Performers:
Orquidea Araniva
Lauren Hodges
Peijun Xu
EMF Faculty

Cadejos for solo viola, by Fernando Zúñiga Chanto (Costa Rica)

Night Dust for solo viola (World Premiere), Pilar Aguilar (Costa Rica)

Orquídea Guandique Araniva, viola

Three American Folk Hymns for two violas, Kenji Bunch (b. 1973)

Lauren Burns Hodges, viola; Peijun June Xu, viola

Amazing Grace (American folk hymn), arr. for four violas, Jennifer Higdon (b. 1962 )

Arboretum for four violas, Op. 52 (2024), Christopher Lowry (b. 1988)

Adoration (arr. for six violas by Elaine Fine), Florence Price (1887-1953)

“Mr. Sandman” (arr. For six violas by Max Raimi), Pat Ballard (1899-1960)

EFM Violists: Sarah Cote, Ben Geller, Jamie Hofman, Chi Lee, Diane Phoenix-Neal, Daniel Reinker; Guest Composer and Violist: Christopher Lowry

PROGRAM NOTES

Inspired by Central American mythology, Cadejos by Fernando Zúñiga Chanto (Costa Rica) draws on the legend of two supernatural dogs — one white, the other black — said to protect or endanger travelers at night. Costa Rican composer Fernando Zúñiga Chanto captures this duality through contrasting musical ideas: moments of lyrical calm give way to tense, unpredictable rhythms and harmonic darkness. The piece unfolds like a tale told at dusk, balancing folklore and modern expression with dramatic intensity.

Three American Folk Hymn Settings by Kenji Bunch (b. 1973) is a ten-minute duo for two violas divided into three movements played without pause. After an opening Prologue, Bunch uses three hymns as melodic material for fiddling Americana in the second and third movements: “What Wondrous Love is This,” “In Lonely Mountain Ways,” and “I Come with Joy.”