Program will include hit songs by The Police including “Roxanne,” “Don’t Stand So Close to Me,” and “Message in a Bottle”
Tickets on sale now at dso.org
Detroit, (September 19, 2023) – This October, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) will welcome The Police’s founder and drummer Stewart Copeland to Orchestra Hall for Stewart Copeland: Police Deranged conducted by Enrico Lopez-Yañez on October 8.
With the program, the legendary rockstar presents a high-energy orchestral celebration of the epic rise of his career over four decades. Together with the DSO, Copeland will perform on drums alongside vocalists Amy Keys, Carmel Helene, and Ashley Támar, and bassist Armand Sabal-Lecco. The program will feature The Police’s biggest hits including “Roxanne,” “Don’t Stand So Close to Me,” and “Message in a Bottle” in a one-night-only concert.
Stewart Copeland: Police Deranged will take place on Sunday, October 8 at 7 p.m. at Orchestra Hall. Tickets for this performance are on sale now and can be purchased at dso.org or by calling the Box Office at 313.576.5111, open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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STEWART COPELAND: POLICE DERANGED
Sunday, October 8 at 7 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Stewart Copeland, drums
Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor
Amy Keys, vocals
Carmel Helene, vocals
Ashley Támar, vocals
Armand Sabal-Lecco, bass
Legendary rockstar and founder of The Police Stewart Copeland performs with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra for a high energy orchestral celebration of the epic rise of his career over four decades. With Copeland on drums, three singers, and a guest bassist, the DSO performs The Police’s biggest hits including “Roxanne,” “Don’t Stand So Close To Me,” and “Message in a Bottle” in a one-night-only concert.
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About Stewart Copeland
Stewart Copeland was born in Alexandria, Virginia, but soon relocated with his family to Beirut, Lebanon, where his father served as the Middle Eastern city’s CIA Station Chief. It was here that Copeland discovered his talent on—and love for—the drums. His older brother Ian played drums in a local band and, following in his brother’s footsteps, Copeland picked up a pair of sticks and began to play. His knack for the instrument distinguished him from his sibling almost immediately. While Ian quickly gave up the drums, Copeland found his aim and purpose in them.
Encouraged and assisted by his father, who in addition to his intelligence career was once a trumpeter in The Glenn Miller Band, Copeland’s first teacher was an old jazz drummer. Copeland was a quick study with a good ear and scored his first real gig playing drums while still barely in his teens.
Restless, Copeland decided to form a trio fashioned on the vibe and energy of punk music. He would call this project “The Police,” a provocative name in its time that capitalized on the everyday brawls that broke out between punks and law enforcement: a regular police presence in the streets of London meant free marketing for his band.
The second member of the trio would be guitar player Henry Padovani (later replaced by Andy Summers). A performance in Newcastle gave the drummer the chance to find the third piece to the trio puzzle. While in town, he caught the set of a local band called Last Exit, a popular jazz fusion band recommended to him by journalist Phil Sutcliffe. Only one thing caught Copeland’s attention at the concert: the stage presence of the band’s charismatic bass player, a musician/vocalist known as Sting.
Sutcliffe introduced the two musicians after the show. When Sting later moved to London with his wife and son, he called Copeland, who was only too happy to welcome him into The Police. It would be a move that would change music history. Though the band saw its shares of ups and downs, they went on to become one of the most successful trios of the 1980s. Copeland has chronicled this time in a couple of projects: his 2009 autobiography Strange Things Happen: A Life With The Police, Polo and Pygmies and his 2008 documentary Everyone Stares, The Police Inside Out.
Though the band saw its shares of ups and downs, they went on to become one of the most successful trios of the 1980s, reuniting in 2007 for a successful world tour which ended at Madison Square Garden in New York City in August 2008.
After his last concert with The Police in Australia in March 1984, Copeland began his move beyond the rock arena. He created the memorable score to Francis Ford Coppola’s Rumblefish, a strikingly original mixture of traditional percussion, electronically sampled car horns and ticking clocks that would earn him a 1984 Golden Globe nomination. Copeland followed this up with his 1985 docu-drama The Rhythmatist, a journey to Africa to explore the roots of rhythm. Soon afterwards, Oliver Stone called on him to write the scores for Wall Street and Talk Radio.
The ‘90s was the most prolific period in Copeland's career. With scores and soundtracks as his main occupation, the famous drummer now became better known as a famous composer.
