz Lizst

ARTISTS & TEACHERS OF THE FUTURE: 2001

 

ERIC CHANG is an honor roll student at Palos Verdes Intermediate School who has been studying piano under Anli Lin Tong since age six. This is Eric's second time to solo with the Beach Cities Symphony; three years ago, then age ten, he performed the first movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 19.  This year we will hear his rendition of Liszt's Totentanz: Paraphrase on "Dies Irae."

Eric’s other awards include first prizes in the Southern California Junior Bach Festival concerto auditions, the Bellflower Concerto Competition, the 1998 Cypress College Piano Competition, the 1999 CAPMT Piano Sonata Competition, and the 1999 South Bay Scholarship Competition. He has soloed with the Los Angeles Bach Festival Orchestra and the Bellflower Symphony; he has also frequently performed ensemble with his sister Norine, a violinist. This year Eric received the Shirley and Jay Livingston Piano Scholarship to further his musical studies.

Like many 13-year-old boys, Eric is ecstatic about computers, video games, and sports, especially tennis.

 

KEVIN HSIEH, age eleven, is a sixth-grade honor roll student at Ridgecrest Intermediate School in Rancho Palos Verdes. He began his piano studies at age five and has been a student of Sylvia Ho since 1997. Kevin has won first place trophies in various categories at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival for the past three consecutive years. Last year, he was also named a winner at the Southern California Junior Bach Festival.  Recently he was awarded a scholarship by the Jascha Heifetz Society to participate in the master class of renowned pianist Frederic Chiu. On May 25 he will perform the first movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto in G, K. 453.

Kevin also plays violin and is an active member of his school orchestra as well as several community symphonies. He has many other interests which include reading, drawing, and playing computer games.

 

MONICA LIU, a fifth-grader at Vista Grande Elementary School in Rancho Palos Verdes, began her piano studies at age five and has been a student of Sylvia Ho for four years. Now ten years old, Monica is a four-time winner at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival Open Solo categories, and second place winner at the 2000 Cypress College Piano Competition. She was also awarded first prize trophy in the Young Artists Competition sponsored by the Chinese-American P.T.A. of Southern California in 1999. This past January, Monica was selected as a scholarship recipient to perform in a master class with pianist Gerald Robbins under the auspices of the Jascha Heifetz Society. She will be playing the first movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto in B flat, K. 595.

A straight-A student since third grade, Monica has been chosen to participate in the Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program for the past two years. She scored 99% in every category of the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT), Ninth Edition, last year. In her free time she enjoys reading, listening to music, ballet, and tennis.

 

DAVID SHIEH, who is fourteen years old, started playing the piano at age seven. His first teacher was Soomi Song Niiahara, and he is currently studying with Anli Lin Tong. David has been a three-time winner at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival as well as a three-time winner at the Southern California Junior Bach Festival. He has also been a two-time winner at the CAPMT Sonata Festival. For our concert he will be performing Mendelssohn's Capriccio Brillant, Op. 22.

David is in the ninth grade at Chadwick School, where he serves as Freshman Class Secretary. He also plays violin and is concertmaster at Chadwick. Last year he received a perfect score on the American Math Competition for eighth graders (AMC-8). His favorite sports are tennis and swimming.

 

SYLVIA HO made her formal New York debut at Carnegie Recital Hall after winning the Artists International Competition. After immigrating to the United States from Hong Kong, she studied at the Curtis Institute and then at Temple University, where she earned her Bachelor and Master of Music Degrees. She later attended Juilliard on a postgraduate scholarship. A former faculty member of the University of Texas at El Paso, Ms. Ho gives master classes and frequently adjudicates in piano competitions in addition to concertizing and teaching. Kevin and Monica are her fourth and fifth Artists of the Future winners; the others include Michael Chen (1995), Katherine Chen (1996), and Christine Ho (1997).

 

ANLI TONG, our January 2001 piano soloist, received her Bachelor and Master of Music Degrees from Juilliard after graduating from the Interlochen Arts Academy.  She maintains an active international solo and ensemble performance schedule and is also pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree on full scholarship at UCLA. Ms. Tong currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Music Teachers Association of California's South Bay branch. She has a private studio of select pupils who have won numerous competition prizes. In addition to Eric, her student Kevin Jung was an Artists of the Future soloist in 1999.

 

OUR ANNUAL MEMBERS  PARTY:

FOOD & CEREMONIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

 

Ceremonial tea-drinking, or chanoyu, was introduced into Japan from Korea and China in the 700s. At first the custom was followed mainly by emperors, members of the Imperial Court, and Buddhist priests. During the 1500s the ceremony was further developed and codified by the famed tea master Sen no Rikyu, whose teachings were handed down from generation to generation by his descendants and disciples. The tea ceremony remains a major cultural practice in Japan today.  Practiced properly,  says B. L. De Mente in Behind the Japanese Bow (1993),  a tea ceremony has a calming effect on the nerves and emotions, lowers blood pressure, and puts one in a peaceful mood.  But beyond such medicinal benefits, the Japanese tea ceremony focuses on the fundamental principles of Zen: harmony, purity, respect, and tranquility.

 

Our annual members' party on June 3 will provide the opportunity for you to witness a tea ceremony presided over by Mrs. Soyu Abe, who has studied and taught this graceful art form for more than thirty years, and Mrs. Itsumi Matsuo, former editor of Tanko Magazine. These ladies will open our celebration at 2 p.m. on a gentle, meditative note. As the party progresses, however, Las Adelitas folklorico dancers are guaranteed to quicken pulses, as will the jazz pianist representing America's contribution to music, and the delicious foods from many cultures and countries. Another highlight will be the silent auction featuring unusual and valuable prizes, including a one-week Wyoming dude ranch vacation for two. Bidding for auction items will close at 3:30, and the festivities will end an hour later.

 

This year, as last, the party will be held at the West End Tennis and Racquet Club in Torrance. Members and program advertisers will receive mailed invitations and maps in May. Mark your calendar now.

OUR 2001-2002 CONCERT SEASON

 

All concerts are on Friday at 8:15 p.m. in Marsee Auditorium at El Camino College.

 

Pre-concert lectures begin at 7:30 p.m.

 

 

November 16, 2001

Merry Overture by Matt Doran
Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini by Sergei Rachmaninoff
Daphnis & Chloe Suite, Suite No. 2 by Maurice Ravel

January 18, 2002

Symphonies of Wind Instruments      Igor Stravinsky

Violin Concerto in D Minor                 J. S. Bach

           Rebecca Rutkowski, Violin Soloist

Symphony No. 5, Op. 67                    L. van Beethoven

 

March 29, 2002

Royal Fireworks Music                       G. F. Handel (arr. Hardy)

Symphonic Variations                       Cesar Franck

           Linda Love, Piano Soloist

Death and Transfiguration                 Richard Strauss

 

May 24, 2002

Coppelia Ballet Suite No. 1                Leo Delibes

Rienzi Overture                                    Richard Wagner

MTAC Artists of the Future Concerto Soloists