Aspen Music Festival and School Announces 75th Anniversary Season

Photo: Alex Irvin

(February 2024) — In 2024, the Aspen Music Festival and School (AMFS) celebrates 75 years of
presenting grand, intimate, experimental, and deeply personal performances, as well as 74
years of deep mentorship of young artists. The season’s theme is “Becoming Who You Are,”
exploring Aspen’s impact on the musical and personal development of thousands of important
musicians, while also honoring AMFS’s strengths in the present and future. As always, more than
450 young artists from around the world will join the artist-faculty – the latter drawn from all
the major orchestras and music schools around the country – along with an array of guest artists,
for almost 200 public events in eight weeks. From its beginnings, the AMFS has been renowned in
the classical music world for its level of both artistry and camaraderie, and this special alchemy will
be celebrated all 53 nights of the 2024 season.

Music Director Robert Spano leads five orchestral programs, including his first public
performance of Mahler’s Ninth Symphony (July 28). He conducts the season’s opening Sunday
Aspen Festival Orchestra (AFO) concert, featuring Renée Fleming singing a world premiere by
composer and AMFS President and CEO Alan Fletcher (June 30), and he leads the closing Sunday
AFO concert with Garrick Ohlsson playing Liszt’s Second Piano Concerto and a concert
presentation of Act III from Wagner’s Die Walküre with Christine Goerke, Greer Grimsley and
Aspen alumna Tamara Wilson (Aug 18). In addition, he helms a performance of Bach’s Mass in B
Minor with Seraphic Fire (Aug 8) and an Aspen Chamber Symphony concert with Joyce Yang and
Kelley O’Connor, featuring music of Gabriela Lena Frank, Peter Lieberson and Manuel de Falla
(July 12). He performs as a pianist in Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time alongside AMFS
artist-faculty (July 18), partners with AMFS faculty members Robert Chen and Mark Sparks for
sonatas by Brahms (July 13 & 20) and joins Lawrence Power for a new piano and viola work by
Thomas Adès (Aug 10). He also makes a cameo four-hand appearance alongside Alan Fletcher in
“An Evening of P.D.Q. Bach” (July 6). In addition to his performance activities, Spano continues his
role as head of the Aspen Conducting Academy (ACA) where he will mentor ten emerging
conductors who train with (and play in) a dedicated symphony orchestra.

Other highlights of the season include:

Daniil Trifonov and Leonidas Kavakos in their first recital appearance together (Aug 17)
New editions of Alisa Weilerstein’s FRAGMENTS project for solo cello (July 2, 3)
Conrad Tao performs Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue along with his own companion piece (July 16)
Soprano Karen Slack performs “African Queens,” with works by Jessie Montgomery, Shawn Okpebholo, and Joel Thompson (Aug 7)
The Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS program, led by Aspen alumna Renée Fleming
and conductor Patrick Summers, presents Hansel and Gretel (July 19), The Marriage of
Figaro (Aug 12, 15, 17) and a concert production of Music for New Bodies, a new vocal cycle
created by Matthew Aucoin and Peter Sellars and co-commissioned by the AMFS (July 1)
Pinchas Zukerman returns to Aspen after a long absence with the Zukerman Trio (July 31)
AMFS spotlight on the legacy of Dorothy DeLay, who taught in Aspen from 1971 to 2001 (July 29–Aug 4)

Celebrated AMFS alumni, guest performers and visiting composers
Alumni spanning more than 50 years of the AMFS, along with a stellar array of guest artists, will be
on hand this summer for a variety of performances and workshops. Included are the American
Brass Quintet, Teddy Abrams, Inon Barnatan, Joshua Bell, Yefim Bronfman, James Conlon,
Roderick Cox, Danish String Quartet, Jeremy Denk, Simone Dinnerstein, Kevin John Edusei,
Renée Fleming, Zlatomir Fung, James Gaffigan, Jane Glover, Augustin Hadelich, Stephen
Hough, Sharon Isbin, Leonidas Kavakos, Jennifer Koh, Bruce Liu, Cristian Măcelaru,
Alexander Malofeev, Robert McDuffie, Nicholas McGegan, Edgar Meyer, Midori, Garrick
Ohlsson, David Robertson, Gil Shaham, Leonard Slatkin, Takács Quartet, Conrad Tao, Chris
Thile, Daniil Trifonov, Alisa Weilerstein, Joyce Yang, Harmony Zhu, and the Zukerman Trio.

A roster of visiting composers and composer-performers also joins composer-in-residence
Christopher Theofanidis this summer, including Matthew Aucoin, Isabella Gellis, Anders
Hillborg, Wang Lu, Steven Mackey, Missy Mazzoli (principal guest composer), Jessie
Montgomery, Nico Muhly, Adam Schoenberg, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Augusta Read Thomas
and Joel Thompson.

