The Eastman School of Music is pleased to highlight some of the concerts and events taking place at Eastman this November. Presenting a wide range of events featuring internationally accomplished faculty and guest artists in addition to world-class student ensembles, these events will be held in Eastman’s stunning performance spaces: Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre, Kilbourn Hall and Hatch Recital Hall.
Most of the concerts listed are free and open to the public. Events that are ticketed may be booked through EastmanTheatre.org or by calling 585-274-3000. Patrons are encouraged to purchase tickets as soon as possible to secure the best seats and savings.
Various dates, times and locations
The Eastman Faculty Artist Series will present 15 performances by our internationally acclaimed faculty members throughout the fall 2023 semester. Tickets are $10 for the public and free to URID holders.
Eastman Opera Theatre presents “A Double Bill: Mythology Through a New Lens!”
Thursday, November 2 – Sunday, November 5 | Kilbourn Hall
Eastman Opera Theatre opens its season with a double bill featuring two important 21st-century composers: Jake Heggie and Nkeiru Okoye. To Hell and Back and We’ve Got Our Eye on You offer stories of abuse, redemption, empowerment and desire. Wilson Southerland conducts, and Patrick Diamond makes his directorial debut at Eastman. Thursday, Friday and Saturday performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m., with a Sunday matinee at 2:30 p.m. Please note that Friday evening’s performance will have limited capacity.
EMuSE with Jon Christopher Nelson
Thursday, November 2 at 7:30 p.m. | Hatch Recital Hall
Feat. Shannon Steigerwald (Reilly) ’16E, ’18E (MM), violin
The Electroacoustic Music Studios @ Eastman (EMuSE) welcomes University of North Texas Professor of Composition, Jon Christopher Nelson, whose electroacoustic music has been performed widely throughout the United States, Europe and Latin America, and has been honored with numerous awards including fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts and Fulbright Commission.
Saturday, November 4 at 7:30 p.m. | Memorial Art Gallery
Classics with a Twist defies the way we present and perceive music. Challenging performers to take a piece of music from one genre and present it through the lens of another, this concert allows artists and audiences to question the status quo of the music industry. This kaleidoscope-style concert will feature pianist and composer Anthony Walker, among many others, and is the culminating event of our Context Conference: Contextualizing Equity and Inclusion in Music. Limited capacity, free to attend, but registration is required by October 15.
Eastman Jazz Ensemble & Eastman New Jazz
Monday, November 6 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
Feat. Sara Gazarek, newly appointed Associate Professor of Jazz Voice
The Eastman Jazz Ensemble, directed by Assistant Professor Christine Jensen, has been recognized as one of the world’s premier collegiate jazz performing organizations for three decades. Also on this program is Eastman’s New Jazz Ensemble, established to showcase the finest contemporary music written for jazz ensemble from around the world, directed by Assistant Professor Dave Rivello.
Tuesday, November 7 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
The internationally acclaimed Eastman Percussion Ensemble, directed by Michael Burritt, is a two-time winner of the Percussive Arts Society International Percussion Ensemble Competition.
Eastman Wind Orchestra and ECMS Music Educators Wind Ensemble
Wednesday, November 8 at 7:30 p.m. | Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre
The Eastman Wind Orchestra, under the direction of Mark Davis Scatterday and graduate conducting student Zachary Griffin, shares the stage with the ECMS Music Educators Wind Ensemble, directed by Bill Tiberio. The EWO performs Augusta Read Thomas’ Mahler and Debussy-inspired Magneticfireflies, along with music by David Maslanka, Ryan Lindveit, and a world premiere by current Ph.D. student, Cory Brodack.
Kilbourn Concert Series: Vijay Iyer Trio
Thursday, November 9 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
By overwhelming consensus, the Vijay Iyer Trio has become one of the pivotal jazz bands of the 21st century. Described as “the best piano trio in jazz today” (Der Spiegel), “the great new jazz piano trio” (The New York Times) and “truly astonishing” (NPR), the trio makes emotionally resonant and deeply interactive music, radiating groove and brimming with polyrhythmic detail, innovative in style and form while rooted in tradition. Vijay Iyer was raised in the neighboring village of Fairport, NY, making this a homecoming concert of sorts.
