Detroit, (March 15, 2019) – The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) welcomes kids of all ages and their families for two events this month: a Tiny Tots performance by family folk duo Fox & Branch, and a Young People’s Family Concert presentation of the Classical Kids LIVE! production Beethoven Lives Upstairs.
Beethoven Lives Upstairs features the full DSO and is conducted by Acting Assistant Conductor Yaniv Segal. Based on Barbara Nichol’s popular children’s audio recording, it tells the story of Christoph, an Austrian boy who develops a friendship with his eccentric upstairs neighbor—who turns out to be none other than Ludwig van Beethoven. Segal and the DSO will be joined by two actors who unfold the story onstage: Sarah Cartwright (Christoph) and Joe Lehman (Uncle).
Both performances take place Saturday, March 23: Fox & Branch at 10 a.m. in the Peter D. and Julie F. Cummings Cube; and Beethoven Lives Upstairs at 11 a.m. in Orchestra Hall. Both venues are located within Midtown Detroit’s Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center.
A variety of kid-friendly activities will be on hand in the atrium for audiences to both concerts, including an airbrush artist, instrument tryout stations, arts and crafts, and more.
Tiny Tots performances are fun-filled, interactive concerts designed for children ages 2-6 and their families. Young People’s Family Concerts are family-friendly orchestra performances designed for audiences age 6 and up.
Please note: the DSO does not appear on the Tiny Tots performance.
About Yaniv Segal
Yaniv Segal is a conductor and composer who currently serves as the DSO’s Acting Assistant Conductor. He previously served as assistant conductor of the Naples Philharmonic and director of the Naples Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. He has assisted a variety of leading conductors, including Andrey Boreyko, Valery Gergiev, Charles Dutoit, Maximiano Valdes, and Rafael Payare.
Segal has conducted several orchestras in addition to the DSO and Naples Philharmonic, including the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, Orlando Philharmonic, Macon Symphony, and Michigan Pops Orchestra, where he served as music director from 2010-2012. He co-founded the Chelsea Symphony in 2005. He has collaborated on several recordings, including Beethoven Reimagined(with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and composer Gabriel Prokofiev), Joy and Sorrow (with the Chelsea Symphony and soloists Artur Kaganovskiy, Ethan Herschenfeld, Moran Katz, and Kristina Reiko Cooper), and David Chesky’s score to the 2017 animated film The Mice War.
Segal is also an accomplished composer. In 2013, the Chelsea Symphony premiered his Rite of Spring (Redux), a modernized and reduced arrangement of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring including electric guitar, bass guitar, and saxophone. In the 2016-17 season, the Naples Philharmonic performed several of Segal’s works, including Beethoven’s Sonata for Orchestra in C Minor Op.30 No.2b, songs by Alma Mahler arranged for orchestra, and a brass fanfare.
Segal studied violin with Setsu Goto and later attended the Manhattan School of Music. The child of Polish and Israeli immigrants, he speaks three languages and grew up in a multicultural household. In support of his education, achievements, and contributions to American society, he was a recipient of the Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans in 2009.
About Fox & Branch
Based in Milwaukee, WI, Fox & Branch is a folk music duo with a special interest in performing for families and children. The duo comprises Will Branch and Dave Fox. In 2017, Fox & Branch toured overseas for the first time, playing to audiences in Ireland, England, and Scotland. They are the winners of five Parent’s Choice recommended awards.
Fox & Branch have appeared at the Winnipeg Folk Festival, New York City’s Symphony Space, Café Lena, Club Passim, and Madison, WI’s Overture Center. They have also been featured at many Midwest festivals and community events. The duo has brought their show to libraries in Brooklyn, NY; St. Louis, MO; Boston, MA; southern Louisiana; northern Illinois, and across Wisconsin.
Fox & Branch consider themselves to be working in the tradition of great children’s performers like Pete Seeger, Ella Jenkins, and Bessie Jones. Audience members are invited to sing along, to dance, and to come onstage to try their hand at the washboard and other musical instruments. Anchored in American roots music, the duo also plays traditional music from other countries around the world.
Ticket Information
Tickets for both performances can be purchased at dso.org, by calling (313) 576-5111, or in-person at the Max M. & Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center Box Office (3711 Woodward Ave., Detroit).
Groups of 10 or more can save up to 30% on the price of a single ticket for most DSO concerts. For more information, contact Group Sales Manager Jim Sabatella at (313) 576-5130 or jsabatella@dso.org.
About the DSO
The most accessible orchestra on the planet, the acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra is known for trailblazing performances, collaborations with the world’s foremost musical artists, and a deep connection to its city. As a community-supported orchestra, generous giving by individuals and institutions at all levels drives the continued success and growth of the institution. Conductor Leonard Slatkin, who recently concluded an acclaimed decade-long tenure at the helm, now serves as the DSO’s Music Director Laureate, endowed by the Kresge Foundation. Celebrated conductor, arranger, and trumpeter Jeff Tyzik is the orchestra’s Principal Pops Conductor, while the outstanding trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard holds the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair. Making its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, the DSO offers a performance schedule that features Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. One of America’s most acoustically perfect concert halls, Orchestra Hall will celebrate its centennial in 2019-2020. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in seven metro area venues, as well as a robust schedule of eclectic multi-genre performances in its mid-size venue The Cube, constructed and curated with support from Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings. A dedication to broadcast innovation began in 1922, when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a radio broadcast and continues today with the free Live from Orchestra Hall webcast series, which also reaches tens of thousands of children with the Classroom Edition expansion. With growing attendance and unwavering philanthropic support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to embrace and inspire individuals, families, and communities through unsurpassed musical experiences.