SMMUSD “Stairway of the Stars” Concerts ~ Februray 2014
PROGRAM IN .PDF
When: February 7th (Choir), 11th (Band), and 13th (Orchestra) – All 3 concerts begin at 7 PM
Where: Barnum Hall, Santa Monica High School, 601 Pico Boulevard, Santa Monica (Parking available in the Civic Center Parking Structure on 4th Street at Civic Center Drive)
Description: The 65th Annual "Stairway of the Stars" concerts will honor the Beasley family, and will feature three nationally renowned guest conductors and more than 1,100 students (the “Stars” of the event). Performances by elementary, middle, and high school choirs, bands, and orchestras will highlight the world class Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District music program.
Tickets: Tickets will be available to the public from January 27th to January 31st, during an online sale hosted by Brown Paper Tickets. Visit www.brownpapertickets.com and enter "Stairway of the Stars" in the "Find an event" field. If any tickets remain, they can be purchased ONLY on the night of each concert at the Barnum Hall box office, beginning at 5:30 PM.
For more information: Contact Stairway@smmusd.org or call 310-450-8338 ext 70338.
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Additional information re the SMMUSD “Stairway of the Stars” Concerts:
What: The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District will present the 65th Annual Stairway of the Stars concerts. Stairway remains one of the most popular annual events in both the cities of Santa Monica and Malibu, as it spotlights the district's music students, teachers and music curriculum. This year, 26 choirs, bands, and orchestras, including students from all of the school district’s 16 schools, will dazzle the audience at the three Stairway of the Stars concerts.
Where: The concerts will be held in the stunning Art Deco Barnum Hall, on the campus of Santa Monica High School, 601 Pico Boulevard (www.BarnumHall.org). Parking is av ailable in the Civic Center Parking Structure on 4th Street at Civic Center Drive, between Pico and Olympic (http://www.smmarts.info/VAPAmaps.html).
When: Each concert will feature a different program: Friday, February 7th (CHOIR only); Tuesday, February 11th (BAND only); and Thursday, February 13th (ORCHESTRA only). All three concerts will begin at 7 PM.
Guest Conductors: This year’s Stairway concerts will feature three guest conductors -- a different guest conductor for each evening!
Albert J. McNeil, Professor Emeritus of Music at UC Davis and founder of the Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers, an ensemble which has toured in 44 states and 77 countries, will be the guest conductor on the February 7th Choir Concert,. The concert will feature African American spirituals and art songs suc h as “Down by the Riverside” and “Follow the Drinking Gourd,” as well as George Gershwin’s “Summertime.” Dr. McNeil will be joined by soloists Nell Walker and Michael Wright from the Jubilee Singers.
Thomas Lee, Professor Emeritus, Director of Bands, and Conductor of the UCLA Wind Ensemble, will be guest conductor on the February 11th Band Concert. Selections will include “The Trombone King” by Karl L. King, “Blessed Are They” by Johannes Brahms, and Camille Saint Saens’ “French Milita ry March.” The Jazz Bands will play Chick Corea’s “Spain,” with special guest soloist John Beasley.
Bruce Kiesling, assistant conductor of the Pasadena Symphony and conductor of the LA Philharmonic’s Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (YOLA), will be the guest conductor on the February 13th Orchestra Concert. The music will range from Ray Anthony’s “Hokey Pokey” and “Bunny Hop” to “Sc arborough Fair” to the beautiful Adagietto from Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 (which the composer wrote as a love letter to his wife), and conclude with Rossini’s exciting “William Tell Overture.”
Stairway Honor Award Recipients – The Beasley Family: Each year, the district’s music teachers vote on the “Stairway Honor Award Recipient.” The award is presented to a former student, teacher or an organization that has contributed enormously to the advancement of music and arts education in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. This year, the 2014 Stairway Honor Award Recipient will be the Beasley family. The late Lida Beasley taught orchestra at John Adams Middle School, Santa Monica High School, and Santa Monica College. Her husband, Rule Beasley, taught classes ranging from composition to jazz improvization at Santa Monica College and played bassoon in the Santa Monica Symphony for twenty years. Their two sons, John and Paul, attended local schools and John, who is an internationally renowned jazz pianist, will perform on the February 11th concert. Rule and John Beasley will be accepting the award.
Performing Ensembles: The ensembles that will perform at the 65th Annual Stairway of the Stars concerts are the All-District Elementary Honor Choir and Middle and High School Choirs (Friday, February 7th); Elementary, Middle and High School Bands and Jazz Bands (Tuesday, February 11th); and Elementary, Middle and High School Orchestras (Thursday, February 13th). In all, more than 1,100 of the district’s nearly 5,000 student musicians will be performing on the three Stairway concerts this year. Organizing rehearsals for student musicians from 16 schools, stretching from the Ocean Park neighborhood on the south side of Santa Monica all the way to the northern reaches of Malibu, 30 miles away, is a daunting task. But each year, the Stairway concerts result in students from all across the school district making music together, and beautifully.
Tickets: As there is high demand for tickets to the Stairway concerts, only families of the student performers are given access to advance ticket sales through January 26th. Tickets not sold during the advance period will be made available to the public from January 27th to January 31st, during an online sale hosted by Brown Paper Tickets. Visit www.brownpapertickets.com and enter "Stairway of the Stars" in the "Find an event" field. After January 31st, if any tickets remain, they will be on sale for $15 at the Barnum Hall box office on the night of each concert, starting at 5:30 p.m. Each evening, tickets will be sold ONLY for that night's concert.
Donations: Make a DONATION to support the extraordinary quality of the SMMUSD Music Program! You can include a donation when you purchase your tickets, or by using the Online Stairway Form on the Stairway of the Stars website http://smmusd.org/vapa/stairway/. If you have an instrument that you no longer use, please consider our "PLAY IT FORWARD" instrument donation program. Visit http://smmusd.org/vapa/ and click on "DONATE AN INSTRUMENT!" for details.
Parking: Parking is available at the Civic Center Parking Structure. The entrance is from 4th Street at Civic Center Drive (between Pico Boulevard and Olympic Drive).
Photos: Attached, pleased find photos of the 2014 Stairway Guest Conductors. In addition, photos from the 2013 Stairway concerts are posted at http://www.smmarts.info/StairwaysMarch6/ (2013 Stairway Orchestra Concert) and http://www.smmarts.info/StairwaysChoirsMar3013/ (2013 Stairway Choir Concert)
For more information, contact:
Tom Whaley, Visual & Performing Arts Coordinator
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School district (SMMUSD)
1638 17th Street
Santa Monica, CA 90404
PHONE: 310-450-8338 x70287
FAX: 310-452-4352
twhaley@smmusd.org