Monterey Symphony Announces 70th Anniversary Season: Tickets on Sale for April Concerts

The Monterey Symphony is excited to announce its 2015-16 Season, and its 70th Anniversary! International, award-winning artists will perform with the Monterey Symphony orchestra throughout the season at Sherwood Hall in Salinas and Sunset Center in Carmel. Come celebrate the 70th Anniversary of the Monterey Symphony, led by Maestro Max Bragado-Darman! (Schedule and details below)

PROGRAM 5 – Apr 22-24

Symphony in E-flat, Op. 50 Paul Hindemith
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73 “Emperor” Ludwig van Beethoven
Vadym Kholodenko, piano

Winner of the coveted gold medal at the Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2013, Vadym Kholodenko takes the stage with the Monterey Symphony for the fifth concert program of the 70th Anniversary Season. Kholodenko will amaze our audiences with his virtuosic performance of Beethoven’s masterwork the “Emperor Concerto.”

The Symphony in E-flat, Op. 50, by the prolific German Neo-classicist composer Paul Hindemith completes the first half of this concert program, guaranteed to thrill audiences and musicians alike. Don’t miss this chance to hear one of the worlds’ most acclaimed young pianists perform perhaps the king of all concertos in a riveting concert experience!

Max Bragado-Darman Biography
Max Bragado-Darman has served as the Music Director and Conductor of the Monterey Symphony since July 2004. Mr. Bragado-Darman was Music Director and Conductor of the Symphony orchestra of Castile and León in Valladolid, Spain, for nine years. From its formation in 1991, he built it into one of the most prestigious orchestras in Spain. Under his direction, the orchestra performed for enthusiastic audiences in all the major cities of Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Germany. He recorded with this ensemble many unknown works of the Spanish repertoire as well as most of the orchestral works of Turina and Rodrigo on the Naxos label.

In May 1995, Max Bragado-Darman was appointed Music Director and Conductor of The Louisville Orchestra. Under his direction, the orchestra grew in popularity due to his rapport with audiences, the community in general, and his innovative programming. He has worked with distinguished artists such as Alicia de Larrocha, Teresa Berganza, Horacio Gutièrrez, Elmar Oliveira, Dubravka Tomsic, Andre Watts, Angel Romero, Gary Graffman, and Aaron Rosand among many others.

As a guest conductor, Max Bragado-Darman has performed in the United States with the symphony orchestras of Honolulu, San Diego, Nashville, Delaware, West Virginia, Cedar Rapids, Savannah, Oklahoma City, Fort Worth, Austin, Fresno, and Boulder. He has led the National Orchestra, the Radio Television Orchestra and most other orchestras of Spain, as well as orchestras in Portugal, England, Argentina, Germany, and Mexico. In the fall of 2003, he made his debut at the distinguished Wexford Opera Festival with the Granados opera “Maria del Carmen,” in a version he researched and edited himself.

His conducting career has been guided by the knowledge he received from teachers and musicians such as Robert Fountain, Robert Baustian, George Szell, Igor Markevich and Franco Ferrara. Most recently, Max Bragado-Darman has appeared on the podiums of orchestras in Monterrey, Mexico and Mexico City. In the spring of 2009, in the heart of Andalucia he took on the challenge of presenting a fusion of flamenco and classical music featuring a pianist, guitarist, dancer, and full symphony orchestra. He has been the conductor for the prestigious “Iturbi Piano Competition” in Valencia, Spain for the last two editions.
Max and Mary Bragado have two children: Julio who was formerly a dancer with The American Ballet Theatre and is now studying acting in New York City, and Ilia who teaches dance in Valladolid, Spain and is married to José Manuel Concejo. They have two grandsons, six year old Max and 4 year old Alejandro. Both are enchanted with “Abuelito” and “Granny.”


The Facts:
•Fridays at 7:30 p.m. at Sherwood Hall, 940 N Main St, Salinas, CA 93906
•Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m. at Sunset Center, San Carlos Street at 9th Avenue, Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA 93921
•Pre-Concert Lecture Series: All concerts will feature a free pre-concert lecture at the concert hall one hour prior to the performance. These lectures, provided by Dr. Todd Samra, offer intriguing facts and historical context about the composers and the pieces to be performed, which greatly enhance the concert-going experience. To learn more about Dr. Samra, visit: http://www.montereysymphony.org/?attachment_id=3832
•Fridays/ Sherwood Hall/ $20/ General Admission
o Discounts:$10 Students and Military (Must present ID and can only be purchased the day of the concert)
•Saturdays and Sundays/ $79/ $59/ $39/ $29/ Assigned Seating
o Discounts: $20 Students, Military, and Carmel Foundation (Must present ID and can only be purchased the day of the concert)
•To purchase tickets, call 831-646-8511 or visit http://www.montereysymphony.org/current-season/ for season details.
•Contact the Monterey Symphony Box Office at 831-646-8511 or email [email protected] to purchase tickets or for more information regarding discounted group rates.

**************
The mission of the Monterey Symphony is to engage, educate and excite our community through the performance and continual discovery of symphonic music.
The Monterey Symphony, under the artistic leadership of Music Director & Conductor Max Bragado-Darman, is the only fully professional, full-season orchestra serving the communities of the Monterey Bay, Salinas, Salinas Valley, Big Sur, and San Benito County. It provides triple performances of a six-concert subscription series at Carmel’s Sunset Theater and Salinas’s Sherwood Hall, as well as youth education programs that include visits to classrooms by musicians and culminate in full-orchestra concerts for schoolchildren.

The Monterey Symphony is a nonprofit, public benefit corporation, supported in part through the fundraising efforts of the Friends of the Monterey Symphony, and through grants from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, The Harden Foundation, The Robert and Virginia Stanton Fund of the Community Foundation for Monterey County, The Todd Lueders Fund for the Arts of the Community Foundation for Monterey County, The Community Foundation for Monterey County, The Berkshire Foundation, The Monterey Peninsula Foundation, The Pebble Beach Company Foundation, The National Endowment for the Arts, The Arts Council of Monterey County, The S.T.A.R. Foundation, The Hind Foundation, Upjohn California Fund, and many other generous foundations and individual donors.

For additional information, please call 831-646-8511 or visit our web site: www.montereysymphony.org.