Performing Arts Series

Violinist Théotime Langlois de Swarte and lutenist Thomas Dunford illuminate aspects of the elusive amalgamation that is the 17th century English notion of melancholy. The inconsolable “Mad Lover” of this program is reimagined as a character from the reign of Charles II. His tale is told through music from the pen of such violin virtuosos as the prodigiously gifted Nicola Matteis. Heightened by the exuberance and abandon common to those musicians transplanted from Italy, the beguiling nuances of this language of yearning and loss continue to echo in the popular music of our time.

Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre (YSDT) will share their work Shabaab (meaning “youth” in Arabic), a full-length performance by Samar Haddad King celebrating the intimacy, beauty, and tenderness of Arab male friendship. In a land where shared dreams and struggles are often overshadowed by the structural obstacles and systemic violence of occupation, the strength and sweetness of their bond is what helps these boys grow into men. YSDT believes that art is liberating, transformative, and accessible to all.

Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre (YSDT) will share their work Shabaab (meaning “youth” in Arabic), a full-length performance by Samar Haddad King celebrating the intimacy, beauty, and tenderness of Arab male friendship. In a land where shared dreams and struggles are often overshadowed by the structural obstacles and systemic violence of occupation, the strength and sweetness of their bond is what helps these boys grow into men. YSDT believes that art is liberating, transformative, and accessible to all.

Three visionary artists recognized for musicianship that combines poetry and purity with impeccable technique—violinist Stefan Jackiw, cellist Jay Campbell, and pianist Conrad Toa—combine their internationally recognized talents in the eclectic ensemble Junction Trio. The trio’s Middlebury debut program will include the Vermont premieres of this season’s Music Accord co-commission by award-winning composer Andrew Norman, a new work by Caroline Shaw, and storied works by Ravel and Schumann.

Learn more about this concert’s music in a free pre-concert lecture by Professor Emeritus of Music Larry Hamberlin.

We welcome the nation’s premiere chamber music organization to our stage: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS). As one of the most popular chamber music configurations, the piano quartet bears rich fruit as it contains a Venn diagram of the players for string and piano trios.

Learn more about the program to be sung by baritone Dashon Burton: a tribute to Paul Robeson’s concert at Middlebury 80 years ago. This free pre-concert lecture is presented by Professor Emeritus of Music Larry Hamberlin.

No season is complete without our perennial favorite, cellist Sophie Shao, and her talented collaborators. This year, Shao has expanded her circle of award-winning friends to six, who will delight our community with the lush sounds of the beloved sextets of Dvorák and Brahms. They’ll also play Arensky’s quartet for violin, viola, and two cellos—a deeply expressive, late-Romantic homage to his friend Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Rounding out the sextet are violinists Jennifer Frautschi and Kyu-Young Kim, Cara Pogossian and Burchard Tang on viola, and cellist Nina Lee. 

Learn more about this concert’s music in a free pre-concert lecture by Professor Emeritus of Music Larry Hamberlin.

The Grammy award-winning Imani Winds joins forces with dynamic pianist and composer Stewart Goodyear. Blending music and narrative—and inspired by the African American folktale “The People Could Fly”—this program marks America’s 250th year with a meditation on freedom, memory, and transformation. Rather than a patriotic celebration, it offers a space for reflection—a journey through works by living composers who give voice to migration, resistance, and the ongoing pursuit of justice.