CityMusic has commissioned acclaimed jazz bassist and composer John Clayton to write a new work for chamber orchestra and solo bass, inspired by African-American influences on Antonin Dvořák’s 1893 “New World” Symphony.  The concerts will will open with a short set of jazz tunes played by the “Spirit of the Groove” ensemble, made up of the most talented pre-collegiate jazz musicians in the Cleveland area. This will be followed by the new work by Clayton, and Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony will follow intermission.

Clayton describes his vision for the project as “a continuum of Anton Dvořák’s compositional influence by African American music.” Dvořák’s African-American student and assistant at the National Conservatory William Burleigh frequently sang traditional songs and spirituals to the composer, and as Burleigh later wrote, “Dvořák saturated himself with the spirit of these old tunes and then invented his own themes.” These themes became the backbone of the “New World” Symphony, and this is the inspiration point for the collaboration between CityMusic and Clayton. NPR music critic Tom Huizenga wrote that the “New World” Symphony celebrated “a philosophy of inclusion rendered in music,” and capturing this spirit is the aim of our project. Clayton looks forward to offering “a musical commentary on the current social-political struggles that African-Americans are facing right now.”