Houston Symphony Presents Third Annual Free Day of Music, 7/12
By: Christina Mancuso Jul. 07, 2015
On Sunday, July 12, the Houston Symphony will bring its popular Day of Music back to Jones Hall for the third consecutive year. Building upon the cultural diversity of the first and second years, the occasion will feature music for all tastes as more than 20 performing groups appear on five stages in and around Jones Hall. With genres including jazz, Indian, classical, Tejano, choral, and singer-songwriter, the Day of Music is intended to provide the community with an exciting medley of musical experiences.
"What makes Day of Music so special is that it's not only reflective of the many communities that make up our incredibly diverse city, but it shows that these different groups can come together for a fun, musical day that's accessible to all," said Steve Wenig, Director of Community Partnerships.
While many performers are back this year for the second or third time, there are several talented artists that will be making their Day of Music debut this year:
- Yvonne Washington, a jazz vocalist accompanied by Gary Norian, closed Stevie Wonder's European tour in 1970 and has been featured on several jazz albums
- Grammy-nominated La Fiebre, a Tejano band established in 1986, has sold albums to gold and platinum levels
- Baby Sonic Boom, an exceptional drumline of young musicians, has won first place for three consecutive years in the High Noon Drum Line Competition
- Committed to preserving and promoting the classical music of India, the Indian Music Society of Houston performers will share a piece of their culture
Some returning favorites include Purple Songs Can Fly, the heartwarming music written by children undergoing cancer and blood disorder treatments, Joy of Djembe Drumming, Mariachi Autlán, Gay Men's Chorus of Houston, and the North American Youth Chinese Orchestra.
In addition to many Houston-based performing groups, this year's Day of Music will feature the Colombian Youth Philharmonic (Filarmónica Joven de Colombia), an orchestra comprised of more than 100 talented young musicians between the ages of 16 and 24 who are selected annually through a competitive and rigorous audition process. As part of an educational partnership between this youth orchestra and the Symphony, the young musicians will travel to Houston to complete a week-long residency which will include rehearsals and a number of performances, including their Day of Music performance featuring Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, one of the most recorded works of the classical repertoire.
Each Day of Music performance will be 30 minutes, 45 minutes, or one hour in duration. The festival-like event will begin at noon and end at 9 p.m. after the final concert of the day, a Houston Symphony performance of Dvo?ák's Slavonic Dances and Symphony No. 9, From the New World Symphony. The closing concert is also free to the public.
Attendees will have plenty of additional entertainment options between performances, including crafts, face painting, harmonica clinics, salsa dancing lessons from Strictly Street Salsa, and the Symphony's instrument petting zoo, which allows children to become acquainted with orchestral instruments by holding and playing them.
At Jones Plaza, right across from Jones Hall, guests can enjoy the offerings of several food trucks all afternoon. Cravings may be satisfied with the tastes of Bernie's Burger Bus, Bonjour Creperie, Monster PBJ, Friohana Shaved Ice, Saint Arnold Brewery, and more.
Media sponsors for Day of Music are Sunny 99.1, BackstageOL, Houston Public Media, MEGA, Houston Press and iHeartRadio. Each performance stage and Jones Plaza will have a corresponding media sponsor title.
Guests are encouraged to share the excitement and use the designated Day of Music hashtag, #HSDayofMusic, on all social media platforms throughout the event. For more information and full biographies, visitwww.houstonsymphony.org/dayofmusic2015.
Comments
Videos