Meet the Composer

Frank London
photo by Alan Roche

Frank London will create a new, approximately 45 minute work, with text by Judith Sloan, in three movements for orchestra, singers, actors and dancers that will tell the story of the various immigrant populations that have settled in Queens over the years. Ms. Sloan will research the text by interviewing people of all generations who landed in Queens, making connections between "old and new." The stories of transformation and migration will include people, music, dance, ideas and instruments. Mr. London will draw on his wealth of knowledge of various ethnic instruments, forms and styles to compose the music. He will use these instruments in addition to the conventional symphony orchestra instrumentation. Embedded in the piece will be the journey and development of instruments and musical language from locations outside the Western world to the Western world. As non-Western instruments are ancient in their origins the piece will show the connections between them and modern Western instruments.

World premiere: October 2011