I am extremely excited to introduce Tales of the World, our 13th season. This one will sweep San Antonio audiences away with both the variety of musical genres and their world-class artistic quality.
As an Artistic Director I feel like a little girl in a candy store while creating a special treat for audiences. I traveled to artist showcases in New York and all the way to Puerto Rico in a quest to find the best musicians. We will be presenting a unique blend of cultures, literally from all parts of the globe, in a most unconventional and fun way.
We will start on October 3 with a daring mixture, Baroque Opera with Salsa Sauce. Our old friends from Houston, “Mercury Baroque,” open, presenting in costume, “La Serva Padrona” by Giovanni Pergolesi. The second half features National Endowment for the Arts award-winner, Edwin Colon Zayas, a master of the national instrument of Puerto Rico, the cuatro. He performs with a group of very talented kids from Cayey, PR who I have personally auditioned and selected. They’ll introduce us to the colorful world of salsa in this amazing performance.
Our December 12 concert, Arabian Nights, will group musicians from 5 countries together to perform a World Premier of a composition by San Antonio composer Jack Stamps. This concert will consist of short tales—musical pieces with a Middle Eastern flavor. The sounds of violin, viola, and cello will be augmented by those of the durbakeh (goblet drum) and riq (tambourine) from the Middle East, the West African djembe, and numerous frame drums from around the globe. This fusion of Western and Middle Eastern musical language is intended to spread the message that people of all religions and backgrounds can live together in peace and harmony.