“Dorothy DeLay Week”
The legendary violin teacher Dorothy DeLay taught in Aspen for 30 years, from 1971 to 2001, and
in her honor the sixth week of the festival (July 29–Aug 4) will feature two of her students, Gil
Shaham and Midori, in performance. The rest of the week will be filled with open classes,
competitions, and panels spotlighting the transformational mentorship that goes on every day in an
Aspen summer.

Special Reminiscence Concerts
Four concerts in 2024 will offer special reminiscences by longtime Aspen alumni artists. Each
participant created a bespoke program to share meaningful music and personal stories of their
decades in Aspen – as students, as faculty, and as guest artists.

American String Quartet (July 8)
On the occasion of its 50th anniversary of performing in Aspen, the American String Quartet
looks back on its own musical history and deep friendships at the festival.
Violinists Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony (July 25)
A student of Dorothy DeLay, Gil Shaham came to Aspen as a youth when his father
participated as a physicist at the Aspen Center for Physics. Shaham and fellow violinist
Adele Anthony have spent four decades together studying, performing, and teaching in
Aspen.
Classical guitarist Sharon Isbin (July 30)
The Aspen alumna and director of Aspen’s classical guitar program looks back on 34 years
in Aspen, starting with her years as a student of the great Oscar Ghiglia.
Violinist Robert McDuffie (Aug 14)
Another student of Miss DeLay’s, Robert McDuffie tells stories of being in the dorm, bringing
his best for Miss DeLay, and his journey from student to performer to teacher and leader of
his own educational institutions.

Premieres, Commissions, Composition
Aspen has a long history of fostering and performing contemporary works. The Schumann Center
for Composition Studies is led by composer-in-residence Christopher Theofanidis, and its
students are also taught by AMFS President and CEO Alan Fletcher, Music Director Robert Spano,
and visiting composers (see above). The AMFS also participates in the growth and expansion of the
art form by actively co-commissioning new works. AMFS co-commissions to be featured this
summer are:

June 28: Joel Thompson’s To See the Sky (AMFS co-commission) (2023)
June 30: Alan Fletcher’s American Songs (world premiere, AMFS co-commission) (2024)
July 1: Matthew Aucoin’s Music for New Bodies (AMFS co-commission) (2023)
July 6: Jessie Montgomery’s new work (AMFS co-commission) (2024)
July 10: Isabella Gellis’s new work (AMFS commission, world premiere, 2023 Druckman
Prize Winner)
July 16: Conrad Tao’s new work (AMFS co-commission)
July 27: Adam Schoenberg’s new work (AMFS co-commission)
Aug 10: Anders Hillborg’s Viola Concerto (AMFS co-commission)
Aug 16: Christopher Theofanidis’s Flute Concerto (AMFS co-commission) (2024)
Aug 17: Augusta Read Thomas’s ABRACADABRA (AMFS co-commission, world premiere)
(2024)

Fresh music is interwoven through the Aspen summer every year. The Aspen Contemporary
Ensemble, led by Timothy Weiss, performs new works every Saturday, and new works are
programmed on virtually every orchestra and recital program. This summer, on July 6, the AMFS
pays tribute to its former student, the late Peter Schickele, with “An Evening of P.D.Q. Bach”; on
July 29, the Aspen Percussion Ensemble presents an All-Zappa program with special
permission from the Zappa family.

Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS
Superstar soprano Renée Fleming remembers her student years in the 1980s with deep affection.
She particularly remembers her roles in Conrad Susa’s Transformations, based on the poems of
Anne Sexton, and The Marriage of Figaro. In fact, it was in Aspen she first sang the role of Countess
Almaviva, a role in which she later made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera. But as much as the
opera, she remembers growing as a human: making connections, daily bike rides up to the Maroon
Bells, and gathering with other students in the home of the great singer and teacher Jan DeGaetani.

In 2024, Fleming leads the fourth year of the Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS (AOTVA)
program with co-artistic director Patrick Summers. This summer, AOTVA students present
Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, semi-staged with full orchestra in the Klein Music Tent,
conducted by Summers (July 19); The Marriage of Figaro, fully staged in the Wheeler Opera
House, conducted by Matthew Aucoin (Aug 12, 15, 17); and Music for New Bodies, a concert
production of a new song cycle (to be premiered in April in Houston, AMFS co-commission),
created by Aucoin and director Peter Sellars (July 1).

AMFS History
The Aspen Music Festival and School started as a bold dream in June 1949, when Walter and
Elizabeth Paepcke, with others from the University of Chicago, organized an event that brought
leaders, artists, thinkers, and dreamers to the remote, dusty ex-mining mountain town of Aspen to
discuss big ideas and, naturally, to listen to music that touched the soul. Their vision for the 1949
Goethe Bicentennial Convocation and Music Festival was to heal, hope and reach for the best in
humanity in response to the devastation following World War II. More than 2,000 people made the
trek to attend, as reported in the New York Times.

