Anne Akiko Meyers to Perform with Pasadena Symphony
Anne Akiko Meyers
PASADENA — Classical violinist Anne Akiko Meyers will perform Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons” and other works with the Pasadena Symphony, conducted by David Lockington, on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 2 and 8 p.m. at the historic Ambassador Auditorium, 131 S. Saint John Ave. in Pasadena.
Meyers recorded “Four Seasons” with Lockington and debuted at No. 1 on the Classical Billboard Charts. She has just released “Serenade: The Love Album,” recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Keith Lockhart.
Also on the program are Bach’s Air on the G String, Pachelbel’s Canon, Purcell’s Chacony, and Dorman’s Concerto Grosso.
Pre-concert discussion begins one hour before the concert.
This concert is part of the Pasadena Symphony’s 88th season and its Singpoli Classics Series. Six-concert subscription packages start at $180; regular individually priced tickets start at $35 and may be purchased by calling (626) 793-7172 or going to www.pasadenasymphony-pops.org.
Meyers (www.anneakikomeyers.com) is celebrated around the world for her artistry and ability to connect with audiences from the concert stage, online, and in television, and radio broadcasts. She regularly performs in recital and as guest soloist with many of the world’s top orchestras, and is a best-selling recording artist who has released 30 albums.
Future highlights include performances with Leonard Slatkin and the Orchestre de Lyon, Kristjan Järvi and the MDR Leipzig Orchestra, and recital and solo appearances throughout North America. An avid commissioner of new music, Meyers will premiere Mason Bates and Somei Satoh’s music as well as new arrangements from the American Songbook music in numerous cities nationwide.
This fall, eOne Music releases “The American Masters,” Meyers’ 30th album, featuring the world premiere recordings of the Mason Bates Violin Concerto and John Corigliano’s “Lullaby for Natalie” (written for Meyers’ first-born daughter). Also featured is the Samuel Barber Violin Concerto, with the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Slatkin. In addition, Mayers made the world premiere of the Samuel Jones Violin Concerto with the All-Star Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Schwarz, in a nationwide PBS broadcast special aired last spring 2015 and released on DVD by Naxos.
In recent seasons, Meyers released “The Four Seasons: The Vivaldi Album” and “Air: The Bach Album” on eOne Music. Both recordings debuted at No. 1 on the classical Billboard charts and received great critical acclaim. “The Vivaldi Album” was the recording debut of the “Ex-Vieuxtemps” Guarneri del Gesu violin, dated 1741, which was recently awarded to Meyers for her lifetime use. This instrument is considered by many to be the finest-sounding violin in existence.
Meyers’s recent performances included recital and concerto appearances in North and South America, Europe and Asia, including performances with the Chicago, Detroit, Nashville, and Richmond symphony orchestras of the Mason Bates Violin Concerto, a work she co-commissioned and premiered with the Pittsburgh Symphony in December 2012.
Meyers has collaborated with a diverse array of artists outside of traditional classical, including jazz icons Chris Botti and Wynton Marsalis, avant-garde musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, electronic music pioneer Isao Tomita, popera group Il Divo, and singer Michael Bolton.
She performed the national anthem in front of 42,000 fans at Safeco Field in Seattle, and appeared twice on “The Tonight Show” and was featured in a segment on MSNBC’s “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” that became the third most popular story of the year.
Meyers has been featured on NPR’s “Morning Edition” with Linda Wertheimer and “All Things Considered” with Robert Siegel and has been regularly featured on Boston’s WGBH, Chicago’s WFMT, New York’s WQXR radio and SiriusXM Radio.
Best-selling novelist J. Courtney Sullivan consulted with Meyers for “The Engagements” and based one of the main characters loosely on her career. She was also featured on the popular Nick Jr. show “Take Me to Your Mother” with Andrea Rosen in the episode “Andrea Gets in Tune.”
Meyers was born in San Diego and grew up in Southern California. Her teachers include Alice and Eleonore Schoenfeld at the Colburn School of Performing Arts, Josef Gingold at Indiana University, and Felix Galimir, Masao Kawasaki and Dorothy DeLay at the Juilliard School. She received the Avery Fisher Career Grant and serves on the advisory board of Composers Concordance and Young Concert Artists. ‘
Meyers lives with her husband and two young daughters in Austin, Texas.