Breaking music barriers

Artown, and the hot temperatures that marked this month, will soon be a distant memory. So don’t let the latest heat wave keep you from catching the art festival’s season finale featuring DBR & The Mission. DBR is Daniel Bernard Roumain, a classically trained violinist, composer and bandleader who has combined the worlds of classical music, rock, electronica and hip hop to much critical acclaim. DBR is the music director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company and assistant composer-in-residence of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s in New York City. He has collaborated with avant garde composers such as Philip Glass and Ryuichi Sakamoto, jazz singer Cassandra Wilson and DJs Spooky, Radar and Scientific, as well as orchestras and chamber ensembles across the country. Some of his most notable works include a series of string quartets that focuses on African-American civil rights figures of the 1950s and 1960s. His most recent, String Quartet No. 4, “Angelou,” a musical portrait of poet and activist Maya Angelou, features turntables in addition to stringed instruments. The composition was well received after its premiere at San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center last year. DBR and his nine-piece band, The Mission, features an amplified string quartet, drum kit, keyboards, vocalist, DJ and a “laptopist.” The group, which plays a wide range of the composer’s works, will perform at 7:30 p.m. July 31 at Wingfield Park, First Street and Arlington Avenue. The show is free, but arrive early for best viewing. Call 322-1538 or visit www.renoisartown.com.