Copeland had already been a productive songwriter before The Police had emerged, having released a few singles in 1978 and a follow-up album in 1980 under the pseudonym of Klark Kent. But while The Police needed that particular touch brought to its music by Sting, Copeland's varied musical culture and knowledge allowed him to work on a variety of projects, from classical to jazz. All of these different influences surfaced in his many releases during the 1990s.
But Copeland's compositions were not limited to film scores alone: in addition to composing a number of ballets, Stewart was commissioned by the Cleveland Opera to compose an opera, which he called Holy Blood And Crescent Moon. As a result of his unique sound, ear, and experience, Copeland's name soon became recognized as one of the most important composers in Hollywood.
He composed two Edgar Allan Poe-inspired short operas: A Casque of Amontillado and The Tell-Tale Heart. His orchestra-like ensemble, comprised of Copeland, a four-piece percussion quartet, and a chamber orchestra performed Copeland’s blend of energetic original compositions. A piece from that album—Birds of Prey—was nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award.
In 2006, Copeland left for the UK and took up his duties as a judge on the BBC One reality composition Just the Two of Us. Gently deriding and, more often than not, applauding the talents in the Pro-Am match-up of duetting couples, Copeland enjoyed a hilarious three weeks in London as a new primetime television star. As a result of this successful appearance, he was asked to return as a judge in January 2007.
Copeland is a recipient of the Hollywood Film Festival’s first Outstanding Music in Film Visionary Award, and a 2003 inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His career includes the sale of more than 60 million records worldwide and has won him five Grammy Awards. Meanwhile, his travels in search of exotic rhythms and musical celebration have taken him around the world from mysterious Easter Island to Mozambique, and from the outback of Australia to the remotest regions of the Congolese jungles. He is the father of seven children and lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Fiona Dent.
About Enrico Lopez-Yañez
Enrico Lopez-Yañez is the newly appointed Principal Conductor of Dallas Symphony Presents and Principal Pops Conductor of the Pacific Symphony. In addition, Lopez-Yañez serves as the Principal Pops Conductor of the Nashville Symphony. Lopez-Yañez is quickly establishing himself as one of the Nation’s leading conductors of popular music and becoming known for his unique style of audience engagement. An active composer/arranger, he has been commissioned to write for the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Houston Symphony, San Diego Symphony, and Omaha Symphony, and has had his works performed by orchestras including the Baltimore Symphony, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Florida Orchestra, Ft. Worth Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, National Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and Utah Symphony, among others.
Lopez-Yañez has conducted concerts with a broad spectrum of artists including Nas, Gladys Knight, Ledisi, Itzhak Perlman, Stewart Copeland, Kenny Loggins, Toby Keith, Mickey Guyton, Kelsea Ballerini, Leslie Odom Jr., Renee Elise Goldsberry, Hanson, The Beach Boys, Kenny G, and more. Lopez-Yañez also conducts the annual Let Freedom Sing! Music City July 4th fireworks show which was first televised on CMT in 2019, reaching millions of viewers across the nation.
This season, Lopez-Yañez will collaborate with artists including Ben Rector, Cody Fry, Patti LaBelle, Trisha Yearwood, Tituss Burgess, Vanessa Williams, Lyle Lovett, Jefferson Starship, Portugal. The Man, Guster, Ben Folds, Aida Cuevas, Lila Downs, and Arturo Sandoval. Lopez-Yañez will appear with the Colorado Symphony, Houston Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and Milwaukee Symphony as well as make return appearances with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, and more. Previously, Lopez-Yañez has appeared with orchestras throughout North America including the Baltimore Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and the Seattle Symphony, among others.
As Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Symphonica Productions, LLC, Lopez-Yañez curates and leads programs designed to cultivate new audiences. Symphonica manages a wide breadth of pops and family/education productions that “breathe new, exuberant life into classical programming for kids and families” (Nashville Parent Magazine). Symphonica’s productions have been described as “incredibly special—and something that needs to become the new norm” (Lima Symphony). Symphonica Productions is also a sheet music publishing house representing a diverse offering of genres and composers. Their roster of composers includes Grammy nominated composer Clarice Assad, Sverre Indris Joner, Andres Soto, Charles Cozens, Vinicio Meza, and more.
As a producer, composer, and arranger, Lopez-Yañez’s work can be heard on numerous albums including the UNESCO benefit album Action Moves People United and children’s music albums including The Spaceship that Fell in My Backyard, winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, Hollywood Music and Media Awards, and Family Choice Awards; and Kokowanda Bay, winner of a Global Media Award as well as a Parents’ Choice Award, where Lopez-Yañez was lauded for his “catchy arrangements” (Parents’ Choice Foundation).
