Jacksonville Symphony to perform with EarShot program, celebrate Earth Day with ‘Become Ocean’

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The Jacksonville Symphony will perform a concert in partnership with the EarShot program on Friday, April 20 at 8 p.m. Also this weekend, the Symphony will perform John Luther Adams' Pulitzer Prize-winning score, "Become Ocean," on Sunday, April 22 at 3 p.m. to celebrate Earth Day. Both performances will be held at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts in the Jacoby Symphony Hall.

EarShot enables connections between orchestras and emerging composers. Drawing from a national network of advisors and advocates, EarShot works with orchestras around the country to identify and support promising composers in the early stages of their careers. Orchestras have relied on EarShot to advise them on commissions, competitions and program design in addition to identifying composers consistent with the orchestra’s artistic vision. Works being featured on the April 20 concert are written by Nicholas Bentz, Will Healy, Ursula Kwong-Brown and Meng Wang.

Written by American composer John Luther Adams, "Become Ocean" was commissioned by the Seattle Symphony and premiered in Benaroya Hall in 2013. One year later, the concert won the Pulitzer Prize for music as well as the 2015 Grammy Award for Best Classical Contemporary Composition.

The "Become Ocean" program will start with a presentation on Jacksonville’s waterways by Dr. Quinton White from Jacksonville University. For a post-concert panel discussion, White will be joined by Jacksonville Symphony Music Director Courtney Lewis; Dr. Jim Gelsleichter, who serves as the program director for the University of North Florida’s coastal biology program; St. Johns Riverkeeper Lisa Rinaman; and St. Augustine Mayor Nancy Shaver.

The Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts is located at 300 Water St. in Jacksonville. For more information or to purchase tickets, call (904) 354-5547 or visit www.JaxSymphony.org.