Tanglewood Learning Institute

Celebrating their 16th season as “a sonically daring ensemble who specializes in performing new works with charisma and integrity” (BBC Music Magazine), the Akropolis Reed Quintet comprises five reed players and entrepreneurs unbounded by limits or categorization. Described by The Wire as a “collective voice driven by real excitement and a sense of adventure,” Akropolis has graced the Classical Billboard Charts with each of their last three albums, including #2 in April 2024. Winner of seven national chamber music prizes including the 2014 Fischoff Gold Medal, Akropolis is known for performing “works that brilliantly exploit their unique instrumentation” (Gramophone). Composed of the same five members that brought about its founding in 2009, Akropolis delivers 120 concerts and educational events worldwide each year and has premiered and commissioned more than 150 works by living artists and composers.

Marc MELLITS Splinter
Derrick SKYE A Soulful Nexus
-Intermission-
Stephanie Ann BOYD Lake of Muses
Jeff SCOTT Selected movements from Homage to Paradise Valley

Alfredo Rodriguez’s ability to “play stories” on the keys allows him to connect with his listeners on a deeply personal level. His albums, including The Invasion Parade, Tocororo, and Duologue reflect his memories of Cuba, his experiences as an immigrant, and his journey of self-discovery through music. He’s been featured by All Things Considered, Downbeat, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Wall Street Journal among many others, and performed for NPR’s Tiny Desk concert. Rodriguez creates an electrifying fusion of Latin, pop, timba, jazz, tango, and funk that will transport you straight to the heart of Havana, and his musical chops will leave you breathless. Don't miss this extraordinary celebration of music, courtesy of Alfredo Rodriguez.

Isaiah J. Thompson is the winner of the 2023 American Pianists Awards and the Cole Porter Fellowship in Jazz of the American Pianists Association. Originally from West Orange, New Jersey, the pianist, bandleader, and composer began studying at the Calderone School of Music from an early age. Soon after, Thompson continued his studies with Jazz House Kids and NJPAC Jazz For Teens and was later admitted to the Juilliard School graduating with both his Bachelor’s in 2019 and Master’s of Music degrees in 2020. At TLI, Isaiah J. Thompson will present Modern Jazz Ministry premiering his most recent work, a suite entitled The Book of Isaiah. There has always been an intersection of jazz and faith that’s been explored throughout history. From Duke Ellington to Mary Lou Williams to John Coltrane, many musicians have placed spirituality at the core of their music. The Book of Isaiah continues this tradition by channeling faith in God through jazz.

Recently described by the New York Times as “the North Star of her instrument’s ever-expanding universe,” musician, interdisciplinary artist, and educator Claire Chase presents a concert of works from her 24-year commissioning initiative, Density 2036, part of the Density Arts family of programs. Performing selections of new works by composers like Terry Riley, Pauline Oliveros, Anna Thorvalsdottir, Vijay Iyer, Marcos Balter, Sarah Hennies, Suzanne Ferrin, George Lewis, and so many more, Chase is cultivating a new body of repertory for the flute each year until the 100th anniversary of Edgard Varèse’s groundbreaking 1936 flute solo, Density 21.5. In this spirit, Density Arts will commission, produce, and record a new program of flute music every year until 2036.

Hilary Poriss, Professor and Chair, Department of Music, Northeastern University

Trumpet greats Jon Faddis and Randy Brecker share the stage with the next generation of trumpet superstars – Benny Benack and Bria Skonberg – along with the Ted Rosenthal Trio, performing music of trumpet legends Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, and others. In addition to amazing trumpet virtuosity and improvisational creativity, the concert will feature the vocals of Benack and Skonberg who have toured together with Jazz at Lincoln Center, and follows up on last September’s sold-out Linde Center performance of Rosenthal's Bernstein & Bop: A Saxophone Colossus.

Karen Slack, soprano 
Kevin Miller, piano

A dazzling collaboration of music and storytelling featuring soprano Karen Slack and new music by acclaimed composers Jasmine Barnes, Damien Geter, Jessie Montgomery, Shawn Okpebholo, Dave Ragland, [BSO Deborah and Philip Edmundson Composer Chair] Carlos Simon, and Joel Thompson along with carefully selected traditional repertoire. Each work reflects the beauty, humility, passion, and power of the Queens being celebrated. The Boston Symphony Orchestra on behalf of the Tanglewood Learning Institute is a project co-commissioner of African Queens.

Concert Theatre Works 
Parker String Quartet

Rainer Maria Rilke’s nine letters to aspiring poet Franz Kappus are a clarion call to artists everywhere. Maurice Ravel’s single, masterful string quartet combines with Rilke’s letters in a unique union of music and text. The production reimagines the lost letters of Franz Kappus, the young poet, completing this famous correspondence in a new concert-theater work translated by Damion Searls and reimagined as a dramatic dialogue by Bill Barclay.

*Celebrating the 150th birth year of Maurice Ravel

Robert Kirzinger, BSO Director of Program Publications
Dawn Upshaw, TMC Head of the Vocal Arts

In collaboration with Castle of our Skins and the Authors Guild Foundation

Based on Nicholas Phan’s innovative BACH 52 web series, these programs will explore the question: “Is the music of Bach for everyone?” Tenor arias with continuo accompaniment from Johann Sebastian Bach’s church cantatas will be paired with interviews with scholars, musicians, and audience-members to probe this question and examine the relevance of Bach’s music to today’s increasingly secular and diverse society.

Based on Nicholas Phan’s innovative BACH 52 web series, these programs will explore the question: “Is the music of Bach for everyone?” Tenor arias with continuo accompaniment from Johann Sebastian Bach’s church cantatas will be paired with interviews with scholars, musicians, and audience-members to probe this question and examine the relevance of Bach’s music to today’s increasingly secular and diverse society.

In collaboration with the Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts (MIFA) and Ensemble for the Romantic Century (ERC)