NADJA SALERNO-SONNENBERG EXTENDS CONTRACT WITH NEW CENTURY CHAMBER ORCHESTRA AND ANNOUNCES NEW RECORDING RELEASE FOR

MAY 2014 2013-2014 SEASON KICKS OFF WITH PERFORMANCES SHOWCASING WORKS BY FEATURED COMPOSER MICHAEL DAUGHERTY 2013-2014 Season Highlights Include Donizettis Rarely-Performed One Act Opera Rita Featuring San Francisco Operas Adler Fellows, A First Time Collaboration With Chanticleer, A World Premiere Violin Concerto by Michael Daugherty and A Debut Performance at Stanfords Bing Hall. San Francisco, CA August 27, 2013 New Century Chamber Orchestra is pleased to announce that Music Director Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, lauded for her adventurous spirit and exceptional leadership of the ensemble, has extended her contract through the 2015-2016 season. Her commitment to the Orchestra and dedication to expanding contemporary string orchestra repertoire is exemplified by the Featured Composer Residency Program, established in her first season as Music Director and highlighted by New Centurys upcoming third recording release on the NSS Music Label. Scheduled for release in May 2014, A to Z: 21st Century Concertos will feature four violin concertos commissioned through New Century Chamber Orchestras Featured Composer Program, performed and recorded live by Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg and the ensemble in San Francisco Bay Area performances. The 2013-2014 season opens with performances September 26-29 showcasing a variety of works by Featured Composer Michael Daugherty. Hailed by The Times (London) as having a maverick imagination, fearless structural sense and meticulous ear, Daugherty is one of the most commissioned, performed and recorded composers on the American scene today. The program will feature a variety of his solo and chamber works such as Viva for solo violin, performed by Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and Elvis Everywhere for string quartet and tape. Also featured is Daughertys Viola Zombie for two violas, Regrets Only for violin, cello and piano as well as Strut for chamber orchestra, alongside Serenade for String Orchestra in E Major, Op.6 by Josef Suk. New Centurys seventh recording, and third on the NSS Music Label, A to Z: 21st Century Concertos will feature commissioned works by Featured Composers including William

Bolcoms Romanza for Solo Violin and String Orchestra (recorded May 2010) and Ellen Taaffe Zwilichs Commedia dellArte (recorded May 2012). The final two works, Clarice Assads Dreamscapes and Michael Daughertys Fallingwater for Solo Violin and Strings will be recorded during New Centurys November 2013 performances, the latter receiving its world premiere. This will be the first commercial album comprised entirely of works commissioned through the Featured Composer Program demonstrating the Orchestras continued commitment to contemporary American music and giving each work life beyond its premiere. The world premiere of Michael Daughertys Fallingwater for Solo Violin and Strings is featured in November 2013 performances that explore the theme of legacy with music by Russian composers Tchaikovsky and student Anton Arensky, in addition to a work titled Elegy by Samuel Jones, honoring the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy. The 2013-2014 season continues in the New Year with two special collaborations. In February, New Century welcomes the San Francisco Opera Centers Adler Fellows in an evening of opera, including a performance of Gaetano Donizettis rarely presented one act opera Rita, a comic tale of domestic strife. The season concludes in March with another first-time collaboration featuring Chanticleer. Labeled by The New York Times as the worlds reigning male chorus, the twotime GRAMMY award winning ensemble will join New Century in a journey across the Atlantic from Germany to New York, spanning the era between two World Wars with European classics and works from the great American Songbook. The 2013-2014 season will feature New Century in performance at a variety of different Bay Area venues including first time appearances at Stanfords Bing Concert Hall and the San Francisco Jewish Community Center; return appearances at the Yerba Buena Center for Performing Arts, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts; and a return engagement at Cal Performances Fall Free For All at Zellerbach Hall. The 2013-2014 season will also include an Open Rehearsal Series, featuring four Rehearsals at the Kanbar Performing Arts Center, which will allow audiences to experience the Orchestras dynamic and collaborative rehearsal style. New Century continues to expand its reach and it is the energy here in San Francisco that we thrive on, says Music Director Nadja SalernoSonnenberg. I am constantly reminded of how lucky we are to be a part of the Bay Areas rich and vibrant music scene and to be surrounded by such astounding talent as Chanticleer and the Adler Fellows. Were delighted to share the stage with them in these special first-time collaborations. Our Featured Composer program welcomes the most prominent composers of today and I am particularly excited to work with Michael Daugherty, who is one of the great American composers. The violin concerto that he is writing for us will undoubtedly be a highlight and I cant wait to premiere this work as soloist.