Participants included novelist Thornton Wilder, Spanish philosopher José Ortega y Gasset, Italian
literature professor Giuseppe Antonio Borgese, Israeli theologian Martin Buber, and doctor,
humanitarian, and music scholar Albert Schweitzer on his first and only trip to the United States.
Musicians included pianist Arthur Rubinstein, Dimitri Mitropoulos, and the entire Minnesota
Symphony Orchestra.

The experience was both profound and joyful, and the following year the musicians returned. They
brought their students, their ideals, and their hiking boots. Walter Paepcke asked singer Mack
Harrell (father of cellist Lynn Harrell) to form a school. And just like that, an annual music festival
and school was born.

Over seven decades, Aspen’s magic has been in this combination of seasoned professionals and
youth as colleagues and co-inspiring forces. Musicians don’t just come to Aspen to perform, they
come to connect with other musicians, mentor and be mentored, find their best selves and share
them authentically. Aspen students fill every corner of the music world today – performing in
orchestras or as soloists, singing, composing, conducting and teaching. Alumni include conductors
Leonard Slatkin and James Conlon, violinists Gil Shaham and Midori, cellist Alisa Weilerstein, and
bassist Edgar Meyer. Even former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice took a turn in Aspen before
giving up piano for politics.

From the beginning, Aspen has had the feeling of a “retreat,” a place to create and experiment, a
tradition that is continued today. In 1950, Igor Stravinsky conducted his own works in the Music
Tent, paving the way for so many composers to visit, study, and teach in Aspen, including Darius
Milhaud – who led the contemporary music charge in Aspen from 1952-1968 – Aaron Copland,
Elliott Carter, Virgil Thomson, George Crumb, Jacob Druckman, William Schuman, Olivier Messiaen,
Peter Maxwell Davies, David Lang, David del Tredici, Philip Glass, Peter Schickele, and, more
recently, Augusta Read Thomas, George Tsontakis, Christopher Rouse, Rufus Wainwright, Kaija
Saariaho, Missy Mazzoli, Anthony Davis, John Luther Adams, and Nico Muhly.

Today Aspen continues to create, educate, and inspire. In 2024, more than 450 students will
participate in orchestra, opera, chamber music, piano, classical guitar, composition, and conducting
studies. It is the largest summer training program of its caliber – larger than all its peers combined.

About Music Director Robert Spano
Robert Spano, conductor, pianist, composer, and teacher, is known worldwide for the intensity of
his artistry and distinctive communicative abilities, creating a sense of inclusion and warmth
among musicians and audiences that is unique among American orchestras. After twenty seasons
as Music Director, he continues his association with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as Music
Director Laureate. An avid mentor to rising artists, he is responsible for nurturing the careers of
numerous celebrated composers, conductors, and performers. As Music Director of the Aspen
Music Festival and School since 2011, he oversees the programming of more than 300 events and
educational programs for 630 students and young performers. Principal Guest Conductor of the
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra since 2019, Spano began his tenure as Music Director in August
2022, and will continue there through the 2027-2028 season. Spano was recently appointed
Principal Conductor of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School and most recently,
Music Director of the Washington National Opera, beginning in the 2025–2026 season.

About the Aspen Music Festival and School
The AMFS is the United States’ premier classical music center for performance and education,
presenting more than 200 musical events during its eight-week summer season in Aspen. The
organization draws top classical musicians from around the world for a rich combination of
orchestral performances, opera, chamber music, recitals, contemporary music, works by new or
previously unrecognized voices, popular genres, family events, talks, competitions, and classes.

More than 450 music students from 40 U.S. states and 40 countries come each summer to play in
four orchestras, sing, conduct, compose and study. The more than 100 artist-faculty members come
from the orchestras of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Dallas, and the Metropolitan Opera, as well
as leading conservatories and music schools like the Juilliard School, the Shepherd School of Music
at Rice University, and the Colburn School. Students represent the field’s best talent; many have
already begun their professional careers, and others are on the cusp.

The AMFS is deeply committed to community, and many events are free. Seating outside the Music
Tent on the David Karetsky Music Lawn and in the Kaye Music Garden is always free. Regular
livestreams are free anywhere in the world. The AMFS also runs popular in-school and after-school
music programs at most schools in Colorado’s Roaring Fork Valley.

_________________________________

Event and Ticket information
The full summer schedule is now available. Tickets go on sale to the public April 24.

