Jim Cooper's Orange County; Holiday Treat

And Park celebrating 30 years in Orange County by signal landmark incorporated developer of Southern California real estate and builder of Landmark homes and by Robert Half personnel and account gems of Orange County providing permanent and temporary accounting financial and ETP personnel. That with the Chinese dance from The Nutcracker a holiday classic. The dancers are Julie

Renfro Bridget Byrne known and then Bernie. There was ballet Pacific of Laguna Beach. I'm Jim Cooper. Welcoming you to this special holiday program featuring three local performing groups first at the Valley Pacifica now in the 23rd year. Next will be the remarkable young musicians only 10 to 15 years old of the Orange County Youth Symphony junior orchestra and concluding our program will be the Golden West college Madrigal singers. And now let's meet our first guest Molly Lynch began dancing at the age of six at the Leela Zali ballet center of Laguna Beach. She performed at the ballet Pacifica for 18 years becoming assistant director of the company she now works as an arts administrator. Well you've been associated with the ballet and not only associated with a dancer for these 23 years yourself. What does it feel like to dance in that classic The Nutcracker and that. I know that you want at being a prima ballerina dancing the you know the ballet part of the ballerina part in The Nutcracker but to do it we're going to see in a few minutes.

I think it's exciting I think Nutcracker something that you start out as a little girl always wanting to be and with valid Pacifica doing having done it for so many 18 years or so you work yourself up in parts and I started as a little girl in the first act and went through different roles until I finally got myself up to being able to be the Sugarplum fairy. What is the worth and the value in the marriage that you see in your own life. In being a ballet performer all these years how important is it in your education. I why I think I gained a lot from it the discipline of being there every day and concentrating on what you're doing. Physical discipline and mental discipline having to work with a lot of other dancers on a regular basis so you get a lot of different experiences from it. What would you like to to say about the fact that Orange County may be soon getting a beating the American Ballet Theater that's been announced now that the American Ballet Theater will be performing here. What does that do in education particularly for young people to have other ballet company big ballet companies come here. I think it's good for them to see everything and I think the more the better. I

think that small companies are and small professional companies in your area like Bally Pacifica help educate your audiences for some of the national companies as they come in so I think it's even more important to make sure that you do have those companies within Orange County as well. How does it feel to be the Sugar Plum Fairy when you're dancing with that. It's from a very special very exciting it's a lot of Papa Joe was the cavalier with the Prince and it's a very special moment to be on stage with your gentleman and dancing together. Nice report with I mean you have to work together. It's it's very nice. You want to continue dancing right along. I'll always have dancing in my heart so always do a little bit of dancing I don't dance professionally any more pit and the ballet Pacific is an important part of Orange County isn't it. Oh I think so. And her company is really terrific. It gives that sustained presence rather than just the larger groups that come in and go away in 10 days.

Right it's a sustained presence of God and the opportunity for young kids to perform as well. And that's that's important for those kids too. Now we're going to watch the part that you dance Molly with and that famous one from The Nutcracker Suite. And now from The Nutcracker we'll go to the performance of the grandpa to do we're in a beautiful sugar plum fairy dancing with a handsome Nutcracker Prince. The dancers are Heidi Edwin and Louis Carver of the ballet Pacifica. What a beautiful ballet performance. Now we'll move into the arena of the concert stage

where they'll be 70 remarkable Orange County young musicians. The group of the Orange County Youth Symphony junior orchestra made up of young musicians from public and parochial schools all over Orange County. Keep in mind if you enjoy their holiday concert performance that they're only 10 to 15 years of age. Now on to the baton of conductor director Robert Frehley a medley of holiday songs called Christmas holiday. Most of the young musicians want to continue to perform with the youth symphony or other musical groups. The

