The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera welcome inductees Lora Painter, Lars Gjerde, Jennifer Harris, and Adam Marszal

SACRAMENTO, CA – August 22, 2023 – The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera (SP&O) received
a fresh injection of board leadership last week with the election of four new members to the
Board of Directors. The four new members, who include journalist Lora Painter of ABC10, arts
advocate Lars Gjerde, Sacramento State administrator Jennifer Harris, and corporate leader
Adam Marszal, begin their tenure immediately.

“SP&O is honored to have these four experienced business and community volunteers join our
Board of Directors,” said SP&O President Sheree Meyer. “Our board has a track record of
tremendous success, as our recent accomplishments demonstrate, but with these new
members sharing their passion and knowledge, SP&O is poised to reach even greater heights.”

The new board members join the board at a time when the SP&O is on a trajectory of growth
and success. The SP&O’s recently completed 2022-23 season ended with a chorus of
unprecedented achievements, including a reliable and growing subscription base, sold out
performances and, since 2015, over $10 million in gifts and sponsorships made to the
Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera and the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera Foundation.

About the new directors

Lora Painter anchors weeknights at 5, 6, & 11 p.m. for ABC10. The California native has a
master’s degree from New York University in Broadcast News & Documentary, and a bachelor’s
degree in Communication from California State University San Marcos. She has two Emmy
nominations for anchoring and writing, and has twice received a “Best Anchor” award from the
Michigan Association of Broadcasters. Lora has been a board member of the Kalamazoo
Institute of Arts and continues to be a member of its Asian Art Advisory Council. She is a former
professor at Anyang University in South Korea. She is also an accomplished singer and plays
several instruments including piano and clarinet.

Norwegian native Lars Gjerde earned his doctorate in organ from the Eastman School of Music.
During his church music career, Lars taught, led choirs and orchestral musicians, and created
events to support charities. He engaged in regional leadership through the American Guild of
Organists. Lars later earned his Nurse Practitioner degree from Yale University and is now a
Nurse Practitioner Supervisor at UC Davis Medical Center. A recent Chapter President of the
California Association for Nurse Practitioners and Chapter Dean for the American Guild of
Organists, Lars is thrilled to serve the visionary board of the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera.

Jennifer Harris is the Associate Vice President of Budget Planning and Administration at
Sacramento State University. A Sacramento native and Sac State Alumna, Jennifer has worked
in a variety of fiscal management and oversight roles with the State of California, including the
California State Auditor’s Office, the Department of Finance, and CalPERS. Jennifer credits her
love of classical music to her elementary school violin teacher who took her to hear the
Camellia Symphony Orchestra perform. She is excited to help support classical music and opera
in our community, and in particular increasing youth access to and appreciation of music.

Adam Marszal was born and raised in Carmichael, CA and currently serves as the CEO of his
family’s petroleum company and commercial real estate business. He takes pleasure in being
involved in organizations and different causes in Sacramento. In his free time, Adam enjoys
golfing and being with his wife, Maggie, and their two daughters, Lucy and Blair. Adam’s
interest in music stems from his time in Jesuit High School’s choir as a teenager

# # #

Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera
With its mission to build community, inspire a love of the performing arts, and enrich lives
through music, the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera is the collaborative leader in the cultural
growth of the Greater Sacramento Region having reclaimed its place as one of the region’s
leading performing arts organizations. Since its triumphant return in 2015, the SP&O has made
tremendous artistic, community, and fiscal strides through a business model that has solidly
moved from one of instability to one of stability.
Today, the SP&O serves as a vibrant cultural community asset – one that is shaped by
Sacramento, whose offerings are uniquely of Sacramento, and whose vision for the future is
designed for Sacramento. The SP&O continues its stellar concerts, operas, and community
engagement programs that bring the passion of classical music to schools, hospitals, shelters,
and more. We look forward to continually benefiting this region through our work and
expanding our impact and how we’re able to serve this growing, thriving community.

Celebrated Education Executive Sheree Meyer to become next president

SACRAMENTO, CA – July 25, 2023 – The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera (SP&O) announces the transfer of the baton of leadership with the election of Sheree Meyer as the next President of its Board of Directors.

Meyer, who succeeds John Shirey, is Dean of the College of Arts & Letters at Sacramento State University. She has studied music throughout her life and has committed herself to providing others with opportunities to appreciate and participate in music. She joined the Board of Directors of the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera in 2016 and served most recently as its Vice President from 2021-2023.

