NJIT String Ensemble's Winter Performance Celebrates Music Inspired From Around the World
Students and faculty of NJIT’s String Ensemble have released a digital production of their annual Winter Concert Series performance celebrating internationally-inspired music and diversity within the university community.
The performance, directed by NJIT music instructor Christine Sweet and arranged by New Jersey Symphony Orchestra lead violinist Brennan Sweet, features two concertos capturing the sights and sounds of India and Japan — Atishbaji (Fireworks) by Doug Spata, a Bollywood-style piece celebrating India's Diwali festival, and Dotonbori Dash by Alan Lee Silva, reflecting Osaka's lively Dotonbori Market.
“We wanted to perform music that was not only uplifting, but that was composed by contemporary composers who had painted a picture of specific regions of the world honoring our diverse community,” said Sweet. “During rehearsals, we’ve practiced by isolating each performer before merging them together with the ensemble. From a technical and realistic perspective, the music selections feature a consistent metronomic tempo, which enabled the individual performances to sync more naturally.”
NJIT's winter concert series is supported by the NJIT Music Initiative, Theatre Arts and Technology program, Student Senate and Society of Musical Arts, the Frank and Lydia Bergen Foundation, grants from Getting to Know Europe (euintheus.org/gtke), and with the generous assistance of the Rauch Family Foundation Charitable Trust Concert Series at NJIT.
For more on the performance and NJIT’s Music Initiative, visit http://theatre.njit.edu/music or contact music@njit.edu.