About Amy Keys
You've heard her voice on everything from the Emmy Award-winning NBC NASCAR Superbowl commercial and the Stanley Cup Playoffs to Tarzan and Tarzan 2. You also may have heard her singing for Coca Cola and performing a duet with Jamie Dornan on the beach in Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar. Keys is a very versatile and accomplished vocalist, writer, producer, and actor.
Originally from Washington, DC, she started singing with groups in college while becoming a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and earning a degree in biology with a minor in chemistry. Her education continued with studies in voice at the Peabody Institute, also with Seth Riggs, Nolan Vanway, and Gerald White; and in acting with Howard Fine and masterclasses with the original “Virginia Woolf” on Broadway, Ms. Uta Hagen.
The Sony/Epic Label released a solo album with Amy titled Lover's Intuition. The title track appeared on the soundtrack of the movie Tap starring Gregory Hines.
Her first major tour was with Leonard Cohen and was quickly followed by a tour with the LA All Stars whose members included Al McKay and Verdine White of Earth, Wind, and Fire. Later that same year, she was offered the opportunity to perform with one of her idols Phil Collins. Other touring credits include: Herbie Hancock, Barbra Streisand, Toto, Dave Stewart, kd lang, Joe Cocker, Tears For Fears, Kevin Spacey (“Beyond the Sea” Tour), Michael Bolton, Phillip Bailey, and many more. In May of 2006, she began touring with Johnny Hallyday singing completely in French.
Her work with Phil Collins includes performing background and lead vocals (including duets) and creating vocal arrangements for his show/albums. One of her arrangements (composed with Brad Cole, keyboardist for Phil Collins) was used in the “First Final Farewell Tour” show and DVD and was included on Collins's Love Songs Collection CD. She also choreographed the Phil Collins "First Final Farewell Tour" show.
Keys has sung backgrounds for numerous artists including: Sting, Elton John, Barbara Streisand, One Republic, Sam Smith, Josh Groban (for whom she both sang and created vocal arrangements), Stevie Wonder, Seal, Neil Young, Randy Newman, Chaka Khan, Don Henley, Timothy B. Schmit, Al Green, Queen Latifah, NeYo, Heart, Gavin Degraw, Phil Vassar, Vince Gill, Brad Paisley, Brooks and Dunn, Sarah Mclachlan, Sara Bareilles, Vanessa Carlton, Tina Turner, Michael McDonald, Patti LaBelle, Mary J. Blige, Brian McKnight, Al Jarreau, Natalie Cole, Donna Summer, Toni Braxton, Wilson Phillips, Diana Ross, Tito Puente, Christopher Cross, Charice, and many others.
She has performed many national television theme songs including: City of Angels (CBS TV), Boomtown (NBC TV; Emmy Award-winning theme), Famous Families (PAX TV), and the theme of Over There (the Stephen Bochco series) and K-Ville. She has performed vocals and looping for and on camera in numerous commercials and films including: All voices on the “NASCAR on NBC” Superbowl Spot featuring Nick Offerman (Emmy Award-winner), “When The Kids Are Away" (All vocals; directed by Jon Chu and music by Bear McCreary), Budweiser, Anchorman 2, Rock Of Ages, “Big Lots Holiday,” Tarzan, Tarzan 2, Brother Bear, Another 48 Hours, Carl’s Jr., Coca Cola, Coors, Taco Bell with Little Richard, Toy Story 2, Touched By An Angel, The Pretender, Profiler, Martial Law, the WNBA Playoffs, and The Fair. Keys also performs all voices on the new ABC Matt LaBlanc show promo.
Keys is an accomplished writer with numerous credits including the promotional themes for The Amazing Race (CBS TV), Law and Order, CI, and Martial Law (CBS TV). She recently began collaborating with Mitch Marlow, accomplished producer, mixer and songwriter. Together they’ve composed numerous songs for film, TV and recording artists including “Unleash The Freak” and “Never Back Down” by Hyro the Hero.
Her recording credits are numerous, including performances with Phil Collins, Stevie Wonder, Ringo Starr (performance and vocal arrangements), Toto, Keb Mo, Jessica Simpson, Dave Stewart, Neil Young, Schiller, LA Blues Alliance, kd lang, Michael McDonald, Johnny Hallyday (performance and arrangements in French), Kirk Whalum, Daryl Stuermer, Julia Fordham, and many more.