“Music has long been important in my life, and as I step into the role of president, I look forward to working with our dedicated musicians, staff, and volunteers to build upon the SP&O’s recent successes,” said Sheree Meyer, incoming SP&O president. “Together, we are poised to make an even greater influence in the Sacramento community, and I am honored to lead this important work.”

A member of the Sacramento State community since 1991, Meyer’s interest in fields such as history, literature, music, and performance began at a young age, and she has continued to perform in plays and musicals, sing in choirs, and study music throughout her life. Since becoming Dean of the College of Arts & Letters, she has dedicated herself to bringing the students, faculty, and staff of the college into creative collaborations with other arts and cultural organizations in Sacramento. In 2019, she led the College of Arts & Letters in receiving and implementing a City of Sacramento Creative Economy Pilot Project Grant.

Meyer served as a member of Sacramento’s Creative Edge Steering Committee and currently serves on the boards of Blue Line Arts and the Sacramento Alliance of Regional Arts. She is a proud recipient of California Lawyers for the Arts “Artistic License Award” for her contributions to art and education.

“SP&O couldn’t ask for a more broadly experienced or more highly principled advocate than Sheree Meyer,” said SP&O Executive Director Giuliano Kornberg. “As a remarkably successful community leader, she is determined to use arts and culture to make the world a better place. We’re honored to have her as our esteemed president of the Board of Directors and look forward to benefiting from her wisdom and passion.”  

During her tenure as president of the SP&O, Meyer plans to prioritize strengthening and expanding SP&O’s musical and educational impact on the region, growing, diversifying, and developing its board, and enhancing its collaborations with other Sacramento arts, educational, and cultural organizations.

Meyer succeeds John Shirey, who led the SP&O as its Board President from 2021-2023. Under Shirey’s leadership, the SP&O returned to live performances after COVID, reached a three-year agreement with the Local Musician’s Union, and appointed Ari Pelto as its first Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor. The SP&O’s recently completed 2022-23 season ended with a chorus of unprecedented achievements, including a reliable and growing subscription base, sold out performances and, since 2015, over $10 million in gifts and sponsorships made to the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera and the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera Foundation.

# # #

Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera

With its mission to build community, inspire a love of the performing arts, and enrich lives through music, the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera is the collaborative leader in the cultural growth of the Greater Sacramento Region having reclaimed its place as one of the region’s leading performing arts organizations. Since its triumphant return in 2015, the SP&O has made tremendous artistic, community, and fiscal strides through a business model that has solidly moved from one of instability to one of stability.

Today, the SP&O serves as a vibrant cultural community asset – one that is shaped by Sacramento, whose offerings are uniquely of Sacramento, and whose vision for the future is designed for Sacramento. The SP&O continues its stellar concerts, operas, and community engagement programs that bring the passion of classical music to schools, hospitals, shelters, and more. We look forward to continually benefiting this region through our work and expanding our impact and how we’re able to serve this growing, thriving community.

Record audiences and contributions: 400,000 greater Sacramentans reached; $10 million in gifts and sponsorships made

Sacramento, CA, June 30, 2023: A decade after the merger of Sacramento’s orchestra and opera company and eight years after the eventual triumphant return to concerts and operas, the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera (SP&O) completed its 2022-23 season with a chorus of unprecedented achievements. Fighting a national headwind emanating from the pandemic, which continues to stymy performing arts organizations across the nation, SP&O has now performed for a record 400,000 greater Sacramentans through orchestra, opera, pops, grade school, pop-up, and civic partnership concerts and events since 2015, including three sold-out performances at the SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center (SAFE PAC) this season alone.

The key to the SP&O’s triumphant return and fiscal stability has been a reliable and growing subscription base coupled with the Sacramento Region’s philanthropic generosity. Subscription revenue increased nearly 45% over a year ago, with the number of subscribers crossing 1,000 for the first time since before the pandemic. And, since 2015, over $10 million in gifts and sponsorships have been made to the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera and the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera Foundation.

A key tenet of the merger between the Sacramento Philharmonic and the Sacramento Opera, the new Company has presented six operas in the past 8 years for a combined audience exceeding 12,000, featuring nationally celebrated artists and directors earning critical and audience acclaim.

“For everyone who works on behalf of the Sacramento Philharmonic and Opera, it is a tremendous privilege to be able to serve Sacramento with great music,” exalts Giuliano Kornberg, the SP&O’s Executive Director. “Selling hundreds of thousands of tickets to orchestral, operatic, and pops performances in eight years was once viewed as a pipe dream. Now, it’s the new baseline for our ambitions — a foundation from which we will continue to serve and partner with audiences across the Region.”

