Artsy experience abound this week as the city's premiere classical ensemble welcomes its next baton leader. On tap this week are three historic concerts, a strong exhibition, photography that mirrors the American spirit, a parade on water and a performance that features a Canadian ensemble with a penchant for the sackbut.
Houston Symphony welcomes music director Andrés Orozco-Estrada
To experience the Houston Symphony under the baton of incoming music director Andrés Orozco-Estrada is to understand just how much influence a conductor has in shaping the overall sound, energy and passion in an institution that has been around for 100 years. Orozco-Estrada brings a youthful zest to the classical ensemble that has flourished in recent years to reclaim its rightful place in the diverse cultural fabric of this sprawling city.
You have three opportunities to catch the conductor as the 2014-15 sets into motion.
"Bienvenido, Andrés" on Friday at Miller Outdoor Theatre welcomes Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero in Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, alongside other light selections. "Opening Night with Andrés" on Saturday at Jones Hall is filled with concert standards such as Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and Haydn's Trumpet Concerto with soloist Alison Balsom. "Fiesta Sinfonica con Andrés" on Sunday at Jones hall mostly repeats Friday's program that also celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month.
The skinny: "Bienvenido, Andrés" is on Friday, 8:30 p.m., at Miller Outdoor Theatre (free tickets are available for covered seating); "Opening Night with Andrés" is on Saturday, 7:30 p.m., at Jones Hall (tickets start at $25); "Fiesta Sinfonica con Andrés" in on Sunday, 6 p.m., at Jones Hall (tickets are free while they last).
Holocaust Museum Houston exhibition Ground Zero 360: Never Forget
Where were you when you heard the news? Wherever that was, you will never forget when your view of the world was changed radically as you learned about the horrific attack on our homeland.
This Holocaust Museum Houston exhibition curated by a retired New York City Police Department lieutenant Paul McCormack, who was onsite taking part in the rescue operation, presents photos taken that day by his wife, Nicola McClean. The collection of more than 80 images plus recordings of emergency calls, objects and remains from the World Trade Center reframe the fateful day in hopes of remembering the past so history doesn't repeat itself.
Houston Center for Photography opening reception: Travelogues
Aside from apple pie, I am sure I am not the only one who associates road trips with the American spirit. The open road, the sense of adventure, the feeling of exploring unexplored places and terrains, the feeling when strangers become friends — all incite a sense of nostalgia about the freedom of travel adventures.
Photographers Nathan Hoang, Sara Macel and Natalie Slater tackle this subject in a new exhibition at the Houston Center for Photography. Offering images that honor the past, these three young artists eventually lead viewers to the same destination — home.
"Afloat" hosted by Houston Arts Alliance and Buffalo Bayou Partnership
As part of a three-month project titled Transported + Renewed organized by the Houston Arts Alliance that reintroduces the city's vibrant East End, this parade on water reimagines what has come to represent the zeitgeist of the Bayou City.
Think of this buoyant procession as the aqueous version of the Art Car Parade. With dragon boats, yachts, canoes, kayaks and decorated vessels, "Afloat" bows to the centennial anniversary of the Port of Houston.
The skinny (update): Due to expected inclement weather, the event originally scheduled for Sept. 13 has been moved to Oct. 4 and will take place in conjunction with the Buffalo Bayou Shrimp Festival.
Houston Chamber Choir presents "The Splendor of Venice" with Sacabuche
An ode to the sackbut (stop giggling), Canadian-based string and period trombone ensemble Sacabuche arrives to partner with the Houston Chamber Choir for two performances that recall the magnificence of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice. Works of late Rennaissance and early Baroque composers such as Giovanni Gabrieli, Hans Leo Hassler and Heinrich Schütz evince why Venice was an epicenter for musical creativity.
The skinny: Sunday, 7 p.m.; First Presbyterian Church of Kingwood; tickets are $10-20. Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.; Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart; tickets are $10-40.
Ground Zero 360: Never Forget includes more than 80 images plus recordings of emergency calls, objects and remains from the World Trade Center.
