03/18/2026
Conductor Luca Antonucci about this Sunday's concert:
“I've always loved how music and art can bring people together. As a trumpet player I grew up with one foot in jazz and one foot in classical music -- almost like growing up bilingual -- so I am always on the lookout for music that bridges the gap and puts the two styles into conversation.
When I first heard Terry's poetry accompanied by Jonathan's piano in the Ally Project, I loved the way that they brought their two distinct art forms together into a powerful expression of solidarity and community -- 'allyship', if you will. Terry's poetry and Jonathan's music speak eloquently about the importance of empathy, community, connection, and multiculturalism in today's world. Adding strings opens up a wide range of musical possibilities and enfolds the classical world into their vision, which has always struck me as symphonic in scope.
As we put together new arrangements for this concert that bridge the classical and jazz communities, we were inspired by the legacy of Duke Ellington, who moved effortlessly between the worlds of jazz, popular and classical music. Although better known as a jazz composer, the Duke wrote several important works for symphony orchestra, including some that combined the jazz orchestra with the symphony; for his famous 'Nutcracker' suite for jazz orchestra, he even reimagined Tchaikovsky's ballet! Ellington was also just one of many Black composers who straddled the popular and classical worlds in the early 20th-century. Our program also features works by Florence Price and William Grant Still, both of whom brought the influence of popular music (ragtime for Price and jazz for Still) into their classical compositions - paving the way for today's artists like Wynton Marsalis who create music that brings together musicians and audiences from jazz and classical worlds.”
📅 March 22 • 3:30 PM
📍 Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church, Somerville
🎟 Get your tickets here: https://opendoorensembles.org/tickets
