Dec. 4 & 5: Grammy-winning Conductor Michael Christie Leads New West Symphony in Inaugural Holiday Performances – Tales of Winter

Grammy-winning Conductor Michael Christie
Leads New West Symphony in Inaugural Holiday Performances
Tales of Winter

Saturday, December 4, 2021 at 7:30pm | Thousand Oaks
Kavli Theatre, Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza 

Sunday, December 5, 2021 at 3pm | Camarillo
Rancho Campana Performing Arts Center 

Tickets and Information: www.newwestsymphony.org/2021-22-season/tales-of-winter 

“[New West Symphony is] embracing the mission of refreshing the modern concert experience for a new generation” – Los Angeles Times

www.michaelchristieonline.com

Los Angeles, CA – Following a successful return to live performances in October, the New West Symphony, led by Grammy-winning artistic and music director Michael Christie, is celebrating the season with its first-ever holiday performances on December 4 and 5, 2021. Tales of Winter is a program of winter-inspired symphonic classics and holiday season favorites designed to bring the magic of the season to all ages. 

“It has been a longstanding dream to inaugurate a new holiday tradition to welcome the winter season for our region’s families,” says Christie. “This special program is a mix of holiday and seasonal favorites with gorgeous symphonic works inspired by winter sights and sounds from around the world. Patrons will experience an array of SoCal and Mexican holiday traditions including our own concert hall rendition of Las Posadas (“The Inns” festival) led by regional Son Jarocho favorites Cambalache.

The concert, which will mark a return to the symphony’s regular venues in Thousand Oaks and Camarillo, will also present a new holiday masterwork by Pauline Frechette, one of the most creative composers in the region today. Her Tales of Winter features New West Symphony and California Contemporary Ballet, a perfect match for the occasion. To keep spirits bright, Southern California’s hysterical comedian and impressionist, Jim Meskimen, will serve as the special guest host. 

“We’re looking forward to celebrating the holiday season and welcoming our audiences back to live music in our regular venues. The operations at both locations will be handled according to the latest Covid-19 protocols in place, giving concert-goers confidence that they can come together safely to enjoy live music again,” said Natalia Staneva, CEO of the New West Symphony

Prior to the December 4th performance, a first-annual Winterfest celebration dinner and reception will be hosted at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. The special event will honor long-time supporters Harry & Pat Croner and Marilyn & Stan Sutton for their contributions, while providing further holiday-themed entertainment for attendees. 

For more information on Tales of Winter, the Winterfest pre-concert experience, and the New West Symphony’s full season, please visit www.NewWestSymphony.org. 

Tickets & Information
Starting at $30
www.newwestsymphony.org/2021-22-season/tales-of-winter
866.776.8400 

Program for Tales of Winter
TCHAIKOVSKY | Selections from The Nutcracker
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV | Snow Maiden Suite
WALDTEUFEL | Skater’s Waltz
FRY | The Twelfth Elf
FRECHETTE | Tales of Winter
ANDERSON | Sleigh Ride

Dates & Venues
December 4, 2021, 7:30pm | Thousand Oaks
Kavli Theatre, Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza
2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362

December 5, 2021. 3:00pm | Camarillo
Rancho Campana Performing Arts Center
4235 Mar Vista Dr, Camarillo, CA 93010

About Michael Christie: Grammy-winning conductor Michael Christie is a thoughtfully innovative conductor, equally at home in the symphonic and opera worlds, who is focused on making the audience experience at his performances entertaining, enlightening, and enriching. The New York Times reports, “Michael Christie is a director open to adventure and challenge,” and the Cincinnati Enquirer declares, “If Michael Christie represents the future of music in this country, the future looks promising indeed.” 

Christie was featured in Opera News in August 2012 as one of 25 people believed to “break out and become major forces in the field in the coming decade.” At Minnesota Opera, Christie led 24 productions over eight years, six seasons as its first-ever Music Director (2012-2018). Other recent highlights include leading performances with Washington National Opera, Opéra de Montréal, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Lyric Opera of Kansas City, Des Moines Metro Opera, and Michigan Opera Theatre. Deeply committed to bringing new works to life, Michael Christie has championed commissions by leading and emerging composers alike, including Mark Adamo, Mason Bates, Unsuk Chin, Michael Daugherty, Osvaldo Golijov, Mark Grey, Daron Hagen, Jennifer Higdon, Matthew Hindson, Huang Ruo, Marjan Mozetich, Stephen Paulus, Kevin Puts, and more.

Michael Christie has been a strong proponent of multicultural programming throughout his career. He created a World Music Festival at the Phoenix Symphony and a World Music Series at the Colorado Music Festival. As Chief Conductor of the Queensland Orchestra in Australia, he toured Japan and recorded his debut album with didgeridoo player William Barton. With the Phoenix Symphony, he premiered and recorded Mark Grey’s Enemy Slayer: A Navajo Oratorio, libretto by Navajo poet Laura Tohe. While Music Director of the Brooklyn Philharmonic, he led performances of Tan Dun’s The Gate and created the orchestra’s Nuevo Latino Festival.

Christie’s conducting career, spanning more than 20 years, has included serving as Music Director of the Phoenix Symphony (2005-2013) and Brooklyn Philharmonic (2005-2010), and as Chief Conductor of the Queensland Orchestra (2001-2004) in Australia, as well as guest appearances leading the Los Angeles Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Rhode Island Philharmonic, and the Symphonies of Dallas, St. Louis, Atlanta, Houston, Minnesota, Oregon, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and Santa Rosa. Christie’s many European engagements have included leading the Rotterdam Philharmonic, DSO Berlin, Orchestre National de Lille, Swedish and Netherlands Radio Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, NDR Hannover Orchestra and the Czech Philharmonic. In addition, Christie enjoys a strong profile in Australia, where he has conducted the Sydney Symphony, Tasmanian Symphony, Opera Queensland, and the Western Australian Symphony in Perth.

Michael Christie first came to international attention in 1995 when he was awarded a special prize for “Outstanding Potential” at the First International Sibelius Conductors’ Competition in Helsinki. Following the competition, he was invited to become an apprentice conductor with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra where he subsequently worked with Daniel Barenboim as well as at the Berlin State Opera during the 1996-1997 season. For more information, visit www.michaelchristieonline.com.

About the New West Symphony: Founded in 1995, the New West Symphony is a professional orchestra that draws its players from the rich talent pool of professional Los Angeles-area musicians. The Symphony is the resident company of the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza. It presents six Masterpiece Series concerts annually and provides a number of educational opportunities for local youth through its annual “Symphonic Adventures” concerts and the Laby Harmony Project for under resourced youth. Its mission is to inspire passion for symphonic music through live performances and education initiatives that engage and enrich its diverse audiences.