Music of Remembrance Unveils 2026-27 Season ‘Illuminations: Music of Our Shared Humanity’
By David SalazarMusic of Remembrance has announced its 2026-27 season, “Illuminations: Music for Our Shared Humanity,” comprising four programs in Seattle, with one performance also given in San Francisco.
“Journeys” marks the season opener, presented in honor of Steve Reich’s 90th birthday with a performance of his “Different Trains.” The program includes the Music of Remembrance commission “Stormy Seas” by Iranian American composer Sahba Aminikia, telling the true stories of five child refugees who crossed dangerous waters in search of safety.
Mezzo soprano Lily Bogas performs songs from “We Go On, Oswego,” honoring women who found refuge at America’s only World War II refugee camp, alongside “Lyric” from Black American composer George Walker’s “Lyric String Quartet,” written for his grandmother, who survived slavery.
Performance Date: Nov. 1, 2026
“Art From Ashes,” Music of Remembrance’s annual free community concert marking International Holocaust Remembrance Day, features the world premiere of Lori Laitman’s “Bonaco,” a new choral commission performed by the Seattle Girls Choir Prime Voci and set to words written by teenage girl prisoners in the Terezín concentration camp.
The Northwest Boychoir performs a new choral arrangement of songs by Viktor Ullmann, composed in Terezín before he was sent to his death in Auschwitz.
Soprano Madeline Ross and the Music of Remembrance Chamber Ensemble perform additional works by composers from Nazi controlled Europe who perished in the Holocaust.
Performance Date: Jan. 25, 2027
“Resilience” features two world premieres. Afghan born composer Milad Yousufi debuts a new work written for soprano Vanessa Isiguen, giving voice to the lived experiences of Afghan women.
Donald Byrd and Spectrum Dance Theater premiere new choreography set to Erwin Schulhoff’s “Five Pieces for String Quartet.” The program also includes Armenian American composer Mary Kouyoumdjian’s “Boy and a Makeshift Toy,” from her “Children of Conflict” series.
Performance Date: March 14, 2027
“Women in the Shadows” closes the season with Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s theatrical song cycle “Camille Claudel: Into the Fire,” reclaiming the voice of the French sculptor. Mezzo soprano Nikola Printz takes the title role. The program also includes works by Florence Price, Vítězslava Kaprálová, Rebecca Clarke, Lili Boulanger, and Iranian American composer Niloufar Nourbakhsh.
Performance Dates: May 16, 2027 (Seattle) & May 23, 2027 (San Francisco)
Read Related Stories
