Performances
& Events
“Tricks of the Trade”
Orchestration Workshop
February 12, 2026
4:00 PM ET
Staff Moderator: LaRob K. Rafael
Featured Speaker: Melinda Wagner
Join us for Tricks of the Trade: Orchestration with Melinda Wagner, a professional development webinar led by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Melinda Wagner that explores orchestration as a practical, evolving craft. Praised by American Record Guide as “an eloquent, poetic voice in contemporary music,” Melinda Wagner received the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for her Concerto for Flute, Strings, and Percussion and has written major works for the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Using musical examples from the orchestral repertoire and her own works, Wagner will illustrate how composers translate ideas on the page into clear, compelling sound.
“Tricks of the Trade”
Orchestration Workshop
February 12, 2026
4:00 PM ET
Staff Moderator: LaRob K. Rafael
Featured Speaker: Melinda Wagner
%20Toulmin%20-%20Julia%20Adolphe.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Julia Aldolphe, Unearth, Release
Experience the Intrigue
Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra
Lied Center for Performing Arts | Lincoln, NE
Program
JEAN SIBELIUS, Finlandia
JULIA ALDOLPHE, Unearth, Release
NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV, Scheherazade
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Unearth, Release was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Julia Aldolphe, Unearth, Release
Experience the Intrigue
Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra
Lied Center for Performing Arts | Lincoln, NE
%20Toulmin-%20Brittney%20Green.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Brittany J. Green, TESTIFY!
Jubilee & Joy: Green & Beethoven
Lexington Philharmonic
Singletary Center for the Arts | Lexington, KY
Program
BRITTANY J. GREEN, TESTIFY!
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, Symphony No. 9
Mélisse Brunet, conductor
The Lexington Singers (Dejah Watts, soprano; Hannah Shae, mezzo-soprano; Matthew Pearce, tenor; Sunghoon Han, bass)
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
TESTIFY! was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Brittany J. Green, TESTIFY!
Jubilee & Joy: Green & Beethoven
Lexington Philharmonic
Singletary Center for the Arts | Lexington, KY
%20Toulmin%20-%20Angel%20Lam.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Angel Lam, Please let there be a paradise…
Masterworks III - Regeneration
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra
Capitol Theater | Madison, WI
Program
ANGEL LAM, Please let there be a paradise…
DAN CAVANAGH, Concerto for Jazz Trio
MICHAEL BELL, Regeneration: A Pentalogy
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Please let there be a paradise… was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Angel Lam, Please let there be a paradise…
Masterworks III - Regeneration
Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra
Capitol Theater | Madison, WI
%20Toulmin%20-%20Meilina%20Tsui.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Meilina Tsui, Floridian Symphony
MasterWorks V: Alpine Symphony
Canton Symphony Orchestra
Zimmermann Symphony Center | Canton, OH
Program
JEAN SIBELIUS, Karelia Overture
MEILINA TSUI, Floridian Symphony
RICHARD STRAUSS, An Alpine Symphony
Jeri Lynne Johnson, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Floridian Symphony was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Meilina Tsui, Floridian Symphony
MasterWorks V: Alpine Symphony
Canton Symphony Orchestra
Zimmermann Symphony Center | Canton, OH
%20Toulmin%20-%20Moni%20Jasmine%20Guo.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Moni Jasmine Guo, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
Symphony Series: Brahms & Dvořák
Richmond Symphony
Carpenter Theatre | Richmond, VA
Program
MONI JASMINE GUO, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
ANTONIN DVORAK, Cello Concerto
JOHANNES BRAHMS, Symphony No. 4
Valentina Peleggi, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn) was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Moni Jasmine Guo, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
Symphony Series: Brahms & Dvořák
Richmond Symphony
Carpenter Theatre | Richmond, VA
%20Toulmin%20-%20Cindy%20Cox.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Cindy Cox, Dreaming a world’s edge
ORIGINS
North Corner Chamber Orchestra
Rainier Arts Center | Seattle, WA
Program
CINDY COX, Dreaming a world's edge
FELIX MENDELSSOHN, Symphony No. 1
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Dreaming a world’s edge was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Cindy Cox, Dreaming a world’s edge
