Beverly Hills, March 3, 2010— The Young Musicians Foundation and its Debut Orchestra, led by music director and conductor, Maestro Case Scaglione, present “Cultural Warfare,” a concert performance and what promises to be a lively roundtable dialogue. The Debut Orchestra’s first performance takes place Sunday, March 14 at the Broad Stage, 1310 11th Street, Santa Monica, 4:00 p.m. This will be followed by a performance on Monday, March 15 at Hollywood’s Helen Bernstein High School, 1309 N Wilton Place, Los Angeles, CA 90028 at 1:30 p.m. (more…)

Othalie Graham


On January 31st, 2010, the Young Musicians Foundation will be staging Act II of Richard Wagner's opera, Tristan und Isolde. The Debut Orchestra, led by Maestro Case Scaglione, will be showcasing the talents of 5 rising wagnerian stars. (more...)

Trisan und Isolde, Act II
Sunday, January 31st 2010
4pm Performance

Venue:
The Broad Stage in Santa Monica
1310 11th Street, Santa Monica CA 90401

Meet the Cast click photo for bio

Isolde – Othalie Graham, Soprano	Tristan – Jeffrey Springer,   tenor	Brangaene – Erica Brookhyser, mezzo-soprano	King Marke – Pawel Izdebski, bass	Melot – Andrew Scott Carter, tenor

Production

Stephanie Vlahos, stage director
Jared A. Sayeg, lighting designer
Nicolas Kostner, stage designer

Synopsis

Act 1

Isolde sadly tells her handmaid, Brangäne of how, following the death of her fiancé, Morold, a stranger called Tantris was brought to her. Tantris was found mortally wounded in a boat, and Isolde used her healing powers to restore him to health. She discovered during Tantris’ recovery, however, that he was actually Tristan, the murderer of her fiancé. Isolde attempted to kill the man with his own sword as he lay helpless before her but Tristan had looked not at the sword that would kill him, but into her eyes. His action pierced her heart and she was unable to slay him. Tristan was allowed to leave, but later returned with the intention of marrying Isolde to his uncle, King Marke. Isolde, furious at Tristan’s betrayal, insists that he drink atonement to her, and from her medicine-chest produces a vial to make the drink. Brangäne is shocked to see that it is a lethal poison.

Kurwenal appears in the women’s quarters and announces that Tristan has agreed to see Isolde after all. When Tristan arrives, Isolde tells him that she now knows that he was Tantris, and that he owes her his life. Tristan agrees to drink the potion, now prepared by Brangäne, even though he knows it may kill him. As he drinks, Isolde tears the remainder of the potion from him and drinks it herself. At this moment, each believing that their lives are about to end, the two declare their love for each other. Kurwenal, who announces the imminent arrival on board of King Marke, interrupts their rapture. Isolde asks Brangäne which potion she prepared and Brangäne replies, as the sailors hail the arrival of King Marke, that it was not a poisonous drink, but rather a love-potion.

Act 2

King Marke leads a hunting party out into the night, leaving the castle empty, save for Isolde and Brangäne, who stand beside a burning brazier. Isolde, listening to the hunting horns, believes several times that the hunting party is far enough away to warrant the extinguishing of the brazier — the prearranged signal for Tristan to join her. Brangäne warns Isolde that Melot, one of King Marke’s knights, has seen the amorous looks exchanged between Tristan and Isolde and suspects their passion. Isolde, however, believes Melot to be Tristan’s most loyal friend, and, in a frenzy of desire, extinguishes the flames. Brangäne retires to the ramparts to keep watch as Tristan arrives.

The lovers, at last alone and freed from the constraints of courtly life, declare their passion for each other. Tristan decries the realm of daylight, which is false, unreal, and keeps them apart. It is only in night, he claims, that they can truly be together and only in the long night of death can they be eternally united. During their long tryst, Brangäne calls a warning several times that the night is ending, but her cries fall upon deaf ears. The day breaks in on the lovers as Melot leads King Marke and his men to find Tristan and Isolde in each other’s arms. Marke is heart-broken, not only because of his adopted son Tristan’s betrayal but also because Marke, too, has come to love Isolde. The love duet in Act II is regarded as the most rapturous in all of western music.

