Attending the symphony is always a wonderful experience and as San Franciscan’s we are lucky to have one of the World’s best Orchestra’s right in our backyard. One special treat is when the SF Symphony has a movie night and that was the scene on Friday, July 26 as the SF Symphony World premiere of Pixar’s “UP” played to a packed house. Young and old filed into Davies Symphony Hall early to mingle around, maybe get a peek at the “UP” merchandise on hand, grab a drink or just avoid the rush. There was also a special pre-concert Q&A with composer Michael Giacchino and the director of the movie, Pete Doctor. Both also gave a nice speech on stage immediately prior to the concert and thanked fans for coming out to celebrate with them.
The Grammy and Oscar award-winning the animated classic, which celebrates its 10th year anniversary, tells the story of a 78-year old widowed balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen and an eight-year-old stowaway named Russell. Carl who lost his beloved Ellie decides to tie several thousand balloons to his house and venture out to fulfil his dream of seeing South America, a promise that he made to his late wife. Unknowing to Carl, Russell stows away and they both soon find themselves on a heartwarming and incredible journey to a lost world filled with lots of surprises and a few danger zones.
Veteran conductor Constantine Kitsopoulos did a wonderful job leading the amazing orchestra through all the ups and downs and capturing the musical composition and emotion of the movie perfectly and of composer Michael Giacchino’s musical genius. You could feel the incredible energy and hearts pounding of those in attendance with big smiles and little ones cheering from start to finish. It was a delight for the whole family. During intermission, you could hear the faint whispers of people talking about Pixar and the awesome 3D animation and its evolution. Others chatted about how great it is to see the movie again and with such an incredible ensemble of musicians. It was another memorable night and an epic end that left even the youngest attendees asking mom and dad if they could come back to the Symphony again soon.
For more info on the SF Symphony go to: www.sfsymphony.org