The Santa Barbara Symphony closes out a healthily diversified and intriguing season in high style, blessed by the presence of the most celebrated soloist of its season at The Granada Theatre — and in double-header fashion. Renowned violinist Gil Shaham will be the spotlighted guest with maestro Nir Kabaretti’s orchestra for two separate programs, showcasing the Grammy-winning and lavishly accoladed violinist’s multitalented mastery.
On Saturday, May 17, the program focuses on two major and crowd-pleasing works, Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto and Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8. Dvořák returns on Sunday afternoon (May 18), as the tentpole symphonic finale of the concert — and season — but follows music featuring both Shaham and his violinist wife, Adele Anthony. Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D minor serves the foundational role in the first half, followed by the West Coast premiere of another doubled-up violin piece, Israeli composer Avner Dorman ’s Double Concerto.
Shaham, born to Israeli parents in Illinois in 1971, has performed internationally and with most major orchestras, and lives in New York City with his family, teaching at Bard College when not touring the globe or heading west to Santa Barbara. He has stopped here on numerous occasions, including appearances hosted by UCSB Arts & Lectures (A&L), CAMA, and a rare classical event at the Santa Barbara Bowl, performing John Williams’s surprisingly complex Violin Concerto with the Music Academy of the West orchestra.