Photo credit: Zac Nicholson
Naumburg Orchestral Concerts
Tuesday, June 23, 2026
PROGRAM
Lisa Bielawa Violin Concerto No. 2: PULSE
featuring Tessa Lark, violin
Samuel Barber Adagio for Strings
Christina Courtin rhapsody on being giant proof
featuring Christina Courtin, violin and vocals
Caroline Shaw The Mountain That Loved a Bird
featuring Narrator TBC
Lisa Bielawa’s Violin Concerto No. 2: PULSE, featuring Naumburg Competition winner and Grammy-nominated soloist Tessa Lark, weaves hymns and fiddle tunes into a bold, modern concerto. Samuel Barber’s beloved Adagio for Strings is a heartfelt offering to our dear New York audiences. Knights violinist and singer-songwriter Christina Courtin’s rhapsody on being giant proof was commissioned as part of the Rhapsody Project initiative, and refracts inspiration from Gershwin’s iconic Rhapsody in Blue through Courtin’s singular musical senseibility. Caroline Shaw’s The Mountain That Loved a Bird sets to music a heartwarming children’s tale with a universal message of love and friendship.
Photo credit: Knights photography by Gabe Palacio. Christina Courtin photography by Chris Lee.
CARAMOOR CENTER FOR MUSIC AND ARTS
Sunday, June 28, 2026
PROGRAM
Christina Courtin rhapsody on being giant proof
featuring Christina Courtin, violin and vocals
Jessie Montgomery Rhapsody No. 2 (arr. Michi Wiancko)
featuring Colin Jacobsen, violin
George Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue (arr. Michi Wiancko)
featuring Conrad Tao, piano
Margaret Bonds Troubled Water (arr. Bruno Lima)
Aaron Copland Appalachian Spring Suite
This program anchors the spirit of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, featuring Conrad Tao’s acclaimed, "explosive" interpretation within a broader narrative of musical innovation. Like Gershwin’s concerto, few works capture the American sound as vividly as Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring Suite. From Margaret Bonds’ soulful Troubled Water to contemporary rhapsodies by Jessie Montgomery and the ensemble's own Christina Courtin, this performance reveals the depth and diversity of American music.
Photo credit: Fadi Kheir
Carnegie Hall Citywide: Bryant Park
Friday, July 3, 2026
PROGRAM
Margaret Bonds Troubled Water (arr. Bruno Lima)
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor 3 Selections from 24 Negro Melodies for Violin and Orchestra (arr. Curtis Stewart)
featuring Curtis Stewart, violin
Jeremy Kittel Stones River
Colin Jacobsen Sheriff’s Lied, Sheriff’s Freud
Traditional Simple Gifts (arr. Colin Jacobsen)
Paul Simon American Tune (arr. Colin Jacobsen)
Curtis Stewart joins The Knights as soloist for his arrangement of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s 24 Negro Melodies for Violin and Orchestra, while Jeremy Kittel brings his Stones River to life. Drawing on the multicultural currents of Revolutionary and Civil War–era music, these works connect past to present and illuminate the deep roots of American sound. Songs woven throughout the program remind us that American music lives not only in concert halls, but in the voices and communities that continue to shape it.
