Our Festivals concert, with a masterful soloist and composer, will leave you cheering for more!
At the age of 20, featured soloist Gaeun Kim has already acquired an impressive list of honors. Based in New York, this remarkable cellist has been spotlighted as an outstanding virtuosic performer and the winner of numerous competitions worldwide. Her journey began with receiving First Prize at the Antonio Janigro Competition in Croatia at age 10. She has since secured first prizes in the Liezen International Competition, the David Popper International Cello Competition, the East Coast International Competition, and numerous other competitions around the world.
Ms. Kim has performed for royalty in Belgium and Korea and plays in major concert halls worldwide, including solo performances in Germany, Switzerland, Korea, New York, Boston, Michigan, San Francisco, Palo Alto, St. Thomas, Poland, and others. Beyond the stage, she has been featured on radio programs, TV shows, and in prominent music magazines. She has been recognized as one of “26 Representative Stars in the Culture & Arts Industry of the Republic of Korea,” a “Samsung Foundation Rising Star,” and one of the six winners of the “Classe d’Excellence de Violoncelle” led by Gautier Capucon.
Her recent accolades include First Prize at the 2024 Schadt String Competition, First Prize and the Pablo Casals Special Award at the 2022 Irving M. Klein International Competition, a top prize at the 2023 Paulo International Cello Competition, and First Prize at the 2023 New York Young Artist Awards. Santa Cruz Symphony is delighted to share the stage with this dazzling young artist!
The compositions of featured composer José González Granero have been described as “mature, entertaining, excellent work” by San Francisco Classical Voice. Born in the south of Spain, he graduated from Granada Royal Conservatory, USC Thornton School of Music, and The Colburn School in Los Angeles, where he was mentored by famed clarinetist Yehuda Gilad. Mr. González Granero now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, where he holds the Principal Clarinet position for the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and creates award-winning compositions.
Mr. González Granero recently won First Prize for the Villiers Quartet New Works Composition Competition in London. He has been nominated twice for the Hollywood Music in Media Awards. Other awards include Grand Prize for exceptional talent and musicianship in the Pasadena Instrumental Competition, First Prize in the Burbank Philharmonic Concerto Competition, and many more. He has premiered pieces with EnsembleSF, Music in May, EOS Ensemble, Granada Brass Quintet, Proemium Metals, and Stanford Philharmonia. We are truly honored to share his well-crafted, captivating, and highly enjoyable Matsuri Overture with you!
Our Festivals concerts March 23/24 will showcase festive, passionate, and occasionally explosive works by Granero, Schumann, and Stravinsky. Learn more about the concert program here.
Saturday 3/23 at 7:30 PM (Pre-concert talk at 6:30)
Civic Auditorium in Santa Cruz
Sunday 3/24 at 2 PM (Pre-concert talk at 1)
Henry J. Mello Center in Watsonville
TICKETS: Call Civic Box Office at 831-420-5260 or visit https://t.ly/dctdO.