As part of the 6th Annual Newton Festival of the Arts, enjoy a concert from Pro Arte’s Quartet.

Juneteenth marks the anniversary of the emancipation of slaves in the United States. The quartet will share three works by African American composers, each of which has moments of dance and reflection. Wynton Marsalis’ At the Octoroon Balls is a set of scenes inspired by his early life in New Orleans. We will play three movements from this work – Creole Contradanzas, Blue Lights on the Bayou, and the Rampart Street Row House Rag. Florence Price’s String Quartet No. 2 in A minor weaves together her beautiful lyric writing and African American vernacular with daring chromaticism and vibrant movement. The third movement (of four) is a Juba, a dance developed by Africans brought to America against their will. Dorothy Rudd Moore’s Modes is a beautiful and compact three-movement work, which ends with an energetic, movement-inspiring finale. Lisa Goddard & Colin Davis, violins, Anne Black, viola, and Steve Laven, cello.