Lara Downes.
In Tuesday’s (7/16) Musical America, Taylor Grant writes, “Lara Downes, a Musical America Top 30 Professional for 2021, is the first-ever creative partner of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) as of July 1. Downs is a celebrated pianist and recording artist with a deep commitment to arts advocacy and the foregrounding of Black composers, artists, and cultural leaders. A familiar voice on the airwaves in Southern California, she hosts Evening Music on KUSC and is the creator and host of NPR’s video series Amplify and the nationally syndicated Classical Americana. When announcing her three-year appointment, Jaime Martin, the LACO’s music director, described her as ‘deeply passionate about classical music and ensuring its access to all communities’ and praised her ‘unique perspective and out-of-the-box thinking.’ As creative partner, Downes will serve as an adviser to Martin, perform on and/or curate selected programs, participate in the selection and mentoring of LACO’s Sound Investment composer each year, help promote the LACO Fellowship, and represent the ensemble to the national arts and cultural community. She will make her mainstage debut with the LACO this upcoming season with a performance of Florence Price’s Piano Concerto. Downes … will continue her independent performance, broadcasting, and recording activities.”