In addition to those attending orchestral and opera presentations, the SP&O has reached 25,000 3^rd-5^th grade students in Title 1 Schools through music education offerings including full orchestra “Link Up” concerts in partnership with Carnegie Hall. As one of the largest and most frequent Sacramento-based tenants of the SAFE PAC and the predecessor Community Center Theater, in eight years the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera has held more than 250 concert events and rehearsals at the SAFE PAC, engaging more than 650 greater Sacramento classical musicians and chorus members and bringing to Sacramento some 160 internationally celebrated guest artists and conductors.

“While our principal performing venue is the SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center, our commitment to the greater Sacramento Region extends into every corner of our region,” observes John Shirey, retired Sacramento City Manager and the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera’s Board President. “In recent years, we have offered 175 pop-up concerts, and our remarkable musicians have performed for some quarter-million individuals outside the SAFE PAC at multiple events including Run to Feed the Hungry, a 4^th of July performance at Sutter Health Park, and Andrea Bocelli at the Golden 1 Center. It’s an incredible story of resilience and service to our Region.”

SP&O’s 2023-24 season is on sale, with subscription sales already outpacing this year’s strong results. Programs range from Dvořák’s legendary Symphony No. 9, “From the New World,” to Johann Strauss’ hysterical opera, Die Fledermaus, to Ravel’s arrangement of Mussorgsky’s epoch Pictures at an Exhibition. Subscriptions are available at www.sacphilopera.org; single tickets go on sale in August.

# # #

Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera

With its mission to build community, inspire a love of the performing arts, and enrich lives through music, the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera is the collaborative leader in the cultural growth of the Greater Sacramento Region, having reclaimed its place as one of the region’s leading performing arts organizations. Since its triumphant return in 2015, the SP&O has made tremendous artistic, community, and fiscal strides through a business model that has solidly moved from one of instability to one of stability.

Today, the SP&O serves as a vibrant cultural community asset – one that is shaped by Sacramento, whose offerings are uniquely of Sacramento, and whose vision for the future is designed for Sacramento. The SP&O continues its stellar concerts, operas, and community engagement programs that bring the passion of classical music to the stage, schools, hospitals, shelters, and more. We look forward to continually benefiting this region through our work and expanding our impact of how we can serve this growing, thriving community.

We have the best patrons! Thank you to everyone who attended La Bohème on May 20th! We appreciate your love of the performing arts. If you took a picture in front of our Step and Repeat Banner, you can download yours below!

Thanks to all who came out to our performances this year, and we look forward to seeing you again next year for our 2023-24 season!

LINK TO PHOTOS

We have the best patrons! Thank you to everyone who attended Leonard Slatkin Conducts on April 29th! We appreciate your love of the performing arts. If you took a picture in front of our Step and Repeat Banner, you can download yours below! See you on Saturday May 20th for the final performance of our season, La Bohème!

LINK TO PHOTOS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Giuliano Kornberg
gkornberg@sacphilopera.org

Major step forward in Building Future Leadership

SACRAMENTO, CA – April 11, 2023 – The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera (SP&O) proudly announces Maestro Ari Pelto as Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor. Pelto officially takes up his duties with the 2023-2024 season and continues through the 2025-2026 season. The upcoming season begins October 21, 2023, and includes five philharmonic programs and two operas.

“As we’ve grown over the last decade, we realized it was time to really invest in our musicians and their artistry, and the best way to do that is to bring in renowned artistic leadership,” said Giuliano Kornberg, Executive Director. “Ari has been a frequent guest conductor here, and as we explored engaging an artistic leader, it became obvious that Ari was the right choice, given his connection and dedication to Sacramento and his popularity among audiences.”

Pelto is currently music director of Opera Colorado and maintains a robust performance schedule with opera companies and orchestras around the world. In addition to regular performances with Opera Colorado, Pelto’s recent engagements include New York City Opera, San Diego Opera, Atlanta Ballet, Atlanta Opera, and Lyric Opera.

“When I first worked with the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera, I was in awe of the quality of musicianship this organization produces, and I have happily returned again and again to conduct this fine ensemble,” Pelto reflected. “The connection I feel with the musicians is special, and I look forward to continuing to work with them and bring the best in orchestral music and opera to this community.”
As Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor, Pelto will shape the artistic profile of the SP&O, provide consistency from the podium by conducting at least three concerts each year, and advise the SP&O on artistic matters including auditions, season programming, the selection of guest artists and conductors, and more that will enable the SP&O to grow artistically.

