Austin Symphony’s “American Landscapes”
Next May we’ll be heading to Austin to celebrate the special natural—and sonic—landscapes of America. The masterworks season finale features an all-American program ranging from Copland and Gershwin to Gould and Grofé. For the latter, we’re collaborating with the ASO and Maestro Peter Bay to close out each concert with the monumental Grand Canyon Suite and our panoramic visual accompaniment Grand Canyon Country.
Originally co-commissioned by the Tucson Symphony Orchestra and The Phoenix Symphony to commemorate Arizona’s state centennial, the visual piece has been performed for audiences across the U.S. and has toured in Germany and Poland. Coincidentally, it came full circle when Tucson and Phoenix welcomed us back to kick off the centennial of Grand Canyon National Park in 2019.
The photographic production involved over two months of shooting thousands of images in the Grand Canyon region—including a 9-day raft trip down the Colorado River! Some additional material came from the Painted Desert, Petrified Forest National Park, Antelope Canyon, as well as a lively, small town pick-up rodeo just outside the Grand Canyon in Williams, AZ for the emblematic On the Trail movement.
This is our second collaboration with Maestro Bay. During his long tenure at Oregon’s Britt Music Festival, we were commissioned to put together a new piece to celebrate the Festival’s 50th Anniversary—Britt is the oldest summer music festival in the Pacific Northwest! All of the imagery came from the Festival’s huge archive and showcased its many facets over the years from its community and educational initiatives to its exceptional onstage activities and guest performers.
See you in Austin this May!
