2023-24 Season Overview
Affairs of the Heart

​​Saturday September 23, 2023, 7:30pm
Hammer Theatre
101 Paseo De San Antonio, San Jose
Free Admission/Donations Accepted​
Suggested Donation $25 Per Adult

Program
Othello Suite - Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
​Symphony No. 2 - Jean Sibelius
Jelani Canser, conductor
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Cambrian Symphony Affairs of the Heart September 2023
Jelani Canser began playing string bass at the age of eleven in his hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, performing through high school in various orchestras, as well as in band (on baritone horn and bass guitar) and in choir. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Instrumental Music Education at the University of Minnesota. In 2001 Jelani started his career as an elementary orchestra teacher in Mesa​, Arizona. He earned his Master's degree in Music Education with a concentration in Jazz Studies at Arizona State University in 2007. In 2008 he moved to San Jose and continued his career teaching orchestra and band at Muwekma Ohlone Middle School. In 2015 Jelani was awarded Teacher of the Year for San Jose Unified School District. In 2022 he joined the faculty of Lincoln High School, teaching Orchestra and Mariachi.
The Nutcracker
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​Collaboration with the San José Dance Theatre
December 8-10, 2023
San Jose Center for the Performing Arts
255 Almaden Blvd, San Jose
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The Nutcracker - Pyotr Tchaikovsky

​Saturday, February 3, 2024, 7:30 PM
Hammer Theatre, San Jose
101 Paseo De San Antonio, San Jose
Free Admission/Donations Accepted
​Suggested Donation $25 Per Adult

Program
Escaramuza - Gabriela Lena Frank
Estampas Nocturnas - Manuel Ponce
Symphony No. 5 - Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Catalina Barraza-Gerardino, conductor
Catalina Barraza-Gerardino has extensive experience as a professional violinist, orchestral conductor, and pedagogue. She currently holds the position of Assistant Professor of Violin/Viola at San José State University. She has recently served as Concertmaster of the New Ballet of San Jose Orchestra and has played with Symphony San Jose and San Jose Chamber Orchestra. An active pedagogue in the Bay Area, Catalina regularly coaches the San Jose Youth Orchestra and the San Jose Youth Chamber Orchestra. Catalina was a lead violin teacher in the Overture Program with the Sphinx Organization, whose mission is to empower black and Latinx communities through music. She holds a doctorate in violin performance from Michigan State University. She pursued her Master in Music at University of Arkansas and her bachelor in music at Javeriana University in Bogota, Colombia. 

​​Saturday, April 13, 2024, 7:30 PM
De Anza Visual and Performing Arts Center, Cupertino
​21250 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino
Free Admission/Donations Accepted
​Suggested Donation $25 Per Adult

Program
"Sunrise" from Also sprach Zarathustra - Richard Strauss
Tod und Verklärung (Death and Transfiguration)  - Richard Strauss
Movie Music Selections
Thomas Alexander, conductor
Thomas Alexander started the violin at the age of four after he was captivated by the magic and splendor of The Nutcracker. He studied violin performance at UCSD, then moved to San Francisco, and played with many community and professional orchestras near and around San Francisco. He spent 15 years working with the San Francisco Civic Symphony Association, serving on the board, playing concertmaster in multiple groups, and starting numerous ensembles including "Mozart to Mendelssohn,” "Civic Strings," and "Civic Pops." It was through this organization that he started conducting in earnest, leading Civic Strings and Mozart to Mendelssohn, and guest conducting the San Francisco Civic Symphony. Thomas also founded impromptuSF as Music Director. It was The Nutcracker, again, that brought him to Cambrian Symphony.  
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​​Saturday, June 15, 2024, 7:30 PM
Hammer Theatre, San Jose
101 Paseo De San Antonio, San Jose
Free Admission/Donations Accepted
​Suggested Donation $25 Per Adult

Program
Ruslan and Ludmilla Ouverture - Mikhail Glinka
Variations on a Rococo Theme - Pyotr Tchaikovsky
William Wharton, cello
Musica per Orchestra Sinfonica - Yasushi Akutagawa
La Mer - Claude Debussy
Blue Cathedral - Jennifer Higdon
Scott Krijnen, conductor