Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra: making great music personal



about laco

mission

The mission of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra is to preserve and advance a living tradition of orchestral music through artistically excellent performances that energize and enrich the lives of players and listeners alike. We celebrate the personal connection among our musicians, audiences and community, as shaped by the intimacy of our unique chamber orchestra experience.

background

The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra was founded in 1968 as an artistic outlet for the film and record studios’ most gifted musicians. Since then, the 40-member Orchestra has acquired a reputation as one of the foremost ensembles of its kind in the world and has been hailed as “America’s finest chamber orchestra” by respected music critic Jim Svejda of KUSC. Renowned pianist and conductor Jeffrey Kahane has led the group since 1997, continuing the standard of excellence set by the Orchestra’s first four music directors, Sir Neville Marriner, Gerard Schwarz, Iona Brown and Christof Perick. The Orchestra will begin the celebration of its 40th anniversary in fall 2008.

Mark Swed, chief music critic of the Los Angeles Times, has recently commented, “LACO has never sounded better than it does these days…” Acclaimed for its virtuosic music-making, dynamic programming and signature personal style, the Orchestra performs repertoire ranging from Baroque masterpieces to newly commissioned works and is recognized for championing young artists on the brink of major careers, as well as working with some of today’s leading artists.

By special invitation, the Orchestra will embark on a two-week European tour in spring 2008 with concerts in Paris, France; Vienna, Austria; Berlin, Hanover and Hamburg, Germany; Ferrara and Treviso, Italy; and San Sebastián, Spain. In April 2002, the Orchestra was invited to play in Carnegie Hall’s Chamber Music series, under the direction of Jeffrey Kahane. The Orchestra had previously toured South America, Europe and Japan.

In both 2005 and 2007, the Orchestra received the prestigious First Place Award for Adventurous Programming, bestowed by the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) and the League of American Orchestras. The 2007-08 season features a world premiere by rising American composer Kevin Puts, the 7th commission of LACO’s unique patron commissioning club, Sound Investment.

The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra maintains its local presence with an annual home season of 15 concerts at two historic theaters, the Alex Theatre in Glendale and UCLA’s Royce Hall; its acclaimed Baroque Conversations concert series at Zipper Concert Hall; and a series of three family concerts at the Alex Theatre. Other highlights of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s 2007-08 season include:

  • collaborations with the Los Angeles Master Chorale for its “Homage to Haydn” concerts at Walt Disney Concert Hall in November 2007 and April 2008
  • an invitation to appear with conductor Thomas Adès on the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Baroque Variations series at Walt Disney Concert Hall
  • LACO’s sixth annual Concert Gala, The Night of Knights, featuring Christopher Parkening on Saturday, January 26, 2008 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel
  • the screening of Harold Lloyd’s Speedy with live orchestral accompaniment at LACO’s 19th annual Silent Film Gala on Saturday, May 31, 2008 at Royce Hall.

The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra believes that classical music is a joy to be shared by everyone. Through its Meet the Music program, LACO reaches thousands of elementary school students, most of whom have never experienced a classical concert before, and through Neighborhood Concerts, the Orchestra provides opportunities for new and underserved audiences to develop a love for orchestral music and performance.

Learn about the LACO Mural: Harbor Freeway Overture