It’s no secret that here at Savage Content, we love music. Music is a part of who we are. From recording jazz performances, to sharing blogs chock full of great music, to musically adapting poetry, to hosting a jazz trivia show, we always have our hands in melody. And we also love to share the joy of music both through our projects and by supporting others. This is why we were thrilled to partner with The Boundless Arts Foundation to bring to life the amazing event All Without Words Live.
We’re so excited to be a part of this event that we wanted to give All Without Words Live the spotlight, so our readers have all the information about this special performance. Check out the FAQs below to get all the information. If you’re in the Cincinnati area, we hope you consider coming to support this important and unique event!
What Is All Without Words Live?
All Without Words Live is a large-scale multimedia and multidisciplinary presentation of composer Justin Morell's jazz trumpet concerto that was inspired by the spontaneous vocalizations of his nonverbal autistic son, Loren. The inspiration evolved into a work for solo trumpet, orchestra, rhythm section, and chorus made into an album. All Without Words Live will be a presentation by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in an expanded production of the original concert version created by Morell and Daversa. It will also feature original performers from the album, including Grammy Award-winning artist John Daversa on trumpet, Tal Cohen on piano, and David Chiverton on drum set; singers and instrumentalists from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music (Coral Gables, FL); dancers; and a gallery exhibition of art by artists from The Art of Autism created to represent the music. The entire audience's experience will be filmed to be used in a feature-length video program.
When and Where Is It Happening?
All Without Words Live will take place on Wednesday, September 20, 2023, at 7:30 PM at Cincinnati Music Hall in the Springer Auditorium.
How Much Are Tickets?
Tickets are free!
How Can I Get Tickets?
While tickets are free, this is a limited seating event, so make sure you reserve a spot! You get your tickets here:
Seats can also be reserved through the Box Office by phone at 513-381-3300, or in person by visiting the Box Office at 1241 Elm Street, Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Do I have an assigned seat?
Nope! All Without Words Live is general admission, so you can sit in any general seating area.
Will This Be Filmed?
Yes! The entire audience experience, including foyer activations and performances in Cincinnati Music Hall’s Springer Auditorium, will be filmed.
What inspired All Without Words?
At the age of three, Morell’s son, Loren, was diagnosed with non-verbal autism, having only the capability to communicate through spontaneous vocalizations and assistive devices. Very early on, Morell and his wife, Jennifer Taggart, were left to foresee a world in which Loren could not use language to show his peers the light he had to offer. They worried that society would not value their son’s humanity. In the midst of heartbreak, Justin thought, surely there was a way to share Loren’s spirit.
Justin Morell composing part of the symphony.
One night, Justin was with Loren as he was using his therapy swing in their home. As Justin listened to the sounds and vocalizations coming from Loren, he thought to himself, “That sounds a lot like singing.” Grabbing his phone, Justin began recording. Upon replaying them, he was able to hear his son’s voice in a way he had never heard before—it sounded like snippets of a melody. After hours of stretching and slowing down these sounds, he began to fit these variations of Loren’s voice into the sketches of a beautiful, larger creation. These became the cornerstones for Justin to write a profoundly intimate, symphonic work that reflected his relationship with his son and his experience as a father.
As Justin began to work on his compositions, he shared his sketches and intent with his childhood friend John Daversa, a conductor, producer, composer, music professor, and jazz trumpet virtuoso who joined as a soloist on the project. As the pair recognized the strength and power of the music, they pooled their friends and resources to create a full-length album titled, ALL WITHOUT WORDS: Variations Inspired by Loren. The overwhelming support they received from recruited musicians was astounding to Morell. Every artist was profoundly motivated by their strong ties to the autism community.
How Did It Turn into a Live Event?
After the recording of the All Without Words album, Boundless Arts Foundation provided resources to share the completed album, record the process in a documentary format, and share the story with business and community leaders of the Cincinnati area (More info to come about the documentary, so keep an eye on our socials 😊). With a desire to share this incredible story beyond a screen or album, turning All Without Words into a live event was born.
Boundless Arts Foundation was able to secure a partnership with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO) who were impressed by the depth of the album and its story. They eagerly welcomed the partnership to catapult the sharing of this project into the event size that it deserved.
If you’ve been a reader of our blog for a while, you’ll know that we love sharing things that make music so unique and interesting. Beyond our collaboration with the event, we also wanted to share it because of its incredible purpose and cause. The special connection that Justin Morell has with his son Loren is beautiful, and we love how this event embraces the beautiful strengths that neurodiversity gives to the world. We’d love to see more events like these gain popularity and traction because expressing such intense love through music is something anyone can relate to in some capacity.
We hope you’ll consider coming out to support this incredible event. If you’d like to learn even more about the inspiration behind All Without Words, you can visit the event website and the press release from The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO).
Written by Kristen Petronio