Shawna Saperstein Galassi
Charles Schultz may have laid his Peanuts comic strip to rest,
however, the lovable Peanuts characters will not be forgotten any time
soon. In addition to being immortalized by books and television, Charlie
Brown and the gang are continually finding new mediums of expression.
They will be a featured part of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra's
Family Concert Series debut Feb. 20 at The Alex Theatre in Glendale. The
program will begin with "Peanuts Gallery for Piano and Orchestra," a
14-minute piece divided into several movements.
Composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich wrote each movement to represent a
Peanuts character. For Charlie Brown and all those times he's had to
utter "good grief," she wrote "a rather wistful but not terribly sad"
movement titled "Charlie Brown's Lament."
For Linus, who's never without his blanket, she wrote "Lullaby For
Linus." With temperamental Lucy in mind, Zwilich composed "Lucy Freaks
Out." And Snoopy, who Zwilich thinks is "really cool," she wrote a
"hot-blooded Brazilian whirl" titled "Snoopy Does the Samba."
The piece also features Schroeder's "Beethoven Fantasy" and
"Peppermint Patty and Marcie Lead the Parade."
After the Peanuts Gallery, the concert will continue with Britten's
Simple Symphony. According to Ruth Eliel, LACO executive director, this
is a good piece to introduce children to music because it is relatively
simple and has clear melody lines.
Eliel said that LACO Music Director Jeffrey Kahane included the piece
in the concert.
"He felt it was a proper introduction to music for young people,"
Eliel said.
The program promises to be both fun and educational. Kahane will begin
the program with an introduction in which he talks about the instruments.
At the end of the concert he will then walk through the audience
answering questions children have.
And as Eliel discovered at last year's family concert, children always
have questions.
The LACO Family Concert Series will continue on May 14 with Peter and
the Wolf. Instead of the story being read, the orchestra will play as two
members of the San Francisco-based Magic Circle Mime Company mime the
storyline.
As an added visual, some of the orchestra members will be dressed as
characters from the story. As with the February performance, Kahane will
begin the program with an introduction and then conclude with a
question-answer period. Both concerts are geared toward children between
the ages of 6 and 13. Parents should use good judgment for kids under
6, Eliel said. Families interested in attending both concerts can
purchase series tickets and see three concerts for the price of two. The
second concert in the series is at UCLA on March 26.
It is titled "Voyage of Discovery" and features music by Revueltas,
Harrison, Dvorak and Mendelssohn.
IF YOU GO:
WHAT: Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra's Family Concert Series.
WHERE: The Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale.
WHEN: 2 p.m. Feb. 20 and May 14.
TICKETS: $20 to $30 for adults and $10 to $15 for children under 16.
PHONE: (213) 622-7001, ext. 215.