Subscriptions to the New Century Chamber Orchestra are on sale now. 3-Concert Subscriptions range from $72- $162; 4-Concert Subscriptions range from $96- $216. Call (415) 357-1111 ext. 4 or visit www.ncco.org to purchase a subscription. Single tickets range in price from $29 to $59 and can be purchased through City Box Office: www.cityboxoffice.com and (415) 392-4400, with the exception of concerts at Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts: www.mvcpa.com and (650) 903-6000. Discounted $15 single tickets are available for patrons under 35. The Bing Concert Hall performance is presented by Stanford Live and at this time, there are no tickets available. To receive information about newly available tickets, please add yourself to the Notification List at live.standford.edu/go/notifylist. For more information about the performance visit live.stanford.edu or call (650) 725-ARTS. Open Rehearsal tickets are $8 general admission and can be purchased through City Box Office: www.cityboxoffice.com and (415) 392-4400. For further information on New Century, please visit www.ncco.org. Media contacts are listed at the end of the release. New Century Chamber Orchestra 2013-2014 Season Calendar Daugherty Perspectives September 26-29, 2013 Open Rehearsal: Wednesday, September 25, 10 a.m., Kanbar Performing Arts Center Thursday, September 26, 2013, 8 p.m., Mountain View Center for Performing Arts, Mountain View Friday, September 27, 2013, 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, Berkeley Saturday, September 28, 2013, 8 p.m., Yerba Buena Center for Performing Arts, San Francisco Sunday, September 29, 2013, 5 p.m., Osher Marin Jewish Community Center, Marin Daugherty: Viva, for solo Violin Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin Daugherty: Viola Zombie (for two violas) Daugherty: Regrets Only (for violin, cello, and piano) Daugherty: Elvis Everywhere (for string quartet and tape) Daugherty: Strut (for chamber orchestra) Suk: Serenade for String Orchestra in E Major, Op.6 Cal Performances Fall Free For All September 29, 2013 Sunday, September 29, 2013, 11am, Zellerbach Hall, Berkeley

Works will include selections from Daugherty Perspectives program. To be announced at a later date. Legacies and Concertos November 20-24, 2013 Open Rehearsal: Tuesday, November 19, 10 a.m., Kanbar Performing Arts Center Wednesday, November 20, 2013, 8 p.m., Mountain View Center for Performing Arts, Mountain View Friday, November 22, 2013, 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, Berkeley Saturday, November 23, 2013, 8 p.m., Yerba Buena Center for Performing Arts, San Francisco Sunday, November 24, 2013, 5 p.m., Osher Marin Jewish Community Center, Marin Tchaikovsky: Andante Cantabile Arensky: Variations on a Theme of Tchaikovsky Jones: Elegy Assad: Dreamscapes Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin Daugherty: Fallingwater for Solo Violin and Strings (World Premiere) Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin Commissioned by the New Century Chamber Orchestra Donizettis Rita February 12-16, 2014 Featuring SF Opera Adler Fellows Open Rehearsal: Tuesday, February 11, 10 a.m., Kanbar Performing Arts Center Wednesday, February 12, 2014, 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, Berkeley Friday, February 14, 2014, 8 p.m., First United Methodist Church, Palo Alto Saturday, February 15, 2014, 8 p.m., SF Jewish Community Center, San Francisco Sunday, February 16, 2014, 5 p.m., Osher Marin Jewish Community Center, Marin J. Strauss (arr. Lindstrom): Overture to Die Fledermaus Mascagni (arr. Assad): Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana Verdi: Prestissimo from String Quartet in E minor Massenet (arr. Assad): Meditation from Thais Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin Strauss (arr. Assad): Dance of the Seven Veils from Salome Donizetti: Rita Atlantic Crossing March 21-24, 2014 Featuring Chanticleer Open Rehearsal: Tuesday, March 18, 10 a.m., Kanbar Performing Arts Center

Thursday, March 20, 2014, 8 p.m., Bing Concert Hall, Stanford Friday & Saturday, March 21 & 22, 2014, 8 p.m., SF Conservatory of Music, San Francisco Sunday, March 23, 2014, 5 p.m., Osher Marin Jewish Community Center, Marin Tuesday, March 25, 2014, 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, Berkeley *Repertoire to be announced at a later date. ABOUT NEW CENTURY CHAMBER ORCHESTRA The New Century Chamber Orchestra, one of only a handful of conductorless ensembles in the world, was founded in 1992 by cellist, Miriam Perkoff, and violist, Wieslaw Pogorzelski. Musical decisions are made collaboratively by the 19-member string ensemble, including San Francisco Bay Area musicians and those who travel from across the U.S. and Europe to perform together. World-renowned violin soloist, chamber musician and recording artist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg leads from the concertmaster chair. She joined the ensemble as music director and concertmaster in January 2008, bringing a new sense of vitality and determination, as well as an audacious swagger that is an unmistakable fingerprint of its leader, according to Gramophone magazine. In addition to performing classic pieces of chamber orchestra repertoire, New Century commissions important new works, breathes life into rarely heard jewels of the past and performs world premieres. The New Century Chamber Orchestra Featured Composer program commissions composers to write new works, with the goals of expanding chamber orchestra repertoire and providing audiences with a deeper understanding of todays living composers. The orchestra provides insight into the breadth of the Featured Composers work by performing a variety of pieces by the composer throughout the season. In 2011, Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg and New Century embarked on the Orchestras first two national tours together. The performances in the Midwest, East Coast, and Southern California garnered record-breaking audiences and national critical acclaim. In January and February 2013, New Century followed with a highly-successful eight-state national tour, the largest and most ambitious artistic undertaking in the organizations history. In addition to touring efforts, New Centurys national footprint has also continued to grow with a rapidly increasing national radio presence. The ensemble has been broadcast over 30 times on American Public Medias Performance Today, with each broadcast heard on 260 radio stations across the country. The orchestra has released six compact discs. The two latest albums, Together (released August 2009) and LIVE: Barber, Strauss, Mahler (released November 2010), were recorded with Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg on the NSS Music label. Other recordings include a 1996 collaborative project with Kent Nagano and Berkeley Symphony Orchestra featuring the work of 20th centurySwiss composer Frank Martin, and Written With the Hearts Blood, a 1997 Grammy Award finalist, both on the New Albion label. In 1998 the orchestra recorded and released works of Argentine composers Alberto Williams and Alberto Ginastera on the dNote label, and, in 2004, the orchestra recorded and released Oculus, a CD of Kurt Rohdes compositions on the Mondovibe label. All of the recordings have been distributed both internationally and in the United States. The orchestra's first concert DVD, filmed by Paola di Florio, director of the 1999 Academy Award-nominated film Speaking in Strings, was released May 8, 2012. The DVD

