Under the direction of Music Director & Conductor Daniel Meyer, the Lakeside Symphony Orchestra (LSO) will perform a Pops Concert with The Music of Billy Joel featuring Jeans n’ Classics lead vocalist Jean Meilleur and featured pianist John Regan at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 26 in Hoover Auditorium.
JEAN MEILLEUR, VOCALS
Jean Meilleur has been a headliner with Jeans ’n Classics for over 20 years. In that time he has performed with scores of major North American orchestras, lending his distinctive voice to some of the greatest popular music of our time.
Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, Meilleur moved to Detroit at a young age. Living in the Motor City helped shape his penchant for the Motown, Soul and R&B sounds of the early ’70s.
Meilleur is a prolific songwriter who has been performing professionally for over 30 years. His singing voice can best be described as passionate and provocative, with a robust timbre that is immediately recognizable. His voice stands as a true original. Meilleur’s voice has been heard over the years on many national radio and television jingles and advertisements. He was recently chosen as the Canadian voice of Jim Beam Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey.
JOHN REGAN, PIANO
John Regan has been a member of Jeans ’n Classics since the early 1990s. Classically trained but conditioned by rock, pop and folk music, Regan’s repertoire is vast. Prior to joining Jeans ’n Classics, he worked with Second City in London, Ontario, and did solo work across southwestern Ontario. Regan cites Joe Jackson, Tom Waits, Elton John and Roy Bittan as influences.
Since becoming a Jeans ’n Classics regular performer, Regan has shared the piano with such notables as Roger Hodgson (Supertramp), Lawrence Gowan (Styx), as well as his good friend Don Paulton (Lighthouse, Jeans ’n Classics). He has performed with more than 50 orchestras across North America. In addition to the piano, Regan often plays host and emcee in J’nC concerts, offering insight and whimsy to the musical selections.
A high school teacher and football coach by day, Regan lives in London, Ontario, with his wife and two small children.
DANIEL MEYER, MUSICAL DIRECTOR & CONDUCTOR
Daniel Meyer was named Music Director & Conductor of the LSO in 2019.
As Music Director of the Erie Philharmonic and Artistic Director of the Westmoreland Symphony and Cleveland’s BlueWater Chamber Orchestra, Meyer has reinvigorated orchestras with his innovative programs, engaging presence and keen musical intellect.
In addition to collaborating with world-renowned soloists such as Marc-André Hamelin, Sharon Isbin, Gil Shaham, Jeremy Denk, Daniil Trifonov, Midori and Emanuel Ax, Meyer has commissioned new works by Michael Torke, Vivian Fung, Richard Danielpour and Zhou Tian.
Meyer recorded the music of Hanson, Diamond and Daugherty for the Bavarian Radio with the Bamberger Symphoniker, and his recent guest appearances include the Detroit Symphony, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Portland Symphony, Symphony Silicon Valley, Württembergische Philharmonie, Staatsorchester Darmstadt and the Nuremberg Symphony in Germany.
In his role as Director of Orchestral Activities at Duquesne University, Meyer embarked on a recording project of the concertos of American composer Lynn Purse.
In recent seasons he conducted the Rochester Philharmonic and the Pittsburgh Symphony, as well as guest engagements with the Indianapolis, Columbus, Phoenix, Eugene, Alabama, Toledo and Knoxville Symphonies.
His critically acclaimed European debut took place with the Staatstheater Stuttgart Orchestra and violinist Thomas Zehetmaier, and he returned to Germany soon after for concerts with the Neue Philharmonie Westfalen and to Austria with the Tonkünstler Orchestra in Vienna and the Wiener Jeunesse Orchestra.
Meyer’s summer festival appearances have included the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom, the Aspen and Grand Teton Music Festivals, the Chautauqua Festival and the Brevard Music Center.
Upon the invitation of Mariss Jansons, Meyer was named Resident Conductor of the Pittsburgh Symphony and Music Director of the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony, where he served until 2009.
A native of Cleveland, Meyer studied conducting at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar and is a graduate of Denison University and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
He composed and conducted works for ensembles at both schools, including a Stabat Mater for soprano, chorus and orchestra.
At Boston University, Meyer received the Orchestral Conducting Honors Award and was awarded the prestigious Aspen Conducting Prize from David Zinman. He received an honorary doctorate from Edinboro University in 2016.
You may also like the following events from Lakeside Chautauqua:
Also check out other
Entertainment events in Lakeside Marblehead,
Music events in Lakeside Marblehead,
Festivals in Lakeside Marblehead.
