Branford Marsalis and his quartet will perform an evening of music in conjunction with the opening of a new exhibit at the David C. Driskell Center, highlighting African American artists inspired by jazz.
A man of numerous musical interests — including jazz, blues, funk and modern classical works — Marsalis first gained acclaim through his work with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and his brother Wynton’s quintet before forming his own ensemble.
Pianist Brad Mehldau is first and foremost an improviser who cherishes the surprise and wonder that can occur from a spontaneous musical idea expressed directly, in real time. But he also has a deep fascination for the formal architecture of music.
Chris Thile is best known as the mandolinist and a singer for the progressive alt-bluegrass trio Nickel Creek, and for his work with Punch Brothers, but he has also collaborated with artists like Béla Fleck, Mark O’Connor, Aoife O’Donovan, Edgar Meyer and Yo-Yo Ma.
Choreographer Bill T. Jones and SITI Company’s Anne Bogart have always loved each other’s work, but they had never collaborated until this year, when they brought their formidable creative forces together to create this new piece.
In A Rite, these groundbreaking artists have deconstructed the original score of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring to create a provocative meditation on the power of singular new works of art to alter the way we think.
Is there any such thing as “original”?
Where is the line between originality and “influenced by,” “based on” or “adapted from”?
Maybe there aren’t lines at all, but rather a spectrum of expressions, from original to plagiarized.
This discussion will examine these questions, and examine the varying degrees of invention in the creative process.
Theatre lovers and music lovers alike know the works of Stephen Sondheim. But how many fully appreciate the power and complexity of Sondheim’s familiar compositions?
In a multi-year project undertaken with the composer’s blessing, Anthony de Mare has invited 36 of the world’s foremost contemporary composers to each re-imagine a Sondheim song of their choosing, scored for solo piano.
For 37 years and running, the Annual Pops Concert has been a big hit with audiences.
We guarantee you will walk out humming more than one tune from this lighter fare of great classic music.
American pianist Benjamin Pasternack presents piano music inspired by African Americans and Native Americans, including two rarities by Arthur Farwell, who as leader of the “Indianists” movement deserves to be known as the American Bartok.
The program includes Dvořák’s Humoresques in F and G-flat and an excerpt from his American Suite; Busoni’s Indian Diary No. 2; Farwell’s Pawnee Horses and Navajo War Dance No. 2; and Bernstein/Pasternack’s On the Town Dances.
William Shakespeare’s whimsical tale of love and mistaken identity comes to life in a completely new way in this bilingual Chinese and American co-production.
The performance is the culmination of a multi-year collaboration between the UMD School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies and The National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts. Staging, costumes, lighting and direction were jointly realized in the United States and China and the cast includes Chinese and American actors, who will each perform in their native language.
Sit in on the opening round of the annual competition as students vie for the opportunity to perform as a featured soloist with the UMD Symphony Orchestra.
Students perform six- to eight-minute excerpts of a concerto or concert piece for an independent jury panel.
The seven to ten finalists will compete in the Final Round on November 16.
