Warren Jones Masterclass to Take Place July 5
The renowned pianist is a longtime Festival Favorite at the Music Academy
For Immediate Release June 30, 2008
Contact:
Tim Dougherty
805.695.7908
Santa Barbara, CA – Accumulating plaudits from adoring reviewers is simply a regular part of Warren Jones' busy performance schedule. "Matchless" (The New York Times), "Indispensable" (The Washington Post), "Exquisitely sensitive" (The Miami Herald), and "A singer's greatest partner (Fort Worth Star-Telegram) are just a few of the superlatives that have been used to describe this dynamic pianist and accompanist. Music enthusiasts fortunate enough to have seen one or more of Mr. Jones' popular Music Academy of the West masterclasses are invariably just as impressed.
Mr. Jones will lead a vocal masterclass at 3 pm Saturday, July 5, at the Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara. Admission costs $30. He will also lead vocal masterclasses at 3:15 pm on July 11 and July 25 in the Music Academy's newly refurbished Hahn Hall. Admission to the latter events costs $18 ($16 for students and seniors).
A member of the Music Academy faculty since 1993, Mr. Jones frequently performs with many of today's most acclaimed singers, including Denyce Graves, Samuel Ramey, Ruth Ann Swenson, Stephanie Blythe, Salvatore Licitra, Bo Skovhus, Frederica von Stade, and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa. The San Francisco Chronicle has declared him "the single finest accompanist now working."
Mr. Jones has been a guest artist with the Juilliard, Borromeo, and Brentano string quartets, and is principal pianist with Camerata Pacifica. This season he made his debut with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Mr. Jones has appeared at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, as well as the Tanglewood, Ravinia, and Caramoor festivals. His international appearances include the Salzburg Festival, Milan's Teatro alla Scala, Paris' Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and Opéra Bastille, Wigmore Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, the Cultural Centre in Hong Kong, Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, and theaters throughout Scandinavia, Japan, and Korea. Mr. Jones was assistant conductor at the Metropolitan Opera for 10 years and at the San Francisco Opera for three seasons. His many recordings include Grammy-nominated CDs with Samuel Ramey and Håkan Hagegård. He has been invited to the White House to perform at concerts honoring the president of Russia and the prime ministers of Italy and Canada, and has thrice appeared at the U.S. Supreme Court as a specially invited performer for the justices and their guests.
His masterclasses have long been a traditional favorite among Music Academy Summer Festival attendees.
The Lobero Theatre is located at 33 East Canon Perdido Street in Santa Barbara. The Academy's vocal masterclass series is generously supported by Shirley and Seymour Lehrer.
The Music Academy will present the West Coast premiere of William Bolcom's opera A Wedding, as well as performances by conductor Peter Oundjian and pianist Christopher Taylor as part of the Academy's 61st Summer Festival. The Academy will present 188 events over the course of its 2008 Summer School and Festival, which began June 23 and will conclude on August 16. Additional highlights will include a performance by the Canadian Brass and the Takács Quartet, and conducting turns by George Manahan, Anne Manson, Nicholas McGegan, and Daniel Hege. Featuring the Academy's exceptionally talented Fellows, together with illustrious guest performers and faculty, the events will be presented at the Academy's scenic Miraflores campus and in venues throughout Santa Barbara.
For tickets and information, call 969-8787. Information is also available online at www.musicacademy.org.
Founded in 1947, the Music Academy of the West is among the nation's preeminent summer schools and festivals for gifted young classical musicians. The Academy provides these promising musicians with the opportunity for advanced study and frequent performance under the guidance of internationally renowned faculty artists, as well as guest conductors and soloists. Admission to the Academy is strictly merit based, and Fellows receive full scholarships (tuition, room, and board). Academy alumni are members of major symphony orchestras, chamber orchestras, ensembles, opera companies, and university and conservatory faculties throughout the world. Many enjoy careers as prominent solo artists. Based in Santa Barbara, the Music Academy of the West presents more than 200 public events annually, including performances by faculty, visiting artists, and Fellows; masterclasses; orchestra and chamber music concerts; and fully staged opera. For more information, visit www.musicacademy.org.
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