1985-2025 40th anniversary with Mason Bates!

From Music Director Eric Kujawsky:

I founded Redwood Symphony in October 1985 and here I am, forty years later, looking forward to many more years with my dear friends and colleagues! I programmed this anniversary concert especially because: the Chabrier is one of my favorite concert openers, the chance to work again with friend, Palo Alto native and magnetic soloist Karen Bentley Pollick and, most importantly, the performance of one of my favorite pieces, Mason Bates’ Alternative Energy. This four-movement symphony incorporates car parts in the percussion and also a huge solo part for electronica, ie the use of synthetic, processed sounds.

When I last performed Alternative Energy, we used electronica supplied by the composer, to be played automatically on a laptop. For this very special anniversary occasion, Redwood Symphony is honored to have Mason Bates himself, appearing as our guest and guest soloist and playing in his capacity as “DJ Masonic.”

Mason Bates

Mason Bates is a Grammy award-winning American composer of symphonic music and DJ of electronic dance music. He is the first composer-in-residence of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and he has also been in…Read more →

Karen Bentley Pollick

Karen Bentley Pollick is one of America’s leading contemporary musicians, performing a wide range of solo repertoire and styles on violin, viola, piano and hardingfele (Norwegian Hardanger fiddle)…Read more →