I’ll be joining my dear friend and colleague Nanci Belmont for her faculty recital at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. We’ll give a performance of Amanda Harburg’s new trio, “Impulsive Nature” of which we were part of a commissioning consortium. Not to be missed, especially for fans of low horn playing and high bassooning!
Join us in the heat for our “Town Hall” program!
Experience the gripping tale of Rigoletto in an illuminating concert performance that puts Verdi’s masterful score center stage. The music erupts in vivid color as the orchestra and cast bring its passion, heartbreak, and high drama to life. This is Rigoletto unveiled—bold, immediate, and unforgettable.
Just days after the general election, the City of Tomorrow will host a “Town Hall” program at Connecticut College. See you there!
New Ballet’s NutRemix ™ 2026 is an electrifying and innovative production that takes the entire family on a captivating journey with a story set on Memphis’ iconic Beale Street. Pulling elements from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, at the heart of NutRemix lies New Ballet’s mission: pushing artistic horizons and making dance accessible to all.
The Memphis Symphony Orchestra and Memphis Jazz Workshop breathe life into classics by Duke Ellington, Booker T. and the MG’s, and also perform a remixed classical Tchaikovsky score. Dynamic choreography weaves a rich tapestry of cultural influences, including hip-hop, Memphis Jookin, flamenco, and West African dance and drumming.
Get ready to relive the holiday magic with ""Home Alone In Concert - Memphis"" at the iconic Orpheum Theatre - Memphis! This delightful event combines the beloved classic film with a live orchestral performance, immersing you in the whimsical world of Kevin McCallister's adventures. The stunning atmosphere of the Orpheum, with its historic charm and vibrant acoustics, will transport you straight into the heart of this festive favorite.
Join us for an unforgettable evening filled with laughter, nostalgia, and the enchanting sounds of the score performed live. Whether you're a lifelong fan or introducing the film to a new generation, this concert promises to be a heartwarming experience for all. Don’t miss your chance to be part of this magical night—book your tickets now and make some holiday memories!
Christmas trees grow, toys come alive, and teens in rat costumes jump all over the place. This year, OBT has expanded the number of performances with live music!
I’ll be coaching chamber music and teaching lessons at the historic Greenwood Music Camp in Western Massachusetts. This elite camp only accepts around 60 students per summer and only a few wind players. Each week, student receive a new piece (not knowing beforehand what it is!) and learn it to a very high level by the performance at the week’s end. Students also sing, have opportunities to write music for each other, and enjoy activities like a big treasure hunt, swimming in the creek, and going to the small town for ice cream.
The Composer’s Conference is one of my favorite gigs of the year, and sometimes the hardest to explain! The composer’s conference at Avaloch Farm is one part chamber music festival, one part intensive for emerging composers (we record and premiere their new works,) a chamber music camp for adult amateurs (who we coach,) and also, an experience for very young (school-aged) composers! The conference has been running for 57 years and I have been honored to be the hornist in the conference ensemble since 2022.
The LGBTQuintet acquired The Lodge! in the fall of 2024 from a generous donor on our board. This summer, July 18th to 22nd, join us at The Lodge! for our first annual Parallel Play Retreat in the High Peaks Wilderness of the Adirondack Mountains!
This retreat is open to anyone in the horn-playing community, regardless of experience or skill level, no audition required – this is an opportunity to come together with members of the LGBTQuintet to build community, learn and grow together, and take time to rest and relax. We can’t wait to welcome you to The Lodge!
Join the City of Tomorrow in Frederick, Maryland as we present our “Town Hall” program at the historic Coffman Chapel, as part of the Hood College Summer Festival Series.
I always feel lucky when I get to go back and teach at YMA, the residential music camp in Salem Oregon! This camp accepts students from beginner though high school and my students are all awesome! My faculty colleagues are truly inspiring and the camp provides leadership training as well as an incredibly nurturing environment. The best place on earth!
Experience a Memphis tradition with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra at the iconic Overton Park Shell for the beloved Sunset Symphony. Led by Music Director Robert Moody, this free outdoor concert brings world-class music to a relaxed, family-friendly setting. Pack a blanket, gather your friends, and enjoy an unforgettable evening under the Memphis sky.
Verdi’s Requiem is music that reaches directly into the soul. It is a powerful, emotional journey through life, death, and the hope for something greater. Written as a tribute to the esteemed novelist Alessandro Manzoni, the first of Verdi’s late masterpieces carries the weight of his deep personal loss yet speaks universally to the struggles we all face: the pain of grief, the fear of the unknown, and the search for peace.
