“On September 25 at Schoenberg Hall, the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music and the Confucius Institute hosted the opening concert of a United States tour by the Shanghai Jiaotong University Symphony Orchestra. Shanghai Jiaotong University is one of China’s great scientific research institutions, and its orchestra has a long and honored tradition in China and abroad. The hall was packed for this free concert, led by one of China’s most revered conductors, Cao Peng, and the program was a fascinating mix of classical symphonic showpieces and arrangements of Chinese traditional folk and classical music. The students in the orchestra – none of whom are music majors – played with great skill and energy (especially given that they had just arrived in the U.S. the day before and had spent most of their concert day touring Universal Studios!) The president of the university, a former violinist in the orchestra, spoke proudly to the audience before the concert, and it was my pleasure to present Maestro Cao Peng with a Certificate of Artistic Achievement from our school.

The president and others from the university expressed their strong interest in inviting UCLA Philharmonia to perform in Shanghai. Nothing would please me more!

Nolan says:

“In the first week of February, I traveled to the Canary Islands to perform in “La Pasion Segun San Marcos” by Osvaldo Golijov. I was one of four percussionists that performed in the piece, along with a string section (the “Knights”) from NYC, a massive rhythm section from various locales, a 50+ choir from Venezuela (Schola Cantorum de Caracas), and a number of soloists including Los Angeles-based soprano Jessica Rivera.

For anyone in HASOM who is not yet familiar with Golijov’s “La Pasion,” I highly recommend it. The LA Phil has announced that it will be bringing the piece to LA next year, so there will likely be a chance to see it soon enough. Seeing it live is essential to get the real significance of the piece. Like many Golijov works, it is semi-staged and dance is an essential part of the experience. I’ve included some photos of the incredibly impressive halls where we performed. The first, Auditorio Alfredo Kraus on the island of Gran Canaria, is located right on the shore. The large window behind the stage looks out over the Atlantic, providing a breathtaking backdrop for performances. The second performance was in the Auditorio de Tenerife (named after the island). In addition to its commanding architecture, the inside of the auditorium had some of the most well-integrated organ pipes I’ve ever seen.”.

Auditorio Alfredo Kraus (Las Palmas de Gran Canaria)

Inside the Auditorio Alfredo Kraus

Inside the Auditorio de Tenerife [notice pipes on left]

Auditorio de Tenerife (Santa Cruz de Tenerife)