Aaron Kernis’ Venit Illuminatio (Toward the Illumination of Colored Light) receives its world premiere Nov 15 & 16 with the St. Louis Symphony, conducted by Stéphane Denève, on a program alongside works by Bartók and Brahms.
The work began with ideas of alchemy, a seemingly magical process of transformation, creation, or combination, and in this case, it relates to emotions, musical ideas, and the animation/creation of a wide range of orchestral textures and colors. In this piece, there is an exploration of music as something magical, and sounds/content which have never been expressed before now, with chords and instrumental ideas occasionally bursting out in heightened Technicolor.
The work’s Latin title literally means “the brightness is coming” signaling an attempt to leave dark thoughts and conflicted emotions behind and find a transformative experience of ecstasy and light. Not just white light of inspiration, but the colored light of change and imagination.
(Read the complete composer note here.)
Read previews of the concert from KDHX and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Purchase tickets from slso.org, or call the box office at 314-534-1700.