Arts Group Offers New Ways to Experience Classical Music
February 7, 2020 - San Antonio
Did someone say cello shot? On Saturday, Agarita will open its second season with a collaborative work entitled Stanzas of Sound. The well-coiffed Ignacio Gallego (pictured) is one of the stars of San Antonio’s newest chamber ensemble. Photo: Natalia Sun.
By Jade Esteban Estrada - Writer, San Antonio Sentinel
Agarita, a local nonprofit arts organization that believes that the arts should be accessible to everyone, will be offering four free music concerts as part of their second season of community performances.
Three of these concerts have a unique twist. The innovative chamber ensemble will partner with an eclectic mix of artists including a poet, a sculptor, a local fashion designer and musicians of the San Antonio Symphony. The group features Marisa Bushman (viola), Ignacio Gallego (cello), Sarah Silver Manzke (violin) and founder Daniel Anastasio (piano).
Agarita recently received grant funding from the Greehey Family Foundation and the Beulah M. and Felix J. Katz Memorial Trust, the John L. Santikos Charitable Foundation and the Valley View Trust of the San Antonio Area Foundation. These funds will assist with general operating expenses.
“We're thrilled to bring our collaborative musical events to the San Antonio community,” said Sarah Silver Manzke, Agarita co-president. “These funds make it clear that we are headed in the right direction.”
“Cultural vibrancy is a signature focus area for the San Antonio Area Foundation, and we are excited to support Agarita’s mission to nourish the arts community through multidisciplinary collaboration, educational community engagement, and cost-free events,” said Marjie M. French, CEO of the San Antonio Area Foundation.
The collaborators for the 2019-2020 season, which include photographer Natalia Sun, spoken word artists from SAY Sí, poet Laura Van Prooyen, sculptor Danville Chadbourne, fashion designer Nilgun Derman of Niche Clothing Company and members the San Antonio Symphony, will no doubt contribute to these creative and previously well-received performances.
On February 8, Agarita will partner with Van Prooyen to produce Stanzas of Sound, a concert that connects new works by the award-winning poet with music that expresses her artistic message. This event will take place at 7:30 p.m. at The Woman’s Club of San Antonio and will include a post-show reception.
On March 7, Agarita will be collaborating with Chadbourne in Synergy: Music and Sculpture. This program will feature musical works ranging from the Classical period to the present. The concert will also provide an auditory companion to his art. This performance will take place at 7:30 p.m. at the University of the Incarnate Word Concert Hall in collaboration with Contemporary Art Month.
On May 28, Agarita will join forces with Derman in a program titled Sewn Together: Music and Fashion throughout the Ages at 7:30 p.m. at Texas Public Radio Alameda Headquarters. This unique fashion show will be part of the long-anticipated opening festivities of Alameda Headquarters. Derman’s hand-crafted outfits will be featured in this synergistic narrative between music and fashion from the Renaissance to today.
Agarita will wrap up their season on June 13 with Animating Space with Sound, a purely musical concert that will feature guests from the San Antonio Symphony. This performance will take place at 7:30 p.m. at the Chapel of the Incarnate Word.
Each concert is bilingual and will run approximately 75 minutes with no intermission.
Looking back, Agarita’s 2018-2019 season set the tone for their richly collaborative vibe. They partnered with the McNay Art Museum’s Pop América exhibit, lighting artist Chuck Drew (The Overtime Theater’s An Evening with Edgar Allan Poe), Cameron Beauchamp from the Grammy Award-winning vocal group Roomful of Teeth, chef Elizabeth Johnson and Pharm Table restaurant and the Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival for a gorgeous concert inside San Antonio’s historic Mission San José.
Additionally, Agarita will be collaborating with Opera San Antonio for an informal concert performance of Vincenzo Bellini’s The Capulets and the Montagues, a 19th-century Italian opera based on William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. These date-night-worthy presentations will take place at 7:30 p.m. February 13 and 15 at the University of the Incarnate Word. Antony Walker, the artistic director of the Washington Concert Opera, will be the guest conductor. Tickets are $45.
More information about Agarita’s upcoming projects and future performances can be found at www.agarita.org.
Jade Esteban Estrada covers arts and entertainment for the San Antonio Sentinel. Email him at jade@sasentinel.com.