Tristan turns to Isolde, who agrees to follow him again into the realm of night. Melot and Tristan fight, but, at the crucial moment, Tristan throws his sword aside and Melot mortally wounds him.

Act 3

Kurwenal has brought Tristan home to his castle at Kareol in Brittany. A shepherd pipes a mournful tune and asks if Tristan is awake. Kurwenal replies that only Isolde’s arrival can save Tristan. Tristan’s mourning ends when Kurwenal tells him that Isolde is on her way. Tristan, overjoyed, asks if her ship is in sight.

Tristan collapses in delirium. After his collapse, the shepherd is heard piping the arrival of Isolde’s ship, and, as Kurwenal rushes to meet her, Tristan tears the bandages from his wounds in his excitement. As Isolde arrives at his side, Tristan dies with her name on his lips.

Isolde collapses beside her deceased lover just as the appearance of another ship is announced. Kurwenal spies Melot, Marke and Brangäne arriving and, in an attempt to avenge Tristan, furiously attacks Melot. Both Melot and Kurwenal, however, are killed in the fight. Marke and Brangäne finally reach Tristan and Isolde. Marke, grieving over the body of his “truest friend,” explains that he learned of the love-potion from Brangäne and has come not to part the lovers, but to unite them. Isolde appears to wake at this, but instead, in a final aria describing her vision of Tristan risen again (the “Liebestod”, “love death”), dies of grief.

BEVERLY HILLS, September 17, 2009 –  Jonathan Weedman, Regional Vice President, Wells Fargo Foundation, is the new Chairman of the Board for the Young Musicians Foundation, it was announced by YMF Executive Director, Edye Rugolo.

Weedman, a Los Angeles native, previously served on the YMF board prior to stepping up to his new role as chairman.  In his role as Wells Fargo’s regional vice president, based at the company’s Beverly Hills headquarters, Weedman is responsible for managing the charitable contributions for Los Angeles, the company’s largest market. (more…)

26 year old Case Scaglione, a graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Music has been selected to become the new Music Director of the Debut! Orchestra, beginning in the Fall of 2008. For additional details, read the full press release here.

In February, 2008, YMF musicians once again appeared on the live Grammy telecast, performing alongside the Foo Fighters, in an orchestra conducted by Sir John Paul Jones. In previous years, the Foundation provided soloists and young musicians to appear alongside recording artist Kelly Clarkson.

Outgoing Music Director Sean Newhouse was named Associate Conductor of the Indianapolis Symphony beginning in their Fall 2008 Season. His duties will involve leading the orchestra in a variety of concerts including: summer performances, educational and family concerts. Mr. Newhouse recently made his European debut, conducting the Silesian Philharmonic in Warsaw and Katowice, Poland, as a result of being named a major prizewinner at the 8th International Grzegorz Fitelberg Competition for Conductors.

Beginning in November, 2007, the Disney Channel began airing an episode of “The Suite Life with Zach and Cody” that featured 25 of YMF’s young musicians from the Mentor Artists Program, the National Orchestra Camp, the Scholarship Program, and the YMF Youth Orchestra. Not only did the students appear on screen, they also recorded all of the classical music heard in the episode. To view a clip of the episode, click here

On June 19th, 2009, the Young Musicians Foundation Harp In Our Public Schools Project was featured on stage at the Hollywood Bowl Gala Celebration. Eleven 5th grade participants of the Harp Project at Moffett Elementary School were accompanied by the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra in a performance of Paisaje by Alfredo Rolando Ortiz. The students were introduced by celebrities Jaime Pressly and Bill Paxton. The young harpists played to a sold out crowd of 18,000 and were starstruck by sharing the stage with Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame members John Williams, Garth Brooks, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Josh Groban as well as other legendary performers such as Roger Daltrey, Trisha Yearwood, Angelique Kidjo and Frederica von Stade.