February 8, 2012
Music Director Steven Schick Renews 5-Year Contract with LJS&C
La Jolla, Calif. (February 8, 2012) — The Board of Directors of the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus (LJS&C) is pleased to announce the renewal of a five-year contract with Steven Schick, continuing his role as Music Director of the community ensemble through June 30, 2017.
“This is an exciting time for LJS&C,” said Board President Stephen Marsh. “Steve has brought an incredible infusion of talent, energy and new ideas to the organization. Each season seems more exciting than the one before. We are very pleased that Steve’s commitment to our musicians, to our audience, and to the San Diego community remains so strong.”
Schick, a Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and an internationally-renowned percussionist, was named Music Director of LJS&C in April 2007. His inaugural concert in October of that same year featured the North American premiere of Philip Glass’s Cello Concerto, with the iconic composer present. Other composers Schick has brought to local audiences in performances and often premieres of their works include Evan Ziporyn, John Luther Adams, Phil Kline, and Ingram Marshall. True to LJS&C’s mission since its affiliation with the UCSD Music Department in 1967, Schick, along with his colleague Choral Director David Chase, programs ground-breaking pieces alongside traditional repertoire and seldom-performed master works. Other highlights of his tenure to-date include Leonard Bernstein’s “Mass,” Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis,” John Luther Adams’ “Dark Waves,” Benjamin Britten’s “War Requiem,” and themed seasons, such as the current year’s “Stravinsky Circus!”
"I am so excited by the thought that I'll get to work with the talented and dedicated members of the LJS&C for another five years,” said Schick. “To me they exemplify artistic excellence and passion!"
The La Jolla Symphony & Chorus, San Diego’s oldest and largest community orchestra and chorus, is a non-profit musical performing group dedicated to inspiring San Diego with the joy of music. Its 110-person orchestra and 130-person chorus perform groundbreaking orchestral and choral music along with traditional favorites from the classical repertoire. During the 2011-2012 season, music director and conductor Steven Schick and choral director David Chase lead works by Stravinsky, Britten, Beethoven, Mozart, and more.
