SOLI Chamber Ensemble’s final concert of the 2021-2022 season was Prisms on April 11 at the San Antonio Botanical Garden, featuring the world premiere of Holbein Dances by Puerto-Rican American composer Armando Bayolo. Works by Jessie Montgomery and Edna Alejandra Longoria framed Bayolo’s new composition, complemented by musical tributes in memory of Louis Andriessen (1939 – 2021) and George Crumb (1929 – 2022), presented with guest artist mezzo-soprano Jacquelyn Matava.
The evening was the culmination of a choreography study for the young dancers: each student selected a movement from a list of repertoire prepared by SOLI’s musicians, David Mollenauer, cello and Stephanie Key, clarinet, and created original choreography with guidance from their instructors at the Collective. Repertoire for the evening included Spirit (2017) by Shulamit Ran, The Fence, The Rooftop, and the Distant Sea (2016) by Kinan Azmeh, and Cello Suite No.1 in G Major (1717) by Johann Sebastian Bach.
SOLI Chamber Ensemble previously collaborated with the LTDC in June 2021 for an outdoor presentation of dance choreographed to Olivier Messiaen’s iconic Quatuor pour la fin du temps, in celebration of the 80th anniversary of the work’s premiere in 1941.