ORIGINS
North Corner Chamber Orchestra
Rainier Arts Center | Seattle, WA
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Cindy Cox, Dreaming a world’s edge
ORIGINS
North Corner Chamber Orchestra
Rainier Arts Center | Seattle, WA
Program
CINDY COX, Dreaming a world's edge
FELIX MENDELSSOHN, Symphony No. 1
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Dreaming a world’s edge was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Cindy Cox, Dreaming a world’s edge
ORIGINS
North Corner Chamber Orchestra
Rainier Arts Center | Seattle, WA
.png)
American Composers Orchestra
The DiMenna Center for Classical Music | New York City, NY
Link: https://secure.givelively.org/event/american-composers-orchestra/colaboratory-workshop-mali-irene
Featured Artists and Works
Mali Irene
American Composers Orchestra
The DiMenna Center for Classical Music | New York City, NY
Link: https://secure.givelively.org/event/american-composers-orchestra/colaboratory-workshop-mali-irene
American Composers Orchestra
Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall | New York City, NY
To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence as part of Carnegie Hall's United in Sound festival, we invite written and musical open letters to America, which reflect narratives around the summer homes of turn-of-the-century Black folk, Lakota Dream Kit symbology, unspoken emotions, rituals of celebration, and the writings of historic and current Black American women.
Karen Slack, soprano
Amanda Gookin, cello
Cynthia Yeh, percussion
Carolyn Kuan, conductor
Hello, America: Letters to Us, from Us
SHELLEY WASHINGTON, Haymaker (World Premiere, ACO Commission, developed via EarShot CoLABoratory)
JOSEPH C. PHILLIPS JR., We Hold These Truths to Be Self-Evident (World Premiere, ACO Co-commission, developed via EarShot CoLABoratory)
BRITTANY J. GREEN, Letters to America (World Premiere, ACO Co-commission, developed via EarShot CoLABoratory)
KITE, Cosmologyscape for orchestra (World Premiere, ACO Commission, developed via EarShot CoLABoratory)
JESSIE MONTGOMERY, Procession for solo percussionist and orchestra (NY Premiere)
To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence as part of Carnegie Hall's United in Sound festival, we invite written and musical open letters to America, which reflect narratives around the summer homes of turn-of-the-century Black folk, Lakota Dream Kit symbology, unspoken emotions, rituals of celebration, and the writings of historic and current Black American women.
%20Boulevard%20Carolls.png)
Featured Artists and Works
Horacio Fernandez, NEW WORK
Featured Artists and Works
Horacio Fernandez, NEW WORK
%20Toulmin%20-%20Stacy%20Garrop.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Stacy Garrop, Goddess Triptych
Beethoven Symphony No. 9
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra
Orpheum Theater | New Orleans, LA
Program
LOUISE FARRENC, Overture No. 1, in e minor
STACY GARROP, Goddess Triptych
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, Symphony No. 9, Op. 125
Matthew Kraemer, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Goddess Triptych was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Stacy Garrop, Goddess Triptych
Beethoven Symphony No. 9
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra
Orpheum Theater | New Orleans, LA
%20Toulmin%20-%20Marina%20Lopez.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Marina López, Moño
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto + Sibelius Symphony No. 7
Monterey Symphony
Sunset Center | Carmel, CA
Program
MARINA LÓPEZ, Moño
JEAN SIBELIUS, Symphony No. 7
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY, Violin Concerto
Jayce Ogren, Music Director and Conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Moño was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Marina López, Moño
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto + Sibelius Symphony No. 7
Monterey Symphony
Sunset Center | Carmel, CA
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Stacy Garrop, CHROMA
Gardens of Spain
Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra
The Schrott Center for the Arts | Indianapolis, IN
AARON COPLAND, Three Latin American Sketches
MANUEL DE FALLA, Nights in the Gardens of Spain
LOUIS GOTTSCHALK, Symphony No. 2 (Montevideo)
STACY GARROP, CHROMA
Matthew Kraemer, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established a third national consortium, featuring three new commissions of full-length, 25- to 30-minute concert works. World premieres and repeat performances of the new works by a consortium of nine orchestras will occur during the 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons.
