Side-by-Side: Learning Through Performance with TŌN and All-City High School Orchestra
Now in its second year, the partnership between TŌN and the All-City High School Orchestra of New York City continues to grow, bringing together pre-professional and student musicians in an inspiring exchange of music and mentorship.
This collaboration is designed as a two-way learning opportunity. For TŌN musicians, it is a chance to grow as teaching artists, developing the skills to guide young players through example, musicianship, and professional insight. For the young musicians of the All-City High School Orchestra, the program provides a glimpse into the world of a professional ensemble. They rehearse alongside TŌN at the Fisher Center at Bard, participate in an open rehearsal attended by local schools, and culminate their journey with a performance in New York City at the Julia Richman Educational Complex.
The partnership between Bard College and All-City extends beyond the concert stage. Through Bard Early College, All-City students earn college credits by being part of the orchestra—an opportunity that connects artistic growth with academic achievement. TŌN musicians also support this journey by traveling to New York City for rehearsals in the months leading up to the December side-by-side performance, ensuring continuity and strong mentorship throughout the process.
This year’s program celebrates the power of dance to connect communities, featuring works that draw on genres outside classical convention—folk traditions, popular rhythms, and theatrical gestures—transformed into symphonic expression. The concert begins with the New York premiere of Juan Pablo Contreras’ MeChicano, a vivid and contemporary celebration of rhythm and community. This work invites us into a Saturday night dance filled with Tejano polkas, cumbias, and the pulse of rock—an energetic reflection of how music and movement bring people together across generations.
The program continues with the New York premiere of Arturo Márquez’s Concierto de Otoño (Autumn Concerto), written for international trumpet soloist Pacho Flores, who will join TŌN for this performance. This concerto is inspired by traditional dance, from the improvisatory spirit of the Afro-Cuban son, to the lyrical chaconne Balada de Floripondios, to the Afro-Cuban drive of the Conga de Flores, the music transforms popular rhythms into orchestral poetry.
After intermission, the side-by-side portion of the concert takes place, with All-City musicians joining TŌN for two works that showcase how dance transcends cultural borders. Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol (1887) reimagines Spanish folk idioms through Russian orchestral brilliance, unfolding as a suite of five continuous dances that sparkle with color, flair, and vitality. The concert concludes with Manuel de Falla’s Suite No. 2 from The Three-Cornered Hat (1919), where flamenco gestures and Andalusian rhythms are distilled into three dances: the playful Seguidilla, the proud Farruca, and the exuberant Jota.
By weaving together works that span continents and centuries, this year’s program affirms the universal power of dance to unite communities, ignite imagination, and celebrate human expression.
Photo by David DeNee