92nd Street Y (92Y) is a nonprofit civic and cultural facility that aims to bring people together through the performing and visual arts, education, health, fitness and Jewish life. 92Y has a wide assortment of programs, classes and events open for the community that nurture creativity. Such curricula includes online and in-person live concerts, parenting workshops, master, fitness and art classes.
The mission of 92Y is to house resources that promote the physical, mental and spiritual health of individuals throughout their lives. Founded 147 years ago, all the programming generated at the 92Y center is built on the foundation of Jewish values. While curated to serve Jewish people, 92Y follows the Jewish value of welcoming all differing ages, races, religions and ethnicities of people.
The Knights Ensemble in Residence
As a collective of musicians seeking to renovate the orchestral experience, The Knights are artistically directed by the Jacobsen brothers, with Eric Jacobsen as conductor. The Brooklyn-based orchestral cooperative The Knights showcased the first of three concerts during this fall and spring at their residency at 92Y.
The heart of the concert stages two classical works – Schubert’s bright “Unfinished” Symphony and Vaughn Williams’ superb The Lark Ascending, featuring Knights Artistic Director Colin Jacobsen as violin soloist. The programming of The Knights navigates Manhattan’s Lower East Side in the 1990s and Vienna in the 1820s, highlighting subjects of revitalization and renewal, while echoing Schubert in work of a Creole-influenced composer.
360 Magazine was invited to attend The Knights concert on Saturday December 11. We stood by, bearing the recent loss of love. Our heads were heavy, entering this season, but be that as it may, we gathered the courage. And, what the audience witnessed was nothing short of astonishing – suspensive string clips, haunting flute sounds coupled with intermittent triangular percussion rings penetrated the auditorium.
Eric (conductor) and Colin’s limitless love for one another was the vitality of this whole series. Their playlist literally tickled our souls, watered our desires while our vellum hairs danced with deception. Each section took us on a mental roller coaster – sitting in the forward car, enjoying the initial fall with our hands toward the sky. This meticulously blended set is like good wine and possesses all the sweet and refreshing notes of Napa.
Eric ran into sweat directing while we were all mesmerized at his art of bending the air. Colin dominated the audience with his vulnerability, eerie arrangement and tremendous talent. To sum up, The Knights adopt an unorthodox approach to music, exposing their joie de vivre to whomever is willing to embrace their truth.
Eric Jacobsen
Conductor of The Knights Eric Jacobson has gained the reputation of leading revolutionary projects. Jacobsen has conducted The Knights at New York venues including Carnegie Hall and Central Park, as well as internationally at the Vienna Musikverein, Cologne Philharmonie and Hamburg Elbphilharmonie. Serving as Music Director of the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Jacobsen was recently appointed Music Director of the Virginia Symphony. With much call as a guest conductor, he too just led the Camerata Bern, Detroit Symphony, Alabama Symphony, ProMuscia Chamber Orchestra, Deutsche Philharmonie Merck and Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad.
Colin Jacobsen
Known as a violinist and composer, Colin Jacobsen is a captivating figure serving the classical music scene. Jacobsen was named one of the top 100 composures under 40 by NPR listeners. Operating as an active Avery Fisher Career Grant-winning soloist, he has toured with Silkroad since it was established in 2000. For his landmark work in the string quartet Brooklyn Rider and orchestra The Knights, Jacobsen was chosen amongst the nation’s leading visual and performing artists to obtain an esteemed United States Artists Fellowship.
Wed, Jan 19, 2022, 7:30 pm ET
The Knights collaborate with pianist Aaron Diehl for a blend of jazz and classical music. The ensemble welcomes Diehl as they explore Gershwin’s iconic Rhapsody in Blue and trailblazer Mary Lou Williams‘ Zodiac Suite. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 is also featured with varieties from Ravel’s Baroque-inspired Le Tombeau de Couperin. Closing out the show is Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite, arranged by Michael P. Atkinson.
Sat, Apr 30, 2022, 8 pm ET
Edgar Meyer, critically acclaimed double bass virtuoso and composer, unites with The Knights for the New York premiere of his second concerto. The show unfolds with a showing of Jamaican-born British composer Eleanor Alberga’s Shining Gates of Morpheus featuring Knights hornist David Byrd-Marrow. The closing of the show continues the American spirit of Meyer’s work is Coplands’ Appalachian Spring.
