Green Umbrella: Smith, Cabezas & Childs

Date: Tue / May 5, 2026 - 8:00PM

Pre-concert lecture at 7:00

Venue: Disney Hall
111 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Park in the garage, entrance on 2nd St. $10

Tickets: $29.00 to $84.00 including fees
https://www.laphil.com/events/performances/3775/2026-05-05/smith-cabezas-childs

Program

• Michael GORDON
• 2bd, LA Phil Etudes Book 4, Part 1
• world premiere
• LA Phil commission with generous support from the Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg Fund
• Gabriel CABEZAS ,
• Gabriella SMITH
• Duo
• Intermission
• Esa-Pekka SALONEN
• Studio per un compleanno, LA Phil Etudes Book 4, Part 2
• world premiere
• LA Phil commission with generous support from the Lenore S. and Bernard A. Greenberg Fund
• CAGE
• Child of Tree
• Billy CHILDS
• My Roots Spread Far and Wide
• Gabriella SMITH
• 2^5

Artists

• LA Phil New Music Group
• Gabriella Smith, violin, vocals & curator
• Gabriel Cabezas, cello
• Whitney Crockett, bassoon
• Billy Childs, piano
• Dan Chmielinski, bass
• Christian Euman, drums
• Matthew Howard, percussion

Upbeat Live with Tiffany Kuo and Emmanuel “Babelito” Ortega
Event starts at 7:00PM

Before the concert, some of the sharpest musical minds around–including guest artists–guide you through the evening’s music. This free event is held in BP Hall accessible after your ticket is scanned.

About this Performance
The New York Times wrote that Gabriella Smith’s music “exudes inventiveness with a welcoming personality, rousing energy and torrents of joy.” Smith expresses that joy in her music and collaborations, even as it asks listeners to preserve our fragile planet. Her first album, Lost Coast, channeled imagery inspired by a five-day backpacking trip through California’s Lost Coast Trail with her Curtis Institute roommate and friend Gabriel Cabezas. Cabezas’s cello and Smith’s violin and vocals combine acoustically and through electronic loops to express anger and grief at natural devastation blended with wonder and hope.

Los Angeles-based composer and jazz pianist Billy Childs builds upon Smith’s natural themes when his trio joins her for John Cage’s Child of Tree, which asks its performers to use plant-based instruments including amplified cactus. Childs next performs My Roots Spread Far and Wide, which pays homage to the giant sequoia tree through the trio’s improvisations paired with rich string harmonies. Opening this evening curated by Smith as well as following intermission are two new works in the LA Phil Etudes project, which offer solo opportunities for LA Phil percussionist Matthew Howard and bassoonist Whitney Crocket, respectively.

This performance is generously supported in part by the Kohl Virtuoso Violin Fund.