Stanford Live 2024-25 Season Brochure

WELCOME TO THE 24-25 SEASON

STANFORD LIVE MEMBERSHIP

Become a member to enjoy year-round presale access, free ticket exchanges, and more. Stanford Live memberships provide vital support for performances, artist residencies, and K–12 education programs, and help create and inspire the next generation of artists and art enthusiasts.

MEMBER PRESALES BEGIN May 23, 2024, and tickets go on sale to the general public on June 25, 2024.

Learn more at live.stanford.edu/membership

HOW TO ORDER TICKETS

ONLINE: live.stanford.edu

PHONE AND IN PERSON: Stanford Live Ticket Office 327 Lasuen Street Stanford, CA 94305 650.724.2464

Tuesday – Friday, 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM

We take a moment to recognize that Stanford sits on the ancestral land of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe. This land was and continues to be of great importance to the Ohlone people. Consistent with our values of community and inclusion, we have a responsibility to acknowledge, honor, and make visible the University’s relationship to Native peoples.

This acknowledgment has been developed in collaboration with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe.

CURATORIAL STATEMENT

Welcome to Stanford Live’s 2024-25 season. This season brings artists you know and love and some we think you’ll like discovering.

As we navigate the times we are in, it is increasingly apparent that our connections and collective spirit are essential in fostering resilience and joy in our communities regardless of the changes and challenges we face. Now more than ever, the power of live performing arts to connect, inspire, and reflect the rich tapestry of human experience is profoundly significant. As we gather together, we celebrate our multiplicity and recognize the beauty in our diversity.

With this new season together, we’d like to extend our deepest gratitude to you, our community members, for your unwavering support.

With warm regards,

Deborah Cullinan Vice President, Office of the Vice President for the Arts

We are happy you are here! Our warmest welcome to the performances, spaces, and convenings that this brochure highlights and celebrates.

Whether you have been attending for decades, been an occasional concertgoer or haven’t been to a Stanford Live performance yet, we want you to know that you belong here as a member of this community. The offerings in these pages are diverse and eclectic and provide a space for entertainment, reflection, and possibly even transformation.

Join us as we introduce three thematic frameworks, inviting you to delve deeper alongside our artists and an array of many other offerings. The first framework explores the profound legacy of the influential classical composer Gustav Mahler and the inspiration his ideas and compositions provided for the Second Viennese School. The second focuses on the captivating sonic world of the harp, traversing diverse genres and cultures. Lastly, we delve into the evolution of human movement, with a special emphasis on the fusion of movement and technology. We hope you will

join us on this journey that toggles between continuity and change, the past and the future, and ultimately trusts in artists to be our guide.

Evolution and transformation extend beyond the artistic realms to encompass our organizational journey as well. On April 1, 2024, we welcomed our new McMurtry Family Director Iris Nemani. In this transformative period, our objective is to evolve into a more collaborative, inclusive, and responsive organization, attuned to the diverse needs of our community. Throughout the brochure, you’ll find QR codes, which will lead you to playlists, music videos, and also videos from the Stanford Live team. Through sharing facets of this creative process with you, we’re hoping to foster a closer connection, providing insight not only into the arts and artists but also into the individuals behind the scenes shaping these experiences.

We look forward to seeing you at a performance soon.

Laura Evans Director of Programming and Engagement

Albert

Montañez-Sanchez Producer of Artistic Programs

2024–25 SEASON PERFORMANCES

London Symphony Orchestra

Dover Quartet with Marc-André Hamelin

Katherine Goforth: Cabaret Songs

Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra

Yang Liping & Peacock Contemporary Dance: Rite of Spring

New Century Chamber Orchestra: DANCE!

AXIS Dance Company and Catie Cuan: Robotics Showcase

Xavier de Maistre

Edmar Castañeda

Lavinia Meijer

Sona Jobarteh and Brandee Younger: Strings of Hope

Sundays with the St. Lawrence

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale

Fiesta Sonora: A Community Celebration

Rob Kapilow: What Makes It Great?

Faye Carol

Kelli O’Hara

Carnival of the Animals

Legacy of Wayne Shorter

Hélène Grimaud

Nobuntu

Alisa Weilerstein, cello

Inon Barnatan, piano

Stanford Live’s 2024–25 season is generously supported by Helen and Peter Bing.

Stanford Live’s 2024–25 season sponsor is Stanford Medicine.

Isidore String Quartet

Chanticleer

Meow Meow Feline Festive Holiday

KRUTb

Balaklava Blues

Arooj Aftab

Sufjian Stevens: Reflections featuring Conor Hanick and Timo Andres

Stella Chen

David Lang: before and after nature

Geoff Sobelle: FOOD

Renée Fleming, soprano

Stanford Medicine Orchestra with Joshua Roman

Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band

Natalie Dessay and Philippe Cassard

An Evening with Branford Marsalis

Anoushka Shankar

Anda Union

Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain

Brad Mehldau Trio

Joshua Bell

Conrad Tao & Caleb Teicher: Counterpoint

Third Coast Percussion with Jessie Montgomery

Stanford Live's 2024–25 season is generously supported by the Koret Foundation.

The Stanford Live Commissions and Programming Fund is generously supported by David and Pamela Hornik, Victoria and James Maroulis, Helen and Maurice Werdegar, and other generous donors.

Stanford Live's K–12 programs are generously supported by Gretchen and Mark Schar, Victoria and James Maroulis, and the Koret Foundation, with additional funding provided by an anonymous donor.

2024–25 SEASON PERFORMANCES

June August October July September

EDM

Dom Dolla

June 22, 2024

Classical Spanish Favorites with the SF Symphony

July 13, 2024

Jazz Count Basie Orchestra

July 14, 2024

Blues

Taj Mahal Quintet

July 19, 2024

Classical The Movie Music of John Williams with the SF Symphony

July 20, 2024

Global CUMBIA!@Frost

July 21, 2024

Dance Starry Nights

San Francisco Ballet

July 26, 27, 2024

Rock/Blues

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss

August 22, 2024

Singer songwriter Lauren Daigle

August 29, 2024

Singer songwriter John Fogerty: The Celebration Tour

August 31, 2024

Singer songwriter Mitski

The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We

September 25, 2024

Rock An Evening with Goose September 28, 2024

Global Fiesta Sonora: A Celebration of Community Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles, Ballet Folklórico Nueva Antequera, and Maqueos Music

September 29, 2024

Chamber Sundays with the St. Lawrence

October 6, 2024

Talk

Rob Kapilow: What Makes It Great?

