Fantastical Stories/Historias Fantásticas featuring composer Roberto Sierra

October 5, 2024 7pm at Onondaga Community College, Syracuse, N.Y.
October 6, 2024 4pm at Hochstein Performance Hall, Rochester, N.Y.

Rochester, N.Y.--“Fantastical Stories/Historias Fantásticas" features performances from chamber ensemble fivebyfive as well as musicians from Society for New Music (SNM), with each group hosting a concert in their respective home city. The program focuses on Latin American themes but also explores the profound connections and mutual understanding that our stories can create between us.

fivebyfive is a Rochester, N.Y based chamber ensemble featuring flute, clarinet, electric guitar, bass, and piano. SNM provides opportunities for musicians in Central New York to showcase their talent while performing concerts that feature new compositions.

Anchoring the “Fantastical Stories/Historias Fantásticas" program is a new NYSCA-funded work by Roberto Sierra of Ithaca, N.Y. With a Support for Artists grant, fivebyfive commissioned the Grammy-nominated and Latin Grammy winner to produce “Sonidos del Tlön”. Sierra uses the magic realism found in a short story by 20th-century Argentinian writer Jorge Borge as inspiration. Exploring fantasy and reality is a common theme in Latin American literature. Many creators use this oppositional device to make sense of a fraught present and uncertain future.

“Sierra does an extraordinary job of taking us into a musical twilight zone. Even he says some of his music is absurd— like mimicking the screech of a bird--but he wants to experiment with sound. I think listeners will definitely find this fantastical,” proclaimed Laura Lentz, fivebyfive’s Artistic Director.

Sierra will attend both concerts and headline the pre-concert chats that occur 30 minutes prior to the start of each program. Other music presented will include works by Clarice Assad, Miguel del Aguila, Gabriela Lena Frank, inti figgis-vizueta, and Angélica Negrón.

Intertwined with the musical pieces will be an original presentation by Rochester poet, Henry I Padrón-Morales. During the intermission of the Rochester concert, professional baker Ingrid Gonzalez will provide Latin American pastries through her business Simply Delicious Treats. Coffee Connection, a social enterprise that sells fair-trade, organic, sustainably farmed coffee, will offer individual servings and bagged coffee from Latin America as well.

Additionally, a collaborative experience called, “Create Your Own Fantastical Story”, will take place on Sunday September 29, 2024, at 2pm. Author Marla Brandt conducts an hour-long workshop for all ages at Writers & Books located at 740 University Avenue, Rochester, New York. Members of fivebyfive will be present to offer their stories.

“We hope participants will want to share what they write when they attend the concert the weekend after the workshop,” said Laura Lentz, Artistic Director of fivebyfive. “Our goal is to make every concert experience transformative and give our audiences an opportunity for their own artistic expression.”

Fantastical Stories/Historias Fantásticas

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