weaves together documentary footage and a live tour concert from a February 2011 performance at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica. ABOUT NADJA SALERNO-SONNENBERG Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, an internationally-acclaimed violin soloist and chamber musician best known for her exhilarating performances and passionate interpretations, joined the New Century Chamber Orchestra in January 2008 as music director. Nadjas first five seasons were hailed as a tremendous success by audiences and critics alike a marriage that works, in her words, and renewing enthusiasm for one of the most burnished and exciting ensembles in the Bay Area, according to Rich Scheinin of the San Jose Mercury News. A powerful and innovative presence on the recording scene, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg continues to enrich the collection of her record label NSS Music, which she started in 2005. The labels roster of artists includes Ms. Salerno-Sonnenberg, pianist Anne-Marie McDermott, horn player John Cerminaro, pianist/composer Clarice Assad, conductor Marin Alsop, the American String Quartet, the Colorado Symphony, Orquestra Sinfonica do Estado de Sao Paulo and the New Century Chamber Orchestra. Together, the first CD with New Century, features Astor Piazzollas Four Seasons of Buenos Aires. The second CD, a live recording featuring Strausss Metamorphosen, Barbers Adagio for Strings and Mahlers Adagietto from Symphony No. 5, has been praised as brilliant (Oregon Music News), and allmusic.com advised, For those who like orchestral music for strings that takes nothing less than revelation as its goal, this is a musthave. Nadja Salerno-Sonnenbergs professional career began in 1981 when she won the Walter W. Naumburg International Violin Competition. In 1983 she was recognized with an Avery Fisher Career Grant, and in 1999, she was honored with the prestigious Avery Fisher Prize. Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg was born in Rome and immigrated to the United States at the age of eight to study at The Curtis Institute of Music. She later studied with Dorothy DeLay at The Juilliard School. For more information on Nadja, please visit www.nadjasalernosonnenberg.com and www.nssmusic.com. ABOUT MICHAEL DAUGHERTY Characterized by music that is rich with cultural allusions bearing the stamp of classic modernism, Michael Daugherty is one of the most frequently performed living American composers. Daugherty first came to international attention with the 1994 performance of his Metropolis Symphony at Carnegie Hall with the Baltimore Symphony conducted by David Zinman and has since composed a vast number of works spanning orchestral, band and chamber music. His music has received numerous awards and fellowships including Outstanding Classical Composer at the Detroit Awards, the Delaware Symphonys A.I. DuPont Award and the Lancaster Symphony Orchestra Composers Award; and fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation. He has also featured as Composer-inResidence with such as orchestras as the Louisville Symphony, Detroit Symphony and Colorado Symphony and festivals as the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary of Music, Henry Mancini Summer Institute and the Music from Angel Fire Chamber Music Festival.

Daughertys music has been released on numerous labels including Albany, Argo, Delos, Equilibrium, Klavier, Naxos and Nonesuch. On Naxos, the Nashville Symphonys 2011 recording of Metropolis Symphony and Deus ex Machina received three GRAMMY awards, including Best Classical Contemporary Composition. In the same year, Naxos released a CD of orchestral music to great acclaim entitled Route 66 with Marin Alsop conducting the Bournemouth Symphony. A native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Daugherty is the oldest of five brothers, all of whom are professional musicians. His education includes degrees from the University of North Texas, the Manhattan School of Music and Yale University. He also studied computer music with Pierre Boulez at IRCAM in Paris in addition to pursuing further studies with Gyorgy Ligeti in Hamburg, Germany. Daugherty has taught music composition at Oberlin Conservatory of Music and currently teaches as the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) where he is Professor of Composition. PHOTO CREDITS New Century Chamber Orchestra / Matthew Washburn Michael Daugherty / Yopie Prins Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg / Christian Steiner Chanticleer / Lisa Kohler Press and Media Relations Contact: Karen Ames Communications Karen Ames and Brenden Guy (415) 641-7474 karen@karenames.com brenden@karenames.com