This winter, the full Unsupervised chamber orchestra returns for performances of music by Missy Mazzoli, Mead Composer in Residence at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Alberto Ginastera; and Joseph Haydn. Join us at Curtiss Hall in the Fine Arts Building on Thursday, February 6 for vibrant performances by Chicago’s only collaborative, conductorless orchestra.

Mazzoli writes about her piece saying “as I was writing Violent, Violent Sea for chamber orchestra, I kept feeling like the piece was bursting at its seams – that it wanted to be something bigger than the instrumental forces allowed.” Like Violent, Violent Sea, Unsupervised is an ensemble bursting out, greater than just the instruments that make up the group.

Ginastera’s Variaciones takes all of the members of the ensemble and combines them in ever-changing ways, each putting its own spin on the composer’s theme. Together, the creativity of each musician combines to create a vivid musical showcase of all of the ensemble’s talent.

What better way to end than with a masterpiece by the “Father of the Symphony,” Joseph Haydn. Haydn’s “Mercury” Symphony (No. 43) features virtuosic flourishes and joyful melodies passed from one section to the next, creating a lively musical party to close the program.

Program

Alberto Ginastera – Variaciones Concertantes

Missy Mazzoli – Violent, Violent Sea

Joseph Haydn – Symphony No. 43 in E-flat Major, “Mercury”