Kaufman Music Center

Our #SpecialMusicSchool students have had an amazing experience working with KMC Artist-in-Residence Lisa Bielawa this season! Watch this exclusive work-in-progress performance, filmed in #MerkinHall and at the Morris-Jumel Mansion, on May 27. Tickets: https://www.kaufmanmusiccenter.org//lisa-bielawa-centurie/

WATCH TONIGHT at 7 pm ET, when spring #BroadwayCloseUp events kick off with a celebration of Kay Swift on her 124th birth anniversary. The first woman to compose the score to a successful Broadway musical (Fine and Dandy in 1930), she’s most often remembered as George Gershwin’s lover. Discover Swift’s dramatic life story, and hear her hit songs at a virtual lecture-performance hosted by Sean Hartley and filmed in #MerkinHall featuring Nikki Renee Daniels, Jeff Kready, Sally Wilfert, Klea Blackhurst and music director Georgia Stitt Music. Tickets (just $15): https://bit.ly/2PPjUSj

Time flies, and we’re entering the final week of #MusicalStorefronts performances! This pop-up concert series brought live music back to NYC beginning in January, and has featured more than 200 artists. Info: https://bit.ly/2McVtw8 Last week electro-acoustic viola musician Trevor New was joined virtually by Dorothy Chan, Josh Henderson and the Raleigh Civic Symphony & Chamber Orchestra conducted by Peter Askim.

There’s no debating that studying music leads to success in many areas! #SpecialMusicSchool High School’s Debate Team shone this month at the 2021 Urban Debate League’s State Championships, where the skills they’ve honed as musicians helped the 2-year-old team defeat more experienced and well-established opponents from across the city and state. Sophomores Isabelle Ruppe (voice) and Orla Meyers (piano) won the state championships in their division after a final round against ...the team from LaGuardia High School. In their division, Meyers ranked #1 as Top Speaker; senior Georgii Apinian (violin) ranked #3, and Ruppe #4. In the city championships, junior Kevin Thorpe (voice), sophomore Nicholas Vanderveen (violin), junior Graeme Buhrer (composition) and junior Adriano Piscopo (violin) ranked, respectively, 1st, 3rd, 5th and 8th as Top Speakers. All three of SMS’s teams made it to the semi-finals. Learn more: https://bit.ly/3awHiev

SAVE THE DATE for world premieres by the 2020-21 #LunaCompositionLab Fellows on Tuesday, April 27 at 7 pm ET! You’ll hear new music by Vera Gjaja, Alisha Heng, Jordan Millar, Zola Saadi-Klein, Azalea Twining and Marina Zurita McKinnon at this FREE concert streamed on our Facebook and YouTube pages. Details: https://bit.ly/2N00hW6 Founded by Grammy nominee Missy Mazzoli & Pulitzer Prize winner Ellen Reid with KMC in 2016 to address the gender imbalance in the field of composition, our acclaimed Luna Lab mentorship program is changing the playing field by providing mentorship and exposure to teen-age female, non-binary, and gender nonconforming composers (The New Yorker). Learn more: https://bit.ly/3aIT9VO

Save the date for KMC’s 2021 Gala on June 7! The online event will honor Devorah Rose & David Krieger. Performances by KMC students, singer-songwriter/actor Sara Bareilles, soprano Angel Blue, violinists Gil Shaham & Adele Anthony, #WhatMakesItGreat? host Rob Kapilow and Broadway stars Nikki Renee Daniels and Michael Winther. Plus, special appearances by Rosanne Cash, Judy Collins, Alexa Ray Joel, Patti LuPone and Nile Rodgers. Details & tickets: (866) 222-6330 or https://bit.ly/3adYZ2q

This Monday, April 19, is the 124th birth anniversary of Kay Swift, the first woman to compose the score for a successful Broadway musical. Discover Swift’s dramatic life story and hear her hit songs at a virtual #BroadwayCloseUp lecture-performance on 4/19 at 7 pm ET. Hosted by Sean Hartley and featuring Nikki Renee Daniels, Jeff Kready, Sally Wilfert, Klea Blackhurst and music director Georgia Stitt. Ask Sean anything at a live post-event Q&A! Tickets ($15): https://bit.ly/2PPjUSj SNEAK PREVIEW: Watch Sally Wilfert perform Can’t We Be Friends.

