Prokofiev and Childs: Anthems of Resilience

Item details

Date

Saturday, Feb 7, 2026 7:30PM

Name

Prokofiev and Childs - Anthems of Resilience

Description

📍 This concert takes place at Powell Hall

Xian Zhang, conductor
Steven Banks, saxophone (SLSO debut)

Reena Esmail RE|Member (First SLSO performances)
Billy Childs Diaspora (Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra) (First SLSO performances)
Sergei Prokofiev Symphony No. 5

Humanity is at the core of this transformative program. “I conceived of it as a symphony on the greatness of the human soul,” Prokofiev remarked about his wartime Fifth Symphony. In 2020, as Reena Esmail set out to compose RE|Member, she felt the deep healing of a collective return to music-making after a global pandemic. And Billy Childs expresses trauma, resilience, and empowerment within the Black American experience through his poignant symphonic poem, Diaspora, brought to life in these performances by saxophonist Steven Banks.

A few things to know:

• Diaspora comprises three movements, each drawing emotion and narrative from poems by Black authors: Africa’s Lament by Nayyirah Waheed, If We Must Die by Claude McKay, and And Still I Rise by Maya Angelou.
• Steven Banks is the first saxophonist to capture First Prize at the Young Concert Artists Susan Wadsworth International Auditions in the organization’s 60-year history.
• Xian Zhang was recently announced as the new music director designate of the Seattle Symphony. She begins her new role in the 25/26 season, while simultaneously serving as the music director of the New Jersey Symphony.

Tickets are currently available for subscribers. Curated Series and Compose Your Own subscriptions are on sale now.