Guest conductor bringing a contemporary sound to the Rochester Symphony
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Feb. 21—ROCHESTER — Orchestral music isn't just classical music. Orchestral arrangements enhance movies, video games and other art.
Orchestral music also stands on its own as an art.
"It invites us to contemplate our lives now," said Kelly Corcoran, who is guest conducting the Rochester Symphony Orchestra on Saturday, Feb. 24.
Corcoran, a New England native, lives in Nashville so it's not surprising she is a supporter of contemporary music.
She was named "Best Classical Conductor" by the Nashville Scene. However, she conducts more than classical arrangements.
"If we put 'classical music' in the bucket of the past, that's not at all accurate," she said. "The more that we recognize that it's not monolithic and that there are nuances, the more we see how it's relevant in our lives, community and health."
Corcoran has worked to bring new music to wider audiences. She brought contemporary orchestral arrangements to national and international audiences leading touring orchestras such as the Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses, and the National Geographic: Symphony for our World tour.
New music is being created that has relevance to contemporary events, she said. One of the pieces she will lead is a 2020 piece by composer Valerie Coleman called "Seven O'Clock Shout." Written in honor of frontline and medical workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, it premiered with a virtual performance by the Philadelphia Orchestra in 2020.
Corcoran said she also wants to do her part to expose audiences to artists making new music.
"I think it's our duty as orchestras to support the artists who are writing music for orchestras," she said.
Corcoran is one of the four finalists in line to be the next artistic leader of the Rochester Symphony. Each candidate will conduct and curate a symphony performance this season.
The pieces she chose reflect diverse soundscapes that contemporary cities and communities have. She said that's in part a nod to Rochester, which draws millions of visitors from around the world each year to the Mayo Clinic.
Corcoran is also uniquely familiar with the role music can play in public health.
She earned a master's degree in public health in health behavior from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and is a member of a team of researchers at Vanderbilt Music Cognition Lab looking into how music relates to our health, communication and social engagement.
Other pieces Corcoran will lead include "Coincident Dances," written in 2017 by composer Jessie Montogomery, which blends samba, mbira dance music from Ghana, swing, and a touch of techno. It's supposed to represent the diverse sounds a person might hear in a walk through neighborhoods in New York City. The program will also include a 1940 piece by U.S. composer Aaron Copland called "Quiet City" which was written for a short-lived play that similarly expresses the sounds and feelings of a city and community.
Although there is a common theme to the program, Corcoran said the pieces themselves vary in sound and feel.
"The variety in this program is interesting and fun," she said.
When: 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 24, 2024.
Where: Presentation Hall, Mayo Civic Center, 30 Civic Center Drive.
Tickets: $37. Available online at
.
