2021-2022 Season

  • Members of the quartet seated, holding their instruments, in front of a large clock

    Heath Quartet

    The dynamic and charismatic Heath Quartet—our series’ first quartet-in-residence—is one of the most exciting British chamber ensembles of the moment, steadily building a reputation for their upbeat and integrated sound. We celebrate our 20th year of support from the Sunderman Family Concert Fund with this free concert, including works by Bach, Haydn, Henriette Bosmans, and Erick Korngold. 

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Free

  • The artist playing the cello

    Sophie Shao and Friends

    Applauded by the New York Times for her “eloquent, powerful” interpretations, cellist Sophie Shao has a gift for assembling impromptu chamber ensembles that are brimming with passion and talent. If you’ve never heard her play before, or if you’re a veteran of her concerts, you’ll realize why no season is complete without one of her marvelous performances! The concert program will include Messiaen’s Quartet for The End of Time, and Vermont composer David Ludwig’s Spiral Galaxy.

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • The composer sitting at a piano

    Pre-Concert Lecture: Sophie Shao and Friends

    Meet the composer! Learn more about the work “Spiral Galaxy” in a free pre-concert lecture by composer David Ludwig, Dean and Director of Music at the Juilliard School.

    Mahaney Arts Center 125

    Open to the Public

    Free

  • Image of performers on a stage

    Small Island Big Song

    Small Island Big Song is a multi-platform project uniting the seafaring cultures of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, a region at the frontline of the climate crisis. Indigenous artists come together with filmmakers and poets to present irresistible oceanic grooves and soulful island ballads collected across 16 countries, all guided by the artists on their respective islands. Experience the concert event that Billboard calls “one coherent jaw-dropping piece.”

    Wilson Hall, McCullough Student Center

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • Howard E. Woodin Environmental Studies Colloquium Series: Climate Change: Our Response as Artists

    This panel discussion features performing artists from Small Island Big Song to discuss the impacts of climate change and explore how the arts can influence our relationship with the environment. Small Island Big Song is a collaborative multi-platform project uniting indigenous musicians across the Pacific and Indian Oceans through song in the face of climate change and cultural loss.

    Moderator: BaoBao Chen (Taiwan), Producer/Manager, Small Island Big Song

    Franklin Environmental Center, The Orchard-Hillcrest 103

    Open to the Public

  • Person standing on a beach

    Film Screening: Small Island Big Song—An Ocean Songline

    Filmed over three years on 16 Island nations across the Pacific and Indian Oceans, this grassroots musical follows the ocean highways uniting ancient musical lineages. From Madagascar to Rapa Nui/Easter Island, Taiwan to Zenadth Kes/The Torres Strait. A heartfelt plea for environmental awareness and cultural preservation from those on the frontline of the climate crisis. A Q&A with the artists follows the screening. Sponsored by the Performing Arts Series, the Environmental Studies Program, and Committee on the Arts.

    2019 | 83 minutes | Free

     

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

  • Formal portrait of the artists as a group. Some standing, some seated, in front of a dark background

    VOCES8

    The 2023 Grammy-nominated British vocal ensemble VOCES8 inspires people through their music and by sharing their joy of singing. Versatility and a celebration of diverse musical expression are central to the ensemble’s performance and education ethos. Their performances are praised for their meticulous timing and tuning, impressive blend, and radiant sound. VOCES8’s Vermont debut program, entitled “20 Songs from 20 Years,” features beloved music from across the centuries and pieces by contemporary composers that the ensemble proudly calls friends.

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • The artist standing in front of a chalkboard with writing on it

    Your Sexts are Sh*t: Older Better Letters

    Written and performed by Rachel Mars. Award-winning theatre maker Rachel Mars performs a gloriously rude new solo show that unearths the hot-as-hell letters that make sexts blush. Before sexts there were hand-written letters—and loads of them were properly filthy. With the help of the internet, friends, and two sexologists, Mars has unearthed missives dating back centuries.

    Wright Theatre

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • Older Better Letters: Tokens of Love from Special Collections

    In conjunction with the Middlebury Performing Arts Series’ presentation of Rachel Mars’ solo theatre show Your Sexts Are Sh*t: Older Better Letters, Middlebury College Special Collections offers an open house filled with objects of desire past and present. Stop by to view love letters, dance cards, crush lists, and other objects that showcase how Middlebury students express love and desire. Staff and students will be on hand to answer questions while you leaf through history.

    Davis Family Library, Special Collections Reading Room

    Open to the Public

    FREE

  • The artist standing in front of a chalkboard with writing on it

    Your Sexts are Sh*t: Older Better Letters

    Written and performed by Rachel Mars. Award-winning theatre maker Rachel Mars performs a gloriously rude new solo show that unearths the hot-as-hell letters that make sexts blush. Before sexts there were hand-written letters—and loads of them were properly filthy. With the help of the internet, friends, and two sexologists, Mars has unearthed missives dating back centuries.

