Explores themes of adoption and adaptation
The New Gallery Concert Series is holding its first live and in person performance since the start of the pandemic. On April 30 at 8 p.m., “Adopt and Adapt” will take audience members on a journey, where they will experience visual and musical installations, at the Longy School of Music. Performances and installations are intended to reflect what it means to be adopted—”into a family, into a country, into a person’s true self—and to evoke resilience, belonging, and empathy.”
“NewGal exists to elevate new works of music art alongside the living composers and artists who create them,” said the organization’s president Sarah Bob. “Whether someone has joined a new family, moved countries, or uncovered a new part of themselves, Adopt and Adapt invites curious listeners and adventurous art fans to traverse the complexities of identity as if it were a house of endless rooms.”
Audiences will hear the world premiere of Jonathan Bailey Holland’s “String Quartet No.4.” According to a press release, “The composer challenges the audience to ask questions: What does the process of adoption and adaptation do to the concept of memory or history? How is a narrative created when the connection to the past is no longer known?” In another room, attendees will find Bob performing selections from composer Fred Onovwerosuoke’s “The Twenty-Four Studies in African Rhythms.” They will also have a chance to hear Fabiola Méndez and her trio performing pieces from her album “Afrorriqueña.” Audiences will also discover percussionists Steph Davis and Aaron Trant performing composer Sarah Hennies’ work “Settle.”
Learn more about NewGal here.
Shira Laucharoen is a reporter based in Boston. She currently serves as the assistant director of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism. In the past she has written for Sampan newspaper, The Somerville Times, Scout Magazine, Boston Magazine, and WBUR.