Saturday, July 23, 2016

Art of Élan's 10th Anniversary Season, "A Place to Call Home," focuses on creative place-making and defining home in the 21st century


Demarre McGill and Kate Hatmaker

On a cross-country road trip to San Diego a decade ago, we conceived of the idea of Art of Élan as a way to expose new audiences to the excitement of classical music.  Based on the concept of innovative, "mixtape" programming that would combine both new and old works, we created a model of short, one-hour concerts in unique venues, providing for a more personalized and human approach to connecting with concertgoers, and proving that classical music does still have relevance, given the right context.
 
Now a decade later, Art of Élan has arrived at its 10th Anniversary Season with an impressive catalog of 64 public concerts, 10 world premieres of commissioned works, numerous West Coast premieres, a highly coveted ensemble-in-residence program, a meaningful commitment to community engagement and an energized and growing audience for classical music.

We're proud of our accomplishments and are looking ahead to the next 10 years. We believe that with our energy, innovative programming ideas, and genuine desire to share classical music with a wider audience, we can continue to enrich the cultural climate of San Diego and be a worldwide example of innovation in the arts.

The 10th Anniversary Season, "A Place to Call Home," focuses on creative place-making and defining home in the 21st century. With numerous collaborations and cross-disciplinary productions that include an expanded five-concert series at The San Diego Museum of Art that opens and closes with free community concerts, an exciting North County series at Lux Art Institute that features the world premiere of two new works written for the Myriad Trio, an encore collaboration with Malashock Dance, and a return to Copley Symphony Hall, the 10th anniversary celebrates the reach of Art of Élan's programming and engagement efforts as well as its ongoing desire to connect people from all over the globe through music.

Read on to learn what to expect this season and discover how you can be a part of the Art of Élan experience!

As always, we thank you for your ongoing interest and support and we look forward to seeing you at a concert soon!
 

~Kate & Demarre

10-year-old Hannah Tam (an international prizewinner from Hong Kong) makes her San Diego debut on August 9th!

Concert Series at The San Diego Museum of Art:
 
TRAVELING DIALOGUES
Tuesday, August 9, 2016 | 7:00 p.m. | James S. Copley Auditorium

FREE community concert presented in partnership with Bravo! International Music Academy (BIMA)

This August Art of Élan and BIMA present an inaugural concert in San Diego that showcases young talent and renowned faculty from around the world playing side-by-side in unique chamber ensembles, illustrating the power of music to create meaningful dialogues that defy boundaries, both real and imagined.

This special event includes FREE admission to The San Diego Museum of Art from 5:00-7:00 p.m. in advance of the FREE concert.
 
DEFINING PLACE
Tuesday, November 22, 2016 | 7:00 p.m. | Gallery 16

This special Thanksgiving concert focuses on place and origins, and is linked to the exhibition Louis Kahn: The Power of Architecture, opening at The San Diego Museum of Art on November 5th.
 
REACTIVE LISTENING
Tuesday, January, 31, 2017 | 7:00 p.m. | Gallery 16

How do we listen to the world we live in? How do we react to what we hear? This concert explores the act of listening and its role in defining a sense of home.
 
DIVERSE SOUNDSCAPES
Tuesday, March 14, 2017 | 7:00 p.m. | Gallery 16

This program showcases the diverse sounds that we encounter in the 21st century and explores how they interact with each other, as well as how they inform our perceptions of what music really is.
 
AGENTS OF CHANGE
Tuesday, May 9, 2017 | 7:00 p.m. | James S. Copley Auditorium

FREE community concert in partnership with NOW Ensemble

The San Diego Museum of Art series wraps up with a special interactive concert that features the New York-based NOW Ensemble, a dynamic group of performers and composers dedicated to making new chamber music for the 21st century. With a unique instrumentation of flute, clarinet, electric guitar, double bass, and piano, the ensemble brings a fresh sound and a new perspective to the classical tradition, infused with the musical influences that reflect the diverse backgrounds of its members.

Tickets are now available for the San Diego Museum of Art series


Community Collaborations:

San Diego Symphony Chamber Music Series 
Tuesday, January 10, 2017 
Copley Symphony Hall

A program of colorful works that were "made in America," featuring the world premiere of a work for solo harp written by Hannah Lash, along with works by Caroline Shaw, Eve Beglarian, Steve Reich and the original 1942 version of Copland's "Appalachian Spring" for 13 players, conducted by Steven Schick.

"Young Artists in Harmony" in residence at

This fall, Art of Élan returns to National City for a 10-week residency at the nationally recognized organization A Reason To Survive (ARTS) that believes in the power of the arts and creativity to literally transform lives - especially those of kids facing adversity. Consisting of weekly workshops where ARTS Empower students have the opportunity to work directly with Art of Élan musicians, the residency (which is in its third year) will culminate with a unique multidisciplinary and collaborative concert in December of 2016, featuring the music of select ARTS music students and apprentices. 

Minor Fall/Major Lift-a collaboration with
June 1-3, 2017

Featuring the world premiere of a new work by Judd Greenstein written for NOW Ensemble (Art of Élan's new "ensemble-in-residence"), who round out the program with exciting works by Mark Dancigers and other New York composers, all accompanied by new choreography by John Malashock.

CROSSFIRE Series:

Tuesday, November 29, 2016 featuring the world premiere of AJ Nilles' "Beat Suite no. 2."

late March/early April 2017 (TBD), featuring new works by Joel P. West and the reunion of the former San Diego-based band The Tree Ring.

North County Series:

Lux Art Institute--February and April 2017
This spring Art of Élan returns to its North County home at Lux Art Institute in Encinitas with two collaborative concerts that coincide with Lux's 10th Anniversary Season and its innovative artist residency program, combining visual art and music in a fresh way that allows audiences to learn more about the creative process from both visual artists' and performing musicians' perspectives. As in the past, each concert will be paired with an opportunity to view the works of the resident artist, including a meet-and-greet with the artist and a special pre-concert reception with the musicians. 

The February and April concerts will also feature the world premiere of a commissioned work written for the Myriad Trio: one by Israeli-born composer Avner Dorman and the other by Chinese-American composer Lei Liang. Focused on the mission of modeling creativity for the public, Lux Art Institute is redefining the museum experience to make art more accessible and personally meaningful through its innovative artist residency program. 

About Art of Élan
For the past 9 years, Art of Élan has been pioneering unique events and bringing the excitement of classical music to diverse audiences. Created by violinist Kate Hatmaker and flutist Demarre McGill, Art of Élan continually expands the scope of classical music in San Diego through its innovative, one-hour programming in unique performance venues.  By drawing inspiration from the word élan, which represents momentum, vigor and spirit, and providing an opportunity to connect directly with concertgoers, Art of Élan continues to engage and energize audiences in new ways.
  
For more info on all of our events (as well as to purchase tickets online), please visit our website:  

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