LACO Close Quarters Episode 13 Features World Premiere by Peter Shin

In this star-studded episode of Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s CLOSE QUARTERS interdisciplinary digital series melding musical and visual arts, guest conductor Grant Gershon leads the LACO-commissioned world premiere of Hyo by 2020-21 Sound Investment Composer Peter S. Shin. Additionally, internationally renowned soprano and native Californian Nicole Cabell makes her LACO debut performing Britten’s Les illuminations, a song cycle set to the poetry of Arthur Rimbaud, and Lumee’s Aria from the Pulitzer Prize-winning opera p r i s m by LACO Creative Advisor and Composer in Residence Ellen Reid. Shin’s premiere incorporates animation and drawn portraiture by visual artist Jian Lee as part of a pioneering collaboration in which Shin and Lee are actively working together to conjure up visuals as the piece is written in real time throughout the multi-month artistic process. The Britten and Reid segments, cinematic in nature, spotlight collaborations with stage director George Miller, choreographer Rebecca Steinberg and dancers Layne Paradis Willis and Joe Davis. LACO Creative Director of Digital Content James Darrah provides visual curation. Thanks to the generosity of individual donors, the new episode is available to the public at no cost and can be streamed on demand following its premiere on Friday, May 21, 2021, at 6:30 pm (PT), at https://www.laco.org/close-quarters/, LACO’s YouTube and Facebook live channels.

Shin describes Hyo, which is related to self and identity, as “a deeply personal and hopeful narrative about filial piety, an important and uniquely Korean virtue embracing dutiful respect, obedience and caring for one’s parents and elderly family members.” It was composed during the pandemic, which he says stirred in him “a strong feeling of anxiety about my responsibility to protect the health and safety of my parents, which was heightened by the anti-Asian American sentiment inflamed by COVID-19.”

Regarding his “real time” virtual artistic collaboration with visual artist Jian Lee, Shin states, “What I like about Jian’s portraiture is that, upon first glance, it seems uncanny but also eerily innocent, whimsical, graceful and elegant, sort of how my music extends from a dark experience and transforms into a more hopeful tone. I immediately felt a kinship to her work.”

LACO commissioned Shin – “a composer to watch” whose music is “entirely fresh and personal” (The New York Times) – as part of the Orchestra’s singular Sound Investment commissioning program that engages LACO audiences in developing new works. Sound Investment donors have the rare opportunity to create a legacy in music and observe first-hand the development of a new work from the composer’s earliest ideas to the finished composition. Participants invest $300 or more for a membership, which includes intimate salons throughout the season featuring in-depth discussions with the composer about the creative process and previews of the final work. Shin has received fellowships, commissions and awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Harvard University Fromm Music Foundation, the Fulbright Program, ASCAP, American Composers Forum, Chamber Music America, Minnesota Orchestra, Berkeley Symphony, and the Tanglewood and Aspen music festivals, among others.

Ellen Reid, whose work is “ineffably moving” (Los Angeles Times), is one of the most innovative artists of her generation. A composer and sound artist whose breadth of work spans opera, sound design, film scoring, ensemble and choral writing, she recently became the first composer to have works premiered by Los Angeles’ four leading musical institutions — the Los Angeles Philharmonic, LA Opera, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and Los Angeles Master Chorale — all within one year. Her opera for p r i s m received the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

CLOSE QUARTERS’ “digitally native” programs, created specifically for streaming and hailed as “musically and artistically compelling” (Los Angeles Times), have drawn more than one million views to date since debuting in November 2020. Between 30 and 40 minutes in length, they are safely filmed at either FOX studios or The Colburn School’s Olive Rehearsal Hall. Additionally, Darrah has established a creative hub for developing artistic media content with L.A.-based artists and filmmakers at a first-of-its-kind LACO digital studio at Wilhardt & Naud: a film studio and multidisciplinary arts campus located in Chinatown in downtown Los Angeles. The artists, inspired by the Orchestra’s musical programming, create new visual works in a variety of mediums that will factor into the broadcasts and endure long after the season concludes. CLOSE QUARTERS builds upon the highly successful LACO SummerFest series, the Orchestra’s first foray into streaming that concluded in September and featured five digital chamber music concerts that have attracted more than 250,000 views to date.

