2010 Con Edison Composer in Residence Judith Sainte Croix in Union Settlement Program

May 17, 2011

CONTACT: David Johnston, Associate Director, david@exploringthemetropolis.loc
(212) 886-2503

Composer Judith Sainte Croix and the Sonora Trio will perform at Union Settlement in East Harlem, on Friday, July 29, 2011 at 1 PM.  The free program, entitled “Sueno del Bosque” (Dream of the Forest), is part of the Con Edison Musicians’ Residency, sponsored by Exploring the Metropolis and is supported with public funds from the Fund for Creative Communities, supported by New York State Council on the Arts and administered by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.

“Sueno del Bosque” (Dream of the Forest) features new music by Sainte Croix and selections from her opera-in-progress, “The Vine of the Soul,” which was developed as part of the Con Edison Musicians’ Residency.  The program also includes photography of the El Yunque rainforest in Puerto Rico by Claudia Miranda. Sainte Croix is part of The Sonora Trio, which mixes the mysterious beauty of ancient and modern flutes, the radiant harmonies of the classical piano, transcendent vocals and popular electric guitar in a uniquely relevant chamber music experience.

Sainte Croix’s music has been described by The New York Times as “colorful, varied, sweetly melodic and rhythmically vital…a modern, rich textured style which draws on elements of indigenous music yet retains a modernist sophistication as do Bartok’s works.”

The New York City-based Sonora Trio consists of composer/pianist Sainte Croix; flutist, Andrew Bolotowsky; guitarist, Oren Fader. All three musicians have rich individual careers, but recently converged to form a trio for the purpose of new expressive capabilities.

Exploring the Metropolis sponsors the Con Edison Musicians’ Residency: Composition Program.  This residency provides composers with use of consistent, suitable composition and rehearsal space for a three-month period. Each composer also receives a stipend.  Judith Sainte Croix’s pre-production residency for “The Vine of the Soul” was hosted by Turtle Bay Music School, which also has a Saturday program for students from East Harlem.

This July 29 program at Union Settlement is free and open to the public. It will take place in the community garden at 237 East 104th Street, between 2nd and 3rd Avenues. It is made possible in part with public funds from the Fund for Creative Communities, supported by New York State Council on the Arts and administered by the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.  Programs at Union Settlement are in cooperation with the New York City Department for the Aging (DFTA).