The streets of San Antonio are set to become an aural tapestry with the Unheard-of Ensemble's free concert series, kicking off June 4 at Ruby City Sculpture Garden. The Brooklyn-based quartet, notorious for its avant-garde forays into contemporary music, will hit various locales throughout the city, showcasing the talents of up-and-coming composers from their Collaborative Composition Initiative (CCI).
CCI, a breeding ground for innovative classical music, has selected a diverse group this year to create and perform in San Antonio. The established composers, eager to share their expertise, will to directly inspire new blood in the music scene through intensive rehearsals, recording sessions, and lectures. According to the San Antonio Report, quartet member Ford Fourqurean said, "Composers write during the winter and spring. We then have an intensive week of rehearsals, recording sessions and lectures from guest faculty members."
Unheard-of Ensemble, founded a decade ago by Daniel Anastasio and Ford Fourqurean and later joined by Matheus Souza and Iva Casian-Lakoš, has been using CCI to offer nurturing grounds for musical creatives. This year's ensemble has pieces lined up that speak to historical traumas and systemic violence, like the Texas premiere of "Helix" and "Ginger Flavored Bubblegum." These pieces tackle subjects from the spiral of history and collective suffering to anti-Asian violence.
On June 6, San Antonio's own Agarita Loft will play host to a jam session of CCI participants mingled with guest performers. Trailblazing into June 7, at the UTSA Arts Cube of the Blue Star Arts Complex, attendees will witness Christopher Stark's "Fire Ecologies," an artistic take on human-caused environmental devastations. Fourqurean was excited about local support, declaring to the San Antonio Report, "There are so many people in San Antonio who are willing to collaborate and audiences that are willing to take a chance and listen to something brand new."
The series reaches its crescendo with an interactive performance amalgamating light and sound at Evergreen Garden Center, aiming to encapsulate San Antonio's natural vibes. In preparation, San Antonio-based composers and fellows will explore local soundscapes for inspiration. Pamela Martinez told the San Antonio Report, "Maybe they will be inspired by a bird song or perhaps just the feeling of being near living waters will be inspiration enough."
For those keen to catch this fusion of the local and the lyrical, full details and ticket reservations can be found on the Unheard-of Ensemble's website.
