Performing Arts Series

Intensive chamber music collaborations have always been an essential part of renowned Russian pianist Alexander Melnikov’s work. For his fifth performance at Middlebury, he joins German pianist Andreas Staier—known for his exacting interpretations of keyboard music—to delight us with their all-Schubert program of four-hand works. Their Harmonia Mundi recording of this program has garnered prizes and accolades around the globe. A Nelson Series event, cosponsored by the members of the Performing Arts Series Society (PASS). Reserved seating. $30/25/10/6; PASS Members $22/16/8/5

Using vintage overhead projectors, multiple screens, puppets, actors, live-feed cameras, multichannel sound design, and a live music ensemble, Manual Cinema transforms the experience of attending the movies into an immersive event created right before your eyes. The End of TV explores the two sides of the American Dream—its technicolor promise through TV advertising, and its failure witnessed in industrial decline. Stay to meet the performers on stage after the show. “This Chicago troupe is conjuring phantasms to die for.…”—New York Times. Tickets: $22/16/10/6

This collaborative concert features the Middlebury debuts of the Grammy-winning vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth and the world-renowned Dublin Guitar Quartet. Together they perform the East Coast premiere of a new, intimate arrangement of Vermont native Nico Muhly’s How Little You Are. Originally commissioned in 2015 for three guitar quartets and massed choir, the work is based on texts written by pioneer women during the 19th century. In addition to this powerful 40-minute work, each ensemble also performs individual selections. A Nelson Fund event.

The art song “dream team” (New York Times) of British tenor Mark Padmore and compatriot pianist Paul Lewis comes to Middlebury with a stunning program of German lieder, including selections by Brahms, Mahler’s Rückert-Lieder, and Schumann’s Dichterliebe. “Music making of the highest order by two accomplished individuals who, when working together, create a force to be reckoned with.”—Classical Music Sentinel. A Nelson Series event, made possible with additional support from Performing Arts Series Society (PASS) members Marny and Rob Lichtenstein. Reserved seating. Tickets: $30/25/10/6

We couldn’t celebrate the series’ 100th anniversary without including its most prolific artist, cellist David Finckel. For his 40th performance at Middlebury, Finckel joins his wife, acclaimed pianist Wu Han, in a program including Beethoven, Debussy, Mendelssohn, and Chopin.

Five-time Grammy Award nominee and Steinway artist Christian Sands is an emerging jazz force to be reckoned with. His abundant piano technique perfectly matches his conception, accomplishing a much deeper musical goal: a fresh look at the entire language of jazz. “As far as piano trio sets go…no one else in the game can touch [Sands].”—New York Observer. Tickets: $28/22/10/6

This French pianist has established a truly international career. He has been particularly applauded for his versatility, as demonstrated by wide-ranging repertoire, interesting programming, and dynamic chamber music partnerships. In Middlebury, Tiberghien presents a program celebrating the 100th anniversary of the 1918 Armistice, featuring works composed during every year of the war—by composers from Poland (Szymanowski), Russia (Scriabin), Germany (Hindemith), France (Debussy), and England (Bridge)—including a work written for a pianist who lost his arm in battle. A Nelson Series event.

Known for “passionate performances that combine technical accomplishment with interpretative flair” (the Strad), the acclaimed Heath Quartet—the series’ first-ever quartet in residence—returns to help us celebrate Beethoven’s 250th birth year. They present Beethoven’s entire string quartet cycle over six concerts (two each term), bookending weeklong residencies with our campus and community. The October 5 concert launches the cycle with Quartet No. 1 in F Major, op. 18.1; the “Serioso” quartet, op. 95; and Quartet No. 13 in B-flat Major, op. 130. The October 11 concert features Quartet No.

The dynamic and charismatic Heath Quartet is one of the most exciting British chamber ensembles of the moment, steadily building a reputation for their upbeat and integrated sound. Their second week of residency starts with the free January 11 concert, featuring Beethoven’s Quartet No. 3 in D Major, op. 18.3; Quartet No. 16 in F Major, op. 135; and the first “Razumovsky” quartet, op. 59.1. No tickets are required for this concert, thanks to the Sunderman Family Concert Endowment Fund, in memory of Dr. F. William Sunderman Jr. and Dr. Carolyn Reynolds Sunderman. Free

Known for “passionate performances that combine technical accomplishment with interpretative flair” (the Strad), the acclaimed Heath Quartet—the series’ first-ever quartet in residence—returns to help us celebrate Beethoven’s 250th birth year. They present Beethoven’s entire string quartet cycle over six concerts (two each term), bookending weeklong residencies with our campus and community. The October 5 concert launches the cycle with Quartet No. 1 in F Major, op. 18.1; the “Serioso” quartet, op. 95; and Quartet No. 13 in B-flat Major, op. 130. The October 11 concert features Quartet No.