Mei-Ann Chen conducts ROCO at the Church of St. John the Divine (Photo by Asaeda Badat)
Houston, TX – Leaning into ROCO’s annual celebration of Day of the Dead, its Season 21 Albert and Margaret Alkek Foundation In Concert Series continues with FRAGRANT MEMORIES – a concert steeped in remembrance, resilience, and sonic storytelling. ROCO Artistic Partner Mei-Ann Chen conducts the 40-piece chamber orchestra on Saturday, November 1, 5:00 p.m., at The Church of St. John the Divine.
Laura Frautschi makes her ROCO debut as guest concertmaster for the evening, leading the chamber orchestra through an evening of vibrant works and featured as soloist for one movement of Juan Pablo Contreras’ La Minerva. The third movement of Contreras’ violin concerto, “Himno a la Mujer,” was composed as a tribute to the strength of Mexican women, blending romantic melodies with vibrant rhythms, and earning the piece a nomination for a 2024 Latin GRAMMY Award.
John Wineglass returns with a ROCO Commissioned World Premiere inspired by the gravitas of Houston’s historic Freedmen’s Town community. Titled Sacred Ground, the piece is a meditation on identity and spiritual refuge.
John comments on his concept of the work, “Sacred Ground is not just music. It is kind of an act of reverence. The hymn to the unseen.”
The concert traverses both spectral and sacred sound worlds, expressed in the world premieres of two ROCO-commissioned rescores by Anthony DiLorenzo: J.S. Bach’s haunting Toccata and Fugue in D minor and Maurice Ravel’s La Valse. The orchestra further explores deep emotional undercurrents in David T. Little’s Haunted Topography, a poignant reflection on memory and loss.
The evening closes with Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 10, a piece that was constructed in 1988 by musicologist Barry Cooper from the legendary composer’s sketches. Though it never materialized before he died in 1827, Beethoven left enough material behind for a sufficient first movement to be assembled. Since its premiere, Cooper’s realization of the composer’s work has been performed several times by orchestras around the world.
The concert features a Halloween-themed ROCOrooters program, encouraging children to show up in costume for an encore of the previous night’s festivities. Children will enjoy a fun-filled music lesson, a trip into the concert hall to hear Anthony DiLorenzo’s rescore of Bach’s iconic Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, and up to 5 hours of supervision by certified childcare professionals, while caregivers enjoy the concert and a date night! Visit roco.org/rocorooters for more information.
Pay What You Wish tickets for the concert are available now on the ROCO official event page, with a free livestream at roco.org/live, YouTube, Facebook, Twitch, and on the ROCO mobile app.
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