Watch 14-year-old #SpecialMusicSchool High School violinist Rebecca Beato perform on From the Top at 8 pm ET tonight! Host Peter Dugan Piano will lead conversation and New York-themed games with Rebecca and 16-year-old cellist Sean Yu. Watch: https://bit.ly/2QBM17A

VC VANGUARD CONCERTS | We’re coming to you from The Violin Channel Stages, in New York City, with violinist Philippe Quint and pianist Jun Cho | The duo makes its Vanguard Concerts Series debut performing an assortment of works by Debussy, Bloch, Piazzolla, Clara Schumann, and Ravel https://theviolinchannel.com/vc-live-the-violin-channel-va/

Tomorrow, April 21, at 5 pm ET, our friends at International Contemporary Ensemble present the world premiere of Bergrun Snæbjörnsdóttir’s Ecognosis. Plus works by Anthony Braxton under the direction of James Fei from the Tri-Centric Foundation. They're joined by Skerpla Ensemble from Iceland University of the Arts, Fay Victor and Darius Jones. All performed live from Roulette! Co-presented with Myrkir músíkdagar / Dark Music Days Festival, Reykjavik. More info/stream at https://bit.ly/DMD-April21. There's a pre-show panel about Anthony Braxton’s works on April 20th! More info/RSVP at https://bit.ly/tues7-april20

Hey, #LucyMosesSchool families! There are just 2 weeks left for Young People’s Division Early Registration. Register for the 2021-22 school year now before classes and lesson times fill up! Info: https://bit.ly/3avZrcz Registration opens to new students on May 1. Browse our music, dance & theater classes for ages 1.5 to 18, plus our summer programs including #SummerMusicalTheater Workshop and #SummerStringFest. Learn more: https://bit.ly/2CrQrqq

#EcstaticMusic continues this spring with KMC Artists-in-Residence Conrad Tao and Seth Parker Woods, streamed from #MerkinHall! On May 6, Tao re-imagines what a piano recital can be in an immersive concert film that incorporates piano, electronics, video and magnets, and weaves together improvised pieces and music by Brahms, John Adams (Composer), Jason Eckardt and more. On May 25, Woods’s program includes works for cello, electronics and film with music by Nathalie Joachim, Fredrick Gifford, Monty Adkins, Freida Abtan and Ryan Carter, plus a new dance piece by Pierre Alexandre Tremblay & choreographer Roderick George. You’ll have on-demand access to the performances for two days following the streams. Get tickets: https://bit.ly/2OLoBfv

This spring we’re thrilled to showcase young musicians from our #SpecialMusicSchool and #LucyMosesSchool in the new series #FastForward: Music’s Next Generation! Here’s a look back at one of the performances that launched the series last month: Rosalia Malik, an SMS 8th grader and student of Natela Mchedlishvili, performs Liszt’s Three Concert Études, No. 2 in #MerkinHall.

Did you know that Dvoák apprenticed as a butcher, and that he loved trainspotting? Watch #SpecialMusicSchool 8th grader Yumi Park, a student of Viktor Basis, perform his Romance in F minor, Op. 11 in #MerkinHall last month as part of the new series #FastForward: Music’s Next Generation. Mark your calendars for the upcoming Fast Forward performances featuring musicians from #SpecialMusicSchool and #LucyMosesSchool on April 29 & May 19! https://bit.ly/302gope

We’ve added NEW summer classes for kids and teens at #LucyMosesSchool: Group Piano (ages 4-6) and Music Technology (ages 10-18). And registration is OPEN for our two celebrated summer camp programs, the #SummerMusicalTheaterWorkshop (ages 6-15) and #SummerStringFest (ages 10-23). Browse summer classes: https://bit.ly/3t9hA75

