“Nu Deco Ensemble co-founders and artistic directors Sam Hyken, 35, and Jacomo Bairos, 40 … are preparing for a trio of April concerts at The Light Box in Wynwood, followed by a collaboration with a Brooklyn hip-hop dance company on Miami’s biggest stage: The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts,” writes Christiana Lilly in Wednesday’s (4/19) Miami Herald (FL). “Hyken and Bairos … [met] while auditioning for spots in the Singapore Symphony Orchestra…. While part of the symphony, Hyken began to gravitate toward creating musical arrangements, and Bairos told his friend that he wanted to try conducting. The two pushed each other to go for it, with the goal of eventually starting their own ensemble…. The ensemble’s first show was two years ago … Hyken has a particular knack for marrying symphonic arrangements with rock, electronica and other musical genres … Hyken and Bairos also make it a mission of Nu Deco’s to reach out to young people…. ‘We value the idea of transformation,’ Hyken said. ‘Sometimes people come into our concert with no expectations—or big expectations—but they walk out transformed.” Since 2013, Bairos has also served as music director of the Amarillo Symphony in Texas.
Posted April 24, 2017
