American Symphony Orchestra: America UNBOUND

• Toyin Spellman-Diaz, oboe

A new work commissioned by the American Symphony Orchestra, written by composer and percussionist Javier Diaz, whose studio credits include Steven Spielberg's West Side Story and Lin Manuel Miranda's In The Heights. Commissioned by the American Symphony Orchestra, this chamber music composition incorporates stylistic elements from music across the Americas and takes us on a journey through history, spaces, and generations. It evokes the idea of ancestral sounds, and it is inspired by traditional musics from the Western Hemisphere: ancient songs from the Afro-Cuban tradition, Mexico, the African-American tradition, Venezuela, Haiti, and a "merging" between a J.S. Bach chorale and a Venezuelan Merengue.

America UNBOUND is a unique artistic experience that exalts the human condition and underlines the importance of multicultural influences in the shaping of the musics of the Americas. This new work is eclectic, with a robust compositional design: the American continent unbound through a journey of musical histories and intergenerational melodies, making palpable the universality of sound, word, and song. Performed by a chamber ensemble of ASO musicians (violin, percussion, double bass, clarinet, and trumpet), featuring GRAMMY-nominated Imani Winds' oboist Toyin Spellman-Diaz.

This performance is part of a free chamber music series in partnership with Bryant Park with programs curated by ASO musicians. Music lovers will find a limited number of first-come, first-served chairs set up to enjoy an after-work respite with live music.

This program will receive 2 performances: Monday, September 18 and Monday, September 25, both at 5:30pm.

About American Symphony Orchestra

The American Symphony Orchestra is a New York-based American orchestra, founded in 1962, dedicated to providing great music for everyone. The ASO chamber series features musician-curated programs that represent the diverse perspectives across New York City and worldwide, through explorations of the many styles and genres of American music.

About Toyin Spellman-Diaz, oboe

Oboist Toyin Spellman-Diaz earned her Bachelors of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and her Master's and Professional Studies degrees at the Manhattan School of Music. Her orchestral career includes performances with the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke's, and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra.

Hailed by the Washington Post for her "smooth, controlled tone and excellent technique," Toyin has performed concertos with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Manhattan Virtuosi, and with the Kennedy Center Youth Orchestra.

An original member of Imani Winds, Ms. Spellman-Diaz has built her career as a champion of contemporary chamber music.

Along with her Imani Winds colleagues, she is devoted to discovering new and diverse musical voices and cultures to increase and enhance the woodwind quintet repertoire. She has also collaborated with some of today’s most influential chamber music ensembles, including Alarm Will Sound, the Antara Ensemble, and Camerata Pacifica. She is on faculty at New York University and the Curtis Institute of Music, and is on the Board of Directors of American Composer's Orchestra.