Did you know that the first woman to write the score to a successful Broadway musical is most often remembered as George Gershwin’s lover? On April 19, discover Kay Swift’s dramatic life story, and hear her hit songs from "Fine and Dandy," musical revues, and the Hollywood film "Never a Dull Moment." This #BroadwayCloseUp virtual lecture-performance hosted by Sean Hartley and filmed in #MerkinHall features Nikki Renee Daniels, Jeff Kready, Sally Wilfert, Klea Blackhurst and music director Georgia Stitt Music. Tickets (just $15): https://bit.ly/2PPjUSj

Our #SpecialMusicSchool students are always making us proud! Last week, 12 young musicians in grades 2-12 said thank you to doctors on National Doctors Day by performing at The Mount Sinai Hospital. Streamed on Zoom, the concert included music by Florence Price, Bach, Kreisler, Vieuxtemps and Piazzolla.

#BroadwayCloseUp starts Monday, 10/26 at 7 pm ET! This is your LAST CHANCE to subscribe and see all three for just $40. These intimate online lecture-concerts filmed in #MerkinHall explore the lives, careers and music of three of musical theater’s most fascinating figures: Oscar Hammerstein II, Dorothy Fields & Stephen Schwartz. Hosted by Sean Hartley with Clifton Duncan, Gabrielle Stravelli, Nikki Renee Daniels & Greg Jarrett. After the streams, you can watch the performance...s on demand for two days! Get details & tickets (just $15!): https://bit.ly/35qPj2X See more

NEW! Our #LucyMosesSchool is now offering Trial Online Private Instrument Lessons. Try out 1, 2 or 3 virtual lessons with our expert faculty! All ages, instruments and skill levels are welcome. Call us at 212 501 3360 to get started. Details: https://bit.ly/3koNt7f

The New Yorker says: "Anyone hoping to catch a glimpse of tomorrow’s most promising concert-music attractions today would be well advised to look into the 'Tuesday Matinées' series at Merkin Hall, a dependable incubator for burgeoning talent." See the new stars of classical music at this fall’s virtual #TuesdayMatinees! These afternoon concerts filmed in #MerkinHall and streamed to your home feature the Rolston String Quartet on November 24 & violinist Rubén Rengel on December 22! Tickets are just $15: https://bit.ly/3jhdWm0

Please vote, it’s all about our futures! Watch this important message from #SpecialMusicSchool 5th & 8th graders Nickita & Philina Zhang. Early voting starts on October 24 in New York State make your voice heard! Kaufman Music Center will serve as a polling place on November 3. Confirm your polling place at Headcount.org.

#BroadwayCloseUp begins this Monday, 10/26, with Oscar Hammerstein and continues with Dorothy Fields and Stephen Schwartz! You’ll find out how Stephen Schwartz and Bob Fosse really felt about each other, what happened when Dorothy Fields opened at the Cotton Club, and which show of Oscar Hammerstein’s Stephen Sondheim keeps trying to rewrite and lots more! Online lecture/performances are filmed in #MerkinHall and hosted by Sean Hartley, and feature Clifton Duncan, Gabrielle Stravelli and Nikki Renee Daniels. Single tickets are just $15; subscribe to all three for only $40! https://bit.ly/35qPj2X

It’s been wonderful to welcome #LucyMosesSchool students and faculty back to our large studios for safe and socially-distanced in-person classes beginning this week! There’s still time to join an Adult Division Chamber Group or Jazz Ensemble this fall come make music together with others in our supportive and welcoming community. Browse all in-person classes and see info about our safety protocols: https://bit.ly/316dy3o... Need help finding the class that's perfect for you? Just call us at (212) 501 3360!

Our 2020 Virtual Gala starts in ONE HOUR right here on Facebook! Join us for this FREE online evening of performances featuring our students, the Grammy-winning hitmaker to the stars Desmond Child, and KMC Artists-in-Residence Conrad Tao and Seth Parker Woods. THANK YOU to our wonderful community and generous donors after a very challenging period!

