Speaker Series Returns to The Conrad Along With Jazz & Piano Performances

The new year brings the return of La Jolla Music Society’s popular Speaker Series at The Conrad, as well as performances by some of the country’s best young jazz artists and international piano virtuosi.

January 14 | Sean Mason

A jazz pianist and composer based in New York City, SEAN MASON is emerging as one of the premier talents of his generation. He has performed and toured with jazz legends, including Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, and Herlin Riley, among many others, and was featured on Branford Marsalis’ film score to the acclaimed Netflix production of August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.

He and his quartet make their San Diego debut on Sunday, January 14, 2024, at 5 PM & 7:30 PM in The JAI, The Conrad’s intimate cabaret-style space with table service, full bar, and a menu of small bites.

January 18 | Peter Hillary

PETER HILLARY’s father, Sir Edmund Hillary, made the first ascent of Mt. Everest in 1953 with his climbing partner, Tenzing Norgay. That expedition would launch Hillary’s family on extraordinary journeys through the Himalayas and around the world, and inspire a life of philanthropy.

A true lifetime adventurer, Peter Hillary has been on 50 mountaineering expeditions around the world, including five on Mount Everest and the other six peaks of the world’s tallest peaks, the “Seven Summits.” He became the first second-generation summiteer to reach the top of the world’s highest mountain, summiting Everest alongside Jamling Norgay, the son of Tenzing, in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of their fathers’ world-record-setting climb.

Hear all about Peter’s adventures, accompanied by photos and video, on Thursday, January 18, 2024, at 7 p.m. in The Baker-Baum Concert Hall as part of our Changemaker Speaker Series.

January 19 | Tatiana Eva-Marie and the Avalon Jazz Band

Brooklyn-based singer and bandleader, TATIANA EVA-MARIE and the AVALON JAZZ BAND make their local debuts on Friday, January 19, 2024, at 6 PM & 8:30 PM in The JAI. Born and raised in Europe in a professional musical family, Tatiana grew up equally fascinated by her father’s New Orleans jazz records, and her mother’s heritage of Klezmer and Romany folk music.

Nicknamed “the Gypsy-jazz warbler” by the New York Times and acclaimed as a “millennial shaking up the jazz scene” by Vanity Fair, she explores her French and Romany heritage and her love for the Parisian art scene of the 1920s to the 1960s.

January 21 | Tony Siqi Yun

Our Discovery Series continues to bring the most exciting young artists to debut in San Diego! On Sunday, January 21, 2024, at 3 PM, meet the Canadian-born pianist TONY SIQI YUN, who recently made his debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra performing Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin. The two are no strangers—they initially met in the final round of the inaugural China International Music Competition in 2019, where Tony went on to win First Prize and a Gold Medal performing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1.

Tony brings us a challenging program featuring Brahms, Wagner, Liszt, Beethoven, Busoni, and Schumann for an evening in The Baker-Baum Concert Hall, not to be missed.

January 25 | Lucas and Arthur Jussen

Next up, the charming and brilliantly talented brothers, LUCAS and ARTHUR JUSSEN, make their California debut in a Piano Series concert in The Baker-Baum Concert Hall on Thursday, January 25, 2024, at 7:30 PM.

These Dutch brothers have conquered the classical music scene with exciting programs showcasing the unbreakable bond of their duets, whether on one piano or two. Despite their young ages (29 and 26), they have been part of the international concert world for years and are praised vigorously by both the press and audiences. On their way to Carnegie Hall, the dynamic and charismatic brothers demonstrate why Pianist magazine called them “a photogenic pair of musical wizards.”

January 28 | Lakecia Benjamin

LAKECIA BENJAMIN blew everyone away as part of the Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour in our last season. On a stage filled with brilliant and seasoned talent, she still drew attention with her passionate playing and inimitable style. Now we welcome her back for two shows in The JAI on Sunday, January 28, 2024, at 5 PM and 7:30 PM.

Voted “Rising Star Alto Saxophonist in the 2020 Downbeat Critics Poll and “Up and Coming Artist of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association, the charismatic and dynamic young saxophonist fuses traditional conceptions of jazz, hip hop, and soul. For this JAI debut, she features the quartet from her 2023 release Phoenix, an album that also featured cameos by some of Benjamin’s heroes, including Wayne Shorter, Angela Davis, Dianne Reeves, and Patrice Rushen.

See you there!

Artists, concerts, dates, and venues subject to change.

Details and tickets for The Conrad Speaker Series are available at the La Jolla Music Society box office, by phone at 858.459.3728, and online here.

See you there, San Diego!