Opening night belongs to the renowned Sphinx Virtuosi, which returns to PCMS for a fifth consecutive season, this time with the gifted young cellist Sterling Elliott as the featured soloist. Comprising 18 of the nation’s top Black and Latinx classical soloists, the “vibrant” and “rhapsodic” Virtuosi (New York Times) bring to PCMS a program titled Visions of Peace which offers a unique convergence of musical voices that usher us into a realm where music becomes an emissary of peace and unity. Sphinx writes: “We hope to lift every voice and remember our complex history while looking toward our shared journey as we face a brighter tomorrow. We explore peace while remembering the conflict of past and present and recognizing the repeated history and the resilience of the human spirit.”

Visions of Peace 

Jose White: La Bella Cubana
Clarice Assad: Perpetual Motion
Clarice Assad: Danca Brasileira
Jessie Montgomery: New Commission (NWS/Carnegie Co-Commission)
William Grant Still: Suite for Cello
Quenton Blache: A Vision for Peace (NWS/Carnegie Co-Commission)
Sergei Prokofiev: Sonata No. 7, Stalingrad (arr. Ruben Rengel)
Alberto Ginastera: Concerto For Strings, Op. 33 IV. Finale
Manuel Ponce: Estrellita