Online: www.aspenmusicfestival.com
Phone: 970-925-9042
Email: [email protected]

aspenmusicfestival.com
facebook.com/aspenmusic
instagram.com/aspenmusicfest
twitter.com/aspenmusic
youtube.com/user/aspenmusicfest

Aspen Music Festival and School 2024
Wed, June 26 at 7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Opening Night
Harmony Zhu, piano
SCHUBERT: Four Impromptus, D. 899, Op. 90
R. SCHUMANN: Fantasiestücke , Op. 12
RAVEL: Gaspard de la nuit

Thu, June 27 at 6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Special Event
Aspen Festival Ensemble
Teddy Abrams, conductor
Chris Thile, mandolin
Chris THILE: ATTENTION!: A narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra

Fri, June 28 at 4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
James Gaffigan, conductor
Daniil Trifonov, piano
DEBUSSY: Prélude à l’après midi d’un faune
MOZART: Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat, K. 271, “Jeunehomme”
Joel THOMPSON: To See the Sky (AMFS co-commission)
R. SCHUMANN: Symphony No. 4 in D minor, Op. 120

Sat, June 29 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Donald Crockett and Jonathan Haas, conductors
Bing Wang, violin
James Dunham, viola
Darrett Adkins and Desmond Hoebig, cello
Anton Nel and Myra Huang, piano
Cynthia Yeh, percussion
Jihyun KIM: Once Upon a Time
Morton SUBOTNICK: The Key to Songs
SCHUBERT: Piano Trio in B-flat, D. 898, Op. 99

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Daniil Trifonov and Sergei Babayan, piano
RACHMANINOFF: Suite No. 1 for Two Pianos, Fantaisie-tableaux, Op. 5
RACHMANINOFF: Suite No. 2 for Two Pianos, Op. 17
RACHMANINOFF: Symphonic Dances, Op. 45

Sun, June 30 at 3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk
Patrick Chamberlain, speaker

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Robert Spano, conductor
Renée Fleming, soprano
R. STRAUSS: Also sprach Zarathustra , Op. 30
Alan FLETCHER: American Songs (world premiere, AMFS co-commission)
R. STRAUSS: “Muttertändelei, ” Op. 43, No. 2
R. STRAUSS: “Die Zeit, die ist ein Sonderbar Ding” from Der Rosenkavalier, Op. 59
R. STRAUSS: “Cäcilie,” Op. 27, No. 2
RESPIGHI: Pines of Rome

Mon, July 1 at 7 pm
Wheeler Opera House
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Timothy Weiss, conductor
Peter Sellars, director
Matthew AUCOIN: Music for New Bodies (AMFS co-commission)

Tue, July 2 at 6 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Violin Competition

6 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
String Showcase

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
FRAGMENTS I with Alisa Weilerstein, cello

8 pm
Klein Music Tent
Wind Orchestra Recital
Joaquín Valdepeñas, conductor
DENISOV: Music for Eleven Wind Instruments and Timpani
MOZART: Wind Serenade in B-flat, K. 361, “Gran Partita”

Wed, July 3 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

5 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
Brian Raphael NABORS: Onward
KNUSSEN: The Way to Castle Yonder, Op. 21a
BRITTEN: “Four Sea Interludes” from Peter Grimes, Op. 33a
BRAHMS: Symphony No. 3 in F, Op. 90

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
FRAGMENTS II with Alisa Weilerstein, cello

Thu, July 4 at 4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Fourth of July Concert
Lawrence Isaacson, conductor
National Youth Pipe Band of Scotland

Fri, July 5 at 12:30 pm
Crossroads Church
The Art of Listening
Tom Buesch, speaker

1 pm
Wheeler Opera House
Piping Class with The National Piping Centre of Scotland
Findlay MacDonald, bagpipes

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Michael Rusinek, clarinet
Nancy Goeres, bassoon
Stuart Stephenson, trumpet
Inon Barnatan, piano
HAYDN: Symphony No. 31 in D, Hob I/31 “Hornsignal”
SHOSTAKOVICH: Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor, Op. 35
R. STRAUSS: Duet-Concertino
HAYDN: Symphony No. 100 in G, Hob. I/100, “Military”

Sat, July 6 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain
The National Piping Centre of Scotland

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Chamber Music
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Donald Crockett, conductor
Augustin Hadelich, Bing Wang, Renata Arado, Cornelia Heard, Naoko Tanaka, violin
Victoria Chiang, viola
Alexander “Sasha” Ishov, flute
Emily Levin, harp
Inon Barnatan and Anton Nel, piano
Jessie MONTGOMERY: New Work (AMFS co-commission)
LEO: Concerto for Four Violins and Continuo
DEBUSSY: Sonata for Flute, Viola, and Harp
CHAUSSON: Concert in D, Op. 21

6 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Low Strings Competition

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
An Evening with P.D.Q. Bach

Sun, July 7 at 3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk
Andrew Ralston, speaker

3:30 pm
Meadows Campus
The National Piping Centre presents The National Youth Pipe Band of Scotland

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Dima Slobodeniouk, conductor
Augustin Hadelich, violin
Wang LU: Surge
PROKOFIEV: Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 63
RACHMANINOFF: Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27

7 pm
Aspen Community Church
Christopher Houlihan, organ

Mon, July 8 at 6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
American String Quartet
Peter Winograd, violin
Laurie Carney, violin
Daniel Avshalomov, viola
Wolfram Koessel, cello
BEETHOVEN: String Quartet in F, Op. 135
SHOSTAKOVICH: String Quartet No. 13 in B-flat, Op. 138
RAVEL: String Quartet in F

