PROTESTRA Presents COMMUNITY CHORDS: STRING ORCHESTRA MUSIC FROM AROUND THE WORLD

PROTESTRA presents Community Chords: StrinG Orchestra Music From Around The World. Join PROTESTRA for a family-friendly, multicultural holiday celebration with strings. 

Community Chords: String Orchestra Music from Around the World is a string orchestra concert that combines two important pillars of culture: music and food!

In a creative twist on a traditional holiday concert, PROTESTRA's String Orchestra Music from Around the World celebrates the season of giving and togetherness by sharing string orchestra repertoire from composers representing a variety of cultures.

PROTESTRA has partnered with local food kitchen EVLoves NYC for these concerts to raise awareness about food insecurity and collect donations for fellow New Yorkers in need this holiday season.

The program opens with the world premiere of Chinese-Canadian composer Vincent Ho's Five Sketches of Mischievous Imps, a playful collection of pieces created to teach audiences and players alike about various techniques for string instruments. The concert will also feature Serenade by Romantic-era Venezuelan composer Teresa Carreño, African Suite by 20th century Nigerian composer Fela Sowande, and Strum by contemporary composer and native New Yorker Jessie Montgomery.

The concert will be led by PROTESTRA Founder and Music Director Michelle Rofranoand Assistant Conductor Christina Morris.

The concerts will take place in person at the following locations and times:

Saturday, December 16 @ 2:00 PM

St. Paul's German Evangelical Lutheran Church315 W 22nd Street

New York, NY 10011

Sunday, December 17 @ 2:00 PM

Third Street Music School *235 E 11th Street

New York, NY 10003* This location is ADA compliant.

EVLoves NYC is a group of friends who began cooking and sharing meals with neighbors in need during the first weeks of the pandemic lockdown. Over the past three years, they have grown into a volunteer-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit. They still feed NYC's food insecure, partnering with more than 75 organizations (churches, mosques, community fridges, mutual aids, etc.) that serve the most challenged populations of our city. 3,000+ volunteers have spent their Sundays working in EVLoves NYC's East Village kitchen, preparing, cooking, and packaging hot meals for distribution throughout the five boroughs. Since 2020, EVLoves NYC has prepared over 440,000 hot meals and distributed over 1 million pounds of groceries to food insecure families and individuals.

PROTESTRA's concerts raise awareness about real-world issues through classical music performance while also contributing to positive change in a tangible way. To benefit the local population that EVLoves NYC serves, concert attendees are encouraged to bring the following items for donation to this amazing organization:

- Toiletries (new and unopened)

- Clothing (new or gently worn—clean, no rips or stains)

- Non-perishable food (unopened and unexpired)

- Holiday cookies

- Toys (new and not gift-wrapped)

Tickets are now available for purchase through Humanitix with tickets for sale at the door upon availability.Tickets are $25 for General Admission, $10 for Students & Seniors, and FREE for Children aged 12 and under. PROTESTRA strives to make classical music accessible to everyone, and those who are able to purchase tickets are encouraged to do so. If the cost of a ticket presents a financial burden, please email team@protestra.org to request free access.

These concerts are made possible in part with funds from Creative Engagement, a regrant program supported by the the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) in partnership with the City Council, the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) with the support of the office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, and administered by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC).

PROTESTRA (protest + orchestra) is a musician-run orchestra and 501(c)(3) organization that bridges the divide between advocacy and classical music. PROTESTRA's grassroots orchestral benefit concerts inspire activism by contextualizing classical music performance through multimedia education, and turn voluntary audience donations into targeted support for mission- and policy-driven nonprofits related to the concerts' themes. PROTESTRA's new vision for classical music prioritizes diversity, equity, inclusion, representation, and accessibility in its hiring and programming practices. PROTESTRA maintains a robust social media presence, creating and sharing original content and resources with 9,000+ followers across multiple platforms.