The SP&O relies on support from the community to bring artists of Pelto’s caliber to Sacramento and perform great concerts. Naming an artistic advisor and principal conductor is only possible with the support of Doris Matsui and Roger Sant, who have been staunch supporters and advocates of the SP&O since its comeback.

Congresswoman Matsui and Mr. Sant shared that “Sacramento wouldn’t be the community that it is without a lively and thriving arts community, which includes the Philharmonic & Opera. To be successful, organizations need strong leadership, and we are proud to help make that possible. We look forward to seeing Ari and this great organization continue to grow and strengthen.”

About Ari Pelto

Widely known for performances that have been called “poetic, earthy, vigorous” and “highly individual,” Finnish American conductor Ari Pelto is in demand in opera houses and with symphony orchestras throughout the United States.

Appointed Music Director at Opera Colorado in 2015, Pelto has also conducted the New York City Opera, San Diego Opera, Atlanta Ballet, Atlanta Opera, Lyric Opera Kansas City, Virginia Opera, Portland Opera, Minnesota Opera, Opera Memphis, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Boston Lyric Opera, Chautauqua Festival, Western Opera Theatre (the touring company of San Francisco Opera), Utah Symphony and Opera, Chicago Opera Theater and Chicago College of Performing Arts.

Maestro Pelto was assistant conductor at Spoleto Festival and with Florida West Coast Symphony and a frequent guest with The Florida Orchestra and Toledo Symphony. More recently, he conducted Omaha Symphony, Utah Symphony, and Detroit Symphony in a variety of symphonic works. His international appearances include performances with the Bochumer Philharmoniker, New National Theatre of Tokyo, and the Teatro Nacional Sucre in Quito, Ecuador. A masterful collaborator with dancers, Ari has enjoyed a longstanding relationship with the Atlanta Ballet.

Pelto is a graduate of Oberlin Conservatory, and studied conducting at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Rubin Academy in Jerusalem, and with Imre Pallo at Indiana University.

Concerts conducted by Mr. Pelto in the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera 2023-2024 season include the following:

BRAHMS’ STORMY SYMPHONY NO. 4
Saturday, November 18, 2023

Ari Pelto, conductor
Zlatomir Fung, cello

MENDELSSOHN The Hebrides, op. 26 (Fingal’s Cave)
ELGAR Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
BRAHMS Symphony No. 4

MICHELLE CANN PLAYS RACHMANINOFF
Saturday, January 20, 2024

Ari Pelto, conductor
Michelle Cann, piano

PROKOFIEV Suite from Lieutenant Kijé, Op. 60
RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18
SIBELIUS Symphony No. 3 in C major, Op. 52

PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION
Saturday, March 9, 2024

Ari Pelto, conductor

PRICE The Oak, symphonic poem FAURÉ Suite from Pélleas et Mélisande, op. 80
MUSSORGSKY/RAVEL Pictures at an Exhibition

Subscription packages are on sale now, with seven-concert packages starting at $140. Single tickets will go on sale in August. For more information or to purchase a subscription, visit sacphilopera.org or call 916-476-5975. The 2023-24 Season is underwritten by the Nancy and Hank Fisher Family Fund.

About the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera:

The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera builds community, inspires a love of the performing arts, and enriches lives through symphonic and opera music. Its current 2022-23 season, with seven performances total including two operas, began on October 22, 2022, with a performance featuring “The Firebird” and ends on May 20, 2023, with a staged production of La Bohème. To learn more about the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera and its 2022-23 season and programs, visit https://www.sacphilopera.org/.

What a fabulous way to finish the month! The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera featured conductor Francois Lopez-Ferrer and cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan on January 28. This was such a special performance of the Saint-Saens Cello Concerto No. 1 and Ravel’s Bolero. It even included a surprise duet with Narek and our harpist, Anna Maria Mendieta, playing the Swan.

We have the best patrons! Thank you to everyone who attended Bolero the last weekend of January! We appreciate your love of the performing arts. If you took a picture in front of our Step and Repeat Banner, you can download yours below! See you February 25 for our first Opera, Pagliacci!

LINK TO PHOTOS

The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera hosted pianist Janice Carissa and conductor Douglas Boyd on January 21 for a nearly sold out crowd. Our orchestra expertly performed the dynamic Ravel Piano Concerto in G, with Janice gracefully dancing around the keyboard. What a special evening!

We have the best patrons! Thank you to everyone who attended Beethoven’s Eroica in January! We appreciate your love of the performing arts. If you took a picture in front of our Step and Repeat Banner, you can download yours below! See you February 25 for our first Opera, Pagliacci!

LINK TO PHOTOS