Tue, July 9 at 1 pm
Harris Concert Hall Class
Steven Isserlis, cello

6 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
String Showcase

6:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
2024 Opera Benefit
Will Liverman, baritone

Wed, July 10 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

5 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
Isabella GELLIS: New Work (AMFS commission, 2023 Druckman Prize winner)
TBA: Violin Competition Winner
SIBELIUS: Lemminkäinen Suite, Op. 22

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Jeremy Denk, piano
BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No. 27 in E minor, Op. 90
JOPLIN: Bethena, ragtime waltz
GOTTSCHALK: The Banjo, Op. 15
SIMONE: Just in Time (transcribed)
William BOLCOM: “The Poltergeist” from Three Ghost Rags
BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat, Op. 110
IVES: Piano Sonata No. 2, “Concord, Mass., 1840–60”

Thu, July 11 at 3 pm
Private residence to be announced
Opera House Music

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Steven Isserlis, cello
HAYDN: Overture to Orlando paladino, Hob. 28/11
HANDEL: Selections from Orlando
J. S. BACH: Cantata No. 51, “Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen,” BWV 51
HAYDN: Cello Concerto in C, Hob. VIIb:1

Fri, July 12 at 12:30 pm
Crossroads Church
The Art of Listening
Tom Buesch, speaker

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
Robert Spano, conductor
Kelley O’Connor, mezzo-soprano
Joyce Yang, piano
Gabriela Lena FRANK: Haillí-Serenata
LIEBERSON: Neruda Songs
FALLA: Noches en los jardines de España (Nights in the Gardens of Spain)
FALLA: El amor brujo (Love Bewitched)

Sat, July 13 at 10 am
Klein Music Tent
Family Concert
Piotr Waclawik, conductor
PROKOFIEV: Peter and the Wolf, Op. 67

10 am
Page 14 of 30
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Timothy Weiss and Donald Crockett, conductors
Robert Chen, violin
Nadine Asin, flute
Michael Rusinek, clarinet
Mingjia Liu, oboe
Nancy Goeres, bassoon
Robert Spano and Joyce Yang, piano
BIRTWISTLE: Theseus Game
BRAHMS: Violin Sonata No. 2 in A, Op. 100
POULENC: Sextet

6:30 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Sonata Showcase

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Special Event
Joshua Bell, violin
Steven Isserlis, cello
Jeremy Denk, piano
AMFS Artist-Faculty
FAURÉ:
Piano Quintet No. 2 in C minor, Op. 115
Piano Trio in D minor, Op. 120
Piano Quartet No. 2 in G minor, Op. 45

Sun, July 14 at 9:30 am
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra Dress Rehearsal

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk
Katie Brill, speaker

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Jane Glover, conductor
Joshua Bell, violin
Steven Isserlis, cello
Jeremy Denk, piano
BARTÓK: Concerto for Orchestra, BB 123
BEETHOVEN: Concerto for Violin, Cello, and Piano in C, Op. 56, “Triple”

7 pm
Aspen Chapel
Art Song Sessions

Tue, July 16 at 9 am
Klein Music Tent
Composition Program Readings
Robert Spano, conductor

1 pm
Harris Concert Hall Class
Joyce Yang, piano

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Piotr Waclawik, conductor
Conrad Tao, piano
MILHAUD: La création du monde, Op. 81
Conrad TAO: New Work (AMFS co-commission)
GERSHWIN/GROFÉ: Rhapsody in Blue

Wed, July 17 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
Missy MAZZOLI: Orpheus Undone
TBA: Low Strings Competition Winner
MOZART: Overture to Die Zauberflöte , K. 620
MOZART: Symphony No. 39 in E-flat, K. 543

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
“As We Speak”
Béla Fleck, banjo
Zakir Hussain, tabla
Edgar Meyer, bass
Rakesh Chaurasia, bansuri
Program to be announced from the stage

Thu, July 18 at 12 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Woodwinds Competition

3 pm
Private residence to be announced
Salon Showcase House Music

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
ABQ Seminar @Aspen Recital

5:15 pm
Basalt Regional Library Recital

6 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
String Showcase

6 pm
Klein Music Tent
Piano–Palooza
Hung-Kuan Chen, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Anton Nel, Arie Vardi, piano

7:30 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Brass Bash I

8 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Bing Wang, violin
Darrett Adkins, cello
Michael Rusinek, clarinet
Robert Spano, piano
MESSIAEN: Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Time)

Fri, July 19 at 9 am
Klein Music Tent
Composition Program Readings
Robert Spano, conductor

12:30 pm
Crossroads Church
The Art of Listening
Tom Buesch, speaker

7:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS
Patrick Summers, conductor
Colorado Children’s Chorale
Emily Crile, chorus director
HUMPERDINCK: Hansel and Gretel

