The Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra will present a concert of classic and new work in memory of those who lost their lives to COVID-19 next month. COVID Victims Remembrance, a new work from Newington composer Jonathan Kane, will world premiere at the concert. Kane’s piece, commissioned by the Virtuosi, is one of the first original orchestral compositions created to honor the nearly one million people worldwide who have died from the virus.
“In the time of COVID-19, we still need to lead as artists. That is our greatest challenge. COVID-19 is about human suffering. We have to recognize the depth of the crisis and try to express the intensity of it in a musical format,” said Adrian Sylveen, Artistic Director of the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra. “I consider Jonathan to be a very talented composer and a gifted artist. He is one of these people who can, in very straightforward ways, establish a link between the music and the people. In every previous collaboration, we enjoyed not only the music but the whole process. Jonathan can also be surprising in the ways he finds new techniques and explores new sounds, so there is always a sort of very-welcome mystery to a new piece. We are looking forward to working with him again.”
The concert will also include a performance of Béla Bartók’s Divertimento for String Orchestra, led by Sylveen, who will play the principal violin.
Performances will be held on Sunday, October 11, at Trinity-On-Main in New Britain at 3 p.m. and on Sunday, October 18, at SS Cyril and Methodius Church in Hartford at 2 p.m. The event is open to the public, and, it will be broadcast, free of charge, on the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra’s Facebook page and YouTube Channel. Donations are welcome at
http://thevirtuosi.org/donate/.
Performance dates and times are subject to change. For more
information, visit http://thevirtuosi.org/.