For release: August 20, 2018

Contacts:
Molly Buzick Pontin, DMA, Managing Director
molly@pacificchorale.org

Ryan McSweeney, Director of Marketing & Box Office
ryan@pacificchorale.org

714/662-2345

PACIFIC CHORALE TO OPEN SEASON WITH HAYDN’S “THE CREATION”
Performance will feature video projections and lighting by Martin Brinkerhoff Associates

Costa Mesa, CA – On Sunday, November 4th, Pacific Chorale will open its 2018-2019 season at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall with a performance of The Creation, in a concert featuring video projections and lighting to complement what has been called composer Franz Joseph Haydn’s masterpiece and the “Sistine Chapel of music.” With a libretto that draws on the books of Genesis and Psalms as well as Milton’s Paradise Lost, The Creation features some of Haydn’s most creative and uplifting music, including magically descriptive orchestral writing, triumphant choruses, and a trio of angels (portrayed by soprano, tenor, and bass soloists) who act as narrators. This will be the Chorale’s first time to present the oratorio on its own concert season in forty-five years.

Robert Istad, the Chorale’s Artistic Director, will conduct Pacific Chorale and Pacific Symphony in the performance, joined by vocal soloists soprano Elissa Johnston, tenor Derek Chester, and bass Paul Max Tipton. The media design and projections will be provided by the Irvine firm Martin Brinkerhoff Associates Inc., and are sponsored in part by the Segerstrom Foundation.

Haydn’s The Creation
Sunday, November 4, 2018, 5:00 p.m.
Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall

Pacific Chorale
Pacific Symphony
Elissa Johnston, soprano
Derek Chester, tenor
Paul Max Tipton, bass
Robert Istad, conductor

Projection and media design by Martin Brinkerhoff Associates

Program:
The Creation (Die Schöpfung) by Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Sung in English, with supertitles

Tickets are $25-$125, available through Pacific Chorale (www.pacificchorale.org / 714-662-2345) and Segerstrom Center for the Arts (www.scfta.org / 714-556-2787).

Pacific Chorale gratefully acknowledges its generous sponsors:

Gold Season Sponsor:
Phillip N. and Mary A. Lyons

Silver Season Sponsor:
Charles and Ling Zhang

Concert Sponsors:
John and Lori Loftus
The Segerstrom Foundation

ABOUT ROBERT ISTAD

Dr. Robert Istad has served as Pacific Chorale’s Artistic Director since July 1, 2017. He has prepared choruses for many of the world’s leading orchestral conductors, and has been featured on a number of recordings including The John Williams Collection on Sony Classical and Nostos: The Homecoming of Music on Yarlung Records. He continues in his role as Professor of Music, Director of Choral Studies, California State University, Fullerton. He is also serving as the President of the California Choral Directors Association and was recently elected to the board of directors of the national choral industry’s association, Chorus America.

ABOUT MARTIN BRINKERHOFF ASSOCIATES

Martin Brinkerhoff Associates (MBA) is a turn-key, live event production company that teams with its partners to create theatrical, media-rich videos and live experiences. MBA’s reputation for excellence derives from providing innovative and entertaining solutions to reach and inspire a wide variety of diverse audiences around the world. Its award-winning portfolio includes designing theatrical and musical experiences for The Walt Disney Company, Brian Wilson, and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. mbaproductions.com

ABOUT PACIFIC CHORALE

Pacific Chorale has delighted national and international audiences with concerts of great choral music performed at the highest musical standards since 1968. Under the artistic leadership of Robert Istad, the organization produces a series of concerts each year at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, where it serves as the sole resident choir. The mission of Pacific Chorale is to inspire our community through artistry and innovation in choral music performances and education programs.

Pacific Chorale is recognized for exceptional artistic expression, preserving and performing classical choral music as well as stimulating American-focused programming. Pacific Chorale presents a substantial performance season of its own and is sought regularly to perform with the nation’s leading symphonies. Pacific Chorale has infused an Old World art form with California’s hallmark innovation and cultural independence, developing innovative new concepts in programming, and expanding the traditional concepts of choral repertoire and performance. The organization boasts over 30 world premieres and has released 14 self-produced recordings.

In addition to its long-standing partnership with Pacific Symphony, with whom Pacific Chorale made its Carnegie Hall debut in April 2018, the Chorale has performed with such renowned American ensembles as the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Boston Symphony, the National Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, and Musica Angelica.

Pacific Chorale has also toured extensively to more than 19 countries in Europe, South America and Asia, and has collaborated with the London Symphony, the Munich Symphony, L’Orchestre Lamoureux and L’Orchestre de St-Louis-en-l’Île of Paris, the National Orchestra of Belgium, the China National Symphony, the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, the Estonian National Symphony, and the Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional of Argentina.

Pacific Chorale also places a significant emphasis on choral music education, offering grades 1-6 after-school programs, a high school student summer camp, and a community-wide singing event at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.