Swing! The Great Big Bands of the Swing Era

October 13, 2024

Blues

Faye Carol Blues, Baroque, & Bars

October 20, 2024

Broadway Kelli O’Hara

October 23, 2024

Dance Carnival of the Animals

October 27, 2024

Jazz Legacy of Wayne Shorter

October 30, 2024

November

Classical Hélène Grimaud

November 3, 2024

Rock

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard

November 4, 2024

Vocal

Katherine Goforth: Cabaret Songs

November 8, 2024

Classical Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale Vivaldi, Venice, and the Four Seasons

November 8, 2024

Classical Xavier de Maistre

November 10, 2024

Global Nobuntu

November 13, 2024

Classical

Alisa Weilerstein, cello and Inon Barnatan, piano

November 20, 2024

December

Dance

Rite of Spring

Yang Liping and Peacock

Contemporary Dance

December 6, 7, 2024

Chamber

Isidore String Quartet

December 8, 2024

Classical Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale

A Bach Christmas

December 11, 2024

Vocal/Holiday Chanticleer

December 12, 2024

Holiday

Meow Meow

Feline Festive

Holiday

December 13, 2024

January

Global KRUTb

January 18, 2025

Global Balaklava Blues

January 24, 2025

Global Arooj Aftab January 25, 2025

Chamber

Sundays with the St. Lawrence

January 26, 2025

Contemporary Sufjan Stevens: Reflections Featuring Conor Hanick and Timo Andres

January 31, 2025

February

Contemporary David Lang before and after nature

February 1, 2025

Classical Stella Chen

February 2, 2025

Theater

Geoff Sobelle: FOOD

February 5, 6, 7, 8, 2025

Vocal

Renée Fleming

February 7, 2025

Classical Stanford Medicine Orchestra with Joshua Roman

February 12, 2025

Global Julia Keefe

Indigenous Big Band

February 19, 2025

Classical London Symphony Orchestra

February 23, 2025

Global

Edmar Castañeda

February 26, 2025

Additional events will be added throughout the year. Visit live.stanford.edu for the most up-to-date calendar.

March

Vocal Natalie Dessay and Philippe Cassard

March 1, 2025

Classical Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale Handel’s Alceste

March 5, 2025

Chamber

Dover Quartet with Marc-André Hamelin

March 9, 2025

Jazz

An Evening with Branford Marsalis

March 12, 2025

Global Anoushka Shankar

March 14, 2025

Classical Lavinia Meijer

March 15, 2025

Global Anda Union

March 19, 2025

Contemporary Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain

March 23, 2025

April

Jazz Brad Mehldau Trio

April 2, 2025

Global/Jazz Strings of Hope: Sona Jobarteh and Brandee

Younger

April 3, 2025

Classical Joshua Bell

*Bing Fling

April 5, 2025

Classical/Dance

Conrad Tao & Caleb Teicher: Counterpoint

April 9, 2025

Chamber Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra

April 25, 2025

Chamber Sundays with the St. Lawrence

April 27, 2025

May

Chamber

DANCE! with New Century Chamber Orchestra

May 4, 2025

Contemporary Third Coast Percussion with Jessie Montgomery

May 7, 2025

Dance AXIS Dance Company and Catie Cuan Robotics Showcase

May 21, 2025

KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD

MITSKI

LAUREN DAIGLE

ROBERT PLANT & ALISON KRAUSS

STANFORD LIVE ARTS FESTIVAL

July marks the return of the Stanford Live Arts Festival featuring Bay Area partners SFJAZZ, the San Francisco Symphony, and San Francisco Ballet.

STANFORD LIVE AND THE SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY PRESENT SPANISH FAVORITES WITH THE SF SYMPHONY

July 13, 2024 at 7:30 PM

STANFORD LIVE AND SFJAZZ PRESENT COUNT BASIE ORCHESTRA

July 14, 2024 at 7:30 PM Bing Concert Hall

STANFORD LIVE AND SFJAZZ PRESENT TAJ MAHAL QUARTET

ELVIN BISHOP & CHARLIE MUSSELWHITE DUO

July 19, 2024 at 7:30 PM

STANFORD LIVE AND THE SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY PRESENT THE MOVIE MUSIC OF JOHN WILLIAMS WITH THE SF SYMPHONY

July 20, 2024 at 7:30 PM

STANFORD LIVE PRESENTS CUMBIA!@FROST VILMA DIAZ Y LA SONORA DINAMITA, EL FEELING

July 21, 2024 at 5:00 PM

STANFORD LIVE AND SAN FRANCISCO BALLET PRESENT STARRY NIGHTS

July 26 and July 27, 2024 at 7:30 PM

Stanford Live is thrilled to once again partner with Goldenvoice to bring some of the world’s top artists to the iconic Frost Amphitheater.

DABIN PRESENTS: STAY IN BLOOM

April 27, 2024 at 5:00 PM

April 28, 2024 at 5:00 PM

BLACKFEST

May 4, 2024 at 3:30 PM

FROST MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL

M ay 18, 2024 AT 6:00 PM

DOM DOLLA

June 22, 2024 at 6:00 PM

ROBERT PLANT & ALISON KRAUSS

August 22, 2024 at 7:00 PM

LAUREN DAIGLE

August 29, 2024 at 7:00 PM

JOHN FOGERTY: THE CELEBRATION TOUR

August 31, 2024 at 6:30 PM

MITSKI

THE LAND IS INHOSPITABLE AND SO ARE WE

September 25, 2024 at 7:00 PM

AN EVENING WITH GOOSE

September 28, 2024 at 6:30 PM KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD

November 4, 2024 at 6:30 PM Hear

More shows to be announced. For more information and to buy tickets, visit live.stanford.edu/frost

Stanford Live members at the Supporter level and above receive presale access to all Frost Amphitheater performances. Visit live.stanford.edu/membership

MAHLER AND THE SECOND VIENNESE SCHOOL

Over a century ago, Vienna became a crucible of cultural upheaval. This was the era of Viennese Modernism, a movement defined by artistic rebellion and bold experimentation.