Sat, July 20 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain

1 pm
Klein Music Tent
Composition Program Readings
Robert Spano, conductor

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Timothy Weiss, conductor
Herdís M. Guðmundsdóttir, Robert Chen, Laura Park Chen, violin
Zhenwei Shi, viola
Darrett Adkins, cello
Mark Sparks, flute
Katherine Siochi, harp
Robert Spano, piano
Missy MAZZOLI: These Worlds in Us
Missy MAZZOLI: Dark with Excessive Bright
TAKEMITSU: And then I knew ‘twas wind
BRAHMS: Clarinet Sonata in E-flat, Op. 120, No. 2
BEETHOVEN: String Quartet in D, Op. 18, No. 3

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
American Brass Quintet
Kevin Cobb and Brandon Ridenour, trumpet
Eric Reed, French horn
Hillary Simms, trombone
John D. Rojak, bass trombone
Anthony BARFIELD: Samsara
Jennifer HIGDON: Book of Brass
David SAMPSON: A Murder of Crows (world premiere)
J.S. BACH/KING: Contrapuncti III, VII and IX from The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080

Sun, July 21 at 3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk
Jonathan Bellman, speaker

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Leonard Slatkin, conductor
Bruce Liu, piano
COPLAND: El salón México
PROKOFIEV: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C, Op. 26
ROUSE: “The Infernal Machine” from Phantasmata
BARBER: Adagio for Strings, Op. 11
GERSHWIN: An American in Paris

Mon, July 22 at 3:30 pm
Private residence to be announced
Opera House Music

Tue, July 23 at 1 pm
Harris Concert Hall Class
Mikhail Voskresensky, piano

7:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Special Event: Theatre Aspen Collaboration TBD

Wed, July 24 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
A Mariachi Celebration

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Jennifer Koh, violin
Missy Mazzoli, piano
Missy MAZZOLI:
Dissolve, O my Heart
A Thousand Tongues
Tooth and Nail
Kinski Paganini
The Night Ahead and No Real Fate
A Song for Mick Kelly
Hail, Horrors, Hail
All I Want is All of It
Procession Ascending
Vespers for Violin

Thu, July 25 at 3 pm
Private residence to be announced
Salon Showcases House Music

5:15 pm
Basalt Regional Library Recital

6 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Brass Competition

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony, violin
Choong-Jin Chang, viola
Brinton Averil Smith, cello
Joaquín Valdepeñas, clarinet
Anton Nel, piano
J.S. BACH/RICCI: Presto from Violin Sonata No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001
Ross EDWARDS: Ecstatic Dance
Julian MILONE: TBD
MOSZKOWSKI: Suite for Two Violins and Piano, Op. 71
BRAHMS: Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115

Fri, July 26 at 9 am
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony Dress Rehearsal

12:30 pm
Crossroads Church
The Art of Listening
Tom Buesch, speaker

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
Dalia Stasevska, conductor
Jennifer Koh, violin
Outi TARKIAINEN: The Ring of Fire and Love
Missy MAZZOLI: Violin Concerto (Procession)
SIBELIUS: Symphony No. 2 in D, Op. 43

Sat, July 27 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
Patrick Summers, conductor

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Timothy Weiss, conductor
Kathleen Winkler and Adele Anthony, violin
Michael Mermagen and Brinton Averil Smith, cello
Anton Nel, piano
Adam SCHOENBERG: New Work (AMFS co- commission)
BEETHOVEN: Piano Trio in E-flat, Op. 70, No. 2
BRAHMS (arr. BRINTON AVERIL SMITH): Select Hungarian Dances, WoO 1

6:30 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Sonata Showcase

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Danish String Quartet
Frederik Øland and Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen, violin
Asbjørn Nørgaard, viola
Fredrik Schøyen Sjölin, cello
HAYDN: String Quartet in G minor, Op. 20, No. 3
Thomas ADÈS: The Four Quarters
ARR. DANISH STRING QUARTET: Folk Music

Sun, July 28 at 9:30 am
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra Dress Rehearsal
Robert Spano, conductor

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Robert Spano, conductor
G. MAHLER: Symphony No. 9 in D

7 pm
Aspen Community Church
Paul Jacobs, organ

7 pm
Aspen Chapel
Art Song Sessions

Mon, July 29 at 12:30 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
DeLay Fellowship Auditions
Robert Spano, conductor

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Percussion Ensemble Plays Zappa
Jonathan Haas, director

Tue, July 30 at 1 pm
Harris Concert Hall Class
Gil Shaham, violin

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
George Jackson, conductor
Sharon Isbin, classical guitar

Wed, July 31 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Art Song Recital

5 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
STRAVINSKY: Concerto for Strings in D, “Basel”
TBA: Woodwind Competition Winner
DEBUSSY: La mer
RAVEL: La valse

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Special Event
Zukerman Trio
Pinchas Zukerman, violin
Amanda Forsyth, cello
Shai Wosner, piano
BRAHMS: Piano Trio No. 2 in C, Op. 87
Jennifer HIGDON: “Pale Yellow” from Piano Trio No. 1
BEETHOVEN: Piano Trio in B-flat, Op. 97, “Archduke”

