Re(new)al | Higher Ground, Concerto for Tuba
Next Week’s Trees | Orbital
Viet Cuong, Composer | Sandbox Percussion | Justin Benavidez, Tuba
David Alan Miller, Heinrich Medicus Music Director | Albany Symphony
Release date: December 12, 2025
RENEWAL features four works by composer Viet Cuong, performed by the critically-acclaimed Albany Symphony. In Re(new)al, a percussion quartet performs on found and prepared instruments in a three-movement concerto inspired by hydro, wind, and solar energy. Higher Ground – Concerto for Tuba honors the bass voice through chaconne and canticle forms, exploring the act of rising as a central musical idea. The poetry-inspired Next Week’s Trees and Orbital, praised as “radiant, prismatic and fascinating” by Times Union, complete the collection, each showcasing Cuong’s compositional voice that The New York Times calls “alluring” and “stirring.”
“A syncopated yet hushed and entirely enthralling meditation for strings. The crowd loved it.”
“The ingenious central movement used choreography inspired by wind turbines…Leaving aside the clever visuals, the music was snappy and intricate and easily held its own.”