It was here that Gustav Mahler’s romantic compositions paved the way for the avant-garde explorations of the Second Viennese School, led by Arnold Schoenberg. Mahler’s emotionally charged oeuvre of intense music, with its extended harmonies, inspired a generation of composers – figures like Alban Berg, Anton Webern, and Hanns Eisler.

This program delves into these composers’ early works, showcasing their emerging genius. We’ll experience the folk melodies and lush orchestrations of Mahler’s “Titan” symphony and his first orchestral song cycle “Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen,” noting his penchant for motivic development. Then, a stark contrast: the intricate and private sonic worlds of early Schoenberg’s “Verklärte Nacht,” where tonality begins to dissolve, and Webern’s “Langsamer Satz,” with its pointillist textures. Finally, we explore the dark

decadence of the cabaret musical musings of Berg, Eisler, and Schoenberg. This journey offers a unique perspective on 20thcentury Viennese music – a pivotal moment in the evolution of Western classical tradition.

Beyond theory, there’s a fascinating human story. Mahler and Schoenberg shared a deep connection, with Mahler championing Schoenberg’s radical ideas. Schoenberg, in turn, became the guiding light of the Second Viennese School, influencing and mentoring Webern and others. Their music reflects the profound shift from tonality to atonality, the embrace of expressionism, and ultimately, to the 12-tone serial technique. Mahler’s legacy ignited this revolution, making this program a study not just of music, but of influence and inspiration.

Albert

Montañez-Sanchez Producer of Artistic Programs

Listen to a playlist

CLASSICAL

London Symphony Orchestra

Antonio Pappano, conductor (Stanford Live Debut)

Janine Jansen, violin (Stanford Live Debut)

The resident orchestra at London’s Barbican Centre, the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), “is regularly ranked as one of the world’s best, and is known for its work ethic and versatility” (New York Times). Established in 1904 as one of the first orchestras shaped by its musicians, LSO has a unique ethos and an inimitable signature sound. Generations of remarkable talents have built the LSO’s reputation for uncompromising quality and inspirational repertoires.

Walker Sinfonia No. 5 Visions

Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in E minor, op. 64

Mahler Symphony No. 1 in D Major, Titan

Bing Concert Hall 2:30 PM February 23, 2025

Hear why a Stanford Live staff member is excited about this show

VOCAL Stanford Live Debut

Katherine Goforth: Cabaret Songs

American vocalist Katherine Goforth is the recipient of Washington National Opera’s inaugural True Voice Award for transgender and non-binary singers. Praised for her “vocal beauty” (New York Times) and “thrilling tenor power” (Opera News), Goforth has established herself as an accomplished recital singer, showcasing her artistry in prestigious programs such as the Franz-Schubert-Institut, Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme, Heidelberger Frühling Liedakademie, and the Georg Solti Accademia.

Goforth will perform song selections by Berg, Eisler, Mahler, Schoenberg, and Weill.

CHAMBER Stanford Live Debut

Dover Quartet with Marc-André Hamelin

Few string quartets can boast “a sound so distinctive as to be easily identified within mere minutes” (Philadelphia Inquirer), but the Dover Quartet has achieved that and more, prompting The New Yorker to call it “the young American string quartet of the moment.” They’ll be joined by pianist Marc-André Hamelin who is celebrated as “a performer of near-superhuman technical prowess” (New York Times)

Webern: Langsamer Satz

Mozart: Quartet in D major, K. 575

Marc-André Hamelin: Piano Quintet

The Studio 7:00 PM

November 8, 2024

Bing Concert Hall 2:30 PM

March 9, 2025

CHAMBER Stanford Live Debut

Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra

Gábor Takács-Nagy, conductor

Johannes Kammler, baritone

Founded in 2005 and considered one of the top chamber orchestras in the world, the Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra is made up of alumni of the Verbier Festival Orchestra training program who now hold positions in leading international ensembles. The extensive list of orchestras is impressive and includes, among others, the Vienna, Berlin, and Israel Philharmonics and the Metropolitan Opera, Royal Concertgebouw, Tonhalle, and London Symphony Orchestras.

Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht, op. 4 Mahler: Lieder eines fahrenden gesellen

Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A major, op. 92

Generously supported by David Wollenberg and The Wollenberg Foundation.

The Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra residency at Stanford Live will focus on the connections between Mahler and the Second Viennese School.

We see this as the template for a new kind of residency, where the scope extends beyond our performance and connects directly to Stanford Live’s mission by integrating the arts, outreach programs and the community. It is an honor and privilege to be invited by Stanford to bring the essence of

the Verbier Festival to America. The ethos of this partnership is based on discovery, experimentation, and the exchange of knowledge between generations. We look forward very much to the collaboration.

Michael Fuller

Head of International Touring and Projects, Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra

Bing Concert Hall 7:30 PM April 25, 2025

EVOLUTION OF MOVEMENT

In 1913, Igor Stravinsky and Vaslav Nijinsky’s radical ballet, The Rite of Spring, premiered with a score marked by dissonant harmonies and irregular rhythmic structures.

This seminal work catalyzed a seismic shift in choreographic language, expanding the possibilities of expression within 20th-century dance. Our exploration of this evolution continues with three programs spanning past, present, and future.

First, Chinese choreographer Yang Liping’s reimagining of this pivotal piece compels us to examine the lineage of dance and its enduring influence on contemporary movement vocabulary.

Next, Daniel Hope’s DANCE! with the New Century Chamber Orchestra offers a diachronic survey of Western dance. This musical journey traces the arc of movement from its medieval origins through its diverse 20th-century manifestations, providing a critical analysis of both tradition and innovation.

Finally, the Robotics Showcase, featuring AXIS Dance Company and Catie Cuan, forecasts the frontiers of movement and dance, where artificial intelligence transforms choreographic potential.

