Temple Contemporary + David Lang’s “Symphony for a Broken Orchestra”

By David Graver
Cool Hunting

In the first week of December at the 23rd Street Armory in Philadelphia, 400 or so instruments recovered from some 1000+ in a musical graveyard united in the hands of hundreds of professionals and students to perform a work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang. Known as the “Symphony for a Broken Orchestra”—there will never be a performance like those two ever again. The epic piece and its world premiere, however, were only a part of the masterplan envisioned by Robert Blackson, director of Temple Contemporary at Temple University’s Tyler School of Art. In fact, these performances may have been a sonic gift to those in attendance, but the longstanding impact of the charitable events will help Philly youth retain musical education. Over $247,000 was raised (double the goal) through the effort, and it will go to repair those broken items and put them right back into the hands of students.