Thu, Aug 1 at 3 pm
Private residence to be announced
National Council House Music (National Council Membership Required)

5:15 pm
Basalt Regional Library Recital

6 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
String Showcase

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Stephen Hough, piano
CHAMINADE: “Automne” from 6 Études de concert, Op. 35, No. 2
CHAMINADE: “Autrefois,” Op. 87, No. 4
LISZT: Piano Sonata in B minor, LW A179
CHAMINADE: Thème varié, Op. 89
CHAMINADE: Les Sylvains, Op. 60
CHOPIN: Piano Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58

Fri, Aug 2 at 9 am
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony Dress Rehearsal

12:30 pm
Crossroads Church
The Art of Listening
Tom Buesch, speaker

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
James Conlon, conductor
Gil Shaham, violin
Lucia Cesaroni, soprano
MOZART: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A, K. 219
G. MAHLER: Symphony No. 4 in G

Sat, Aug 3 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
George Jackson, conductor

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Takács Quartet and Stephen Hough
Edward Dusinberre and Harumi Rhodes, violin
Richard O’Neill, viola
András Fejér, cello
Stephen Hough, piano
HAYDN: String Quartet in B-flat, Hob. III/78, Op. 76, No. 4, “Sunrise”
Stephen HOUGH: String Quartet No. 1, “Les Six Rencontres”
DVOŘÁK: Piano Quintet in A, B. 155, Op. 81

6 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
2024 Season Benefit

Sun, Aug 4 at 9:30 am
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra Dress Rehearsal

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Kevin John Edusei, conductor
Midori, violin
Donghoon SHIN: Kafka’s Dream
BARTÓK: Violin Concerto No. 2, BB 117
MUSSORGSKY/RAVEL: Pictures at an Exhibition

Mon, Aug 5 at 6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble conductor
Timothy Weiss, conductor
Kathleen Winkler, violin
James Dunham and Stephen Wyrczynski, viola
Brinton Averil Smith, cello
Timothy Pitts, double bass
Joaquín Valdepeñas, clarinet
Anton Nel, piano
NICO MUHLY: Roots, Pulses
MOZART: Trio for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano in E-flat, K. 498, “Kegelstatt”
TCHAIKOVSKY/TIMOTHY PITTS: Souvenir de Florence, Op. 70

Tue, Aug 6 at 1 pm
Harris Concert Hall Class
Lawrence Power, viola

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Takács Quartet
Edward Dusinberre and Harumi Rhodes, violin
Richard O’Neill, viola
András Fejér, cello
DVOŘÁK: String Quartet in E-flat, B. 92, Op. 51
Nokuthula NGWENYAMA: “Flow”
SCHUBERT: String Quartet in G, D. 887, Op. posth. 161

6 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
String Showcase

6 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Piano Competition

8 pm
Klein Music Tent
Wind Orchestra Recital

Wed, Aug 7 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
First Glimpse Composition Recital I

5 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
NICO MUHLY: Bright Idea
TBA: Brass Competition Winner
SHOSTAKOVICH: Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
“African Queens”
Karen Slack, soprano
Kevin Miller, piano
Program to include new works by Jasmine BARNES, Damien GETER, Jessie MONTGOMERY, Shawn
OKPEBHOLO, Dave RAGLAND, Carlos SIMON and Joel THOMPSON (AMFS co-commission)

Thu, Aug 8 at 3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
AOTVA / Composer Project Recital

5:15 pm
Basalt Regional Library Recital

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Robert Spano, conductor
Seraphic Fire
Patrick Dupre Quigley, artistic director
J. S. BACH: Mass in B minor, BWV 232

Fri, Aug 9 at 12:30 pm
Crossroads Church
The Art of Listening
Tom Buesch, speaker

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
David Robertson, conductor
Yefim Bronfman, piano
STRAVINSKY: Symphonies of Wind Instruments
BARTÓK: Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celeste, BB 114
BEETHOVEN: Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat, Op. 73, “Emperor”

Sat, Aug 10 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters

1 pm
Top of Aspen Mountain
Music on the Mountain

1:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Composer Workshop
Robert Spano, conductor

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Timothy Weiss, conductor
Renata Arado and Alexander Kerr, violin
Christian Colberg, viola
Brinton Averil Smith, cello
Elaine Douvas, oboe
Anton Nel and Alexander Malofeev, piano
Darryl Kubian, theremin
Steven MACKEY: Groundswell
MARTINŮ: Fantasia for Theremin, Oboe, String Quartet, and Piano
BRAHMS: Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor, Op. 60

6:30 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Sonata Showcase

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Lawrence Power, viola
Robert Spano, piano
Piotr Waclawik, conductor
Yu-Ping Tsai, violin
Garth KNOX: Quartet for One
Thomas ADÈS: Three Berceuses from The Exterminating Angel
MOZART: Sinfonia concertante in E-flat, K. 364 (K. 320d)
SCHUBERT ARR TBD: Gesang der Geister über den Wassern, D. 714
Anders HILLBORG: Viola Concerto (AMFS co-commission)

