February 1, 2022 – Immediate Release
The South Bend Symphony Orchestra’s Terra Nostra performance on February 26, 2022, at the Morris Performing Arts Center, fuses the power of symphonic music with stunning videography that calls awareness to the impacts of climate change, paired with a work by world-renowned composer and soloist Kinan Azmeh. The third performance in the Jack M. Champaigne Masterworks Series, Terra Nostra combines cinematic presentation with the force of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra to engage, educate, and inspire all.
The concert includes D’un Matin de Printemps (On a Spring Morning) by Lili Boulanger, the sweet and playful sounds of this piece nicely contrast with the ornamented tune of In the Steppes of Central Asia by Alexander Borodin. This work depicts an interaction between Russians and Central Asians in the steppe lands of Central Asia as they travel through the desert.
Composer and special guest Kinan Azmeh’s Suite for Improvisor and Orchestra features a quasi-improvisatory clarinet solo parlaying motivic material indigenous to Syria, his homeland. Hailed as “intensely soulful” and a “virtuoso” by The New York Times and “spellbinding” by The New Yorker, Winner of Opus Klassik award in 2019 clarinetist and composer Azmeh has gained international recognition for his “incredibly rich sound” and his distinctive compositional voice across diverse musical genres.
Concluding the evening’s program is Terra Nostra (“Our earth” and “Our land” in both Latin and Italian). This portion of the performance combines stunning visuals through a cinematic presentation with the power of symphonic music. During the 30-minute multimedia symphony, Terra Nostra explores the impact and challenges of climate change. Composed by Christophe Chagnard with poetry by Emily Siff and a film by Charlie Spears from Hullabaloo, it will engage, educate, inspire, and empower people to move for personal and policy change to protect our Earth.
The Masterworks Series is proudly sponsored by Jack M. Champaigne. We are grateful for the support of Craig and Carol Kapson to perform music by living composers.
In addition to in-person viewing, this concert will have a livestream option. Season subscribers enjoy complimentary access. To purchase access, visit www.southbendsymphony.org/series/virtualstage
TICKETS
ONLINE – www.morriscenter.org/events/category/symphony
PHONE – Morris Performing Arts Center Box Office, 574-235-9190 (10 am – 2 pm, Tuesday –Thursday)
IN-PERSON – Visit our friends at the Morris (211 N. Michigan St., South Bend) during the times listed above or two hours before any performance.
LIVESTREAM ACCESS – To purchase access, visit www.southbendsymphony.org/series/virtualstage
FOR MORE DETAILS – Visit www.southbendsymphony.org to see the entire 2021-22 Season schedule, program notes, and more!
REMINDER
Regardless of vaccination status, all patrons are required to wear a mask during performances.
INTERVIEWS
For pre-concerts interviews with the Terra Nostra’s composer Christophe Chagnard, contact Sarah Perschbacher at sperschbacher@southbendsymphony.org or 574-232-6343.
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About the South Bend Symphony Orchestra
Embarking on the 89th season, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra is the region’s only professional orchestra and is committed to engaging the community in all it does. In addition to being recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and other state and local arts funding organizations, the South Bend Symphony Orchestra is the recipient of the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County’s 2019 Leighton Award for Nonprofit Excellence, which recognizes the best-run nonprofit organization in St. Joseph County, Indiana.
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About Kinan Azmeh
Originally from Damascus, Syria, Kinan Azmeh brings his music to all corners of the world as a soloist, composer, and improviser. Notable appearances include the Opera Bastille, Paris; Tchaikovsky Grand Hall, Moscow; Carnegie Hall and the UN General Assembly, New York; the Royal Albert Hall, London; Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires; Philharmonie, Berlin; the Library of Congress, the Kennedy Center, Washington DC; the Mozarteum, Salzburg, Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie; and in his native Syria at the opening concert of the Damascus Opera House.
He has appeared as a soloist with the New York Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Bavarian Radio Orchestra, the Dusseldorf Symphony, the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, the Qatar Philharmonic and the Syrian Symphony Orchestra among others and has shared the stage with such musical luminaries as Yo-Yo Ma, Daniel Barenboim, Marcel Khalife, John McLaughlin, Francois Rabbath Aynur and Jivan Gasparian.
Kinan’s compositions include several works for solo, chamber, and orchestral music, as well as music for film, live illustration, and electronics. His present works were commissioned by The New York Philharmonic, The Seattle Symphony, The Knights Orchestra, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Elbphilharmonie, Apple Hill string quartet, Quatuor Voce, Brooklyn Rider, Cello Octet Amsterdam, Aizuri Quartet, and Bob Wilson.
Kinan Azmeh is a graduate of New York’s Juilliard School as a student of Charles Neidich, and of both the Damascus High institute of Music where he studied with Shukry Sahwki, Nicolay Viovanof and Anatoly Moratof, and Damascus University’s School of Electrical Engineering. Kinan earned his doctorate in music from the City University of New York in 2013.
He is currently working on his first opera which is scheduled to premiere in Osnabruck, Germany in June 2022.
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About Terra Nostra
Terra Nostra shows the beauty of the natural world and the threats faced by it. No previous experience with or knowledge of classical music needs to be touched by Terra Nostra. It makes climate change urgent and visceral through music and photographs, stimulates people to challenge themselves to learn more about the issues, and motivates them to see what practical steps they can take in their own lives and communities.
We hope to spark other artistic explorations of this subject. There is no need to stay in the realm of orchestral music or limit ourselves to the current suite of images. We encourage further collaborations between the arts, science, and education communities. Those who experience Terra Nostra will be empowered to explore further with others.
www.terranostra.org