CHROMA was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Stacy Garrop, CHROMA
Gardens of Spain
Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra
The Schrott Center for the Arts | Indianapolis, IN
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Marina López, Moño
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto + Sibelius Symphony No. 7
Monterey Symphony
Sunset Center | Carmel, CA
Program
MARINA LÓPEZ, Moño
JEAN SIBELIUS, Symphony No. 7
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY, Violin Concerto
Jayce Ogren, Music Director and Conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Moño was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Marina López, Moño
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto + Sibelius Symphony No. 7
Monterey Symphony
Sunset Center | Carmel, CA
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Jasmine Guo, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto: Radiant Vision
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
Powell Hall | St. Louis, MO
Program
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, The Consecration of the House Overture
JASMINE GUO, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
KEVIN PUTS, Concerto for Orchestra
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”
Stéphane Denève, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn) was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Jasmine Guo, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto: Radiant Vision
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
Powell Hall | St. Louis, MO
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Jasmine Guo, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto: Radiant Vision
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
Powell Hall | St. Louis, MO
Program
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, The Consecration of the House Overture
JASMINE GUO, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
KEVIN PUTS, Concerto for Orchestra
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN, Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”
Stéphane Denève, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn) was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Jasmine Guo, the sound of where i came from (乡音 Xiāng Yīn)
Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto: Radiant Vision
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
Powell Hall | St. Louis, MO
%20Toulmin%20-%20Karena%20Ingram.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Karena Ingram, RAINN
Masterworks 7: Unbroken
Asheville Symphony
First Baptist Church of Asheville | Asheville, NC
Program
KARENA INGRAM, RAINN
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART, Piano Concerto No. 12
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH, Symphony No. 10
Darko Butorac, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
RAINN was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Karena Ingram, RAINN
Masterworks 7: Unbroken
Asheville Symphony
First Baptist Church of Asheville | Asheville, NC
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Karena Ingram, RAINN
Masterworks 7: Unbroken
Asheville Symphony
First Baptist Church of Asheville | Asheville, NC
Program
KARENA INGRAM, RAINN
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART, Piano Concerto No. 12
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH, Symphony No. 10
Darko Butorac, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
RAINN was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Karena Ingram, RAINN
Masterworks 7: Unbroken
Asheville Symphony
First Baptist Church of Asheville | Asheville, NC
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Brittany J. Green, TESTIFY!
Percussion & Rhythm with Andy Akiho
Oregon Symphony
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall | Portland, OR
Program
BRITTANY J. GREEN, TESTIFY!
ANDY AKIHO, Percussion Concerto
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY, Symphony No. 4
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2024–25 season, ten composers have their works performed by fifteen orchestras across the U.S.
TESTIFY! was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Brittany J. Green, TESTIFY!
Percussion & Rhythm with Andy Akiho
Oregon Symphony
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall | Portland, OR
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Brittany J. Green, TESTIFY!
Percussion & Rhythm with Andy Akiho
Oregon Symphony
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall | Portland, OR
Program
BRITTANY J. GREEN, TESTIFY!
ANDY AKIHO, Percussion Concerto
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY, Symphony No. 4
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
TESTIFY! was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Brittany J. Green, TESTIFY!
Percussion & Rhythm with Andy Akiho
Oregon Symphony
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall | Portland, OR
Jeffery Meyer, conductor
Featured Artists and Works:
Seare Farhat, shadows rising soundless as night
Gregory Kline, West of the Sun
Ty Bloomfield, FRAGRANCES OF SOMETHING SWEET
Coral Douglas, TERROR MANAGEMENT THEORY
Kimberly Osberg, NIGHT LIGHTS
Benjamin T Martin, Unfurling Dances
Mentor Composers:
TBD
%20MALACHI%20BROWN.png)
Featured Artists and Works:
Malachi Brown
Jeffery Meyer, conductor
Featured Artists and Works:
Seare Farhat, shadows rising soundless as night
Gregory Kline, West of the Sun
Ty Bloomfield, FRAGRANCES OF SOMETHING SWEET
Coral Douglas, TERROR MANAGEMENT THEORY
Kimberly Osberg, NIGHT LIGHTS
Benjamin T Martin, Unfurling Dances
Mentor Composers:
TBD
%20Toulmin%20-%20Melody%20Eo%CC%88tvo%CC%88s.png)
Virginia B. Toulmin Commission Concert
Melody Eötvös, Red Dirt | Silver Rain
Stanford Philharmonia
Bing Concert Hall | Stanford, CA
Paul Phillips, conductor
The Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Orchestral Commissions Program: American Composers Orchestra and League of American Orchestras have established two 30-orchestra consortiums, each supporting commissions by six women and nonbinary EarShot alumni. Each composer writes a 6–8 minute orchestral work and develops an educational or community-focused program presented in partnership with each orchestra. In the 2025–26 season, composers have their works performed by nineteen orchestras across the U.S.
