History of the Orchestra
Orchestra of New Spain is a professional period-instrument baroque orchestra and chorus with a specialty in the music of Spain and the Spanish-speaking Americas. Born in 1989 as part of the historic opening of the Meyerson Symphony Center and as a celebration of the deep Hispanic roots of Dallas's Guadalupe Cathedral, ONS has always placed community at the heart of its mission. Since 1996, our educational partnership with Dallas ISD has brought free in-school concerts and music lessons to West Dallas students — a program that today serves over 300 students each month. Over the decades, ONS has grown into one of the most significant champions of Spanish Baroque music in the Western Hemisphere, releasing two recordings and touring at the invitation of the Spanish Ministry of Culture across Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Seattle, Washington D.C., Bolivia, and Mexico.
In 2013, with the opening of the Moody Performance Hall, ONS launched what has become one of its most beloved traditions: an annual series of fully staged productions of zarzuelas, operas, and dance works that had not been performed in centuries. These modern premieres — produced alongside major international Spanish and Hispanic theater artists working hand in hand with Dallas's own extraordinary musicians, singers, actors, and dancers — have helped inspire a genuine renaissance of this same repertoire in Madrid's national theaters. What began in Dallas has echoed all the way back to Spain.
Fast Facts
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debut in Dallas of 1989 at the Cathedral Santuario de Guadalupe for the opening of the Meyerson Symphony Center
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2500+ students engaged annually through summer strings, free in-school lessons, and special programming
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specializing in historical classical music of Spain and Latin America, with many unperformed for centuries
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100+ researched and rediscovered works pulled directly from the royal court and cathedral archives of Spain
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annual staged productions since 2013--fully staged spanish-baroque operas, flamenco dance works, and modern premieres
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Madrid Barocco, the affiliate 'sister' chamber orchestra established by Grover Wilkins in Spain of 1999 still active
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release of two CDs reviewed as "captivating": Madrid 1752 and Francisco Courcelle Masses for Celebration
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Simone Woods
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Calvin Smith
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Suzanne Levis
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invited to perform across the United States, and Latin America in partnership with Fulbright and Acción Cultural Española
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published entry in the prestigous Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians by Grover Wilkins 3d on Francisco Courcelle
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deeply connected with the Dallas Arts community--museums, dance companies, and other arts organizations
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pioneering landmark Spanish playwrights partnership with Booker T Washington and Southern Methodist University
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named after the musically rich territory once encompassing present-day Mexico and the American Southwest
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a fully integrated operation from archival research and transcription, to promotion, education, and performance
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frequently performs music beyond the baroque: indian classical fusion, traditional islamic, early iberian, and much more!