Nahre Sol, Piano and Ben Finley, Bass

Don’t miss the Vermont debut of this wholly original music duo featuring classically-trained, composing pianist Nahre Sol (who’s amassed over 75 million views on her YouTube channel) and internationally recognized, composing bassist Ben Finley. Sol and Finley’s music draws from their diverse musical influences, from chamber music to ambient soundscapes, improvisation, and more. Expect to hear solo and duo music (both familiar and original) that’s playful, colourful, agile, emotional, and picturesque between the bass and piano.

About the Artists:
Nahre Sol performs, composes, and teaches an eclectic mixture of music that draws from aspects of improvisation, the avant-garde, traditional Western forms and harmony, jazz, and minimalism. She has gained renown through her notable series on YouTube (800,000+ subscribers), with videos that distill her distinct perspective as a classically-trained pianist with an insatiable appetite for new ideas about music theory, harmony, practicing, and composition. She was the co-host of Sound Field, a music channel by PBS Digital Studios alongside drummer L.A. Buckner. Recently, Sol released her debut album of original works for keyboard, “Alice in Wonderland,” which features a mix of compositions for solo piano, synthesizers, and prepared piano. She holds degrees from The Juilliard School and The Glenn Gould School of The Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. In 2023–24, the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg named Sol as its first-ever Creator in Residence. As a soloist and chamber musician, she has performed across North America and Europe. Learn more about Nahre Sol: https://www.nahresol.com/ 

Ben Finley is a performer-composer specializing in acoustic bass and electric bass (in multiple tunings and with effects). He grew up on a music festival farm, witnessing many ecosystems of music making. The seeds of co-creative agency were sown; Finley aims to cultivate music that embraces the unique individual life experiences of its participants. This often manifests through improvisation, text, the human voice, electro-acoustic worlds, learning from the biosphere, and exploring multi-stylistic compositional frameworks. Finley founded and facilitates the Westben Centre for Connection & Creativity’s international/multi-generational Performer-Composer Residency. He is a graduate of the Performer-Composer program at CalArts, and is a current PhD candidate of Critical Studies in Improvisation at the University of Guelph, studying music festivals as sites of environmental and existential stewardship. Learn more about Ben Finley: www.benfinley.ca

Program:
Nahre Sol, Piano
Ben Finley, Bass

Program to be announced, to include original works by Sol and Finley.

Reserved Seating. Tickets: $30 general public | $20 Middlebury ID holders | $10 youth (under 21) | $5 Middlebury students. Buy tickets: http://go.middlebury.edu/tickets

Approximate running time: 100 minutes including one intermission.

Sponsored by the Performing Arts Series, the Paul Nelson Performance Endowment, and the Rothrock Family Residency Fund.

Learn more about the artists: 
https://www.nahresol.com/ 
www.benfinley.ca
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@NahreSol
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/practicenotes/
Instagram: http://instagram.com/nahresol
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3YHAA3Ngue65DFIGVi0nqX
Watch a video:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToO7OXDiV04

Performance subject to change.