One Composer, One Community Celebration Concert

The Music Institute’s One Composer, One Community program focuses on the life and music of a single, under-represented composer during the course of an academic year.

Manuel María Ponce in 2025–2026 featured composer. The program culminates in a free, public concert featuring a selection of Ponce's groundbreaking work performed by Music Institute faculty, including Guitar Department Chair Brad Conroy and piano instructor Marie Alatalo; a string quintet from the Academy, the Music Institute's pre-college conservatory, performing Ponce's “Estrellita”; and students of all ages on piano, guitar, vocals, and more!

Guest company Mexican Folkloric Dance Company of Chicago performs to Ponce's work—noteworthy for synthesizing concert music and Mexican popular song and folklore—and to music in the Mexican folkloric tradition. Founded to preserve and celebrate Mexican cultural heritage through the artistry of traditional dance, the company has been captivating audi-ences for more than four decades. MFDC has become a vital cultural bridge connecting Mexican Americans across generations, educating broader audiences about the richness of Mexican traditions and maintaining the integrity of folkloric dance through rigorous training and passionate performances.

Keynote speaker is Jeordano Martínez, music director of the Naperville Chorus and profes-sor emeritus at North Central College, where he served as director of choral activity from 1987 until retiring in 2013. He introduced instrumental music and music education at the College, enabling the department’s explosive growth. Under his direction, the Naperville Chorus has grown to 120 singers and performed with the DuPage Symphony Orchestra, The Chicago Bar Association Orchestra and Chorus, the Elgin Symphony, The Young Na-perville Singers, and the Pete Ellman Band and toured to Spain, Ireland, Portugal, Poland, Austria, Italy, and the Czech Republic.

Learn more about MIC's One Composer, One Community initiative »

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