The final CLOSE QUARTERS episode premieres on June 4, 2021, at 6:30 pm (PT).

LACO recognizes the generous support of the Colburn Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Steinway is the official piano of Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. The Orchestra also receives public funding via grants from the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts. James Darrah at LACO is generously underwritten by Ruth Eliel and Bill Cooney. LACO: Close Quarters series sponsors include Hilda Herrera Adler, Steve & Evelyn Block, Jennifer Diener, Ruth Eliel Bill Cooney, Ann Graham Ehringer, Al Evans & Anna Rosicka, Peggy & Jack Falcon, Anne & Jeffrey Grausam, Diane Henderson, Howard Judith Jelinek, William & Priscilla Kennedy, Gary Larsen, Alan G. and Jane A. Lehman Foundation, June Simon Li, Raulee Marcus, Dana & Ned Newman, Dr. Hervey & Doris Segall, and Anne-Marie & Alex Spataru. To support LACO, its stellar artists and digital programming, please visit LACO.org/donate or call (213) 622-7001, EXT. 4.

CLOSE QUARTERS episode 13, “Shin, Reid Britten,” is sponsored by Peggy and Jack Falcon.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO), led by Music Director Jaime Martín, ranks among the world’s top musical ensembles. Beloved by audiences and praised by critics, LACO is a preeminent interpreter of historical masterworks and, with eight ASCAP Awards for Adventurous Programming, a champion of contemporary composers. Headquartered in the heart of the country's cultural capital, LACO has been proclaimed “America’s finest chamber orchestra” (Public Radio International), “LA’s most unintimidating chamber music experience” (Los Angeles magazine), “resplendent” (Los Angeles Times), and “one of the world's great chamber orchestras"(KUSC Classical FM). Martín, who builds upon LACO's rich legacy, made his first appearance as LACO's Music Director Designate in early 2019 in a concert described by the Los Angeles Times, as "a thrilling performance, and the orchestra played like it was having the time of its life," adding, "he will make fans very quickly." Overseas, he has been praised as "a visionary conductor, discerning and meticulous" (Platea Magazine), and London's The Telegraph said, "his infectious enjoyment of the music communicated to the orchestra and audience alike.” Performing throughout greater Los Angeles, the Orchestra presents orchestral, Baroque and chamber concerts as well as salon evenings in private spaces and unique experiences that explore classical music's cutting-edge sounds. The Orchestra has made 32 recordings, including, most recently, a 2019 BIS Records release of works for violin and chamber orchestra that features Concertmaster Margaret Batjer and the world premiere recording of Pierre Jalbert’s Violin Concerto (a LACO co-commission). LACO, with offices located in downtown Los Angeles, has toured Europe, South America and Japan, and performed across North America.

Nicole Cabell (soprano), an American soprano universally acclaimed for her velvety timbre and finely nuanced interpretations, continues to demonstrate her incredible versatility in repertoire ranging from Baroque to contemporary on the world’s greatest opera and concert stages as well as on disc. Last season saw Cabell sing her first staged Bess in James Robinson’s acclaimed production of Porgy and Bess for English National Opera, conducted by John Wilson. At home in the US, she returned to Cincinnati as Juliette (Roméo et Juliette), and joined Pittsburgh Opera as Mimì. This season she sings Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) at Michigan Opera Theatre under Christopher Allen; and next season, she makes her debut at Theater an der Wien in Matthew Wild’s new production of Porgy and Bess. Cabell’s recent debut as Handel’s Alcina at Grand Théâtre de Genève under Leonardo García Alarcón – praised by Opera Magazine for her ?“rounded and silky [tone], projected with ease, immaculately controlled” – Nicole Cabell subsequently reunited with Alarcón last season for her debut at Dutch National Opera as Flavia in Cavalli’s Eliogabalo, alongside appearances in full lyric roles, such as Violetta (La traviata) at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and Mimì (La bohème) at Cincinnati Opera and for her debut at Opéra national de Paris.