This season’s programming delves into the evolving relationship between music, dance, and technology. As choreographic expression embraces mechanization, complex questions arise regarding human-machine interactions. Plato’s concept of mimesis (imitation) offers a lens through which to examine how humans extend their expressive capabilities via technology. The anthropomorphization of robots reflects our profound need for connection and understanding. This marks the initiation of a multiyear inquiry into the nexus of arts and technology—a provocative and ever-evolving field of study.

Albert Montañez-Sanchez Producer of Artistic Programs

DANCE

US Premiere

Rite of Spring: Yang Liping & Peacock Contemporary Dance

Chinese dance legend and renowned choreographer Yang Liping brings her stunning reimagining of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring to Stanford Live in its U.S premiere. A product of her native Chinese culture intermingled with Tibetan concepts of nature and life, Liping’s Rite of Spring spins an abstract legend of the path of salvation embodied by the sacrificial peacock. Through spectacular set design and exquisite costumes, the production creates a distinctive universe where time, space, and life coexist in endless reincarnation.

Co-commissioned by Stanford Live.

Commissioned work is generously supported by Stanford Live Commissions and Programming Fund donors.

Performance generously supported by Stephanie and Fred Harman.

Memorial Auditorium 7:30 PM

December 6, 2024 December 7, 2024

Hear why a Stanford Live staff member is excited about this show

CHAMBER

DANCE! with New Century Chamber Orchestra

Daniel Hope’s DANCE ! reflects his boundless interest in the most diverse styles and periods of music. Together with New Century Chamber Orchestra, Hope takes listeners on a journey through seven centuries of music history and explores the rhythms that have set bodies in motion and lifted hearts since time began. In addition to the well-known hits by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Handel, or Offenbach, there are many other styles and pieces to discover in this program, such as the Lamento di Tristano from the 14th century or Nicola Conforto’s Fandango from the 18th century.

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM

May 4, 2025

DANCE

AXIS Dance Company and Catie Cuan

Robotics Showcase

At the dawn of the 21st century, the realm of movement and mobility extends beyond conventional limits as it welcomes a new collaborator: robots. AXIS Dance Company, one of the nation’s most acclaimed ensembles of disabled and nondisabled performers, and Catie Cuan, a choreographer, dancer, and roboticist, intertwine human creativity with mechanical precision, not only transforming the artistic landscape but also influencing the world of disability.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM May 21, 2025

Hear why a Stanford Live staff member is excited about this show

SONIC WORLDS: THE HARP

Music of the harp is widely considered pleasurable to the human ear with a sound that can be variously described as beautiful, gently flowing, clear, and brilliant.

Due to its open tuning and richness in overtones, it can evoke associations with the celestial or angelic and has had a prime role in sacred music dating back 2,500 years. The harp is one of the rare plucked instruments in an orchestra, but it often gets little airtime, relegated to an accent for dramatic moments. (Thanks to its calming sound, it can certainly be an aural cliché on a mindfulness and meditation app.) The harp also lends itself to contemporary expressions with a growing body of repertoire and virtuosic performers championing the instrument.

CLASSICAL—Stanford Live Debut

Xavier de Maistre

Xavier de Maistre is one of today’s leading harpists and a profoundly creative musician. As a fierce champion of his instrument, he has broadened the harp repertoire, commissioning new work from various contemporary composers.

de Maistre will perform music selections from De Falla, Debussy, Fauré, Pescetti, Légende, Smetana, and Tárrega.

Bing Concert Hall, with its incredible acoustics, provides a fantastic canvas for the lush, reverberant sound profile of the harp. The season-long sonic journey starts with the Western classical harp with that tradition’s foremost practitioner, Xavier de Meistre. From there, we travel and explore the sheer variety of harps across cultures: from the portable folk instruments of Latin America to the plucked zithers of Asia to the kora from the venerable griot traditions of West Africa and on to the harp in American jazz. As we add shows to the Studio lineup, we will continue to showcase this instrument in its many forms and expressions.

Laura Evans

Director of Programming and Engagement

GLOBAL

Edmar Castañeda

Colombian musician and composer Edmar Castañeda is one of the leaders of the next generation of harp players. He brings his genre-bending quartet that mixes the South American traditional folk-style joropo with jazz and other Latin styles of music to Bing Concert Hall.

Generously supported by The Aufmuth Family.

Listen to a playlist

CLASSICAL—Stanford Live Debut

Lavinia Meijer

Dutch and South Korean award-winning musician Lavinia Meijer is one of the most diverse harpists of the 21st century. Meijer is the only classical artist to have hit the top 10 in the Dutch rock album charts with three consecutive albums. For her performance in the Studio, Meijer will perform pieces written for her by Phillip Glass, as well as piece by Arnalds, Frahm, Cuomo and her own compositions.

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM November 10, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM February 26, 2025

Hear why a Stanford Live staff member is excited about this show

The Studio 7:00 PM March 15, 2025

GLOBAL/JAZZ—Stanford Live Debut

Strings of Hope: Sona Jobarteh and Brandee Younger

A Song for Tomorrow

Step into the captivating world of Strings of Hope , where the enchanting sounds of the kora and harp intertwine like kindred spirits in a flawless sonic tapestry. Experience a mesmerizing performance by musical luminaries Sona Jobarteh and Brandee Younger, a testament to the harmonious collaboration of traditions and a shared desire to weave melodies that resonate with their unique journeys. Don’t miss this extraordinary fusion of musical mastery—an immersive event through the transcendent synergy of two remarkable female talents.

Co-commissioned by Stanford Live.

Commissioned work is generously supported by Stanford Live Commissions and Programming Fund donors.

“Sona Jobarteh is Africa’s first female griot kora virtuoso, and also a fine singer and composer, blending traditional music, blues and Afropop to impressive effect.”

—The Guardian (U.K.)

