Rolando Sanz and Elizabeth Caballero are ill-fated lovers in the Opera La Traviata at Pacific Symphony starting Feb. 20

Composer Giuseppe Verdi’s passionate story of a doomed love affair highlights the third season of Pacific Symphony’s “Symphonic Voices” initiative. Opera returns to Orange County as Music Director Carl St. Clair puts Verdi’s glorious works center stage. La Traviata will be performing Thurs, Feb. 20; Sat, Feb. 22; and Tues, Feb. 25, at 8 p.m., in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.

Guest vocalists joining the Pacific Symphony’s rendition of this Verdi classic piece include Tenor Rolando Sanz as Alfredo Germont and soprano Elizabeth Caballero as Violetta Valéry. Sanz and Caballero have been performing La Traviata around the country as part of the Opera’s 200th Anniversary in 2013.

“This is such a touching Opera of romance, love and loss that gives the performers a range of emotion to display through music and song,” said Sanz. “I looking forward to collaborating with Maestro St. Clair and the musicians of Pacific Symphony through this classic piece by Verdi.”

Sanz, a Yale University School of Music graduate, has performed with many different symphonies around the world in roles including Rodolfo in La Bohème with Palm Beach Opera and Opera Idaho, Nemorino in L’elisir d’Amore with Opera Idaho, Paolo in Rachmaninoff’s Francesca da Rimini with the Princeton Festival, Pinkerton (cov) in Madame Butterfly with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, and Duca di Mantua with Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra and Annapolis Opera.

Sanz was recently awarded First Place at the Florida Suncoast Opera Guild Competition, the Grand Prize as well as the Conductor Award and the Audience Choice Award at the Annapolis Opera Vocal Competition, and First Prize at the Marie E. Crump Vocal Competition.

Sanz and his brother, conductor Kristofer Sanz, are co-founders and Artistic Directors of a musical youth mentoring nonprofit called Young Artists of America (YAA). YAA was created to provide talented young musicians with exceptional opportunities to be mentored by professional artists while gaining experience in fully orchestrated performances of large-scale works of opera, musical theater, and oratorio.

“Artistically, my brother and I were always on separate paths with our music. I was following vocal training and he was more instrumental, so we really did not play music together when we were younger,” explained Sanz. “This organization gives us an opportunity to help young artists and come together for a common cause although our schedules do not always permit us to work with the youth organization at the same times.”

Cuban American Caballero has been heard in many theaters throughout North America including the Metropolitan Opera, Seattle Opera, Florida Grand Opera, New York City and many others.

“Caballero and I have really enjoyed performing La Traviata around the country for the Opera’s anniversary,” said Sanz. “There is always a new excitement performing such a powerful piece with a new symphony and in front of a different audience.”

Verdi’s Opera tells the story of Violetta Valery, a Parisian courtesan and an unfortunate heroine who captures our sympathies from the very first chords of La Traviata. Among the many unique qualities of this opera, Verdi gives the audience a character study of a woman more layered and intimately observed than any of his other female characters.

Playing the part of Alfredo, I think it is important to focus on what a romantic he is in his love for Violetta,” said Sanz. “This is so new to her and helps her fall in love with him.”

Her contradictory mix of glittering charm, inner goodness and social disapprobation attracted Verdi, who had known his share of ostracism. Because the darker realities of the courtesan’s life went unspoken in polite society, they were often eclipsed by its luxurious refinements. Courtesans were beautiful women surrounded by beautiful things and even respected as arbiters of fashion, but they were also virtually owned by men who sexually objectified them, sometimes brutally. They were kept only as long as it pleased their patrons to do so.

Also joining the Pacific Symphony to help tell the story of this ill-fated romance is A. Scott Parry and Mark Delavan. Parry productions have spanned an enormous range of repertoire, from “West Side Story” to “Madama Butterfly” and “La Bohéme” to “La Cage aux Folles.” Delavan is sought after throughout the United States and Europe for the most demanding roles in his repertoire including performances of Gianciotto in Zandonai’s Francesca da Rimini at the Metropolitan Opera, the title role in Rigoletto for Pittsburgh Opera, Scarpia in Tosca for San Francisco Opera, the Dutchman in Der Fliegende Holländer at the Princeton Music Festival.

A preview talk with Alan Chapman begins at 7 p.m. Tickets for all performances are $25 to $109. For more information or to purchase tickets, call (714) 755-5799 or visit www.PacificSymphony.org

John Williams conducts the Pacific Symphony Feb. 6

In a career that spans five decades, John Williams has become one of America’s most accomplished and successful composers for film and for the concert stage. Williams will bring some of his most famous compositions to life as he conducts the Pacific Symphony on Thurs, Feb. 6 for a one-night engagement at Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.

Williams composed the music and served as music director for more than one hundred films. His 40-year artistic partnership with director Steven Spielberg has resulted in many of Hollywood’s most acclaimed and successful films, including Schindler’s List, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the Indiana Jones films, Saving Private Ryan, Amistad, Munich, Hook, Catch Me If You Can, Minority Report, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Empire of the Sun, The Adventures of TinTin and War Horse.

