Omar Offendum’s storytelling, rapping, and singing weave together past and present in a closely observed whole.
Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels’s work is bold and beautiful and couldn’t be timelier.
The collaborative work involves L.A.’s recent poet laureate, composer Sarah Hennies, and a women’s whistling group.
The players give strong performances of Adolphe’s piece and the Romantic music filling out the concert.
With a premiere by Nicolás Lell Benavides and an appearance by mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor, the show touches a lot of bases.
Many prominent U.S. musicians have been drafted into the effort to improve their country’s image abroad, including the “dean of American composers.”