“Younger has almost single-handedly made a persuasive argument for the harp’s role in contemporary jazz…”

—The New York Times

Bing Concert Hall 7:30 PM April 3, 2025

CHAMBER

Sundays with the St. Lawrence

Bing Concert Hall

Featuring Korngold String Sextet 2:30 PM

October 6, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

Hailed by The New Yorker “not simply for the quality of their music making, exalted as it is, but for the joy they take in the act of connection,” the acclaimed St. Lawrence continues its fabled partnership with Stanford. This season, the St. Lawrence enters a new creative era, presenting collaborative and innovative programs to include renowned guest artists, beloved old friends, Stanford students, and more.

Featuring the Stanford Cello Choir 2:30 PM

January 26, 2025

Bing Concert Hall

Featuring Tchaikovsky String Sextet in D Minor, op. 70, Souvenir de Florence 2:30 PM

April 27, 2025

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra & Chorale Vivaldi, Venice, and the Four Seasons

Avi Avital, mandolin and leader

This concert celebrates the genius of Vivaldi, including his ever-fresh, always evocative Four Seasons, here in the talented hands of the acclaimed mandolin player Avi Avital. Vivaldi’s music is set in its Venetian context with traditional music from the city, featuring Grammy Award-winning soprano Estelí Gomez.

A Bach Christmas Handel’s Alceste

Ruben Valenzuela, conductor

The rich harmonies and musical inventions of Bach are just perfect for the holiday season, and in this concert you’ll hear two of his Advent cantatas, including the famous Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben (Heart and mouth and deed and life). You’ll be sure to know its beautiful and gentle melodies. Alongside the music of Bach are two works by his contemporary Christoph Graupner, music of great grace and elegance.

Peter Whelan, conductor

Originally conceived as a grand multimedia extravaganza—more theatrical spectacle than solely an opera— Handel’s Alceste is as lavish musically as it was meant to be visually. Sensual, alluring, and dramatic, it’s a hedonistic delight from start to finish and is here accompanied by one of the composer’s most popular orchestral works.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

November 8, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

December 11, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

March 5, 2025

Community Engagement

Stanford Live’s community engagement programs increase access to the arts and offer a range of opportunities for participation, learning and discovery. Introducing a broad range of art forms and world culture, our K–12 education programs let students experience the magic of live performance, expand school curriculum, support culturally relevant learning and give teachers tools to bring the arts into classrooms.

K–12 Matinee Performances

Our programs are open to all Bay Area K–12 schools and teachers. Tickets are $8 each, with scholarship assistance available. For more information, please visit live.stanford.edu/k12.

Bing Concert Hall

11:00 AM

September 30, 2024

Fiesta Sonora: A Celebration of Community

11:00 AM

November 14, 2024

Nobuntu

11:00 AM

February 27, 2025

Edmar Castañeda

11:00 AM

March 17, 2025

AXIS Dance Company

11:00 AM

April 10, 2025

Counterpoint: Conrad Tao & Caleb Teicher

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut Fiesta Sonora:

A Celebration of Community

Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles, Ballet Folklórico Nueva Antequera, and Filarmónica Maqueos Music

Celebrate with us in a joyous embrace of diversity, colors, sounds, and culture as we launch the 2024–25 Stanford Live season. Three exceptional Latin ensembles—Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles, Ballet Folklórico Nueva Antequera, and Filarmónica Maqueos Music—will join forces to illuminate the richness of Central American traditions and music. This collaborative performance showcases LGBTQ+ and BIPOC musicians coming together to perform traditional regional music in an otherwise “machista” and discriminating subculture, adding a unique resonance to an unforgettable afternoon with an experience that harmonizes the vibrant tapestry of our collective heritage, aiming to educate and inspire new generations in embracing and preserving their cultural identity.

Community Engagement

Stanford Live provides a broad range of free and low-cost programs that increase community access to the arts and offer many ways to participate. Pre-show conversations, masterclasses, and more will continue to be added throughout the year.

Masterclasses

Watch as some of today’s most sought-after artists coach Stanford students. Masterclasses are free for the general public to observe. Visit live.stanford.edu to RSVP.

Bing Concert Hall 2:30pm September 29, 2024

Hélène Grimaud Masterclass

Bing Concert Hall 4:00 PM November 4, 2024

Natalie Dessay Masterclass

Bing Concert Hall 4:00 PM February 28, 2025

BLUES/JAZZ

Faye Carol TALK

Rob Kapilow: What Makes It Great?

Swing! The Great Big Bands of the Swing Era

Travel back to the 1930s and ’40s, when jazz was America’s most popular music, and everyone was dancing to swing! Host Rob Kapilow takes you inside big band classics like Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood” and Artie Shaw’s “Begin the Beguine” along with music by Count Basie, Duke Ellington, and Benny Goodman.

Blues, Baroque & Bars

Blues, Baroque & Bars , from legendary vocalist The Dynamic Miss Faye Carol, traces the story of Black people in America through the blues—the story of a people and an art form holding the history of Black America from the slave ships to the cotton fields, to segregation, to the present day. Featuring world-renowned drummer Dennis Chambers, Oakland rapper RyanNicole bringing the bars, and a dynamic baroque string quartet, Blues, Baroque, & Bars expounds on the blues, bringing together jazz, classical, hip-hop, funk, R&B, and gospel to tell stories of triumph, sadness, romance, injustice, protest, humor and resilience.

This project has been made possible in part by a grant from the Alliance for California Traditional Arts, in partnership the California Arts Council, a state agency, the Walter & Elise Haas Fund, and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

Bing Concert Hall

4:00 PM

October 13, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM

October 20, 2024

Kelli O’Hara

Kelli O’Hara is one of the most gloriously gifted and versatile vocal and dramatic talents of any era, with a Tony award for her star turn in the New York revival of The King and I, as well as Grammy, Emmy, and Olivier nominations for her wide-ranging work including her role as Laura Brown in the Met Opera’s production of The Hours. Join O’Hara for a night of beloved Broadway classics and personal stories.

Carnival of the Animals

Wendy Whelan, Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Francesca Harper

In a topical new take on Camille Saint-Saëns’ musical menagerie, the Carnival of the Animals , legendary dancer Wendy Whelan performs a whimsical story of shifting societal values, with choreography by Francesca Harper and spoken word by artist and activist Marc Bamuthi Joseph. Transcendent and poignant, this mixtape of body, voice, and sound samples the creators’ own personal journeys to reframe their relationships to gender, race, and a perpetually evolving understanding of the world.

