American Riffs
Grades 3-6Tue Mar 7 — Thu Mar 9, 2023
Orchestra Hall
Multi-talented Minnesota Orchestra trumpet player Charles Lazarus is skilled at showing the many connections between classical music and that great American tradition, jazz. Here students will encounter jazz-infused works such as Duke Ellington’s It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got That Swing; Gershwin’s languid Summertime, from Porgy and Bess; and dynamic selections from Leonard Bernstein. What’s more, Lazarus, backed by a quartet of jazz stars, will perform a handful of dazzling trumpet solos.
Things to Know
- Prepare for the concert with a curriculum coming approximately six weeks before your trip to Orchestra Hall.
- Tickets can be reserved in advance with no payment due until Fall 2023.
- Does your school need financial assistance for an upcoming trip to a Young People’s Concert at Orchestra Hall? Request a bus subsidy.
Artists
Minnesota Orchestra
Sarah Hicks
conductor
T. Mychael Rambo
host
Charles Lazarus
trumpet and host
Tonia Hughes Kendrick
vocals
Tommy Barbarella
piano
Jeff Bailey
bass
David Schmalenberger
drums
The Grammy Award-winning Minnesota Orchestra, founded in 1903 and led since its centennial by Music Director Osmo Vänskä, is recognized for distinguished performances around the world, award-winning recordings, radio broadcasts, educational engagement programs, and commitment to building the orchestral repertoire of the future. The Orchestra tours regularly throughout Minnesota and nationally, and has toured abroad in Australia, Canada, East Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and South Africa. Recording has been an important part of the organization’s mission since the 1920s. During Vänskä’s tenure, the Orchestra has undertaken acclaimed recordings, including complete cycles of symphonies by Ludwig van Beethoven, Jean Sibelius and—now underway—Mahler.
Conductor Sarah Hicks, the Minnesota Orchestra’s principal conductor of Live at Orchestra Hall, has led a broad range of programs since joining the Orchestra as assistant conductor in 2006. Her notable projects with the Orchestra have included co-creating the Inside the Classics and Sam & Sarah series with Orchestra violist Sam Bergman; conducting a live-in-concert recording with singer-rapper Dessa released in 2019 on the Doomtree Records label; leading numerous original Orchestra programs including Home for the Holidays, A Musical Feast and A Scandinavian Christmas; and conducting many of the Orchestra's Movies & Music concerts. Away from Orchestra Hall, she recently conducted performances of Disney Pixar’s Coco at the Hollywood Bowl as well as the orchestra in ABC’s live televised production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid.
Trumpeter Charles Lazarus, a member of the Minnesota Orchestra since 2000, has charted a unique course during his tenure with the Orchestra. As a soloist, composer and bandleader, Lazarus has created and starred in four original orchestral shows featuring his jazz ensemble: “A Night in the Tropics,” “American Riffs,” “Fly Me to the Moon” and "Our Love is Here to Stay," a collaboration with The Steeles and Prince's former keyboardist Tommy Barbarella. "Merry & Bright,” his concert of fresh takes on holiday favorites, is the newest addition to the Orchestra's annual holiday fare.
In 2015, Lazarus premiered Steve Heitzeg's concerto American Nomad, commissioned by Paul Grangaard. Lazarus and the Orchestra reprised this work last season, and a live video recording of the performance was released online in September 2019. His composition A Perfect Square, paired with Michael Hall's book of the same name, was recently made into a children's animated short film.
Accessibility Services
- ASL Interpretation
- Assistive Listening Devices
- Open Captioning
- Service Animals
- Wheelchair & Accessible Seating
Additional services are available upon request.
CORPORATE SPONSORS
Sponsored By
Thomas* and Mary Lou Detwiler
Mary Ann Feldman Music Education Fund
