Talk about up-and-coming, and you’re probably talking about Patrick Soluri and Christian McLeer. They’re the composers, respectively, of two orchestral ballets – “Ngoni” and  “The Grandfather Clocks” – premiering tonight at the Manhattan School of Music.

“Ngoni,” choreographed by Francis Patrelle, found its inspiration in stories by traveling musicians called Djeli, fro, Segu, an ancient western African city-state. The Djeli accompanied themselves on a lyre-like instrument called ngoni. “The Grandfather Clocks,” choreographed by Patricia King, deals with reality in its most fragile state, the sickness of a child.

Soluri has written music for theater, film and dnace, incorporating numerous idioms, including solo, chamber, orchestral and vocal writing. The Manhattan School of Music student received a Certificate of Merit as one of 12 finalists in the 1997 National Young Composers Competition for an earlier version of “Ngoni.” McLeer has been performing  and composing since the age of 4.

It all starts at 8 in the John C. Borden Auditorium. Tickets are $10, seniors and students $5. Proceeds will benefit Dancers Responding to AIDS and the HIV Arts Network. The school is on the northwest corner of Broadway and 122nd Street, Manhattan. (212)749-2802, ext 428.