Co-commissioned by Stanford Live.

Commissioned work is generously supported by Stanford Live Commissions and Programming Fund donors.

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM

October 27, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

October 23, 2024

Watch the making of this performance

DANCE—Stanford Live Debut

BROADWAY—Stanford Live Debut

CLASSICAL

Legacy of Wayne Shorter

Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci, Brian Blade, and Mark Turner

Among the most intensely admired composers in jazz, Wayne Shorter is a true legend whose career stretched over half a century. The golden era of this saxophonist’s extraordinary musical journey was marked by the formation of his quartet with Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade, who went forth to confound all preconceptions of jazz in a prolific 24 years of concerts and Grammy Award–winning recordings. Shorter’s great musical legacy lives on through this kindred trio, as they share a fearlessness espoused by their mentor Shorter. Frequently hailed as one of the most influential saxophonists of his generation, Mark Turner joins the group for an exploration of the unknown.

Hélène Grimaud

Hélène Grimaud is a singular pianist, an interpreter known for her fierce intelligence and sincere freedom of expression.

Beethoven: Piano Sonata No.30, Op.109 Brahms: Three Intermezzi for piano, Op. 117

Brahms: Fantasies, Op. 116

Bach/Busoni: Chaconne from Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004

Nobuntu

“Nobuntu”—an expression meaning feminine familial love, humility, and kindness—is the name of a female a cappella quartet from Zimbabwe that draws international acclaim for its breathtaking performances of traditional Zimbabwean songs, Afro jazz, and gospel. Nobuntu’s concerts are performed with pure voices, minimalistic percussion, traditional instruments such as the mbira (thumb piano), and organic, authentic dance movements.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

October 30, 2024

Bing Concert Hall 2:30 PM November 3, 2024

Bing Concert Hall 7:30 PM November 13, 2024

Hear why a Stanford Live staff member is excited about this show

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut

JAZZ—Stanford Live Debut

CLASSICAL

Alisa Weilerstein, cello

Inon Barnatan, piano

Two of today’s most exciting artists are a dream team in their acclaimed recitals together. Cellist Alisa Weilerstein’s impassioned performance style, breathtaking technique, and commitment to new music helped earn her a MacArthur “genius” award at age 29. She has met her musical match in Inon Barnatan, a poet of the keyboard whose sincerity and expressiveness rival his astonishing technical abilities.

Brahms Sonata for Cello and Piano in D major, Op. 78 (arr. from Violin Sonata)

Shostakovich Sonata for Cello and Piano in D minor, Op. 40

Brahms Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 in E minor, Op. 38

Shostakovich Sonata for Viola and Piano, Op. 147 (transcribed for cello by Daniil Shafran)

CHAMBER—Stanford Live Debut

Isidore String Quartet

With its recent selection for the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant and the Jon Ladd Prize, the Isidore String Quartet has a bright future. The young ensemble captured first prize at the Banff International String Quartet Competition after coming together as students at Juilliard, where they were mentored by longtime Juilliard String Quartet cellist Joel Krosnick.

Ravel: String Quartet in F Major (1903)

Seeger: String Quartet (1931)

Schulhoff: Five Pieces for String Quartet (1924)

Bartόk: String Quartet No. 2 in A minor (1917)

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

November 20, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM

December 8, 2024

VOCAL/HOLIDAY

Chanticleer

It wouldn’t be the holidays without Chanticleer at Memorial Church. San Francisco’s treasured men’s vocal ensemble creates a new Christmas program each year, activating the church’s gorgeous acoustics to create a feeling of community and serene beauty.

HOLIDAY

Meow Meow

Feline Festive Holiday

The show may seem like it’s headed off the rails, but this international star always has control. From holiday classics, nothing is off limits for the one-of-a-kind, post-post-modern diva Meow Meow. For an unforgettably steamy evening, settle in with a drink and prepare to be hypnotized, inspired, and slightly terrified as “the chanteuse brilliantly embodies a new kind of performance art” (The New Yorker).

Memorial Church

7:30 PM

December 12, 2024

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

December 13, 2024

Balaklava Blues

KRUTb is an Ukrainian singer and virtuoso of the bandura, a stringed instrument unique to Ukraine that looks and sounds like a hybrid of lute and harp. A Eurovision finalist, KRUTb’s compelling and soulful performances evoke both folk traditions and modern sensibilities, with pop and jazz flourishes.

Falling somewhere between a traditional song cycle and a full-blown multimedia techno show, Balaklava Blues fuses Ukrainian polyphony and other folk traditions with EDM, trap, dubstep, and more as a launching pad to explore the seemingly never-ending blues that have long emanated from the Ukrainian steppe.

The Studio 7:00 PM

January 18, 2025

The Studio 7:00 PM

January 24, 2025

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut KRUTb

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut

Aftab

Arooj Aftab is a singer, composer, and producer known for her genre-blurring approach that includes jazz, minimalism, and romantic Urdu poetry. She has three Grammy nominations and in 2021 became the first Pakistani artist to win a Grammy Award for Best Global Music Performance.

CONTEMPORARY

Sufjan Stevens: Reflections

Featuring Conor Hanick and Timo Andres

Pianist and composer Timo Andres and pianist Conor Hanick come together to perform Sufjan Stevens’ album Reflections Reflections was originally commissioned by Houston Ballet to accompany choreography by Justin Peck (New York City Ballet). Written for two pianos, Reflections is characteristic Stevens: dynamic, melodic, memorable, emotionally resonant, and playful.

CLASSICAL—Stanford Live Debut Stella Chen

American violinist Stella Chen garnered worldwide attention with her first-prize win at the 2019 Queen Elisabeth International Violin Competition. Since then, she has performed with some of the world’s most renowned orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, and more.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

January 25, 2025

Watch a video

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

January 31, 2025

Listen to a playlist

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM

February 2, 2025

CONTEMPORARY—World Premiere

David Lang: before and after nature

Words and Music by David Lang Video and Projections by Tal Rosner Performed by the Bang on a Can All-Stars

When Stanford alumnus David Lang set out to write a new composition for the Bang on a Can (BOAC) All-Stars, the electrifying music ensemble he co-founded, he looked to his alma mater for inspiration. Commissioned by Stanford Live specifically to bring Lang and the BOAC All-Stars back to campus, before and after nature is a meditation on the natural world, both before human existence and after humans are gone.

