Program Continues Philharmonic's Sounds About Town Series Highlighting Los Angeles Area's Premier Youth Orchestras

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15, AT 7:30 PM

Former Los Angeles Philharmonic Principal Cellist Ronald Leonard conducts the Colburn Chamber Orchestra-an ensemble composed of young musicians from the Colburn School-in the second Sounds About Town program at Walt Disney Concert Hall on Sunday, February 15, at 7:30 p.m. Leonard shares the podium with Colburn Chamber Orchestra Associate Conductor Joni Lynn Steshko, who also leads the orchestra in this performance.

The program includes works by Britten, Giannini, Flagello, and Suk, and marks the first time Leonard has collaborated with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association since retiring in 2000 after serving 25 years as the orchestra's principal cellist.

The Sounds About Town series is a program of six Sunday evenings at Walt Disney Concert Hall highlighting the Los Angeles area's premier youth orchestras. The series continues with the American Youth Symphony on February 22; daKAH hip hop orchestra on March 14; the USC Thornton Symphony on April 18; and the Young Musicians Foundation Debut Orchestra on May 2.

Conductor RONALD LEONARD retired in 2000 after 25 years as principal cellist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He is well known as a teacher, conductor, and musician. He has appeared as soloist with leading orchestras throughout the United States under the direction of such conductors as Zubin Mehta, Michael Tilson Thomas, Sir Charles Groves, Carlo Maria Giulini, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Herbert Blomstedt, Giuseppe Sinopoli, and André Previn. A critically acclaimed chamber music performer, Leonard has been a Marlboro Festival participant including tours and recordings, and he is a former member of the Hartwell, Vermeer, and Eastman quartets. In May 1996, Leonard was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in recognition of his achievements in the field of music.

JONI LYNN STESHKO currently serves as the Associate Conductor of the Colburn Chamber Orchestra at the Colburn School for the Performing Arts, where she is also co-director of the Colburn String Orchestra. In addition, she is the conductor of the New California Conservatory Orchestra in Buena Park. In 2000-2001 she was Guest Conductor at Chapman University, where she conducted the Chapman Symphony Orchestra, the Chapman University Chamber Orchestra, and the Chapman Opera, and taught orchestra conducting. She has served as Manager of Orchestra Programs at the USC Thornton School of Music, where she administered the USC Thornton Symphony (Sergiu Comissiona, Principal Conductor), the Thornton Chamber Orchestra (Yehuda Gilad, Artistic Director), and USC Thornton Opera (Timothy Lindberg, Conductor). For three years, she was the Assistant Conductor of the USC Symphony, the USC Chamber Orchestra, and USC Opera, as well as conductor of the USC Conductors' Orchestra. Steshko has conducted orchestras throughout North America and in St. Petersburg, Russia, including the Santa Barbara Symphony, the St. Petersburg (Russia) Congress Orchestra, and the Huntsville (Canada) Festival Orchestra. She has conducted university and conservatory orchestras at the University of California, Los Angeles, and California State University (Fullerton), as well as the Irvine Youth Symphony and the orchestra of the California State University Northridge Youth Academy. Dr. Steshko is a graduate of the renowned conducting program of the University of Southern California, where she studied with Daniel Lewis.

The COLBURN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA performs a wide variety of repertoire from baroque to contemporary in various venues. Recent projects have included concert tours of England and San Francisco, the recording of Metamorphosen on the Ambassador Label, and the inauguration of a Distinguished Faculty Recital Series at the Colburn School's Zipper Concert Hall. The Colburn School's mission is to provide the highest quality of performing arts education possible to young people as early as possible in their lives. The School emphasizes chamber music and has five levels of orchestra. The Colburn Chamber Orchestra concerts at LACMA are broadcast live on K-Mozart radio.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15, AT 7:30 PM

WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL

111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

COLBURN CHAMBER ORCHESTRA

RONALD LEONARD, conductor

JONI LYNN STESHKO, associate conductor

BRITTEN Simple Symphony

GIANNINI Prelude and Fugue

FLAGELLO Andante Languido

SUK Serenade, Op. 6

Tickets ($15 - $35) are on sale now at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, online at LAPhil.com, or via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for special discounts for selected concerts and seating areas. For more information, please call 323.850.2000.

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01/13/04