| Harlem Quartet |
Composers of African and Latino heritage have been contributing to classical music since the time of
Mozart.
The orchestras that play that repertoire, however, don’t reflect that diversity.
That’s a reflection of
history when many African-Americans and Hispanics had little interest in classical music, and orchestras
had even less interest in them, noted Afa Sadykhly, artistic director of the Sphinx Chamber Orchestra.
The days when African-Americans couldn’t even audition for jobs with major orchestras are gone, she said,
but the face of the orchestra still has a long way to go before it reflects that of its communities.
About 4 percent of orchestra musicians are Hispanic or African American, she said, while 16 percent of
the population is Hispanic and 12 percent is black.
"We’d like to see our orchestras be more representative," she said.
The Sphinx Orchestra was founded 12 years ago by musician Aaron Dworkin. The Detroit-based entity has
several tentacles, including an annual competition in spring for young musicians, and classes and
lessons to expose those in "troubled communities" to classical music, Sadykhly said.
That outreach is especially important, she said, in a time when so many city schools are eliminating
music programs. Only one Detroit middle school offers instrumental music, she said.
The organization has been spending its message through the Sphinx Chamber Orchestra, a string ensemble,
made of laureates from the annual competition.
The ensemble’s second annual tour begins in Bowling Green with a concert Sept. 13 at 3 p.m. in Kobacker
Hall
on the Bowling Green State University campus. Call (419) 372-8171.
The orchestra, conducted by Damon Gupton, will perform pieces by African-American composers Michael Abels
and Wynton Marsalis and Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla, but also works by Mozart, Bach and
Tchaikovsky.
That diversity is part of the Sphinx message. Though dedicated to assisting Hispanic and African-American
musicians, the goal is not "exclusionary," Sadykhly said, rather it is to "encourage
diversity."
The programs for students in Detroit, she said, are open to all youngsters.
The concert will feature violin soloist Elena Urioste playing Piazzolla’s "The Seasons in Buenos
Aires" for solo violin and string orchestra and the Harlem Quartet, made up of winners of the
Sphinx Competition, playing a movement of a quartet composed by Marsalis and a piece for string quartet
and orchestra by Abels, a Los Angeles-baed composer.
The members of the ensemble range in age from 16 to 34. Some already play in professional ensembles,
while others are still in school.
The performances of Mozart, Bach and Tchaikovsky, she said, show
"that the ensemble can give stellar performances of works that have graced the stage for
centuries."
