INNOVATIVE CREATIVE
GENRE-BENDING
Three unforgettable experiences await during SummerFest, August 17–19, 2023
Inon Barnatan, Music DirectorExpanding Imaginations & Breaking Barriers.
The Synergy Initiative, a series co-produced by Inon Barnatan and Clara Wu Tsai, invites top creators of music, dance, spoken word, and visual arts to collaborate across their different art forms and produce performances that inspire audiences in unexpected and powerful ways.
The
THURSDAY, AUGUST 17 · 6 PM & 8:30 PM
The Louis Cato Trio
FRIDAY, AUGUST 18 · 7:30 PM
Carnival of the Animals
SATURDAY, AUGUST 19 · 7:30 PM
American Classic: Cato/Dover/Lark/Thurber
Clara Wu Tsai Inon BarnatanTHURSDAY, AUGUST 17 · 6 PM & 8:30 PM
The Louis Cato Trio
THE JAI
GRAMMY-nominated Louis Cato, an internationally acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, producer, and songwriter who leads The Late Show with Stephen Colbert house band, takes the stage in the intimate atmosphere of The JAI for an evening of eclectic jazz-inspired performance with his band.
Louis Cato has worked with an array of artists, including Bobby McFerrin, Snarky Puppy, Jon Batiste, Q-Tip, and A Tribe Called Quest. Cato has an undeniable ability to craft sonic landscapes into timeless masterpieces. After two decades of lending his talents to other projects, he released his first solo record, Starting Now, which he also mixed and produced entirely by himself. Louis Cato is currently in postproduction on his newest album, which is due out in the coming year.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 18 · 7:30 PM
Carnival of the Animals
THE BAKER-BAUM CONCERT HALL
An evening-length interdisciplinary work of dance, spoken word and music, Carnival of the Animals is an intentional response to the January 6 insurrection, navigating the reality of the political jungle by embodying shifting societal values and our relationship to democracy. Choreographed and directed by Francesca Harper and anchored in the words of poet Marc Bamuthi Joseph and the transcendent movement of legendary dancer Wendy Whelan, Carnival of the Animals reimagines Saint-Saëns’ original animals and creates new animals in the political ecosystem, locating the classical in the present context. Each animal is tethered between order and disorder across a landscape of natural and socio-political arrangement. Harper utilizes Joseph’s writing of these new animals, including butterflies, free birds, goat, and elephant, to create physical poetry, giving life and breadth to the dynamic visions for hope, examples of resiliency as well as the polarizing experiences of race and gender, and different takes on political people and moments in our recent history.
Wendy Whelan, dancer (Associate Artistic Director, New York City Ballet)
Marc Bamuthi Joseph, spoken word (VP/Artistic Director of Social Impact for The Kennedy Center)
Francesca Harper, choreographer (Artistic Director, Alvin Ailey II) Inon Barnatan, Joyce Yang, Geneva Lewis, and Gabriel Martins, musiciansSATURDAY, AUGUST 19 · 7:30 PM
American Classic: Cato/Dover/Lark/Thurber
THE BAKER-BAUM CONCERT HALL
Louis Cato, guitar | Mark Dover, clarinet | Tessa Lark, violin | Michael Thurber, bass
A musical explosion of joy with four creative powerhouses meeting at the intersection of blues, classical music, jazz, and songwriting. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert bandleader Louis Cato joins GRAMMY nominees Tessa Lark and clarinetist Mark Dover, along with Broadway-bound composer/bassist Michael Thurber, for never-beforeheard originals, arrangements, and improvisations that bring seemingly disparate stylistic influences into a unique, organic, sonic experience.
