Special Note re. Traffic
This concert will begin at 3:30 rather than our usual 3:00 to ensure that our audience is not impeded by the Twin Cities Marathon (the marathon’s final leg is along Summit Avenue). The race officially closes at 2:50, but there could still be some congestion. House of Hope Church’s Portland Ave. parking lot, behind the church, has been reserved for us. They recommend arriving from the north via I-94 to Dale Street or Lexington Parkway, then taking side streets to Portland Ave. If you are coming from the south, they recommend Ayd Mill Road to Selby Ave., or I-35E to the downtown exits and then from downtown take I-94 west to Dale Street.
Program
Arturo Márquez: Danzon No.2
Florence Price: Dances in the Canebrakes (orch. by William Grant Still)
I. Nimble Feet
II. Tropical Noon
III. Silk Hat and Walking Cane
Florence Price: Suite of Dances
— Intermission —
Georges Bizet: selections from Carmen
Clara Osowski, mezzo claraosowski.com
The Mississippi Valley Orchestra launches its 2026-2027 season with a vibrant, dance-themed program that brings an irresistible groove to the concert hall. The concert opens with Arturo Márquez’ Danzon No.2, written in 1994 and blasted into the music world’s consciousness during the 2007 North American tour by Gustavo Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra. Then, two sets of lively Afro-Caribbean-influenced dances composed in 1953 by this season’s Foreground Composer Florence Price (Dances in the Canebrakes and Suite of Dances) will evoke the lively rhythms and familiar genres of early music and dance culture in the Deep South. After intermission, we are absolutely thrilled to join with superstar multi-international-award-winning mezzo-soprano Clara Osowski for selections from George Bizet’s unforgettable Carmen. You’ll go home light on your feet, with a song in your heart!
Tickets
FREE. ALWAYS. This has been and remains our motto! Starting this year, we're introducing advance registration for our free concerts (you can also register at the door, but reserving ahead of time is easier!). This new registration process will help us better understand and serve our audience, and it will help us make the case for grants that keep these concerts free. Just click this link to reserve your free "ticket(s)”.