Percussionist Trevor Barroero recently tweaked the program for his St. Andrew’s Bach Society recital on Sunday, July 20.
In addition to five works he will do accompanied by pianist Kathryn Lieppman, “Rosewood and Ivory” will include Scottish percussionist Evelyn Glennie‘s marimba chorale “A Little Prayer.”
Barrroero added the five-minute marimba solo to the program in memory of his sister, Nicolette DiMaggio, who died on June 3 from injuries she suffered in a house fire June 1. DiMaggio, who was making a name for herself in Tucson’s standup comedy community, was 45.
“I actually was considering canceling this concert, but throughout my entire life, as I’ve lost family members — whether it’s been my dad or my grandma — music has been a source of healing,” Barrroero said. “I know that this is the best thing I can possibly do for my own healing, and this seems like just a great chance to honor her, as well.”
Barroero, Tucson Symphony Orchestra’s principal percussionist, has been here before, coping with grief through music in a very public way. His father died when he was 9, his grandmother when he was a senior in high school.
Trevor Barroero, left, and fellow Tucson Symphony Orchestra percussionist Fred Morgan performed the American premiere of Laura Vega’s Double Percussion Concerto, “Ángel de Luz,” last October.
“I was scheduled to perform a concerto with Tucson Philharmonia Youth Orchestra and that was like, I think, a turning point in my career, and also how I just approached grief, too,” he said, explaining that he made the decision to go on with the performance and dedicate it to his grandmother. He honored his father and grandmother in his final concert as a student at the University of Arizona, turning the 2017 “... in loving memory” recital into a fundraiser for the Alzheimer’s Association.
But the death of his sister, he said, hit a lot harder “because I knew my sister for longer than I knew my dad or my grandma.”
“So this has been tough, but Catherine has been amazing,” Barroero said. “We had our rehearsal last night, and she’s just such a great collaborator. So to feed off her energy and optimism, positivity and stuff has been, I think, really healthy for me.”
Sunday’s event with the Bach Society is Barroero’s first solo recital since early 2020 and features contemporary and classical works, including “Patter” by Robert Honstein and Bob Becker’s “Girlfriends Medley,” originally composed for xylophone.
Tucson Symphony Orchestra Principal Percussionist Trevor Barroero will perform his first Tucson solo recital in five years on Sunday.
Lieppman will solo on Mozart’s “Twinkle” Variations and Florence Price’s little-played “Clouds,” which Barroero said is really beautiful. He will solo on selections from Bach’s Lute Suite No. 1 in E minor, which he performed in an early 2024 TSO Up Close recital; and the second movement of Emmanuel Séjourné’s Marimba Concerto that he played with the TSO in 2014 as a winner of the orchestra’s Young Artist Competition.
Lieppman also will show off her vocal skills on “Memories Part 2,” a piece for voice and marimba composed by Ney Rosauro and Katie Johnson.
“Katherine is an incredible vocalist so we wanted a chance to showcase her singing,” Barroero said.
The St. Andrew’s Bach Society recital comes weeks after Barroero played a pair of concerts with the Hawaii Symphony and joined TSO Principal Timpanist Alana Wiesing as part of an ensemble of principal players and concertmasters from around the country at San Deigo’s “Mainly Mozart” festival. Next week he’s off to Colorado for Durango’s annual Music in the Mountains festival.
Tickets for Sunday’s 2 p.m. recital at Grace St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 2331 E. Adams St., are $16 through standrewsbach.org.
