The Raleigh Civic Chamber Orchestra performs a program including the world premiere of a newly commissioned work by Tift Merritt, part of the NC State/Raleigh Civic Orchestras' "20 for '20" season of world premieres. The season culminates with the 20th world premiere the orchestras have presented in the last five years, one on each concert.

The final new work of the season will be from Grammy-nominated songwriter Tift Merritt, a Raleigh native. The Other Side of Hungry River is a site-specific song cycle exploring the emotional history of the Raleigh property destined to become an iconic public park. Dorothea Dix Hospital was built on a former slave plantation, operated for over 150 years as a mental institution, and closed controversially. Merritt notes that “layers of archived materials, oral histories, medical records, empty buildings and collective memory remain. This work aims to metabolize this complicated past and demonstrate how storytelling is a healing tool for both individual and community.” Tift Merritt will perform with the orchestra as part of the work’s premiere.