Villa-Lobos was quoted saying that “The music of Bach is without question the most sacred gift to the world of art.” The Bachianas Brasileiras No. 9 is an ingenious tribute to the great J. S. Bach. It is also a beautiful homage to the folk sounds of Brazil. We can all look forward to hearing some elements of polyphony specific to the Baroque period. The case is made even stronger through Villa-Lobos’s titles that signify the Baroque form (like Fuga). Our particular selection, No. 9, was originally conceived for chorus and reimagined for string orchestra by the composer. We felt it fit organically into a program that celebrates the heritage of voices of yesteryear and those of today, while continuing to enrich our ever-evolving canon.
—Afa S. Dworkin
Tracing Visions embodies the common threads of community and empathy, reminding us that we are one people. The first movement, “Till.,” is an elegy dedicated to the parents of the Uvalde massacre, Emmett Till, and even Ruby Bridges’s mother, the latter who had to find strength enough to allow her child to face the dangerous climate of hate in the midst of desegregation. Written during the time of the Uvalde massacre, it began to expand itself to be a voice for the grief that we all continue to feel for the tragedy. There is a section within the music that personifies the ugliness of apathy and violence of domestic terrorism, which is met by an anthem of fierce parental statement—a battle cry that all children ARE human beings who have a right to exist within a safe environment, in order for the genius blueprint seed to grow within each of them.
The second movement, called “Amandla!” (which means “power” in Zulu), is a tour-de-force juba that celebrates the work of the Sphinx Organization. As a concert finale–style work in its own right, “Amandla!” personifies a vision of unity with melodies and grooves that depict many cultures coming together into an empowered tapestry of voices. To me, this is the very definition of the ethos of Sphinx. At certain points within the music, small chamber configurations briefly emerge to recognize the breadth and depth of Sphinx’s work in developing future leaders within the arts industry. Featuring the word sphinx in morse code at the beginning as the main motif throughout, this jubilation movement fills the stage with dancing rhythms that allow the familia to cut loose with joy.
—Valerie Coleman
Bill Traylor was born a slave in Alabama in 1853 and died in 1949. He lived long enough to see the United States of America go through many social and political changes. He was an eyewitness to the Civil War, Emancipation Proclamation, Reconstruction, Jim Crow segregation, and the Great Migration. As a self-taught visual artist, his work reflects two separate worlds—rural and urban, black and white, old and new. In many ways the simplified forms in Traylor’s artwork tell of the complexity of his world, creativity, and inspiring bid for self-definition in a dehumanizing segregated culture. This piece is inspired by the evocative nature of his work as a whole and not one piece by Traylor. Themes of mystical folklore, race, and religion pervade Traylor’s work. I imagine these solo pieces as a musical study; hopefully showing Traylor’s life between disparate worlds.
—Carlos Simon
Text related to Bill Traylor and the project title Between Worlds are borrowed from and organized in relation to Between Worlds: The Art of Bill Traylor by Leslie Umberger.
Divided for solo cello and orchestra is a response to the social and political unrest that has plagued our generation in the recent past. Specifically, the sense of helplessness that people seem to feel amid a world that seems to be in constant crisis, whether it is over racial injustice, gender or religious discrimination, greed, power and poverty, or climate change. In a world that is so fast-paced, where all of these disparate realities have been unveiled by the internet with constant visual bombardment to the human psyche, how do we regain control and find beauty amid the chaos? How can we stack good actions over the negative reactions that easily emerge out of conflict? The cello is a voice crying out to be heard, in chorus with a few, passionate and unrelenting, with the orchestra performing a gritty accompaniment (The Year 2020).
—Jessie Montgomery
As we looked to architect our program that celebrates the complexity of our times, we envisioned the music of Xavier Foley, whose one-of-a-kind phenomenal virtuosity as a bassist manifests itself in compelling soundscapes through his composition. An Ode to Our Times is a celebration of the resilient spirit of our people. It is a tribute to the courage and the promise that is inherent in our work as artists and the work of Sphinx on behalf of our communities. It is also a statement of excellence and a piece that we hope will live on stages and concert halls of presenting houses across the country. Both solo parts are tasked with compelling string instrument narratives, showcasing technical prowess, and artistic wit. Listen for the intensity and the drive in the music, but keep an ear open for humor and surprising elements that may take you outside of your expectations!
—Afa S. Dworkin
Beethoven wrote this work as his ninth sonata for violin with piano in the spring of 1803. The famed sonata was dedicated to a violin virtuoso of African descent, George Polgreen Bridgetower (1778–1860), who not only premiered it but performed it several more times throughout Europe. Unfortunately, the composer and the violinist were involved in a quarrel, and as a reaction, Beethoven re-dedicated the work to French violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer. Kreutzer did not favor nor ever perform the work, yet it has been memorialized with his name. Our rendition of the work was reimagined for the Sphinx Virtuosi by Venezuelan violinist and arranger Rubén Rengel, who is a member of the Sphinx family. We dedicate the work to Bridgetower, to honor and celebrate an important artist who was forgotten by time and circumstance.
—Afa S. Dworkin