This one-night-only production will electrify the Keller Auditorium for an evening you will never forget.
Violinist and social justice advocate Vijay Gupta gives his Iris debut with a personal and collaborative program that connects masterworks of the past with the music of our time. A 2018 recipient of the MacArthur "Genius" Grant, Vijay Gupta is the founding artistic director of Street Symphony, a community of Los Angeles-based musicians creating performances, workshops, and new songs with neighbors recovering from addiction, homelessness and incarceration. The evening features Bach’s E Major Partita interwoven with Kurtág’s Signs, Games and Messages, a movement from Darshan by Reena Esmail, and Beethoven’s vibrant Septet in E-flat Major, performed with members of the Iris Collective.
🇺🇸
A Celebration of United States composers and music.
IVES Variations on America
BOYER Rhapsody in Red, White, and Blue
HANSON Song of Democracy
TRAD. Lift Every Voice and Sing
BERNSTEIN Suite from Candide
🇺🇸
A Celebration of United States composers and music.
IVES Variations on America
BOYER Rhapsody in Red, White, and Blue
HANSON Song of Democracy
TRAD. Lift Every Voice and Sing
BERNSTEIN Suite from Candide
A visit to the University of Northern Iowa for a performance of my unaccompanied tarot-reading/recital! The recital will be performed at noon in Russell Hall 116. I’ll be visiting with the studio and offering lessons afterwards. FREE
Join the Memphis Symphony Orchestra for an exciting performance of Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique as well as Mason Bates’ “Philharmonia fantastique.” Both of these high-energy and dramatic works will have you on the edge of your seat!
Join the Memphis Symphony Orchestra for an exciting performance of Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique as well as Mason Bates’ “Philharmonia fantastique.” Both of these high-energy and dramatic works will have you on the edge of your seat!
Will we watch the full Star Wars: Return of the Jedi movie?
Yes! The entire movie will be shown on a large screen above the orchestra.
Is it with dialogue?
Yes! All of the dialogue is from the original film, and the orchestra will perform the score (background music) of the movie.
Will there be an intermission?
Yes! During intermission, you can grab a drink and use the restroom.
How will the ASO match the movie playing above them?
Music Director Geoff Robson will conduct the orchestra throughout the full movie. Geoff will have a click track in his ear that is synched with the film and a special version of the film on a laptop in front of him to follow the cues precisely. This is the same setup used for past film concerts, and Geoff is an expert at it!
Will we watch the full Star Wars: Return of the Jedi movie?
Yes! The entire movie will be shown on a large screen above the orchestra.
Is it with dialogue?
Yes! All of the dialogue is from the original film, and the orchestra will perform the score (background music) of the movie.
Will there be an intermission?
Yes! During intermission, you can grab a drink and use the restroom.
How will the ASO match the movie playing above them?
Music Director Geoff Robson will conduct the orchestra throughout the full movie. Geoff will have a click track in his ear that is synched with the film and a special version of the film on a laptop in front of him to follow the cues precisely. This is the same setup used for past film concerts, and Geoff is an expert at it!
Will we watch the full Star Wars: Return of the Jedi movie?
Yes! The entire movie will be shown on a large screen above the orchestra.
Is it with dialogue?
Yes! All of the dialogue is from the original film, and the orchestra will perform the score (background music) of the movie.
Will there be an intermission?
Yes! During intermission, you can grab a drink and use the restroom.
How will the ASO match the movie playing above them?
Music Director Geoff Robson will conduct the orchestra throughout the full movie. Geoff will have a click track in his ear that is synched with the film and a special version of the film on a laptop in front of him to follow the cues precisely. This is the same setup used for past film concerts, and Geoff is an expert at it!
Tarot takes center stage in a one-of-a-kind evening that blends live music, mysticism, and storytelling into an experience you won’t want to miss. Surrounded by the velvet curtains in the Crosstown Arts Green Room, ARCANA, a solo horn concert, unfolds as a ritualized communal tarot reading and a whimsical lecture on the history and meaning of the cards. French horn player Leander Star leads the night, featuring cartomancy by Leander and works for solo horn by Gilson Santos, Nate Kessler, Sofia Coman, Trygve Madsen, Charlie Aveon, Alice Gomez, Daniel Grabois, Rian Edwards, Shanyse Strickland, Tommi Hyytinen, and Leander Star. Wondering what to expect? Let the cards reveal it to you!