Keys has made numerous television appearances including The Grammy Awards with both Barbara Streisand and Sam Smith with Mary J. Blige, The Academy Awards with Randy Newman, The Voice, Phil Collins's “Live In Paris,” VH-1 Storytellers, David Foster’s “Hitman” Specials, kd lang's "Live By Request," Michael Bolton's "Live By Request," The Tonight Show, The Today Show, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Ellen, The View, New York Undercover, Rosie O'Donnell, Disney's Hercules premiere, Disney's Tarzan premiere, and In Living Color. She was, along with Dorian Holly (American Idol), a featured vocalist on Wayne Brady's "Don't Forget The Lyrics" with the Rickey Minor Band.
On a project conceived and produced by renowned composer, Mike Post, a blues album titled What A Life, Keys recorded with a group of amazing musicians called the "Blue Lifers" including Sonny Landreth, Keb Mo, Mike Finnegan, John “JR” Robinson, Snuffy Walden, David Morgan, Bob Glaub, and Stan Behrens. The project includes one of her originals available on iTunes.
She toured Europe as the featured vocalist with Herbie Hancock on his “Joni Letters Tour” and performed with him at the Montreux Jazz Festival during a tribute to Quincy Jones and at the famed Monterey Jazz Festival. She is also a featured vocalist with Dave Stewart (Eurythmics) and his "Rock Fabulous Orchestra" and appears as a much-featured artist on his CD, Dave Stewart Songbook. She began the year 2008 with a performance in Liverpool with Dave and Ringo Starr.
Keys was the featured vocalist with Johnny Hallyday, singing both backgrounds, leads and duets, live as well as on recordings. She most recently recorded Hallyday’s new CD, Rester Vivant, produced by Don Was.
Keys is also a member of “Crown & the M.O.B.," a group seamlessly melding rap, pop, R&B, and rock, currently making its mark in the industry. Their album recently surpassed 1,000,000 streams on Spotify. And the first single, “Love My People” is in maximum rotation on the top stations in the UK. The song is also featured in the promo for the new video game by XBOX, Forza Horizon 3: Driver’s Unstruction, and was used by the Miami Heat as their entrance music.
Keys’s most recent projects include her appearance and singing in the feature films Dolemite starring Eddie Murphy and Barb & Star Go To Vista Del Mar starring Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo, and Jamie Dornan where she performed a duet with Jamie in the film and appears on the film soundtrack.
Keys served as a representative of the music community on the Governor’s Board of the National Recording Academy (Grammys) and is a member of its Advocacy Board. She also performs as a member and soloist with the Los Robles Master Chorale.
About Carmel Helene
Carmel Helene is a diverse singer/songwriter and producer from San Francisco. From street performing solo with her guitar, to traveling to over 34 countries with featured performances for over 80,000 people, she has been a musical veteran for over 25 years.
Helene’s talents run the gamut from writing and recording to producing and mixing her own compositions, across many genres, with placements in major music libraries. Her voice and songs have been featured in films, national commercials and television including National Lampoon's Gold Diggers, McDonald's, C.S.I., Jimmy Kimmel Live, Black Monday, The Good Wife, NBC Super Bowl, BET Jazz, Perrier, Iomega, Dr. Pepper, Friedman’s Jewelers, ABC, and ESPN.
She has toured with stars including Miley Cyrus, Billy Ray Cyrus, Michael Bolton, Luis Miguel, and French rock icon, Johnny Hallyday. Also appearing as a backing vocalist on shows such as American Idol, The Voice, The Tonight Show, American Music Awards, American Academy of Country Music Awards, Country Music Hall of Fame, Good Morning America, The View, and Teen Choice Awards, to name a few. Helene has recorded on major-sellingalbums andd has released her own artist albums as well.
As an original artist, Helene wrote and produced her first pop rock EP. Her country EP has been featured on Sirius XM radio, KIX Hot Country, Music Connection Magazine, WUSA9, and Good Day DC.
She has performed across the country opening for artists including Lee Brice, Lady Antebellum, and Chris Janson in the Shipkicker Country Music Festival, the Subaru Country Freedom Festival, the Coastal Country Jam, Oktoberfest, Disneyland, the St. Lucia Jazz Festival, and the Capital One Arena halftime and post-game shows. Helene is endorsed by Taylor Guitars and was nominated for Best Female Vocalist for both the California Country Awards and the L.A. Music Awards.
Equally passionate about social justice, Helene continues to help develop and implement much-needed social betterment programs while writing and producing for herself and other artists and building her catalog to license music to shows.