Sun, Aug 11 at 9:30 am
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra Dress Rehearsal

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk

3 pm
Private residence to be announced
Composition House Music

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Roderick Cox, conductor
Alexander Malofeev, piano
RACHMANINOFF: Piano Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp minor, Op. 1
R. STRAUSS: Ein Heldenleben (A Hero’s Life), Op. 40

Mon, Aug 12 at 7 pm
Wheeler Opera House
Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS
Matthew Aucoin, conductor
Sara Erde, director
MOZART: Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492

Tue, Aug 13 at 1pm
Harris Concert Hall Class
Robert McDuffie, violin

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Zlatomir Fung, cello
Tony Siqi Yun, piano
C. SCHUMANN: Nocturne in F, Op. 6 No. 2
LISZT: Après une lecture du Dante: Fantasia quasi Sonata, S. 161, No. 7
BRITTEN: Suite No. 1 for solo cello. Op. 72
RACHMANINOFF: Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 19

6 pm
Edlis Neeson Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
String Showcase

Wed, Aug 14 at 12 pm
Bad Harriet, Hotel Jerome
High Notes

3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
First Glimpse Composition Recital II

5 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra
TBA: Piano Competition Winner
G. MAHLER: Symphony No. 5 in C-sharp minor

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Robert McDuffie, violin
Derek Wang, piano
VIVALDI: “Summer” from The Four Seasons, RV 315
Mike MILLS: “Stardancers’ Waltz” from Concerto for Violin, Rock Band, and String Orchestra
PROKOFIEV: Andante Cantabile and Allegro from Sonata in C for Two Violins, Op. 56
CHAUSSON: Sicilienne from Concert in D, Op. 21
STRAVINSKY: Tarantella from Suite italienne
BERNSTEIN: “Agathon” from Serenade, after Plato’s Symposium
Philip GLASS: Movement IV from Violin Concerto No. 2, “The American Four Seasons”

7:30 pm
Hurst Hall, Bucksbaum Campus
Brass Bash II

Thu, Aug 15 at 3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Guitar Recital

5:15 pm
Basalt Regional Library Recital

6 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Simone Dinnerstein, piano
Philip LASSER: 12 Variations on a Chorale by J. S. Bach
RAMEAU: Gavotte et six doubles
J. S. BACH: 15 Sinfonias, BWV 787–801
Keith JARRETT: Encore from Tokyo

7 pm
Wheeler Opera House
Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS
Matthew Aucoin, conductor
Sara Erde, director
MOZART: Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492

Fri, Aug 16 at 4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Overtures: Preconcert Chamber Music

5:30 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Chamber Symphony
Cristian Măcelaru, conductor
Marina Piccinini, flute
Sarah Kirkland SNIDER: Forward Into Light
Christopher THEOFANIDIS: Flute Concerto (AMFS co-commission)
BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat, Op. 55, “Eroica”

Sat, Aug 17 at 10 am
Wheeler Opera House
Opera Encounters

4:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Aspen Contemporary Ensemble
Timothy Weiss, conductor
Alexander Kerr, violin
Victoria Chiang, viola
Michael Mermagen, Brinton Averil Smith, Darrett Adkins, cello
Joaquín Valdepeñas, clarinet
Augusta Read THOMAS: ABRACADABRA (world premiere, AMFS co-commission)
MOZART: Clarinet Quintet in A, K. 581
VILLA-LOBOS: Bachianas brasileiras Nos. 1 & 5

7 pm
Wheeler Opera House
Aspen Opera Theater and VocalARTS
Matthew Aucoin, conductor
Sara Erde, director
MOZART: Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492

7:30 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Special Event
Leonidas Kavakos, violin
Daniil Trifonov, piano
BEETHOVEN: Violin Sonata No. 4 in A minor, Op. 23
POULENC: Violin Sonata
BRAHMS: Violin Sonata No. 1 in G, Op. 78
BARTÓK: Rhapsody No. 1, BB 94a

Sun, Aug 18 at 3 pm
Harris Concert Hall
Prelude: Preconcert Talk

4 pm
Klein Music Tent
Aspen Festival Orchestra
Robert Spano, conductor
Christine Goerke, Tamara Wilson, Alexis Seminario, Lauren Carroll, Maria Vasilevskaya, soprano
Margaret Macaira Shannon, Julianna Smith, Camille Robles, Lucy Baker, mezzo-soprano
Lauren Decker, contralto
Greer Grimsley, bass-baritone
Garrick Ohlsson, piano
BERLIOZ: “Royal Hunt and Storm” from Les Troyens
LISZT: Piano Concerto No. 2 in A, LW H6
WAGNER: Act III from Die Walküre

Press Room

Aspen Music Festival and School Announces 75th Anniversary Season