Detroit Symphony plans 6 premieres in new season

The Detroit Symphony Orchestra will stage world premieres of six US composers' works in its next season including an elegy by Leonard Slatkin to his musician parents.
The premieres, part of the 2015-16 season announced Thursday, come amid growing ambition for an orchestra that like its home city had nearly collapsed amid financial troubles.
The orchestra in December will perform the premiere of "Kinah" by Slatkin, who is the music director both in Detroit and at the Orchestre National de Lyon in France.
"Kinah" -- the title comes from a dirge in the Jewish tradition -- is dedicated to Slatkin's late parents who were part of the Hollywood String Quartet which performed with movie studios before establishing a reputation of its own.
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra will also premiere "Symphony in D," a previously announced project in which city residents are encouraged to record noises which will be turned into musical form on special software designed by composer Tod Machover.
Other premieres will include a flute concerto by veteran composer Aaron Jay Kernis and a cello concerto by Mohammed Fairouz, who is known for blending in Middle Eastern influences.
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra has enjoyed a rebound since suspending much of its 2010-11 season due to a labor dispute.
Detroit in the past few years has seen an influx of musicians and other artists, drawn in part to the lower cost of living in a city hit hard by the decline of the auto industry.