How the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Commissioned a Pulitzer Prize-Winning Composition from a Jazz Genius

“Adagio (For Wadada Leo Smith)” is the first work commissioned by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra from Sorey, a MacArthur Fellow and United States Artists Fellow. The composition is also the orchestra’s first commission to win a Pulitzer and the first composition written for saxophone to win the Pulitzer Prize.

“It is absolutely an honor and privilege to have been selected for this award,” Sorey said in a statement. “So many composers and performers whose work I have long admired have been finalists and Pulitzer winners.”

A native of New Jersey, Sorey has been a professor at the University of Pennsylvania since 2020, where he teaches composition. He is also a touring musician and bandleader, switching between trombone, piano and drums during performances.

Sorey’s compositions typically blend improvisation and formal musicality, and he often creates and titles his works in homage to his teachers, colleagues, and musical peers.

“Adagio,” written and named in honor of 2013 Pulitzer Prize finalist Wadada Leo Smith, Sorey’s fellow composer and mentor, is no different. The music avoids flashy sonic maneuvers and tricks, as Smith is known for letting his own compositions build slowly.

“It is my duty to continue to do my best to strive to maintain and expand the legacy and aesthetic surrounding formal and spontaneous composition,” Sorey’s statement reads.

“Receiving the Pulitzer Prize is an encouraging reminder that I am indeed on the right path. »

Fittingly, ASO plays the piece in an unhurried manner, creating suspense and drama.

“It’s very meditative, slow, evocative and a departure from audience expectations,” said Jennifer Barlament, executive director of ASO since 2016. “These are surprisingly unexpected, harmonically deep and beautiful layers of sound.”

Credit: John Rogers

Credit: John Rogers

The New Jersey native has been a professor at the University of Pennsylvania since 2020, where he teaches composition. He is also a touring musician and bandleader, switching between trombone, piano and drums during performances.

Calling Sorey “one of the great artists of our time,” McAllister says Sorey has an impeccable ear for fine-tuning compositions and their performances.

“His depth of listening is really something strange and off the scale,” McAllister said. “He has an idea of ​​how the music should sound and can tell you exactly what bar or rhythm was slightly wrong.”

The saxophonist also says that performing the piece involves practicing good breathing techniques, in order to hold notes for long periods of time.

“That’s the level of virtuosity he expects,” McAllister said. “Beyond flashy techniques, it’s the biggest challenge to maintain the integrity of a sound as it plays out over a long period of time.”

Sorey’s Pulitzer Prize win comes at a time of celebration for ASO. The orchestra recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of its Talent Development Program, a professional pathway that trains Black and Latino classical musicians who aspire to careers in classical music.

Barlament says she learned about the Pulitzer Prize when she was asked to speak with The New York Times while she was in a meeting.

“I hadn’t heard anything at the time, but it was a moment of joy,” Barlament said.

Credit: Kay Hinton

Credit: Kay Hinton

McAllister says Sorey’s compositions require listeners to be patient in order to anticipate a transcendent experience in the music.

“His orchestral work requires a deeper dimension of listening,” McAllister said. “It asks the listener to free their mind and focus on the content that is unfolding, so you have to be able to follow the progress of things.”

“Adagio” was born in 2019, when ASO offered to co-commission a new orchestral work from New Music USA’s Amplifying Voices program. The classical music organization’s grant initiative pairs composers from underrepresented and marginalized groups with orchestras and other classical music ensembles. ASO was paired with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in Switzerland, and Sorey’s composition was the result.

New Music USA President and CEO Vanessa Reed told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that the organization encourages collaboration and connectivity. She added that Sorey’s musical creations inspire people with sounds and textures.

“His music draws you in and is fascinating,” Reed said. “This way you are completely immersed.”

Barlament said ASO was interested in working with Sorey because of his ability to incorporate diverse musical elements and styles into orchestral work, something she said she has observed in her past collaborations with orchestras and opera houses. In 2023, one of Sorey’s works, “Monochromatic Light (Afterlife)”, was named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

“He’s a major talent who has this unique and wonderful artistic voice,” Barlament said. “He’s already done some really interesting work and has this way of straddling multiple genres and sound worlds.”

Credit: John Rogers

Credit: John Rogers

Barlament says Sorey’s awarding of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize is also an indication that celebrating diversity, equity and inclusion in classical music creates progress.

“It’s an affirmation to continue supporting creative people and doing the right things.” I feel like we are helping to change the world of classical music that we live in,” Barlament said.

“The award to the institution is secondary to the joy of Sorey’s talent being recognized.”