How do we know a work of art will stand the test of time? There’s no simple rule, but when a piece written in reaction to specific events still resonates for listeners living in a different era, that’s a very good sign.

Jessie Montgomery has noticed this start to occur with Divided, her 2020 concerto for cello and string orchestra. “It was originally a reflection of the pandemic — the sense of division and isolation we all felt,” with the cello “often in a different emotional zone than the orchestra,” she said in a recent interview with SF Classical Voice. “But it has a different meaning now.” Today, it’s hard not to hear the piece as an uncanny reflection of our profound political polarization.

Montgomery finds this interpretive shift fascinating — and encouraging. “If the meaning of the piece is evolving with the times,” she said, “I think I’ve done something meaningful.”

Over the past decade, the 43-year-old, also a violinist and Grammy Award winner, has become one of the country’s most-performed contemporary composers. Her works are clever and deeply expressive, accessible without ever resorting to cliche. She’s best known for several short, delightful works for string orchestra, including Strum (2006, rev. 2012) and Starburst (2012).

Jessie Montgomery | Credit: Jiyang Chen Photography

But Stanford Live audiences will experience a different side of her artistry when she performs with Third Coast Percussion (TCP) on May 7 at Bing Concert Hall. The program will feature Lady Justice, a new work she wrote for the Chicago-based ensemble, as well as an earlier piece of hers for tuba and strings, arranged for percussion quartet by TCP member Sean Connors. To conclude the concert, Montgomery will solo in Lou Harrison’s 1959 Concerto for Violin With Percussion Orchestra.