Experience the power and passion of Brahms’ long-awaited First Symphony—an epic work years in the making. Music Director Robert Moody explores how Brahms wrestled with Beethoven’s legacy to create a bold, heartfelt masterpiece that stands tall in its own right.
The Orchestra Unplugged is a partnership between the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and the Orpheum Theatre Group.
Kicking off an early spring break, I’m joining the Memphis Symphony Orchestra for their performance of Holst’s “The Planets.” More details at https://memphissymphony.org/calendar
We’ll be visiting the Memphis, TN Crosstown Green Room again, performing on the Mississippi Art Museum’s “Music in the City” series in Jackson, MS, as well as visiting Louisiana State University and the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg. For more details, check www.thecityoftomorrow.org.
The City of Tomorrow will be in residency at the newly relocated VCFA, now at Susquehanna University in Pennsylvania. There, we will work with students on new works for wind quintet, a world-class faculty, and perform a few works of our own. More info will be available soon at thecityoftomorrow.org
As someone who grew up in a ballet dancing household, Swan Lake holds a special place in my heart. The music is one of Tchaikovsky's most beautiful scores - with lots of juicy horn parts! The story is tragic and romantic. If you're in the Portland Oregon area, don't miss it!
Coming in to Oregon with a titan blast! I’ll be joining the horn section of the Oregon Symphony for Mahler’s epic First Symphony. More about the concert:
Mahler’s First Symphony charts a journey in which the composer crosses tranquil meadows, witnesses a funeral march, and triumphs over self-doubt. Plus, violinist Benjamin Beilman brings his talent to showstopping miniatures by Ravel and Saint-Saëns.
Program:
Gabriel Kahane: Judith (World premiere and Oregon Symphony commission)
Saint-Saëns: Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso
Ravel: Tzigane
Mahler: Symphony No. 1
Artists
David Danzmayr, Conductor
Benjamin Beilman, Violin
Iris' own Michael Stern conducts an unforgettable concert celebrating American musical heritage, featuring a newly commissioned saxophone concerto by famed jazz composer Billy Childs performed by guest artist Steven Banks.
April 29, 2023
7:30 pm
The Germantown Performing Arts Center
Our plucky tuben ensemble will perform Thick Line by Alex Temple at the Northwestern University New Music Conference (NUNC!) on Sunday, April 23 at 2 pm in the McClintock Choral and Recital Room found on first floor of the RCMA on the Northwestern University campus. Come say hello!
I always feel lucky when I get to go back and teach at YMA, the residential music camp in Salem Oregon! This camp accepts students from beginner though high school and my students are all awesome! My faculty colleagues are truly inspiring and the camp provides leadership training as well as an incredibly nurturing environment. The best place on earth!
Elise and I will be performing a recital on the Music in the City Series at the Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson, MS.
Stay tuned for more information!
Two heavy hitters in the classical music realm join Iris Orchestra in March. Israeli pianists Inon Barnatan and Alon Goldstein have each performed with Iris in seasons past: this commemorative concert doubles the impact by bringing both as they band together to perform Mozart’s delightful Concerto for Two Pianos in E-flat Major. The piece will be preceded by a work commissioned in memory of Peter Formanek, a passionate supporter of Iris whose passing in 2020 marks a deep loss. In this new, post-COVID world, the program will appropriately conclude with a work that was one of Peter’s favorites: Dvořák’s New World Symphony.
“Love comes in many forms. It’s not always sweet. It can be demanding, consuming, and even a bit… bloodthirsty. Get ready as OBT takes a uniquely Portland approach to the month of love with the premiere of Ben Stevenson’s deliciously spine-chilling Dracula, based on Bram Stoker’s 1897 gothic novel of the same. Dissatisfied with his bevy of undead brides, Count Dracula fixates on Svetlana, a young girl on the cusp of engagement, to satiate his thirst for fresh blood. Abducted by Dracula’s faithful henchman Renfield, Svetlana is dragged away to the Count’s castle from where she may never escape but for the heroism of her true love, Frederick. A haunting score by Franz Liszt – performed live by the OBT Orchestra! – sets the tone for this immersive fairy tale, with awe-inspiring theatrics, vampire brides, stunning sets, and exquisite dancing. Don’t miss this Broadway spectacle that will spook and delight young and old alike, and remind us all of the power of true love.”
My quintet will be visiting Memphis and the Midsouth for exciting concerts and school visits. So far, dates include:
Feb 10 - Crosstown Concourse, Memphis TN
Feb 11 - University of Mississippi, Nutt Auditorium 7:30
More details to come. Stay tuned! https://www.thecityoftomorrow.org
