Houston Symphony Will Perform Adams' EL NIÑO

Returning guest conductor David Robertson leads a stellar cast of vocal soloists, the Houston Symphony, and the Houston Symphony Chorus in two performances of John Adams' celebrated and contemporary musical telling of the nativity story, El Niño, Saturday, Mar. 14, 8 p.m. and Sunday, Mar. 15, 2:30 p.m. at Jones Hall.

El Niño is a modern-day, bilingual oratorio that sets John Adams' distinctive musical stamp on the story of Christ's birth and early years. Adams and librettist Peter Sellars draw their texts from sources including the King James Bible, Martin Luther, the Apocrypha, and the poetry of Latin American poets, mainly women. Premiered in 2000 in Paris, El Niño is often referred to as Handel's Messiah for the 21st century. But, unlike Handel's Messiah, Adams's El Niño solely focuses on the story of the nativity with the incorporation of texts by female poets, which adds a women's voice to the biblical story. This is the first time the Houston Symphony performs Adams's El Niño.

Returning mezzo-soprano Kelley O'Connor joins Metropolitan Opera soprano Susanne Phillips, bass Davóne Tines, and countertenors Daniel Bubeck, Brian Cummings, and Nathan Medley, are all making their Houston Symphony debuts. In 2019, Tines was named one of TIME Magazine's Next Generation Leaders. Countertenors Bubeck and Cummings performed in the Paris world premiere of El Niño in 2000. The Houston Symphony Chorus and Children's Chorus from the Houston Grand Opera also join this grand-scale performance.

Adams' "El Niño" is part of the Margaret Alkek Williams Sound + Vision Series, which is also supported by The Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts Endowed Fund for Creative Initiatives and sponsored by Shell Favorite Masters. The performance takes place at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, 615 Louisiana Street, in Houston's Theater District. For tickets and information, please call 713.224.7575 or visit houstonsymphony.org. Tickets may also be purchased at the Houston Symphony Patron Services Center in Jones Hall (Monday-Saturday, 12-6 p.m.). All programs and artists are subject to change.