Sounds Current

Sep 07 2024

Sounds Current Podcast artwork

A string quartet’s quest to shine light on San Francisco’s Angel Island, a site of detention and dehumanization for Chinese immigrants in the 1900s. Here, poems carved into the walls sing across time, connecting us to a shameful, hidden past. We travel with the creatives behind The Angel Island Project; the Del Sol Quartet, composer Huang Ruo, collaborators, and community. Sounds Current: Angel Island explores how we make compassionate art that builds community. delsolquartet.com

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BONUS: A day of music and stories on Angel Island

Come experience the multi-faceted experience of Angel Island in its first-ever concert series. From within the detention barracks at the Immigration Station, we’ll be exploring music and stories of the many communities who have connections to the island and its history. A beautiful day on the island, a richness of history, an exploration of the darkness and also the hope that th

Angel Island Part 4: Dialogue and Departure

Jul 22 2024 43 mins

The word “departure” generally refers to the physical act of leaving a place. However, departure also indicates a deviation from one’s traditional course of action or way of thinking. As we close out this season of Sounds Current, Charlton and esteemed collaborators reflect on their experiences related to the development and subsequent productions of Angel Island. How have t

Angel Island Part 3: A Pandemic and a World Premiere

Jul 10 2024 46 mins

We never experience a story in the same way twice. Sure, key elements remain firmly in place, but variables like political era, maturity, staging, and even the weather permeate each telling and play a vital part in the life of the piece. Charlton invites Del Sol collaborators to elaborate on their roles in the creation, performance, and ongoing support of The Angel Island Project.

Angel Island Part 2: A Truth To Be Told

Jun 24 2024 42 mins

Much like Angel Island, the project, Angel Island, the place, is a point of entry, connecting many visitors to a history they know nothing about––and reminding some of a traumatic past they'd rather forget. Del Sol Quartet violist Charlton Lee and collaborators draw audiences into the world of Angel Island, a tranquil state park in San Francisco Bay dotted with winding trails

Angel Island Part 1: A Haunting History

Jun 10 2024 34 mins

Welcome to Angel Island. With stunning views of San Francisco Bay and lush hiking trails, the island is nestled between the promise of the Golden Gate Bridge and California’s sun-soaked mainland coast. But between 1910 and 1940, hundreds of thousands of Asians arriving at the Angel Island Immigration Station faced separation, interrogation, and often deportation under the longsta

TRAILER - Season 1: Angel Island

Apr 28 2024 2 mins

How does a string quartet help build community from Chinese immigrant poetry carved into detention-center walls on Angel Island? Let their words sing out after 100 years of silence. Season 1 of Sounds Current with the Del Sol Quartet follows the quest to shine light on San Francisco’s Angel Island, a site of detention and dehumanization for Chinese immigrants in the 1900s. We tra