LACO's All-Digital Season Launches With Back-to-Back Programs

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO), launches its all-digital 2020-21 season, entitled LACO: Close Quarters, with back-to-back "Border Crossings" programs curated and led by LACO Principal Keyboard Patricia Mabee from the harpsichord and featuring compelling visual elements directed by groundbreaking director/designer/artist James Darrah, LACO 2020-21 Creative Director of Digital Content. Episode 1, "Border Crossings Part I," showcasing Baroque works and Baroque-inspired composers from Bolivia, Mexico and Spain, opens the season, premiering on Friday, November 6, 2020, 6:30 pm (PT). Episode 2, "Border Crossings Continued," premiering on Friday, November 20, 2020, at 6:30 pm (PT), explores works by Spanish Baroque composers Josep Pla and Santiago de Murcia, and 20th Century Brazilian composer Hieto Villa-Lobos.

The "digitally native" programs, created specifically for streaming, are each between 30 and 40 minutes in length and are filmed at The Colburn School's Olive Rehearsal Hall. In addition, Darrah has established a creative hub for developing artistic media content with L.A.-based artists and filmmakers at a first-of-its-kind LACO digital studio at Wilhardt & Naud, a film studio and multidisciplinary arts campus located in Chinatown in downtown Los Angeles.

The artists, inspired by the Orchestra's musical programming, will create works in a variety of mediums that will factor into the broadcasts and endure long after the season concludes. Thanks to the generosity of individual donors, these programs are available to the public at no cost. Broadcasts can be streamed at LACO.org/laco-at-home, and on LACO's YouTube channel and Facebook live.

"Conceptually, we are adding visual artists to LACO's musician's roster so they are part of the orchestra for the 2020-21 season," says Darrah. "While each episode of LACO Close Quarters contains certain content-driven elements, the visual elements are intentionally designed to evolve over the course of the season and feature overarching themes. The first two programs, for example, introduce the notion of a blank slate that will be built upon in coming episodes. None of the artists we're featuring have previously worked with an orchestra in a collaborative capacity."

LACO Close Quarters builds upon the highly successful LACO SummerFest series, the Orchestra's first foray into streaming that concluded in September and featured five digital chamber music concerts that have attracted nearly 140,000 views to date.

Subsequent LACO Close Quarters episodes premiere on Fridays, December 4 and 18, 2020, January 1, 15 and 29, February 12 and 26, March 12 and 26, April 9 and 23, May 7 and 21, and June 4, 2021, at 6:30 pm (PT).

The broadcasts will be available on demand at laco.org/laco-at-home, LACO's YouTube channel and Facebook live.