ROCO Connections: 'Rise Up'

Schedule

Friday, October 20, 2023
7:30 p.m. Performance

ROCO’s Connections Series returns to Asia Society Texas to present Rise Up — an evening of new, thought-provoking chamber works and dialogue, spotlighting the ongoing fight for women’s rights and equality in the U.S., Iran, and around the world. 

Artistic partner Mei-Ann Chen leads an ensemble of 12 ROCO women musicians in the world premiere of Breaking the Veil by Grammy-winning, Season 19 Composer-In-Residence Richard Danielpour and a new scoring of Texas native composer Quinn Mason‘s ballet 19th Amendment — in performance with members of the Houston Contemporary Dance Company and premiering new choreography by founding artistic and executive director Marlana Doyle.

Inspired by the current uprising and historic struggles of Iranian women seeking equal rights and freedom, Danielpour’s Breaking the Veil honors his family’s Persian heritage and is dedicated to his mother Mehri Danielpour, an Iranian sculpturist.

19th Amendment, in Mason’s words, “not only depicts the struggle of obtaining the right to vote, but contemplates the effect that passing of the 19th amendment has had on our current generation”.

A panel discussion on women's rights featuring women from or with ties to Iran will follow the performance, in conversation with the composer.

A free livestream of this performance will be available at ROCO.org, Facebook, YouTube, and A440.live.

Creative Team

Conductor and ROCO Artistic Partner
Mei-Ann Chen

Flute
Brook Ferguson

Oboe
Alecia Lawyer

Bassoon, soloists
Kristin Wolfe Jensen

Composers
Richard Danielpour, Breaking the Veil
"Written for the women of ROCO about the women’s uprising in Iran"
ROCO World Premiere Commission

Quinn Mason, 19th Amendment
In collaboration with women from Houston Contemporary Dance Company
ROCO World Premiere Commission rescore

About ROCO

ROCO is a dynamic and innovative professional chamber orchestra that flexes from 1 to 40 musicians from all over the U.S. and Canada, with guest conductors from around the globe. With over 130 premieres to date, ROCO is one of the most prolific commissioning organizations in the US. A study in 2019 by the Institute for Composer Diversity found that ROCO was the #1 ensemble in the U.S. performing works by women and #2 for composers of color. 

Performing Arts and Culture programs at Asia Society Texas are presented by Syamal and Susmita Poddar. Major support comes from Nancy C. Allen, Chinhui Juhn and Eddie Allen, The Brown Foundation, Inc., the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, The Clayton Fund, Houston Endowment Inc., and Mid-America Arts Alliance. Generous funding also provided by The Anchorage Foundation of Texas, The Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts, and Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas), National Endowment for the Arts, Texas Commission on the Arts. Additional support is by the Friends of Asia Society, a dedicated group of individuals and organizations committed to bringing exceptional programming to Asia Society Texas.

Performing Arts and Culture Presenting Sponsors

Syamal and Susmita Poddar

Performing Arts and Culture Program Sponsors

Program Partners

About Asia Society Texas

Asia Society Texas believes in the strength and beauty of diverse perspectives and people. As an educational institution, we advance cultural exchange by celebrating the vibrant diversity of Asia, inspiring empathy, and fostering a better understanding of our interconnected world. Spanning the fields of arts, business, culture, education, and policy, our programming is rooted in the educational and cultural development of our community — trusting in the power of art, dialogue, and ideas to combat bias and build a more inclusive society.