The Arcos Orchestra ft. Highlights from the Lowlands

Wednesday, May 18, 2011 at 7:00 PM

Beth-El Chapel/Temple Sanctuary, Temple Emanu-El - New York, NY

Free admission

Pre-concert talk with Hans Kox and Vanessa Lann at 6:00 PM

Beth-El Chapel, Temple Emanu-El - New York, NY

The Arcos Orchestra shall conclude its 2010-2011 Season at Temple Emanu-El with a fabulous program of outstanding works by composers almost completely unknown in the United States. Highlights from the Lowlands features the North American Première of the Viola Concerto by Holocaust victim Leo Smit (1900-1943) with Emily Deans as soloist, along with music by Hans Kox (b. 1930), Tristan Keuris (1946-1996) and a world première by American-in-Amsterdam Vanessa Lann (b.1968). 

Arcos was founded in 2005 by conductor John-Edward Kelly and concertmaster Elissa Cassini. Inspired by the great creative spirit of Béla Bartók - who himself once sought to found such an orchestra - the Arcos Orchestra offers the listener an artistic bridge from the known to the unknown, extending from the origins of European musical culture to the most exciting contemporary music of our time. Bartók's comprehensive attitudes towards music and music-making, together with his ability to merge the currents of past and future into a language that speaks directly to the human heart, permeate everything the Arcos Orchestra stands for.

Consisting of outstanding young players from around the world, the Arcos Orchestra approaches orchestral playing with the chamber musician's sense of discipline: individual instrumental mastery; in-depth knowledge of the composer's life & music; and selfless co-operation in service of the composer's intentions. Although many chamber orchestras now perform without conductor, the Arcos Orchestra follows a more traditional path, believing that the conductor increases both their scope of repertoire and the musical unity that can be achieved. The relationship of conductor to orchestra is not a typical one, however: by design, the Arcos Orchestra conductor is integrated into the music-making like one player of many, working with the musicians to attain a lively exchange of ideas in rehearsal and spirited focus in concert. The result is a degree of synergy between players and conductor rarely found today.