The GRAMMY-nominated Miró Quartet will join GRAMMY-winning soprano Karen Slack for the world premiere performances of “Pleasure Garden” by composer Tamar-kali.

The work is co-commissioned by Arizona Friends of Chamber Music and the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, with premieres scheduled for Jan. 28, 2026, in Tucson and Feb. 22, 2026, in Philadelphia. The Jan. 28 performance will take place at the Leo Rich Theater in Tucson and is presented in collaboration with the Tucson Desert Song Festival. Moreover, Tamar-kali is expected to attend the performance. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia premiere on Feb. 22, 2026 will commence at 3 p.m. at the Perelman Theater at the Kimmel Center.

The work features texts by writers of the Harlem Renaissance, including Jessie Redmon Fauset, Angelina Weld Grimké, and Helene Johnson, and explores themes of nature and urban life, while engaging with the cultural and artistic legacy of early 20th-century Harlem. “Pleasure Garden” will be paired with the “Creek-Freedman Songs” by Margaret Bonds, as well as works by Samuel Barber, William Grant Still, Florence Price, and George Walker. The concert frames Bonds’ music within a broader mid-20th-century American context and highlights connections among key figures in the African American classical music community.