Friday, November 10 – Sunday, November 12 | Various Times and Locations
“Pipedreams Live!” presents three concerts with Michael Barone, host of American Public Media’s “Pipedreams,” featuring organists from Eastman and beyond. This series is co-sponsored by WXXI.
Eastman-Ranlet Series: Ying Quartet
Sunday, November 12 at 3:00 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
The Ying Quartet occupies a position of unique prominence in the classical music world, combining communicative performances with a fearlessly imaginative view of chamber music in today’s world. As quartet-in-residence at the Eastman School of Music, the ensemble performs three Eastman-Ranlet Series concerts during the season.
Monday, November 13 at 7:30 p.m. | Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre
The Eastman Wind Ensemble performs Jennifer Higdon’s contemplative blue cathedral and gives the consortium premiere of Sally Lamb McCune’s new work, Spiral, with the composer in attendance. Guest conductor Kevin Fitzgerald ’13E, recent winner of the 2023 Mahler Competition’s Prize for Contemporary Music Performance, leads in a performance of Olivier Messiaen’s Et Exspecto Resurrectionem Mortuorum – a seminal 20th century work intended for “vast spaces, cathedrals or even the high mountains.”
Eastman Jazz Workshop Ensemble
Monday, November 13 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
For decades, Eastman jazz has been synonymous with exciting performances, fresh new music and arrangements and outstanding student performers. The Eastman Jazz Workshop Ensemble upholds all of these traditions.
Wednesday, November 15 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
The Eastman Jazz Lab Band is a full 17-piece jazz ensemble, consisting of both undergraduate and graduate students, directed by Associate Professor Rich Thompson.
Wednesday, November 15 at 7:30 p.m. | Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre
Neil Varon leads Eastman’s top orchestra in a performance of William Walton’s Viola Concerto and Camille Saint-Saëns’ masterful Symphony No. 3, the “Organ Symphony.”
Eastman School Symphony Orchestra
Friday, November 17 at 7:30 p.m. | Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre
Under the direction of Neil Varon, the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra (ESSO) performs Fauré’s suite from Pelléas et Mélisande and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K. 467 (Elvira Madigan) with student soloist Gehan Zhang ‘24E. Ottorino Respighi’s sentimental Fountains of Rome concludes the program.
Sunday, November 19 at 3:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
Eastman’s flagship choral ensemble performs under the direction of Dr. William Weinert. Repertoire to be announced.
Monday, November 20 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
The Eastman Musica Nova performs Oliver Knussen’s poetic Requiem: Songs for Sue, the composer’s memorial to late wife, and Pierre Boulez’s monumental Dérive 2 under the baton of Professor Brad Lubman.
Kilbourn Concert Series: Third Coast Percussion
Thursday, November 30 at 7:30 p.m. | Kilbourn Hall
Founded in 2005, Third Coast Percussion is a Grammy-winning quartet of classically trained percussionists, including current Eastman DMA student Sean Connors ’04E.
Click here to view the full 2023-24 Eastman Presents season and to purchase tickets. For all other happenings at Eastman, visit our Events Calendar for the most up-to-date information.
Media only: Lauren Sageer, Assistant Director of Public Relations and Digital Content,
(585) 451-8492, lsageer@esm.rochester.edu
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About Eastman School of Music:
The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman’s dream was that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.
More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music — about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprised of more than 130 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, Grammy winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 900 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, more than 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
About the University of Rochester:
The University of Rochester is one of the nation’s leading private research universities, one of only 62-member institutions in the Association of American Universities. Located in Rochester, NY, the University gives undergraduates exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College, School of Arts and Sciences, and Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and the Memorial Art Gallery.