Del Sol Quartet Will Perform ANGEL ISLAND—ORATORIO FOR VOICES AND STRING QUARTET At The Presidio Theatre

Del Sol Quartet and the vocal ensemble Volti will give the world premiere performance of internationally acclaimed composer Huang Ruo's "Angel Island - Oratorio for Voices and String Quartet" at the newly renovated Presidio Theatre on Friday, October 22 at 8pm PT and (safety permitting) a site-specific performance on Angel Island on Saturday, October 23 at 8pm PT.

The oratorio depicts an immigrant's journey through three large choral settings sung in Mandarin - "The Seascape," "When We Bade Farewell," and "Buried Beneath Clay and Earth." Angel Island - Oratorio for Voices and String Quartet brings to life the poems inscribed on the walls by Chinese immigrants detained at the Angel Island Immigration Station. During the 30 years while the station was in use, many young men, women, and children, often families found themselves detained at Angel Island, often under brutal conditions, only to be denied entry into the U.S. or with their hopes for a new life deferred for years. Over 220 poems composed in a classical Chinese poetic style and singing of homesickness, ancestral folklore, unfulfilled dreams, and surprisingly, hope are engraved at the detention center.

Chinese-born classical composer Huang Ruo's weaves together melodic Chinese opera with European Baroque elements. The Del Sol Quartet first worked with Huang Ruo on a chamber concert to introduce the American premiere of his opera Dr. Sun Yat-Sen at the Santa Fe Opera. On October 15, Del Sol Quartet will release a new recording of Huang Ruo's A Dust in Time on the record label Bright Shiny Things.

English-language newspapers, legislation, and screeds dating 1873-1875-the period building up to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882-are interwoven into each chorale as sung by Volti, a choral collective whose mission is to foster and showcase contemporary vocal music from around the world to local Bay-area audiences.

The first performance of this haunting 60-minute-long Oratorio will be at the recently renovated historic Presidio Theatre. One of the longest-garrisoned posts in the country and the oldest installation in the American West, the Presidio built the namesake Theatre in 1939 as the cultural venue for the military base but fell into neglect. The Theatre was restored to its former glory in 2019 after a $40 million renovation.

On October 23rd Del Sol Quartet and Volti plan to perform "Angel Island" at the site where the poems were first inscribed: Angel Island. The premiere will include TED-style talks with (to be named) prominent experts in immigration law, civil rights, and Chinese-American cultural history.

Violinist for Del Sol, Charlton Lee previously shared in a Medium article about the importance of "Angel Island":

"As an Asian American artist, this opportunity to showcase a history that has both a direct connection to my ethnicity as well as a global connection is incredibly empowering. There were only about 200,000 Chinese Americans when I was born and there were very few Asian role models in the arts. I first heard Yo-Yo Ma when he was a student at Harvard, but it would still be a few years before his impact as a major performing artist was really felt. Today, with so many active Asian American artists, my hope is that we begin to contribute more projects that reflect our heritage and tell our stories."

Tickets are priced at $20-100 and available at City Box Office for this poignant, world-premiere performance. For more information, please visit delsolquartet.com.

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