He has worked with many legendary directors, including Alfred Hitchcock, William Wyler and Robert Altman. In 1971, he adapted the score for the film version of Fiddler on the Roof, for which he composed original violin cadenzas for renowned virtuoso Isaac Stern.

Williams has received five Academy Awards and 48 Oscar nominations, making him the Academy’s most-nominated living person and the second-most nominated person in the history of the Oscars. He also has received seven British Academy Awards (BAFTA), 21 Grammys, four Golden Globes, five Emmys, and numerous gold and platinum records.

Born and raised in New York, Williams moved to Los Angeles with his family in 1948, where he studied composition with Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. After service in the Air Force, he returned to New York to attend The Juilliard School Of The Arts, where he studied piano with Madame Rosina Lhevinne.

While in New York, he also worked as a jazz pianist, both in nightclubs and on recordings. He returned to Los Angeles and began his career in the film industry, working with a number of accomplished composers including Bernard Herrmann, Alfred Newman and Franz Waxman. He went on to write music for more than 200 television films for the groundbreaking, early anthology series Alcoa Theatre, Kraft Television Theatre, Chrysler Theatre and Playhouse 90.

In January 1980, Williams was named 19th music director of the Boston Pops Orchestra, succeeding the legendary Arthur Fiedler. He currently holds the title of Boston Pops laureate conductor, which he assumed following his retirement in December 1993, after 14 highly successful seasons. He also holds the title of artist-in-residence at Tanglewood.

Williams holds honorary degrees from 21 American universities, and was a recipient of the Kennedy Center Honor in December of 2004. Williams was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2009, and in January of that same year he composed and arranged Air and Simple Gifts especially for the first inaugural ceremony of President Barack Obama.

Soprano Opera singer, Golda Berkman, performance for Dream Orchestra at UCI’s Barclay Theatre Jan. 25

The Dream Orchestra will be performing Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 “From the New World,” Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 (pianist Hai-Kyung Suh), and “Chi il Bel Sogno,” from Puccini’s La Rondine (soprano Golda Berkman) and The Hopes and Dreams Medley on Jan. 25 at UC Irvine’s Barclay Theater. ‬

With the conductor’s survival through cancer, the orchestra will be wearing pink ribbons during the show for cancer awareness. The 60-piece orchestra will also be honoring cancer survivors that night.

The performance will bring together a diverse show featuring the young Opera singer, Golda Berkman. Soprano Berkman has been presented with the “Most Accomplished Young Opera Singer of 2013” award as well as receiving the Young Musicians Foundation Scholarship of Merit Award.

The OC Concert Guide spoke with 14-year-old Berkman and her father, Dream Orchestra’s sponsor Shallom Berkman, about the debut of Dream Orchestra’s 2014 season with conductor Maestro Daniel Suk.

OCCG: Who are your musical inspirations?
Golda Berkman (GB): My musical inspirations vary from genre to genre – for opera, my musical inspiration is one and only Renata Tebaldi! When I was very little, my parents always played classical music at home – I was exposed to the opera genre from the beginning. On the other hand I also love musical theater – I grew up watching all the classic Disney movies with the beautiful songs. Now as a teenager – my dad introduced me to the Beatles and I am a huge Beatles fan!

Shallom Berkman (SB): Golda has been studying singing since she was 5 years old. She began studying opera and classic music exclusively at the age of 8. Golda is also a classical pianist and a composer – she writes and reads music. Even though her passion is singing opera Golda is obsessed with The Beatles, and classic rock from the 60’s and 70’s such as Creedance Clearwater and The Doors. She sings primarily classical and opera arias, as well as musical theater pieces.

OCCG: When performing, what emotions do you try to evoke from the audience?
GB: I want to impact my audience and hopefully have them be transcended from the concerns of day. I hope that I can communicate deep emotion to my audience and bring happiness to the world.

Pianist, Hai-Kyung Suh, plays Rachmaninoff with Dream Orchestra at The Barclay Theatre

SB: The Barclay concert is a vision of Maestro Daniel Suk who is the founder and leader of Dream Orchestra. The Orchestra is a fully paid union, professional orchestra with the finest musicians from around the world and known icons such as LA Philharmonic and La Opera. The goal is to bring great music to the world as often as possible and inspire the next generation of classical music lovers. Maestro Suk discovered my daughter Golda when he approached the music teachers of Colburn Music School last year to find great young prodigy musicians. My daughter Golda was recommended as the top voice student. She had been studying opera at Colburn privately since she was 8 years old. Golda performed with the Dream Orchestra several times last spring to standing ovations and crowds of up to 1500! Maestro Suk has planned this to be the debut concert for Dream Orchestra and hopes that it will be the best event of the year!

