THE SEATTLE SYMPHONY ANNOUNCES EO9066 CONCERT BROADCAST ON SEATTLE SYMPHONY LIVE FEBRUARY 17–24 TO MARK 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF EXECUTIVE ORDER 9066
CONCERT TO STREAM FOR FREE ON FEBRUARY 19
SPECIAL EXHIBIT “PICTURES OF EXECUTIVE ORDER 9066” ALSO REOPENS FEBRUARY 19 FOR ONE DAY ONLY AT OCTAVE 9: RAISBECK MUSIC CENTER
Seattle, WA – The Seattle Symphony marks the 80th anniversary of Executive Order 9066 with a week-long digital broadcast of the EO9066 program on Seattle Symphony Live. Issued on February 19, 1942, Executive Order 9066 authorized the relocation and incarceration of over 100,000 innocent Japanese American citizens during World War II. Over the course of several months, Japanese American men, women and children were removed from their homes and held at internment camps without due process. The executive order indelibly changed their lives and the history of the Puget Sound region, with many lingering effects still felt today.
The EO9066 program will be available to stream on Seattle Symphony Live for one week, beginning Thursday, February 17 and run through February 24. On February 19th, the 80th anniversary of Executive Order 9066, the performance will be available to stream for free. In this powerful concert, the orchestra showcases two works inspired by the executive order — first, the world premiere performance of of Paul Chihara’s Beyond the Hills, a Seattle Symphony commission; then the musicians are joined on stage by Seattle-born Kishi Bashi for his own Improvisations on EO9066; Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 rounds out the program.
Alongside the Symphony’s EO9066 concert, is titled “Pictures of Executive Order 9066,” a 10-minute self-guided multi-media experience, created especially for the immersive screens in Octave 9: Raisbeck Music Center. The exhibit is a collaboration between award-winning filmmaker JJ Gerber and singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter Kishi Bashi and will be available on February 19th for one final day. “Pictures of Executive Order 9066” includes photo documentation of the Japanese American incarceration during World War II by seminal photographer Dorothea Lange and oral histories supplied by Densho.
Ticket Information
For more information on tickets for the multi-media exhibit, “Pictures of Executive Order 9066,” please visit www.seattlesymphony.org or contact the Seattle Symphony Ticket Office.
The Seattle Symphony Ticket Office is located in Benaroya Hall, at Third Avenue and Union Street. The Ticket Office can be reached by phone at (206) 215-4747 during the following times: Tuesday–Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
NORMAN HUYNH | CONDUCTOR
Norman Huynh has established himself as a conductor with an ability to captivate an audience through a multitude of musical genres. Norman is a first generation Asian American and the first in his family to pursue classical music as a career. He is currently the Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Associate Conductor of the Oregon Symphony and the Music Director of the Bozeman Symphony, while also maintaining an international guest conducting schedule. Norman has been at the forefront of moving orchestral music out of the traditional concert hall into venues where an orchestra is not conventionally found. In 2011, he co-founded the Occasional Symphony in Baltimore to celebrate holidays by performing innovative concerts in distinct venues throughout the inner city. Additionally, as the Assistant Conductor of the Portland (Maine) Symphony Orchestra, from 2013–2016, Norman visited over 60 schools across the state of Maine and co-founded Symphony & Spirits, a series of events for young professionals.
KISHI BASHI | VIOLIN, VOCALS & GUITAR
Kishi Bashi is the pseudonym of singer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter/composer Kaoru Ishibashi. Born in Seattle, raised in Norfolk, Virginia, and currently based in Athens, Georgia, Ishibashi studied film scoring at Berklee College of Music before becoming a renowned violinist who has recorded and toured internationally with a range of diverse indie pop and rock artists in addition to co-founding electro rock group Jupiter One in 2003.
His solo career took off in 2011 and he released his debut full-length album, 151a, in 2012 on Joyful Noise Recordings. Three more albums followed — Lighght, Sonderlust and Omoiyari, released in 2014, 2016 and 2019, respectively, all on Joyful Noise. Omoiyari was borne from a symphony commissioned by Nu Deco Ensemble and premiered in 2018 (Improvisations on EO9066, which will be played with Seattle Symphony during his stop here).
In 2020, he scored the soundtrack for the Apple TV+ kids show Stillwater with composer Toby Chu, released Emigrant EP, a companion piece to Omoiyari that serves as a time capsule of the 2020 condition, and his feature length documentary, also called Omoiyari — about minority identity and the Incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II — is currently in production and due out sometime next year.
JJ GERBER | FILMMAKER
JJ Gerber is a Primetime Emmy-nominated creative producer and storyteller, with over 15 years of experience on projects that span feature narrative and documentary films, music videos, commercials and pretty much any other form of moving image. He has worked with award-winning design and production companies We Are Royale, Imaginary Forces, Fellow, LoyalKaspar and Future You Media. As a producer with these studios, he worked with clients Oculus, Facebook, Amazon, Google, Netflix, Hulu, FX Networks, Showtime, Marvel Studios and Adidas as well as numerous ad agencies, studios, broadcasters, non-profits and other inspired people that just wanted to make some cool shit. He was nominated for an Emmy for his work on the Main Title Sequence of the Amazon Prime series Bosch.
JJ’s feature documentary credits include Harmontown (SXSW 2014) and We Are Blood (released by The Orchard in 2015). He was a consulting producer on the feature film Beauty Is Embarrassing (Emmy Nominee / PBS Independent Lens 2014), helping with the strategy and implementation of nationwide theatrical self-distribution with Future You Media.
SEATTLE SYMPHONY LIVE
Seattle Symphony Live brings the Seattle Symphony’s dynamic performances to audiences anywhere in the world. Launched in 2020 to offer musical comfort despite the pandemic, the digital streaming service reached a global audience of more than 750,000 viewers with its live concerts, behind the scenes interviews, educational videos and more. With subscriptions starting at $12.99 per month, Seattle Symphony Live makes engaging with the orchestra’s exceptional musical content more possible than ever before.
SEATTLE SYMPHONY
The Seattle Symphony unleashes the power of music, brings people together and lifts the human spirit. Recognized as one of the “most vital American orchestras” (NPR), the Seattle Symphony is internationally acclaimed for its inventive programming, community-minded initiatives and superb recordings on the Seattle Symphony Media label. With a strong commitment to new music and a legacy of over 150 recordings, the orchestra has garnered five Grammy Awards, 27 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and was named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. The Symphony performs in Benaroya Hall in the heart of downtown Seattle from September through July, reaching over 750,000 people annually through live performances and radio broadcasts, and through the Seattle Symphony Live streaming service, the orchestra’s concerts reach audiences at home and around the world.
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EO9066
MASTERWORKS SERIES
Streaming: Thursday, February 17–Thursday, February 24
Broadcast will be available for free on Saturday, February 19
Norman Huynh conductor
Kishi Bashi violin, vocals, & guitar
Paul Chihara Beyond the Hills (Seattle Symphony Commission & World Premier)
Kaoru Ishibashi Improvisations on EO9066
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4
The EO9066 performance was recorded live in concert at Benaroya Hall on January 27, 2022.
2021–2022 Masterworks Season Sponsor: Delta Air Lines
Kishi Bashi’s performance was generously sponsored by Marco Argenti.
EO9066 was presented as part of the Seattle Symphony’s New Music WORKS initiative, which is supported in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. New Music WORKS features commissions, concerts and educational activities that use composition as a catalyst for collaboration and engagement in music.