Lang met closely with scholars, faculty and students in Stanford’s Doerr School of Sustainability, and with the Doerr-affiliated Environmental Justice Working Group. He combined what he learned with his own readings from the past 50 years of environmental thinking, writing his own texts that explore the different ways we define and understand nature, now that it has been forever changed by our behavior. He set these texts for voices and the BOAC All-Stars and he enlisted video pioneer Tal Rosner to invent a way to visualize the meanings of the music in video and projection. The result is an immersive spectacle of sound and vision, both heartbreaking and miraculous, full of beauty, wonder and awe.

Lang is a renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, the recipient of a Grammy Award and an Oscar nomination, with an extensive body of work, including several pieces co-commissioned and presented by Stanford Live, including The Little Match Girl Passion (2007), Death Speaks (2012), and Sun-centered (2022). His most recent work includes large scale choral compositions The Writings (2019) and Poor Hymnal (2023), and the operas Prisoner Of The State (2019) and Note to a Friend (2023).

Co-commissioned by Stanford Live.

Commissioned work is generously supported by Stanford Live Commissions and Programming Fund donors.

Bing Concert Hall 7:30 PM February 1, 2025

THEATER—Stanford Live Debut

Geoff Sobelle: FOOD

Do you need what you eat? Do you eat what you need?

Performer and theater artist Geoff Sobelle hosts an intimate dinner party of smell, taste, and touch. The audience gathers around a gargantuan banquet table for a culinary experience that is at once common and strange, human and surreal, universal and personal.

Sobelle’s latest creation is an absurdist, immersive, and rigorously designed meditation on how we eat, what’s in the soup, and who pays the bill.

A tour-de-force of audience manipulation, hallucinatory sleight-of-hand, and physical comedy, FOOD asks us what missing link fell off the food chain to make us eat the way we do.

Memorial Auditorium

7:30 PM

February 5, 6, 7, 2025

1:30 PM & 7:30 PM February 8, 2025

VOCAL

Renée Fleming, soprano

Renée Fleming is one of the most acclaimed singers of our time, performing on the stages of the world’s greatest opera houses and concert halls. With four Grammy Awards, the U.S. National Medal of Arts, and Kennedy Center Honors, she has sung for momentous occasions ranging from the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to the Super Bowl.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM February 7, 2025

CLASSICAL

Stanford Medicine Orchestra with Joshua Roman Immunity

Immunity is an intimate musical exploration of cellist Joshua Roman’s life-altering, inspiring experience of ongoing long COVID, with music ranging from J. S. Bach to George Crumb to Caroline Shaw, as well as Roman’s own compositions. The program combines performance and storytelling into an emotional journey, as the cellist confronts the impact of the illness and the limitations that nearly ended his career, before progressing through a period of doubt, struggle, refocus, and renewal, culminating in a profound acceptance of self and a deeper connection to what’s most important in life.

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut

Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band

Since time immemorial, songs have been the vessels for stories, lessons, and prayers for the Indigenous people of the Americas. The Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band (JKIBB) continues that sacred tradition, performing new works, reimagined traditional melodies, and standards made famous by the Indigenous jazz musicians who came before us. JKIBB is a sonic celebration of the diversity and vitality of Indigenous voices in jazz—past, present, and future.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

February 12, 2025

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM February 19, 2025

Natalie Dessay and Philippe Cassard

French soprano Natalie Dessay stands prominently among the stars of today’s operatic landscape, enthralling audiences with her dual talents as both a singer and an actress. Following an illustrious career gracing the most prestigious opera stages, including the Paris Opera, Vienna State Opera, Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Salzburg Festival, and Covent Garden, Dessay embarks on her farewell tour. Accompanying her is Philippe Cassard, a highly acclaimed French pianist known for his specialization in the works of Debussy.

An Evening with Branford Marsalis

New Orleans–born Branford Marsalis is an award-winning saxophonist, band leader, featured classical soloist, and a film and Broadway composer. He is a multi-award-winning artist who has received three Grammys and a citation by the National Endowment for the Arts as a Jazz Master and is seen as an avatar of contemporary artistic excellence.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

March 1, 2025

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

March 12, 2025

VOCAL—Stanford Live Debut

Farewell Tour

JAZZ

GLOBAL

Anoushka

Shankar

Placing the sitar front and center, nine-time Grammy nominee Anoushka Shankar incorporates traditional Indian and modern electric music into her work, producing a unique sound that transcends genres. Daughter of acclaimed musician Ravi Shankar, Anoushka‘s exposure to world cultures— from her upbringing in Delhi to her travel throughout the United Kingdom and Southern California—has placed her at the forefront as an activist, human rights ambassador, and highly sought-after musician. Her mastery across styles has led to collaborating with a wealth of talented and popular musicians like Nina Simone, Lenny Kravitz, Madonna, Eric Clapton, Elton John, and Sting.

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut

Anda Union

Anda Union’s thoroughly addictive combination of Mongolian musical styles is a reflection of the members’ roots. Hailing from differing ethnic nomadic cultures, the nine-strong band unites tribal and music traditions from all over Inner Mongolia. Anda Union brings a wide range of musical instruments and vocal styles together in a fusion that Genghis Khan himself would have been proud of. Keenly aware of the threat to the Grasslands and their age-old Mongolian culture, Anda Union members are driven by their fight for the survival of this endangered way of life by keeping the essence of the music alive.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM March 14, 2025

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM March 19, 2025

Orchestra of Great Britain

Lady Gaga. Wagner. Talking Heads. No repertoire is safe from the artistry and insanity of the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. With punk rock sensibilities and restrained British humor, this eight-piece band of expert strummers and singers has charmed audiences the world over. Devilishly irreverent and shockingly eclectic, the orchestra is a bona fide U.K. national treasure, inspiring an international love affair with its humble four-string namesake.

supported

Bing Concert Hall

2:30 PM March 23, 2025

Hear why a Stanford Live staff member is excited about this show

Brad Mehldau is “universally admired as one of the most adventurous pianists to arrive on the jazz scene in years,” writes the Los Angeles Times . A transformative artist blending jazz, classical, and various contemporary influences, Mehldau has had a powerful influence on a generation of musicians and has attracted a large and devoted audience. Some of his best-loved performances have been in the company of his trio.

