[Rescheduled from original 9/1 date, due to rain forecast] Anyone who’s missed the open-air performances by the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra is in for a treat on Sept. 25, when the Thomas Edison Film Festival and the Hoboken Historical Museum present the Hudson County premiere of “EMERGE Part 1: An NJSO Concert Film,” led by internationally renowned Music Director Xian Zhang, featuring guest pianist Simone Dinnerstein, and directed by award-winning filmmaker Yuri Alves, alumnus of New Jersey City University.

“EMERGE Part 1: An NJSO Concert Film” will be screened live, for in-person viewing, outdoors in the walkway by the Museum entrance, at 13th and Hudson Sts., at 7:00 PM on Saturday, September 25, 2021. This is the inaugural film in the “EMERGE: An NJSO Concert Film Trilogy,” produced by DreamPlay Films, in association with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. 

The program is free to the public. The audience is encouraged to bring low-backed chairs, as well as snacks and non-alcoholic beverages. Please plan to arrive by 6:30 PM as the screening will begin promptly at 7:00 PM.

 Music Director Xian Zhang leads the East Coast premiere of Primal Message by American composer Nokuthula Ngwenyama, whom Gramophone has hailed for the “bold mesmerizing character” of her music. Simone Dinnerstein, whose “individual, compelling” (New York Times) interpretation of Bach’s Goldberg Variations propelled her to international fame, performs Bach’s Keyboard Concerto No. 5 in F Minor, BWV 1056. The program closes with Schumann’s Fourth Symphony.

The film features captivating images of and inspired by the people of Newark and is presented in 4K anamorphic widescreen. Featured performers are Xian Zhang, conductor; Simone Dinnerstein, piano; the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra; Fabiano Carvalho Lopez, dancer; Tenile Marie Jimenez, dancer; and Tommy Cuba, skater. The concert was recorded live and filmed on RED cinema cameras at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark, New Jersey, on February 11, 2021.

According to Music Director and conductor Xian Zhang: “For these programs, it was a thrill to reunite with the woodwind and brass players of the NJSO along with three world-class soloists for performances of some of my very favorite repertoire. From works by pathbreaking female composers of color like Nokuthula Ngwenyama and Florence Price to audience favorites from Shostakovich, Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven, I hope you’ll join me and the musicians of the NJSO as we emerge from this difficult year and look to a brighter and more inclusive future.”

Director Yuri Alves added: “We aimed to exceed audience expectations for a filmed orchestral performance. I think people will be excited and surprised by this trilogy. All three films are united by an overarching concept and immersive style, yet each one varies significantly from the others—including in the format itself, as we go from anamorphic to black and white to behind the scenes to 360 video and more. And on all of them, you will see Xian, the amazing orchestra and the guest musicians at their best.”

NJSO President & CEO Gabriel van Aalst observed: “NJSO Concert Films have taken audiences inside the concert hall and out into the world through the NJSO and Xian Zhang’s brilliant performances and DreamPlay Films’ captivating imagery of the people and scenery of New Jersey during the pandemic. This new trilogy will pair powerful concerts with evocative visuals for cinematic experiences that inspire and that speak to our time.”