Music Festival

Laguna welcomed summer with music and camaraderie with its sister city, Menton, France. The fifth annual Fête de la Musique was presented Saturday by the Laguna Beach Sister Cities Assn., mirroring an event held in Menton. Mayor Jane Egly and association President Karyn Philippsen welcomed the crowd at the opening ceremony on the cobblestones at Main Beach. Terri Gans , communications attaché to the French Consulate in Los Angeles, stood in for the consul, who was unable to attend.

Re: "Hansen: Music is Laguna's artistic stepchild," May 11: Laguna Beach Live! has been working hard since 2001 to add music to the reputation of Laguna Beach as an arts colony. We now present more than 30 concerts a year from jazz, chamber music, big band to gospel, world music and bluegrass plus a week-long Music Festival in February. The sounds this summer include World Music on June 9 at the Woman's Club, Jazz Wednesdays in the Rose Garden of Hotel Laguna every two weeks beginning June 13 and Live!

Laguna Beach Live! has established a Festival Endowment Fund to ensure the future of the Laguna Beach Music Festival. Joan Halvajian joined Laguna residents Michael and Teddie Ray in establishing the endowment. Halvajian is a citrus farmer who was a former music educator. The former music educator has been a SchoolPower president, singer and patron of Pacific Chorale, board member of the Philharmonic Society, leader for Pacific Symphony Orchestra Class Act program, and founder and chairwoman of the Laguna Beach Music Festival for its first five years.

The following events are part of the Laguna Beach Music Festival, Jan. 18 to 25 at various locations. Tickets can be purchased at www.lagunabeachmusic festival.com . ? ??The Cello Goes to the Opera,? sponsored by Claes Restaurant; 6:30 to 8 p.m. Jan. 19 at the Laguna Room, Hotel Laguna, 425 S. Coast Hwy. Hear favorite opera arias come to life in an intimate setting reminiscent of 19th century European salon traditions. Lynn Harrell, accompanied by Victor Asunción will perform.

The theme of 2009 is “Celebration of the Cello.” Laguna Beach Live and the Orange County Philharmonic Society will host their seventh annual Laguna Beach Musical Festival Jan. 18 to 25, featuring world-renowned cellist Lynn Harrell. “This year will include several educational events, master classes, a gourmet dinner [at Claes Restaurant], a special “Meet the Artists” salon and three concerts at the Laguna Beach Artists’ Theatre,” Laguna Beach Live President Cindy Prewitt said.

The sixth annual Laguna Beach Music Festival, Jan. 14-20, will bring new faces and new sounds to Laguna. All of this year’s performers have never before performed in Orange County, let alone in the festival. This year’s featured artists are the Grammy Award-winning Turtle Island String Quartet, described by Yo-Yo Ma as “a reflection of some of the most creative music-making today.” They will be joined by young professional musicians The Enso Quartet and special guest percussionist Stefon Harris.

Five years of harmonic convergence will culminate in next week's fifth annual Laguna Beach Music Festival. Recent years have brought something new into the week-long musical confab, formerly known as the Laguna Beach Chamber Music Festival. "It still fits, of course," said founder Lucinda Prewitt of the former title. "But to many people, it's intimidating, and they only think of traditional classical music, and we're not that — we've been doing a crossover for the past couple years.

Editor's note: This removes "at USC" from after the Colburn School Conservatory of Music. The theme of the ninth annual Laguna Beach Music Festival is intercultural composition, when renowned composers and musicians from across the nation band together with emerging artists in an eclectic string of performances. Hosted by Laguna Beach Live! and the Philharmonic Society of Orange County, the festival will take place Feb. 7 to 13 in downtown Laguna and will feature 11 new guest musicians, including string quartet Brooklyn Rider, kamancheh player and Persian music master Kayhan Kalhor, and master of the shakuhachi (Japanese bamboo flute)

Laguna welcomed summer with music and camaraderie with its sister city, Menton, France. The fifth annual Fête de la Musique was presented Saturday by the Laguna Beach Sister Cities Assn., mirroring an event held in Menton. Mayor Jane Egly and association President Karyn Philippsen welcomed the crowd at the opening ceremony on the cobblestones at Main Beach. Terri Gans , communications attaché to the French Consulate in Los Angeles, stood in for the consul, who was unable to attend.

Re: "Hansen: Music is Laguna's artistic stepchild," May 11: Laguna Beach Live! has been working hard since 2001 to add music to the reputation of Laguna Beach as an arts colony. We now present more than 30 concerts a year from jazz, chamber music, big band to gospel, world music and bluegrass plus a week-long Music Festival in February. The sounds this summer include World Music on June 9 at the Woman's Club, Jazz Wednesdays in the Rose Garden of Hotel Laguna every two weeks beginning June 13 and Live!

After a seven-year hiatus, the Doheny Days Music Festival is coming back to Doheny State Beach in Dana Point, and Laguna Beach dentist/musician Ken Garcia is on board. The two-day festival last appeared in 2004, reportedly having grown a bit too big and wild for the low-key beach venue, according to Garcia. The big music festival may have outgrown its locale, but "everybody missed it and wanted to bring it back," Garcia said. "We're trying to bring back the surf and beach styles, with good family bands," Garcia added.

Editor's note: This removes "at USC" from after the Colburn School Conservatory of Music. The theme of the ninth annual Laguna Beach Music Festival is intercultural composition, when renowned composers and musicians from across the nation band together with emerging artists in an eclectic string of performances. Hosted by Laguna Beach Live! and the Philharmonic Society of Orange County, the festival will take place Feb. 7 to 13 in downtown Laguna and will feature 11 new guest musicians, including string quartet Brooklyn Rider, kamancheh player and Persian music master Kayhan Kalhor, and master of the shakuhachi (Japanese bamboo flute)

The theme of 2009 is “Celebration of the Cello.” Laguna Beach Live and the Orange County Philharmonic Society will host their seventh annual Laguna Beach Musical Festival Jan. 18 to 25, featuring world-renowned cellist Lynn Harrell. “This year will include several educational events, master classes, a gourmet dinner [at Claes Restaurant], a special “Meet the Artists” salon and three concerts at the Laguna Beach Artists’ Theatre,” Laguna Beach Live President Cindy Prewitt said.

The following events are part of the Laguna Beach Music Festival, Jan. 18 to 25 at various locations. Tickets can be purchased at www.lagunabeachmusic festival.com . ? ??The Cello Goes to the Opera,? sponsored by Claes Restaurant; 6:30 to 8 p.m. Jan. 19 at the Laguna Room, Hotel Laguna, 425 S. Coast Hwy. Hear favorite opera arias come to life in an intimate setting reminiscent of 19th century European salon traditions. Lynn Harrell, accompanied by Victor Asunción will perform.

The sixth annual Laguna Beach Music Festival, Jan. 14-20, will bring new faces and new sounds to Laguna. All of this year’s performers have never before performed in Orange County, let alone in the festival. This year’s featured artists are the Grammy Award-winning Turtle Island String Quartet, described by Yo-Yo Ma as “a reflection of some of the most creative music-making today.” They will be joined by young professional musicians The Enso Quartet and special guest percussionist Stefon Harris.

Laguna Beach Live! has established a Festival Endowment Fund to ensure the future of the Laguna Beach Music Festival. Joan Halvajian joined Laguna residents Michael and Teddie Ray in establishing the endowment. Halvajian is a citrus farmer who was a former music educator. The former music educator has been a SchoolPower president, singer and patron of Pacific Chorale, board member of the Philharmonic Society, leader for Pacific Symphony Orchestra Class Act program, and founder and chairwoman of the Laguna Beach Music Festival for its first five years.