Golden City

MIT presents the Boston-area premiere of Golden City by Grammy Award-winning alto saxophonist/composer and MIT faculty member Miguel Zenón. The sweeping extended composition for large ensemble is inspired by the demographic and political evolution of San Francisco, from the pre-colonial period to the contemporary tech-dominated era. The piece is performed by a world-class band featuring Zenón’s unparalleled saxophone, a formidable trombone-centric horn section, guitar, piano, bass, and percussion.

Described by reviewer Dan McClenaghan in All About Jazz as “a triumph… Miguel Zenón at his creative peak. A riveting listening experience,” Golden City was commissioned by SFJAZZ and the Hewlett Foundation. The inveterately curious Zenón embraced the assignment by delving into California’s history, “all the way back to the beginning with Native communities,” he says. “All the way back to when it was Mexico, and the Gold Rush, and the waves of Asian migration. I talked to about 50 individuals and came out the other side with a lot more information to feed the creative process.”

While Golden City isn’t programmatic, it’s a body of music deeply informed by the places and people Zenón visited. From the opening lines of “Sacred Land,” to the closing lines of “The Power of Community” and “Golden,” Zenón’s music takes the listener on a deep and powerful journey. As Tom Conrad wrote in Stereophile Magazine about the 2024 Grammy-nominated album of the same name, “Golden City defies easy categorization. If it is an ‘ethnic’” record, its ethnicity is the human race.”

Featured Musicians and More Information: https://arts.mit.edu/projects/golden-city/

Host or Publisher MIT Music and Theater Arts