Joe Davis (dancer), born and raised in the hills of upstate New York, began his training in Rochester, New York, and continued his studies at The Juilliard School on scholarships from The NYCDA Foundation and Cornell University. He has traveled to Algeria twice as a cultural ambassador for the arts representing The U.S. in the International Modern Dance Festival. As a performer, Davis has toured internationally to Russia, Holland, Poland, Indonesia, and Mexico, and has choreographed internationally in the cities of Jakarta and Hong Kong. In addition to performing and choreographing, he has also taught master classes at such institutions as Steps on Broadway, Loyola Marymount University, Chapman University, Santa Monica College UCLA and numerous dance studios across the country. Davis is currently a member of L.A.-based contemporary dance company, BODYTRAFFIC, performing pieces by renowned choreographers Hofesh Shechter, Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, Barak Marshall, Arthur Pita, Victor Quijada, Matthew Neenan, Sidra Bell and Richard Seigal.

Grant Gershon (conductor), hailed for his adventurous and bold artistic leadership, is Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Resident Conductor at LA Opera. Among other highlights, Gershon led the world premiere performances of John Adams’ Girls of the Golden West with the San Francisco Opera, performances of Bernstein’s Wonderful Town, Tosca and Les Contes d’Hoffmann at LA Opera, and John Adams’ El Niño with the LA Philharmonic and has appeared with the San Francisco Symphony and National Symphony Orchestra. Under Gershon’s leadership the Los Angeles Master Chorale, the nation’s largest fully professional choral ensemble, has been declared “the most exciting chorus in the country” (Los Angeles Times). With the Master Chorale, Gershon has made numerous recordings for Nonesuch, Decca and Cantaloupe Records, and the ensemble has won many prestigious awards, including Chorus America’s highest honor and induction into the Classical Music Hall of Fame in 2017. He invited famed director Peter Sellars to create a staged version of Orlando di Lasso’s Renaissance masterpiece Lagrime di San Pietro, which the Los Angeles Times declared “a major accomplishment for music history.” Gershon has led performances at the Edinburgh, Helsinki, Vienna, Ravinia, Aspen and Ojai Festivals. Other organizations that he has appeared with recently include the National Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, Houston Grand Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Carnegie Hall’s Making Music Series, Lincoln Center’s Great Performers Series and the Teatro Regio in Turin. In 2003, Gershon was named Outstanding Alumnus of the USC Thornton School of Music, and in 2017 he was honored as a recipient of USC’s 2017 Alumni Merit Award.

Jian Lee (visual artist/animator), is an artist/educator based in LA. As a teenager, she loved to draw comics and share those with her friends. Her interest eventually expanded to drawing, painting and animation. She studied Visual Information Design at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, South Korea. After graduation, she moved to Los Angeles and earned a Master’s degree in animation at California Institute of the Arts (Cal Arts). Lee currently teaches at Riverside City College, Moreno Valley College and Cal Poly Pomona. 

