Press Release: Saratoga Performing Arts Center Announces HERE ON EARTH with LARA DOWNES and MIRÓ QUARTET In Celebration of Earth Day

February 27, 2024

Saratoga Springs, NY (February 27, 2024) – Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) announces that in honor of Earth Day, it will present Here on Earth with trailblazing pianist, speaker and activist Lara Downes and celebrated chamber ensemble Miró Quartet. Slated for April 21 at 3 p.m. at the Spa Little Theater, the special project was developed at SPAC and is presented in partnership with the Skidmore College Department of Music.

“Bringing this important project, which was incubated in our very own Park, is part of our commitment to providing experiences of wonder and awe in our community year round,” says Elizabeth Sobol, SPAC’s President & CEO. “We are proud to support and commission the creation of new works by these artists who harness their talents to make the world a better place.”

An artistic collaboration between Lara Downes and Miró Quartet, Here On Earth was created at SPAC in the summer of 2023. The program features musical depictions of our planet earth, its evolution, and the lives of its inhabitants, expressed through music. The afternoon will span centuries, from Haydn’s Sunrise Quartet to Darius Milhaud’s La Création du Monde (composed in 1923) and Clarice Assad’s A World Of Change, newly commissioned in 2023. Traveling through time and space, the program telescopes in to celebrate the beauties of the natural world, while also exploring our evolving relationship with our ever-changing planet.

Lara Downes’ dynamic work as a sought-after performer and arts advocate positions her as a cultural visionary on the national arts scene. Downes also hosts “AMPLIFY,” an NPR video series that features intimate conversations between BIPOC artists who are shaping the identity of a new era with bold vision, powerful mission and the inspiring energy of a transformative time. Honored as 2022 Classical Woman of the Year by Performance Today, she has been called “a musical ray of hope” by NBC News and “an explorer whose imagination is fired by bringing notice to the underrepresented and forgotten” (The Log Journal).

“In this age of extreme climate crisis, the magic and majesty of the natural world move me more profoundly than ever before. As we face the consequences of what our human race has brought upon our home planet, we realize the urgency of even the smallest actions, from each of us according to our abilities. So as I reduce and reuse and recycle, I also reflect and respond as an artist,” says Lara Downes.

She adds, “I’m connected to my fellow musicians collaborating on this project, but also to the many generations of musicians before us who have expressed their wonder at the beauties of the earth, the sky, the oceans, and all the creatures that inhabit them. We’re happy to bring you this wonderful music, so deeply rooted in our love and gratitude for our planet Earth.”

Returning to SPAC alongside Downes for this collaboration is Miró Quartet, following their 2024 GRAMMYnomination for their new release “House of Belonging.” Miró Quartet is one of America’s most celebrated and dedicated string quartets, having been labeled by The New Yorker as “furiously committed” and noted by the Cleveland Plain Dealer for its “exceptional tonal focus and interpretive intensity.”

In addition to the performance on April 21, Lara Downes and the Miró Quartet will teach, coach, and perform alongside Skidmore College students as part of the annual String Festival, culminating in a free public concert on Saturday, April 20. Click here for details.

Tickets for Here on Earth cost $38-$68 and will be available beginning on February 28 at 10 a.m. for members (tiered by level) and on March 1 at 10 a.m. for the general public. Visit spac.org for details.

Program:

Lara Downes, piano
Daniel Ching, violin
William Fedkenheuer, violin
John Largess, viola
Joshua Gindele, cello

Haydn:                                         String Quartet No. 63 “Sunrise” | string quartet

Burleigh                                      My Lord, What A Morning | solo piano

Heggie                                         Earthrise | piano quintet

Beethoven                                 String Quartet No. 8 | string quartet

Beach                                          Under the Stars | solo piano

Childs                                           The River | piano quintet

Burleigh                                      Deep River | piano quintet

Bonds                                          Troubled Water | solo piano

Milhaud                                      La Création du Monde | piano quintet

Thiel                                             What a Wonderful World | piano quintet

*program subject to change

Here on Earth is made possible by the generous support of Deborah and Dexter Senft.

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Saratoga Performing Arts Center

The Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), located in the historic resort town of Saratoga Springs in upstate New York, is one of America’s most prestigious summer festivals. Its tranquil setting in a 2,400-acre park preserve surrounded by hiking trails, geysers, and natural mineral springs draws vacation crowds and arts connoisseurs each year for immersive experiences of performances by resident companies New York City Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival, and concerts by Live Nation. SPAC also hosts imaginative programming such as CulinaryArts@SPAC, Literary Arts including WAMC@SPAC events, and Caffè Lena @ SPAC. SPAC is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Donations and proceeds from fundraising events benefit the Center’s children’s education programs and support the vibrancy of its classical season. For more information visit spac.org.