Red Dirt | Silver Rain was commissioned by the League of American Orchestras with the generous support of the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Dear Friends,Welcome to American Composer Orchestra’s first post-pandemic concert at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall. ACO had an exciting kickoff to its season with a Friends and Family composer gathering and our telematic tour-de-force New Canons. Tonight, we are honored to return to Carnegie Hall with Sanctuary, featuring two stellar artists—conductor Marin Alsop and violinist Jennifer Koh—whose tireless work on behalf of composers throughout the world has changed the face of music in our generation. The fact that Maestra Alsop performed with ACO decades ago makes this evening doubly special for both our musicians and audience. Sanctuary is a journey exploring the places, company, and states of mind in which composers seek inviolable refuge and inspiration. Throughout the two years of the pandemic, sanctuary has taken many forms for us all, as we have grappled with challenges both quotidien and metaphysical. For those of us who love and participate in the performing arts, the period has assured us that we will never again take for granted the kind of communal experience in which we partake this evening. Lisa Bielawa’s Sanctuary, written for Jennifer Koh, is an extraordinary historical research project around this powerful word, documenting the rhetoric around founding American principles and every important struggle throughout our history. In Restless Oceans, Anna Clyne finds inspiration in a poem by Audra Lorde; the musicians raise their voices in song and use their feet to stand united in a defiant work that embraces the power of women. Hannah Kendall’s alternately buoyant and serene Tuxedo: Vasco ‘de’ Gama takes its title from Jean-Michel Basquiat’s iconic collection of 16 diagrammatic block pieces. With a nod to the traditional African-American spiritual “Wade in the Water,” the work conjures both the majesty and elegance highlighted by the artist as well as her own reflective take on the history of globalization and multiculturalism ushered in by the famed Portuguese explorer. Dai Wei's commission Invisible Portals, her Underwood Readings commission, is a meditation on Shambhala, the legendary Tibetan realm of peace and prosperity. She describes the portals as a place in which "multicultural and multidimensional conversations interweave beyond time and space." And Paula Matthusen's newly commissioned Prophecy in Reverse considers whether the notion of sanctuary evokes a space, feeling, sound or something else entirely. The work is a collaboration with poet Danielle Vogel, whose work Sea Margin: a prophecy in reverse, punctuates the movements via projections. We at ACO are delighted to welcome you back to Carnegie Hall with this rich musical odyssey into the human soul that is both internal and external, local and international, abstract yet wholly tied to our everyday existence. With gratitude,Derek BermelArtistic DirectorMelissa NganPresident and CEO
The Gathering: A Collective Sonic Ring Shout is a sonic quest rooted in the African and African American ritual of the Ring Shout. Woven together through a diverse array of multidisciplinary artists featuring new musical works for orchestra and choir, this evening-length event brings the ancestral tradition of the Ring Shout into a contemporary context, opening a space to collectively grieve, to awaken JOY as a source of LIBERATION, and to find LOVE as a form of resistance. Directed by National Black Theatre’s Executive Artistic Director, Jonathan McCrory, the program features Carlos Simon’s Amen!, Courtney Bryan’s Sanctum, and the New York premiere of Seven Last Words of the Unarmed by Joel Thompson. These works are in conversation with new commissions from Herb Alpert Award-winner Toshi Reagon, Tony Award-winner Jason Michael Webb, and Lelund Thompson created to honor our present needs for a collective space of remembrance. The performance is anchored by an 80-member orchestra and a 50-voice choir composed of singers, professional and amateur, from multiple African American churches and choral ensembles in New York.