Read about how our #SpecialMusicSchool and other NYC music programs are meeting challenges and moving forward in the time of COVID-19, courtesy of WQXR. https://www.wqxr.org/sto/k12-music-education-time-covid-19/

Co-presented by University of Michigan, Ann Arbor & Kaufman Music Center Join composer Lisa Bielawa as she unveils her new, broadly participatory musical work Voters' Broadcast in its entirety for the first time online in this virtual event hosted by University Musical Society President Matthew VanBesien, and co-presented by University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and Kaufman Music Center in New York. Guests will include celebrated artist and Wayne State University Professor and Ch...air of the James Pearson Duffy Department of Art and Art History Sheryl Oring, creator of the I Wish To Say project, excerpts of which form the text for Voters' Broadcast. Lisa Bielawa has created Voters’ Broadcast for an unlimited number of voices and instruments made up of choral singers and instrumentalists from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; the University Musical Society Choral Union; Kaufman Music Center in New York; and more, for performance online and/or by socially distanced ensembles. Her mission with the work is to stimulate voter engagement, political awareness, and community participation in challenging lockdown conditions, through the act of giving voice to the concerns of fellow citizens during the lead-up to the 2020 Presidential election. The text for Voters’ Broadcast is excerpted from artist Sheryl Oring’s ongoing project I Wish to Say, in collaboration with University of Michigan's Stamps Gallery, which uses vintage typewriters for social change. I Wish to Say consists of performances in which Oring and a pool of typists work on vintage manual typewriters and invite the public to dictate postcards to the U.S. President. In the current circumstances, Oring and the typists are holding Zoom sessions, during which participants dictate their messages to the next President. Launched in 2004, the project has garnered nearly 4,000 postcards to President Bush, President Obama, and President Trump, all of which have been mailed to the White House on behalf of the participant as part of the performance. Voters’ Broadcast is commissioned as part of the Democracy & Debate Theme Semester by the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor with support from its School of Music, Theatre & Dance, and developed in partnership with Kaufman Music Center in New York, where Bielawa is a 2020 Artist in Residence. Voters’ Broadcast is providing voting information via HeadCount, a non-partisan organization that uses the power of music to register voters and promote participation in democracy. Check your voter registration and make a plan to vote at HeadCount.org.

Join us in Brooklyn this Saturday, 10/24!

Watch Kaufman Music Center’s 2020 Virtual Gala right here on Facebook on Thursday, October 22 at 7 pm ET. It’s FREE! Enjoy an evening of online performances by our students, Grammy-winning hitmaker to the stars Desmond Child and KMC Artists-in-Residence Conrad Tao and Seth Parker Woods, and help us say thank you to our generous donors after a very challenging period.

This Saturday, October 24, join composer Lisa Bielawa and musicians from our #SpecialMusicSchool High School in Grand Army Plaza for three socially-distanced, outdoor performances of #VotersBroadcast at the Brooklyn Public Library Central Branch at 11 am, 12:30 pm & 2 pm! This participatory musical work, intended to stimulate voter engagement and community participation leading up to the November 3 election, features text taken from celebrated artist Sheryl Oring’s I Wish to Say. Details: https://bit.ly/2Hi46CR Kaufman Music Center will serve the community as a polling place on November 3! Confirm your polling place at Headcount.org.

Tomorrow, 10/21 at 7 pm ET, our friends at New York Festival of Song (NYFOS) present an online evening of songs that have given Americans courage during times of crisis: Black Market & Other Songs for Survival. Music by Kurt Weill, Frederick Hollander, Bessie Smith, Harry T. Burleigh & the world premiere of a new song by Matthew Aucoin. With soprano Janai Brugger; mezzo-sopranos Lucia Bradford, Denyce Graves & Kate Lindsey Mezzo Soprano; baritones Leroy Davis & Theo Hoffman; and bass-baritone Davóne Tines; with pianists Steven Blier, Adam Nielsen, Christopher Reynolds & JoyAnne Amani Richardson. Register to watch: https://bit.ly/358RRRx