Bing Concert Hall 7:30 PM April 2, 2025

GLOBAL—Stanford Live Debut Ukulele

JAZZ

Brad Mehldau Trio

Generously

by The Aufmuth Family.

Bing Fling 2025

Bing Fling, Stanford Live’s annual recognition event for our generous Bing members ($7,500+), will take place on Saturday, April 5, 2025.

Bing members who are eligible to receive benefits will enjoy a special cocktail reception and seated dinner, followed by Joshua Bell’s performance. If you intend to join us for Bing Fling, please do not purchase performance tickets separately. A formal Bing Fling invitation will be mailed in November 2024.

If you have any questions about Bing Fling or your eligibility for this member benefit, please contact us at bingfling@stanford.edu or 650.497.4809.

Join or renew your Bing membership at live.stanford.edu/bing to receive complimentary tickets to this event.

Stanford Live’s Bing Fling event is generously supported by Marcia and John Goldman.

CLASSICAL

Joshua Bell

With a career spanning almost four decades, Grammy Award–winning violinist Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated artists of his era.

Bing Concert Hall 8:00 PM April 5, 2025

CLASSICAL/DANCE

Conrad Tao & Caleb Teicher

Counterpoint

Counterpoint is a collaboration between pianist and composer Conrad Tao and choreographer and dancer Caleb Teicher. The duo explores the dichotomy of their different perspectives and artistic practices, expanding their individual expressive capacity through a collective experience. Harmonic, rhythmic, and theatrical counterpoint between the artists seeks to map out constellations linking their disparate traditions, driving the imagination and opening the heart. The stylistically diverse music of Counterpoint includes the Aria from Bach’s Goldberg Variations, Art Tatum’s stride piano, Arnold Schoenberg’s ironic take on the Viennese waltz, a delicate miniature from Tao and Teicher’s More Forever, and, threading it all together, a work that bridges traditions, approaches, and styles—Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue . Tao and Teicher’s earlier work, More Forever, is a Bessie Award-winning, New York Times critic’s pick which was lauded for “constantly extending the sonic aspects of dance.”

“Stillness, silhouettes, geometries: Everything combines to make [Caleb Teicher and Conrad Tao’s] More Forever a new dance world of the imagination.”

—The New York Times

CONTEMPORARY

Third Coast Percussion with Jessie Montgomery

Composer/performer Jessie Montgomery is the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Mead Composer-in-Residence and a recent Grammy Award winner. Third Coast Percussion is thrilled to collaborate with Montgomery in a dynamic program that equally showcases her excellence as visionary creator and virtuosic performer. Her first-ever work for percussion quartet draws a universe of sounds and characters out of a very compact percussion setup and is paired with Lou Harrison’s Concerto for Violin with Percussion Orchestra—a tour de force that draws inspiration from the vibrant sounds of Javanese gamelan.

Co-commissioned by Stanford Live.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

April 9, 2025

Commissioned work is generously supported by Stanford Live Commissions and Programming Fund donors.

Bing Concert Hall

7:30 PM

May 7, 2025

WHY MEMBERSHIP MATTERS

Stanford Live presents a wide range of the finest performances from around the world, fostering a vibrant learning community and providing distinctive experiences through the performing arts. Simultaneously a public square, a sanctuary, and a lab, Stanford Live draws on the breadth and depth of Stanford University to connect performance to the significant issues, ideas, and discoveries of our time.

The generosity and support of our members are vital to advancing our mission. Ticket sales account for a fraction of the support we need. Membership gifts are critical for bringing world-class artists to our venues while fostering deeper engagement between those artists and the communities we serve.

STANFORD LIVE MEMBERS (starting at $100)

Join a group of over 800 donors each year who believe in the transformative power of the performing arts. Making up the largest portion of our support base, members help to sustain and grow vital programs through their commitment.

STANFORD LIVE BING MEMBERS (starting at $7,500)

Join our inner circle of donors who engage on a deeper level. Passionate about our mission, Bing members help to shape the future of the performing arts at Stanford through their commitment.

AREAS OF GIVING IMPACT:

WORLD-CLASS ARTISTS

BREADTH AND DEPTH OF PROGRAMMING

ARTIST RESIDENCIES

COMMISSIONED WORKS

STANFORD STUDENT ENGAGEMENT

K-12 STUDENT ENGAGEMENT

BENEFITS:

To welcome you and show our appreciation, Stanford Live offers member benefits, such as presale access to tickets and invitations to exclusive member events.

JOIN US:

To learn more about membership levels and benefits, please visit live.stanford.edu/support or contact us at supportstanfordlive@stanford.edu or 650.725.8782.

ON K-12 STUDENT ENGAGEMENT:

“The quality of this performance was so amazing, and I absolutely loved the relevance of the topic.

Having such a high-quality artistic performance that not only spoke to a topic of huge importance but also exposed students to a variety of new instruments and musical genres was brilliant. The chance for my students to see their identities validated in such a profoundly beautiful way was so appreciated.”

–K–12 teacher attending student matinee

ON COMMISSIONED WORKS:

“It’s becoming increasingly clear that without new art, our cultural institutions will fossilize. New art is not only a necessary tool to probe our contemporary experience, but it also, at its very best, injects new energy and meaning into the body of older work we already know and love.

Beyond this, the commissioning of new work provides an institution like Stanford University with the opportunity to articulate its vision as one that leans—emphatically—into the future.”

–Samuel

Adams, composer

Memorial Auditorium

Frost Amphitheater

Memorial Church

Bing Concert Hall

The Studio