DSO Explores Detroit, New Orleans Renewal Through 'A MUSICAL TALE OF TWO CITIES' Festival, Beginning Today

In June 2015 the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) will stage a jazz festival exploring renewal in Detroit and New Orleans through performance and cultural exchange. The project is made possible in part by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. as part of its Knight Arts Challenge.

The festival, entitled "A Musical Tale of Two Cities: Motown meets The Big Easy," will examine how these two cities have used their legacy of unique musical and artistic culture to heal and renew themselves after economic and natural disaster. Today, June 4, 2015, the DSO will perform Terence Blanchard's "A Tale of God's Will" to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. This concert will serve as a centerpiece to the project, designed to create dialogue around the cities and their shared experiences, as well as the role music can play in coping with and rebounding from tragedy. To shape the festival experience beginning June 1, other activities could include a screening of Spike Lee's "When the Levees Broke" with a Q&A session with Blanchard and other special guests, lectures by jazz historians, and jam sessions featuring musicians from Detroit and New Orleans.

"As a New Orleans native, the son of an opera singer, music is in my DNA," said Blanchard. "Detroit and my hometown are evidence that cultures steeped in music breed strong-willed, perseverant populace."

"The arts are an important lens, and music a wonderful vehicle, for examining critical community issues. We're excited by this partnership, the resulting concert and how it can bring Detroiters together to reflect on the city's future," said Dennis Scholl, vice president of arts for Knight Foundation.

Blanchard, the DSO's Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair, assisted in the submission of a cultural exchange after programming "A Tale of God's Will" as the finale to the 2014-15 Paradise Jazz Series.

The Knight Foundation's Knight Arts Challenge funds ideas that engage and enrich Detroit through the arts. Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. The foundation believes that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit KnightFoundation.org.

Click here to read about the other winners announced last night.

ABOUT THE DSO - Hailed by The New York Times as "cutting edge," the internationally acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra, is known for trailblazing performances, visionary maestros, collaborations with the world's foremost musical artists, and an unwavering commitment to Detroit. Esteemed conductor Leonard Slatkin, called "America's Music Director" by the Los Angeles Times, became the 12th Music Director of the DSO during the 2008-09. Acclaimed conductor, arranger, and trumpeter Jeff Tyzik serves as Principal Pops Conductor while celebrated trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard holds the Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair. The DSO's performance schedule includes Classical, Pops, Jazz, Young People's, Neighborhood concerts, and collaborations with chart-topping musicians from Smokey Robinson to Kid Rock. A commitment to broadcast innovation began in 1922 when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a radio broadcast and continues today with the free Live from Orchestra Hall webcast series. Making its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. Fisher Music Center, one of America's most acoustically perfect concert halls, the DSO actively pursues a mission to impact and serve the community through music. For more information visit dso.org or download the free DSO to Go mobile app.

About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation - Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. The foundation believes that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit KnightFoundation.org.

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