George Miller is a director of opera, dance, installation, events and film. His work and process is largely focused on creating multifaceted, interdisciplinary and dramatic happenings in fine art performance. This season, Miller’s work will be presented by DorDor Gallery New York, The Juilliard School and OZ Arts Nashville, among others. He has worked with organizations and people such as American Modern Opera Company (AMOC), New Dialect and Banning Bouldin, Beth Morrison Projects, PROTOTYPE Festival, Studio 153 (Red Hook), The Brooklyn Museum, James Darrah, Peter Sellars, Zack Winokur, Anthony Roth Costanzo, Kevin Newbury, artist Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, OZ Arts Nashville, Savvy Contemporary (Berlin), Festival d’Aix-en-Provence (FR), MET Live Arts and the Ravinia Festival. Miller’s recent production of a new opera dance-theatre adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, titled STRANGE NATURE, was presented in works-in-process stagings in Nashville, TN, and fully staged immersive performances at Studio 153 in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The adaptation combines contemporary classical music, modern dance and critically informed design to tell a tragic story of social practice and alienation. His upcoming projects include EWARTUNG // EXPECTATION with singer Timothy McDevitt and pianist Renate Rohlfing, PRISM with choreographer David Flores and OZ Arts Nashville, FACE(S) OF GOD with performance-artist Rix Chan, choreographer Matilda Sakamoto, composer Katie Jenkins and fashion-designer Terrence Zhou, and CABARET with music director and songwriter Beaven Waller. Miler is a graduate of Vanderbilt University, where he studied Music Composition and Visual Arts, and is an artistic associate with the American Modern Opera Company under the direction of composer Matthew Aucoin and director Zack Winokur. 

Rebecca Steinberg (choreographer), originally from Danvers, Massachusetts, received a B.F.A. in Dance and B.A. in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Upon graduation, she lived in Israel and danced in Vertigo Dance Company's International Training Program. Steinberg was a freelance artist in New York before joining New Dialect in 2015. She has performed works by Banning Bouldin, Ohad Naharin, Hofesh Shechter, David Dorfman, Doug Varone, Roy Assaf, Bryan Arias, Joy Davis, Idan Sharabi, and Noa Zuk, among many others. In addition to performing, Rebecca is a choreographer and dance educator. She is a 2019 Jacob’s Pillow Choreography Fellow and has most recently been commissioned to create work for New Dialect, Nashville Ballet, OZ Arts Nashville, and Middle Tennessee State University. She is a collaborator alongside visual artist Jana Harper on a multidisciplinary performance and community engagement project titled This Holding. Steinberg leads workshops and master classes for young dancers, adults of all abilities, and professionals. She serves as a Curriculum Design Consultant, currently working on a National Science Foundation research grant at Vanderbilt University exploring the educational potential of dance for mathematics learning. Most notably, Steinberg has worked with dancers through various education programs at Perry Mansfield Performing Arts School & Camp, New Dialect and Bates Dance Festival.

Layne Paradis Willis (dancer), originally from central Massachusetts, is a queer identifying artist who has been performing as a resident in the award winning off- Broadway show Sleep No More at the Mickittrick Hotel in Chelsea, NY since 2018. While performing in the show full time, she has maintained a role in Nadine Bommer Dance Company, working out of both New York City and Israel. As a traveling freelance artist who graduated Magna Cum Laude from Roger Williams University under the Judge Thomas J. Paolino Theatre/Arts Scholarship, she was able to work with a variety of artists while training under Cathy Nicoli. Willis researched physical theatre and movement studies in London, England under Donna Meierdiercks and Katie Lusby at The Place. She has performed both live and in commercial work by Punchdrunk, Amy Gardner, Netta Yerushalmy, Kayla Farrish, Christina Robson, Shawn Ahern, KJ Holmes, Alexander Davis Dance, Tiffany Mills, Hilary Easton, Urbanity Dance Company and the Bang Group. As a creator, Willis has presented work in Boston, MA, where her choreography was adjudicated by the American College Dance Association. While establishing the connection between the architecture of the human body and the structure of the space surrounding us, Willis is interested in being a part of work that tackles societal conversions, its queer representation and communicates a narrative through improvisational forms and installation. She has taught dance theatre workshops in New York City, Israel, Rhode Island and Boston. Her print work can be found in Vogue Magazine, Vogue Italia, Flaunt Magazine, Mob Journal, Beyond All Magazine, Theme Magazine and more.