About Ashley Támar
Ashley Támar, author and powerhouse contemporary vocalist versed in classical to jazz to musical theatre and beyond, is known as the muse and protégé of Prince by gaining notoriety for co-writing their Grammy Award-nominated duet "Beautiful, Loved, and Blessed” (“3121”/Universal Republic). Recently appointed as Music Supervisor for the highly anticipated “That Damn Michael Che” show on HBO Max, Támar proudly hails as a graduate of University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music. Támar currently co-stars as Chief Linda in the BET+ sitcom “BRUH” and is also authored an edutainment book and workbook for aspiring artists: “100 Things to Know as an Independent Music Artist.”
Forthcoming in June 2021, Támar will release her 4th independent album “My Name is Ashley” featuring Jason Moran, Mark Kelly, and Mononeon (just to name a few) as a follow-up to her previously independently released albums: My Name is Támar and I Am the Storm via her company Syren Music Group. With recent jaw-dropping performances on NBC’s The Voice: Season X, Támar was recently nominated for Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone) in the critically acclaimed Broadway film A Night with Janis Joplin in which can now be streamed worldwide on BroadwayHD.com. Támar is the lead actress of A Topaz Troop, a children’s television show circulating in numerous festivals including the Los Angeles International Film Festival. Támar has become a household name as a leading performer in numerous Tyler Perry/LionsGate productions set to DVDs across the globe.
Though music is a conduit for reaching people through song, Támar has successfully initiated various community outreach projects: The Syren Arts Academy, the College, Career, and Empowerment Summit (Co-Founded with her mother, Dr. Carolyn Davis), the Támar Talks Podcast, Next Level Houston, and DocFest. Támar has performed an eleven-city national tour “Támar featuring Prince” as well as on Good Morning America, Saturday Night Live, the NAACP Image Awards, the BRIT Awards as well as having been featured in numerous magazines such as Glamour, Billboard, PEOPLE, and VIBE. A seasoned creative curator both on and off-stage, Támar is building a musical empire independently by securing effective outlets in which to display her sound and the sounds of artists to come. She has recently been named brand ambassador for Atlas Ocean Voyages and continues to develop innovative creative content with collaborators both nationally and internationally.
About Armand Sabal-Lecco
Born in Ebolowa, Cameroon, bassist and composer Armand Sabal-Lecco was first inspired musically by his siblings Roger (bass, guitar, multi-instrumentalist) and Felix (drums, multi-instrumentalist), reputed contributors to their native country’s rich musical history. As a teenager, Sabal-Lecco rose to prominence in the mid-80s in Paris among the pioneering new wave of African musicians who helped redefine the sound of the world music genre.
Since then, as a specialist in creating musical bridges between cultures, Sabal-Lecco’s artistic savoir faire has generated both praise and demand from artists including Sir George Martin, Peter Gabriel, Mercedes Sosa, Ringo Star, João Bosco, Ziggy Marley, and Manu Dibango, among many others. He has composed for Carole King, Jeff Beck, Stewart Copeland, and Herbie Hancock. Featured on Stanley Clarke’s 2011 Grammy Jazz Album of the Year was Armand’s piece Fulani. He has also received NARAS recognition for his outstanding work on the Grammy Awarded albums Out of the Loop and Return of… by The Brecker Brothers, Paul Simon’s Rhythm of the Saints, and Alejandro Sanz’s Unplugged.
Sabal-Lecco recorded the vocals for the track Képéré, sung in Képéré, an eastern Cameroonian dialect, on the feature film Blood Diamonds as well as advertising campaigns for international brands. Sabal-Lecco’s solo project Positive Army, released in 2012, is a bass-driven, African groove alchemy with jazz harmonies and features a cast of international guest artists.
About the DSO
The acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra is known for trailblazing performances, collaborations with the world’s foremost musical artists, and a deep connection to its city. Led by Music Director Jader Bignamini since 2020, the DSO makes its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, offering a performance schedule that features the PVS Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in metro area venues, as well as eclectic multi-genre performances in its mid-size venue The Cube, constructed and curated with support from Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings. A dedication to broadcast innovation began in 1922, when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a live radio broadcast of a concert and continues today with the groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series of free webcasts.
Since its first school concerts a century ago, and particularly since the founding of the Civic Youth Ensembles in 1970, the DSO has been a national leader in bringing the benefits of music education to students, teachers, and families in Detroit and surrounding communities. The DSO remains committed to expanding its participation in the growth and well-being of Detroit through programs like its Detroit Neighborhood Initiative—cultural events co-created with community partners and residents— and Detroit Harmony, a promise to provide an instrument and instruction to any student in the city who wants to learn. With unwavering support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to impact lives through the power of unforgettable musical experiences.