man behind the work is Bob Fairley instrumental instructor at Santiago high school. He's founder conductor and director of the orchestra. Bob tell us what the whole purpose of this orchestra has been he is actually we have three purposes. The first is to promote a musical growth and unite the young musicians in the county for the furtherance of all performing arts. The second would be to provide a distinguished orchestra experience and motivate the children at this age. And the third would be to acquaint the general public with the cultural artistic and also the civic values of such an orchestra. I think that I hope that our program today does some of that for you because it's such a it's such a good oracular So in order to accomplish some of them are 10 11 years old. And I asked them they had said they had already been playing for example a violin for five and six years. Right. I think you have to start young. If you have a lot of them want to become a professional musicians in the cutbacks of schools has instrumental music. There's been cut back

badly in some schools in some areas that has been that was the original idea behind the orchestra. But we have since found that it acts as kind of an exchange program with the with the public schools. So you are you cooperate with all the schools parochial or public want to standards and contribute to this orchestra. Right we strongly recommend that if they want to participate in the orchestra they also participate in their school programs. Yes. So what. What dreams do you have for where these young people are going to go so many of them when I talk to the day we were there videotaping this one of stay with music they want to go on in one of the DJs in the U symphony or they want to go another good. What do you see ahead for them. Well but 90 percent of them do want to audition again for the youth symphony when they become of age. And a lot of them do want to become professional musicians in the career that I know their their teachers are working really hard for it. But there is a richness in just having music as a part of your life isn't it. Oh sure they go on to become computer experts or something else. Oh I sure I think they learn about teamwork about pride and discipline and self-respect and how to

interact with one another it's going to last a lifetime and I know what they choose to do. You like them I can tell I do. I really do want to get on with it. Of course I do. Thank you very much. Thank you Joy. Now we're going to return to the concert stage for another holiday treat from the Orange County Junior orchestra. This time it will be a traditional classic in a title is that 12 Days of Christmas. I'm fairly very highly impressed by the quality of the performance and the dedication I've seen

in the union orchestra. And now another educator this time at the college level. He had warned Peter can music professor at Golden West college since 1066 and also director of the Golden West college Model Golf singers. He's also an accomplished organist. Warren that I was just struck by the quality of this group and I understand all those vocalists that in your group have to provide their own costume of that they wear their own costumes. And any special voice training that they get. And any tours we go on they raise their own money and you have a tour coming up in June as in the June 24th of this summer when we are going to Europe. Hello Louis. Tell us about that. Well it was planned by a Mr. Anthony and Mr. and and is and myself about a year ago we started laying the groundwork and it's coming to fruition on June 24th as you said and we're flying to Frankfurt and we're going to be gone in a circular route around Europe for a total of 21 days. Marvelous. You've been an educator in music for 20 years or 66 86 it's a

long time. One of the strengths in the values you feel in and people exposing themselves to music no matter what else their career may be. Well to me. Culture is people. That's a nice way to put it. And I love people or I'd be an engineer. And I love working with people and I learn from them they learn from me. It's an interaction and when I see the great artwork the great sculptor works the great paintings the the great music the things that I have great older used. Those are the things that separate us from the animals. That is true and there's something about the inner rich blessings we get from experiencing the great music in the great art. You have a special report with that group. How would you just define that. Well I don't look at myself as the teacher up here and the students down here. I'm a team member and I'm a conductor yes but we have to

work together and we're equals and we love each other. Excited about the tour coming up. Yes. And anyone want to help them by where they can get involved with or just contact we will find out ways to use them. Yes when I think well now we're going to have some more of that group and another group that will go out with I immensely enjoyed your group. Thank you Jim for our closing portion of this program will present an uninterrupted medley of the holiday music by Golden West college Madrigal singers conducted by Warren Peter can with them all of us at KUNC each channel 50 send our heartfelt best wishes for a happy holiday season. I'm Jim Cooper thanks for being with us. Leader you set. A. Goal that you like Christ was not easy

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Your load of cum all you gave him. Jim Cooper's Orange County is made possible by grants from the Harry and Grace steel foundation providing charitable assistance to deserving organizations in the areas of health education and culture by Disneyland Park celebrating 30 years in Orange County by signal landmark incorporated developer of Southern California real

estate and builder of Landmark homes and by Robert Half personnel and account gems of Orange County providing permanent and temporary accounting financial and ETP personnel. Or.