Soloist: Luke Kim, cello

Andy Radford, Music Director

Shostakovich: Concerto No. 1 for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 107
Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71a
Mozart: Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550
Tchaikovsky: 1812 Overture, Op. 49  

Saturday, May 20, 2017 at 2:30pm and 5pm
Lobero Theatre

Opera Santa Barbara’s newly formed Santa Barbara Youth Opera presents a fully staged production of Brundibár. Written for children with just one adult part, and approximately forty minutes long, the opera was composed in 1938 by Hans Krása, as an entry for a children’s opera competition. It received its premiere in German-occupied Prague and was performed by children at a Jewish Orphanage. The children and the composer were eventually transported to the Terezín concentration camp. In July 1943, the score of Brundibár was smuggled into camp, where it was re-orchestrated by Krása for the various instrumentalists who were available to play at that time. The premiere of the Terezín version took place on 23 September 1943 in the hall of the Magdeburg barracks. The opera eventually had over 50 performances at Terezín. Nearly all of the children who performed in the opera were deported to Auschwitz and died in the gas chambers. Hans Krása met the same fate. Though the history of Brundibár is brutal, the opera itself is a parable of hope and justice. This special performance is a collaboration with the Ojai Youth Opera and the Santa Barbara Youth Symphony.