Louis Cato Mark Dover Tessa Lark Michael ThurberJULY 28–AUGUST 26, 2023 CALENDAR OF EVENTS
30 SUNDAY
31 MONDAY AUG 1 TUESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
2 WEDNESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
PRELUDE · 2 PM · The JAI Lecture by Michael Gerdes A SONG TO REMEMBER
3 PM
6 SUNDAY MYTHS AND RITES · 3 PM
TAKEOVER @ THE JAI WITH THOMAS ADÈS
7 PM · The JAI
13 SUNDAY
PRELUDE · 2 PM · The JAI Lecture
PROMISES, PROMISES
3 PM
7 MONDAY
ARTIST LOUNGE with Erin Keefe hosted by Leah Rosenthal
1 PM • The Atkinson Room
8 TUESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
ARTIST LOUNGE BOOK
CLUB with Edward Dusinberre hosted by Leah Rosenthal
1 PM • The Atkinson Room
OPEN REHEARSAL
2:30-3:30 PM
Beach’s Piano Quintet in F-Sharp Minor, Op. 67
14 MONDAY
ENCOUNTER · 2 PM · The JAI Fellowship Artist Spotlight I
15 TUESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
ARTIST LOUNGE with Michael Thurber and Tessa Lark hosted by Leah Rosenthal
1 PM • The Atkinson Room
20 SUNDAY 21 MONDAY
ENCOUNTER · 2 PM · The JAI Fellowship Artist Spotlight II with Sterling Elliott
22 TUESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
ARTIST LOUNGE with Anthony McGill hosted by Leah Rosenthal
1 PM • The Atkinson Room
OPEN REHEARSAL · 3–4 PM
Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence
PRELUDE · 6 PM · The JAI Interview with Thomas Adès hosted by Inon Barnatan
FANTASTIC TALES · 7 PM
9 WEDNESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
PRELUDE · 6 PM Performance by Quartet Integra
THE GREAT AMERICANS
7 PM
16 WEDNESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
PRELUDE · 6 PM Performance by trioJEM SLAVONIC DANCES
7 PM
23 WEDNESDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
PRELUDE · 6 PM Performance by trioJEM SOUVENIRS · 7 PM
MIDWEEK MASTERWORKS
27 THURSDAY
OPEN REHEARSAL
11:30 AM-12:30 PM
Mozart’s String Quintet No. 2 in C Minor, K.406
28 FRIDAY
29 SATURDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM · The JAI Interview with Inon Barnatan hosted by Leah Rosenthal
OPENING NIGHT: EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED
6:30 PM
3 THURSDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
JAZZ @ THE JAI WITH LUCY YEGHIAZARYAN & VANISHA GOULD
6 & 8:30 PM · The JAI
10 THURSDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
4 FRIDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM
Performance by Quartet Integra DREAMS AND PRAYERS
7:30 PM
11 FRIDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM · The JAI
Lecture by Kristi Brown Montesano
JOURNEY IN LIGHT
7:30 PM
5 SATURDAY
OPEN REHEARSAL
1:30-2:30 PM
Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM
Performance by trioJEM
MAGIC AND ALCHEMY
7:30 PM
12 SATURDAY
Check the mail for our new SummerFest Education Activities Guide. There you’ll find detailed descriptions and the full schedule for all 50+ events, including Encounters, Coaching Workshops, Artist Lounges, Open Rehearsals, and Preludes.
Scan here to purchase tickets
17 THURSDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
JAZZ @ THE JAI WITH THE LOUIS CATO TRIO
6 & 8:30 PM · The JAI
24 THURSDAY
COACHING WORKSHOPS
10 AM–12 PM · The JAI
ENCOUNTER · 2 PM · The JAI
Shakespeare’s Sister with Ara Guzelimian
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM
Lecture
NEW GROUND · 7:30 PM
18 FRIDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM · The JAI Interview with Francesca Harper hosted by Molly Puryear
SYNERGY: CARNIVAL OF THE ANIMALS · 7:30 PM
25 FRIDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM · The JAI
Lecture by Ara Guzelimian
UNSILENCED VOICES
7:30 PM
6 PM · The Conrad
19 SATURDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM · The JAI Interview with the Artists hosted by Allison Boles
SYNERGY: AMERICAN CLASSIC CATO/DOVER/ LARK/THURBER · 7:30 PM
26 SATURDAY
PRELUDE · 6:30 PM
Performance by Quartet Integra
SUMMERFEST FINALE: SERENADES · 7:30 PM
7600 FAY AVENUE LA JOLLA, CA 92037
For parking information please visit TheConrad.org
Dates, times, artists, subject to change.