    Wright Theatre

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • The artists against a dark background

    Le Consort

    The Middlebury Performing Arts Series proudly presents Le Consort on their North American debut tour. In a program entitled “A Journey Through Baroque Europe,” Le Consort travels through Italy, England, Germany, and France, illustrating the immense expressive range and creativity of Bach, Vivaldi, Corelli, Purcell, Rameau, and others.

     

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • Two dancers against a dark background

    Practicing Change: Things to be Repeated- Dance Company of Middlebury

    The Dance Company of Middlebury, directed by Professor Lida Winfield is joined by several special guest artists:
    Artistic Director Sydnie L Mosley and six Creative Partners, including alumna Jessica Lee ‘13.
    SLMDances is a New York City based dance-theater collective that works in communities to organize for gender and racial justice.
    Professor Jeff Buettner’s Sing the World into Place Winter Term course.
    Music created by Professor’s McLean Macionis and Matthew Taylor and Lighting design by Bert Crosby.

    Mahaney Arts Center Dance Theatre

    Open to the Public

    $15 - General Public / $10 - Middlebury Faculty, Staff, Valid ID Holders / $8 -

  • Two dancers against a dark background

    Practicing Change: Things to be Repeated- Dance Company of Middlebury

    The Dance Company of Middlebury, directed by Professor Lida Winfield is joined by several special guest artists:
    Artistic Director Sydnie L Mosley and six Creative Partners, including alumna Jessica Lee ‘13.
    SLMDances is a New York City based dance-theater collective that works in communities to organize for gender and racial justice.
    Professor Jeff Buettner’s Sing the World into Place Winter Term course.
    Music created by Professor’s McLean Macionis and Matthew Taylor and Lighting design by Bert Crosby.

    Mahaney Arts Center Dance Theatre

    Open to the Public

    $15 - General Public / $10 - Middlebury Faculty, Staff, Valid ID Holders / $8 -

  • Members of the Quartet standing outside, holding their instruments

    Takács Quartet

    Now in their 49th season and “the Takács Quartet remains one of the greatest chamber string ensembles we have on the world stage.” (Scherzo magazine) Finally we can present their entire Bartók string quartet cycle (over two concerts), delayed from our 100th anniversary season in 2020. This ensemble has always had a particular association with Béla Bartók, the great 20th-century Hungarian composer whose six quartets are among the pinnacles of 20th-century chamber music.

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • Members of the Quartet standing outside, holding their instruments

    Takács Quartet

    Now in their 49th season and “the Takács Quartet remains one of the greatest chamber string ensembles we have on the world stage.” (Scherzo magazine) Finally we can present their entire Bartók string quartet cycle (over two concerts), delayed from our 100th anniversary season in 2020. This ensemble has always had a particular association with Béla Bartók, the great 20th-century Hungarian composer whose six quartets are among the pinnacles of 20th-century chamber music.

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/10/5

  • Pre-concert talk by Larry Hamberlin

    Professor Emeritus of Music Larry Hamberlin explores the Tákacs Quartet’s Bartók cycle program.

    Mahaney Arts Center 125

    Open to the Public

    Free

  • Artist standing with a harp in front of a black background

    Brandee Younger Trio

    This sonically-innovative harpist is revolutionizing her instrument for the digital era. Over the past 15 years, she has worked relentlessly to stretch boundaries and limitations for harpists. In 2022, she made history by becoming the first black woman to be nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition. That same year, she was also nominated for an NAACP Image Award. Her trio’s Vermont debut at Middlebury will include jazz standards and original works.

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/15/10/5

  • Members of the quartet standing next to each other with the text "SOLD OUT: an in-person wait list for ticket releases will start at Robison Hall at 6:30 PM on Saturday 11/11"

    Danish String Quartet

    Named “one of the best string quartets before the public today” by the Washington Post, the Danish String Quartet certainly made an impression when first performing here in 2017: Our sold-out audience gave them a standing ovation before we even hit intermission, and audiences have been asking for their re-engagement ever since. Join us for a mixed program that’s worth the wait: works by Purcell, Haydn, and Shostakovich, plus the quartet’s acclaimed arrangements of Nordic folk music.

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Open to the Public

    Tickets: $25/20/15/10/5

  • Members of the quartet standing next to each other, holding their instruments

    Danish String Quartet Open Rehearsal

    Observe a world-class string quartet in rehearsal as they prepare for the evening’s performance of classical and Nordic folk music.

    Free. Open to Middlebury College students only. Must present ID at the door. Many thanks to the Rothrock Family Residency Fund for sponsoring this event.

    Learn more about the artists: www.danishquartet.com

    Watch a video: https://youtu.be/ddDy8FJhsfs

    Mahaney Arts Center, Olin C. Robison Concert Hall

    Closed to the Public