CLASSICAL | Water Music NY 

In July 1717, George Frideric Handel's "Water Music" was given its first performance on boats traveling London's Thames River. A century later, on July 4, 1817, construction began in Rome, New York, on the Erie Canal. This summer New York State is celebrating both events in a creative way: Water Music NY, a seven-day event with the Albany Symphony Orchestra performing concerts along the length of the Erie Canal. Each day from July 2 through July 8, the ASO and its conductor, David Alan Miller, will be in a town along the canal, performing canal-side or on barges, in concerts tailored to each community. Each program includes selections from Handel's "Water Music," along with a premiere performance of an orchestral work by one of seven New York State composers. There will be a stop in Brockport on Friday, July 7, and will include a premiere of a composition by Loren Loiacono of Cornell University. The ASO will be joined by the Golden Eagle String Band and dancers Eddie Murphy and Mariah Maloney. Details about all the Water Music NY concerts are available at albanysymphony.com/the-tour.

Water Music NY with the Albany Symphony will take place Saturday, July 8, at Brockport Welcome Center, 11 Water Street, Brockport. 8 p.m. Free. 637-5300; brockportny.org/news/events.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article has been updated to correct Mariah Maloney's name.