OCCG: How did Hai-Kyung Suh impact the group emotionally and musically?
GB: Hai-Kyung Suh is one of the leading female pianists in world! Maestro Suk said that her interpretation of Rachmaninov makes him cry.

OCCG: Who decides each piece played during performances?
GB: Maestro Suk – is the music director of Dream Orchestra

OCCG: How does diversity play into the orchestra? What advantages does it bring to the performance?
SB: This is the most diverse orchestra I have ever seen – not just in diversity of race & culture, but of age as well. I believe that the diversity of the Dream Orchestra will help connect with and inspire a much larger audience, and also a younger audience – hopefully to inspire the next generation of classical musical lovers!

OCCG: Anything you’d like to add?
SB: The concert will be at the Irvine Barclay Theater in Irvine, CA on Saturday, January 25th at 7:30pm. The tickets can be purchased at www.ladreamorchestra.com or thebarclay.org. Ticket prices range from $30 to $100. Maestro Suk will lead the orchestra with Dvorak’s Symphony #9 “From The New World”, Hai-Kyung Suh will play Rachmaninov Piano Concerto #2, and Golda Berkman will sing “Chi il Bel Sogno” from Puccini’s La Rondine and “The Hopes and Dreams Medley” – which is a medley of arias arranged exclusively for this performance for the first time ever.

Halloween Masquerade comes to Pacific Symphony’s Family Series Oct. 26

Come celebrate a multi-cultural Halloween with Pacific Symphony’s “Halloween Masquerade.” This holiday performance showcases the music and traditions of Halloween as well as two Latin American holidays, Día de los Muertos and Día de las Mascaradas. The concert takes place Sat, Oct. 26, with two performances at 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.

“There are so many rich traditions throughout the America’s surrounding the fall holidays so I am using these compositions to help the audience lean about the strong connections between Halloween in the U.S., Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) in most Latin American countries, especially in Mexico, and Día de las Mascaradas, of my home country, Costa Rica,” explains Pacific Symphony’s Assistant Conductor Alejandro Gutiérrez. “I always imagine that everyone in attendance is a child so I try to make the concert really interactive between the music and the audience.”

This spooky, fun and educational family concert features thrilling and mysterious Halloween favorites such as John Williams’ “Hedwig’s Theme” from “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” and Paul Dukas’ “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.” Also selections from Stravinsky’s “The Firebird” are magically coupled with famous Latin American compositions to inspire imaginations to help introduce children to different cultures.

“The piece by Stravinsky is a good example of how a composer uses instruments to create spooky music,” said Gutiérrez. “Also, the Latin selections are very rich in so many rhythmic elements with the use of percussion instruments, which is so prevalent in Latin cultural music.”

Children and their families are invited to come dressed in a costume or mask, and also attend the Musical Carnival beginning at 9:15 a.m. (for the 10 a.m. concert) and 12:15 p.m. (for the 11:30 a.m. concert). Children may participate in a variety of hands-on activities including Ask the Orchestra, Meet the Musicians, mask and pumpkin decorating, Rhythm Station and a costume parade around musical chairs.

Led by Gutiérrez, the 45-minute concert also includes Carlos Guzmán’s “Costa Rican Inspirations,” an example of music played during the Día de las Mascaradas, Arturo Márquez’ Danzon No. 2, featuring an interactive rhythm activity with the audience, and José Pablo Moncayo’s festive “Huapango,” ending the concert with a big dance celebration.

Taking the audience on this musical adventure across the three holidays is a story written and directed by Joe Lauderdale, which features Maria Simeone as the Shadow Sorcerer and three children played by Blake Kenzie, Charlotte Rubino and Laura Gutiérrez.

Two children arrive on stage ready to celebrate Halloween only to find a magical wand left by the Shadow Sorcerer. Waving the Sorcerer’s wand, the children accidentally cast a spell on the orchestra, which plays Dukas’ “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice,” well known from the Disney film “Fantasia.” The Shadow Sorcerer returns to help the children undo the spell, enchanting the children’s wands. When they point at sections of the orchestra, they begin to play the magical “Hedwig’s Theme” from the “Harry Potter” movies, with its whimsical and bewitching melody.

The children soon realize the music is being controlled by another person holding a wand—Maestro Gutiérrez, who shares that in Costa Rica, where he is from, they celebrate Día de las Mascaradas. While images of the festivities are projected above the stage, the orchestra plays Guzmán’s “Costa Rican Inspirations,” music that people dance to in the streets during the annual Oct. 31 festival.

The concert concludes with a huge celebration and dancing as the orchestra performs Moncayo’s “Huapango,” a short and colorful symphonic piece that is so popular in Mexico, it’s considered the country’s second national anthem.

“As the leader of the Pacific Symphony’s Family Program, I try to create a variety of themes that helps the younger audience explore the joy of different styles of music,” Gutiérrez says. “I hope to help inspire a new generation of listeners to learn and explore more about classic music.”

Tickets are $19-39; for more information or to purchase tickets call (714) 755-5799 or visit www.PacificSymphony.org.