Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) and Music Director Jaime Martín have recently announced two appointments: Dai Wei as the orchestra’s 2024–2025 Sound Investment composer and Lara Downes as the orchestra’s first-ever creative partner.
Wei, a Chinese-born composer, experimental vocalist, and khoomei throat singer, will compose a new work for LACO that will have its world premiere on the final orchestral program of the season, May 10, 2025, at Glendale’s Alex Theatre and May 11, 2025, at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills.
Wei’s music appeared on a LACO program last October with the West Coast premiere of her 2022 composition Invisible Portals, a co-commission from LACO and the American Composers Orchestra that was inspired by her collaborations with local performers and musicians in Tibet and Yunnan province.
Described as “impassioned” by The New York Times and “incredibly creative and dynamic” by the Utah Symphony, Wei has received commissions and performances from, among others, the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and the Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier.
Of her appointment, Martín said, “We are excited to help foster her fresh and creative approach to music and look forward to premiering her new work next spring.”
LACO’s Sound Investment program, which has brought to life works by composers including Juan Pablo Contreras, Julia Adolphe, and Matthew Aucoin, is supported by members who contribute a modest $250 or $500 (or at a sponsorship giving level) toward the commissioning of a new piece. In return, investors are invited to a series of intimate salons during the season, where they meet the composer, hear excerpts of the score in progress, and sit in on a full orchestral rehearsal of the completed work.
Downes, a pianist, recording artist, and media personality who is committed to change and advocacy in the arts, began her three-year appointment with LACO on July 1. A familiar voice on the radio in Southern California, Downes is the host of Evening Music on KUSC and is also the creator and host of NPR’s video series Amplify With Lara Downes, as well as the nationally syndicated program Classical Americana, produced by Classical California.
Born in the United States to a Jamaican father and a Russian mother, Downes was shaped by her diverse cultural heritage, with her talent on the piano leading her to the Manhattan School of Music and master classes with Leon Fleisher. Downes’s tenure as creative partner encompasses artistic planning, performance, community engagement, advocacy, and educational initiatives.
Said Martín: “On behalf of everyone at LACO, I am thrilled to welcome Lara Downes as the orchestra’s first creative partner. An iconoclastic artist and beloved radio host with millions of followers on air, online, and in the concert hall, she is deeply passionate about classical music and ensuring its access to all communities. Her unique perspective and out-of-the-box thinking dovetails with LACO’s own mission to advance the chamber music art form, building upon its remarkable foundation. I look forward to collaborating with her both onstage and behind the scenes on LACO’s artistic, education, and community-building endeavors.”
