The Lafayette Symphony Orchestra (LSO) will open its 2026–27 Mainstage Series with AutochthonoUS: Stories of WE the People on Saturday, September 26, at 7:30 p.m. at the Long Center for the Performing Arts. The program explores the many vibrant and multifaceted identities that make up the American experience—and the ways music can bring those voices together.
The concert takes its name from the word autochthonous, which refers to peoples originating in the place where they are presently found, despite ancestral background or genetic origins. For the LSO, the word becomes a springboard for a larger question: What does it mean to belong to a place, and who gets to be part of the story?
Under the direction of Conductor and Artistic Director Kellen Gray, the program features music that reflects the complexity, energy, and diversity of the American experience. The evening opens with Leonard Bernstein’s lively Candide Overture, followed by William Grant Still’s Symphony No. 4, “Autochthonous,” a work that imagines America as a place shaped by ingenuity, individuality, and shared possibility.
The program continues with Fanfare for Life by Kimo Williams and concludes with Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story, a thrilling orchestral work drawn from his landmark musical about love, identity, conflict, and community in New York City.
Together, these works tell stories of America from different perspectives and generations, inviting audiences to consider both what makes us distinct and what connects us.
“An orchestra is, in many ways, a perfect metaphor for community,” says Kellen Gray, Conductor and Artistic Director of the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra. “We bring together people with different backgrounds, experiences, and voices, and ask them to listen to one another. The result is something none of us could create alone. That is the spirit behind this concert and behind our entire season of Listen Together.”
AutochthonoUS: Stories of WE the People launches the LSO’s 2026–27 season, Listen Together, which celebrates community, connection, resilience, and the collective experience of gathering together around live music.
Join the LSO for an opening-night celebration that asks us to listen not only to the music but to the many stories that make up our shared American experience.
For information about upcoming events or to purchase tickets, visit lafayettesymphony.org or call 765-742-6463.
Event Details:
-
Date: Saturday, September 26, 2026
-
Doors Open: 6:30 PM
-
Performance: 7:30 PM
-
Venue: Long Center for the Performing Arts, 111 N 6th St, Lafayette, IN 47901
-
Tickets: Available online or by calling the LSO office at 765-742-6463
Program:
-
Leonard Bernstein — Candide Overture
-
William Grant Still — Symphony No. 4, “Autochthonous”
-
Kimo Williams — Fanfare for Life
-
Leonard Bernstein — Symphonic Dances from West Side Story
About Kellen Gray
Kellen Gray, Conductor and Artistic Director of the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra, was born and raised in Rock Hill, South Carolina. His life has taken him on a diverse path ranging from orchestral violinist to beekeeper before turning his full-time attention to conducting. In addition to his LSO appointment, he is a frequent guest conductor of leading ensembles both nationally and internationally, ranging from the Minnesota Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra (D.C.), and Seattle Opera to such British ensembles as the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, and Royal Scottish National Orchestra.