Dec
18
Sat
National Chamber Ensemble Holiday Concert @ Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington
Dec 18 @ 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM

National Chamber Ensemble presents a spectacular holiday concert for the community on Saturday, December 18 at 7:30 PM at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington. NCE’s Holiday Cheer concert highlights the finest classical and contemporary masterpieces and holiday favorites together for the whole family. After a season of virtual performances NCE is thrilled to bring the Reuniting With The Masters LIVE season in person. A streaming video option is available for those unable to join at the venue. Chamber music is about intimacy of communication with the other musicians but also with the audience. We are excited to make music live.

The festivities include Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride”, “Chanukkah Festival” and “Rejoice” from Handel’s “Messiah”, Strauss Waltzes, the gorgeous music from Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” and more. Young Artist Piano Competition winners will join the ensemble to perform following the competition finals on Dec 4. A Carols Sing-Along concludes the program to get everyone in the holiday spirit.

Star soprano Sharon Christman joins the ensemble to sing ” Rejoice” from Handel’s Messiah, Caccini’s Ave Maria and some holiday carols. In addition to being professor of voice at Catholic University in Washington D.C., Ms. Christman has performed leading roles with opera companies around the globe including the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera and Dallas Opera among many others. Peter Davis of New York Magazine has called Ms. Christman’s singing “dazzling.” Daniel Webster of The Philadelphia Enquirer called her “a polished stylist with a gleaming voice.”  Ms. Christman has been a guest soloist at The White House and a recitalist in numerous Artist Series including the National Gallery of Art. She was privileged to present the Washington premiere of John Corigliano’s new song cycle, The Tambourine Man, at the request of the composer, first with National Musical Arts and then for the Cosmos Club Artist Series.

About the Outstanding Young Artist Achievement Award
The National Chamber Ensemble has created performance opportunities for young musicians since its inception in 2007, including the Outstanding Young Artist Competition which was created in 2015. This year’s competition is for pianists ages 12 to 18. Talented young musicians from Maryland, Virginia and Washington DC come to Arlington to compete in front of a distinguished panel of judges in the hope of winning one of three prizes. The first-place winner receives a scholarship, a crystal trophy. The winners also receive the opportunity to perform at the Dec 18th concert.
Holiday Cheer features Sharon Christman (soprano), artistic director/violinist Leo SushanskyNatasha Dukan (piano), Jorge Orozco (violin), Uri Wassertzug (viola)  Vasily Popov (cello), 2021 Piano Competition winners, outstanding young guest string players.
HOLIDAY CHEER
Saturday December 18, 2021
7:30 PM
Concert location:
Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington
4444 Arlington Blvd, Arlington 22204
Free on-site parking
Tickets:
General admission tickets are $36 for adults and $18 for students.Group discounts for 10 or more are available by calling (703) 685-7590. Tickets are available online at https://www.nationalchamberensemble.org/tickets.htm
Feb
8
Tue
Poetic Mix-Tape Virtual Reading @ Online
Feb 8 @ 7:30 PM – 8:30 PM

On Tuesday, February 8 at 7:30 pm, the O.B. Hardison Poetry Series at the Folger
Shakespeare Library in collaboration with the legendary Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum,
present a poetic mix-tape in response to the Rock Hall’s exhibition It’s Been Said All Along:
Voices of Rage, Hope, and Empowerment.

Poets Patricia Spears Jones, Nate Marshall, Reuben Jackson, and Ashley M. Jones (no relation)
read their own poetry and use it to explore the rage, hope and empowerment embedded in the historic
musical legacy of such artists as Public Enemy, Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, and
others. The reading will artfully combine poetry and music from the exhibition.

Tickets for this virtual event are $5 – $30, with a suggested price of $15. Tickets can be purchased
at the Folger Box Office at 202.544.7077 or by visiting www.folger.edu/poetry.

About It’s Been Said All Along: Voices of Rage, Hope, and Empowerment, the Rock & Roll Hall of
Fame says, “musicians have responded in song and action to promote social justice and equality. What
the world is seeing today, as injustices are called out and protesters are finding their voices, is not new.
And neither are the musical responses – words and music and passion converging to create something
much bigger that cuts deep into the rage, gives hope and radiates empowerment.”
The reading will begin with a pop-up exhibition of rare items from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and
Museum and will be followed by a moderated conversation with questions from those in attendance.
This reading is co-sponsored by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

Feb
26
Sat
7th Annual Jazz and Freedom Festival @ Eton DC
Feb 26 @ 3:00 PM – 10:00 PM

The 7th annual Jazz & Freedom Festival will bring together some of the finest musicians in D.C. (and beyond) with community activists confronting racial injustice and anti-Black violence in our communities. Presented by CapitalBop in partnership with Shannon Gunn and the Eaton DC, this year’s JAFF will take place all afternoon and evening on Saturday, Feb. 26, at the Eaton’s Beverly Snow warehouse space, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go directly to Harriet’s Wildest Dreams.

Jazz & Freedom Festival

Saturday, February 26, 2022

Eaton DC: 1201 K St. NW, WDC

Suggested donation $20/give what you can

3 p.m. Doors

3:30 Panel featuring Harriet’s Wildest Dreams

4:30-9:00 Five sets of music & poetry

9:00 Open jam session

Following Eaton policy and D.C. law, proof of full Covid-19 vaccination is required for entry. Vaccination cards and IDs will be checked at the door of the building; a negative test is not a substitute for proof of vaccination. Face masks required.

 

The centerpiece of the festival, of course, is the music. And the incredible lineup that the JAFF’s creative team — led by CapitalBop cofounder Luke Stewart, Shannon Gunn and Kelsye Adams — has assembled is stacked with brilliant talent from start to finish.

The acclaimed steel pan virtuoso and composer Victor Provost will play a headlining set with his band. A pair of incredible duos will also perform: bassist Corcoran Holt with percussionist/poet Jabari Exum, and Jupiter Blue (featuring Tara Middleton and DM Hotep, both members of the Sun Ra Arkestra).

Trombonist and co-organizer Shannon Gunn will lead the Jazz & Freedom Ensemble, a D.C. supergroup with a rotating lineup that anchors every JAFF. And to close out the evening, the Collect!v Crew — a DMV musicians’ collective anchored by bassist Dennis Turner and drummer Biscuit Bynum — will close out the night, bringing its groove-based take on contemporary Black music back to the Eaton, where it has been a regular presence over the past few years.

The festival will feature five sets of live music and poetry, as well as a panel discussion moderated by Harriet’s Wildest Dreams cofounder Qiana Johnson, featuring Ty Hobson Powell of Concerned Citizens DC, Jessica Teachey of The MusicianShip, Beth Yirga of the Palm Collective and musician Onrae Lateel.

Mar
13
Sun
Lionel Yu/ MusicalBasics at Kennedy Center @ Kennedy Center
Mar 13 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

Lionel Yu, the DC-based pianist behind the hit YouTube channel MusicalBasics (1,000,000+ Subscribers), makes his debut at the Kennedy Center, performing MUSICALBASICS, A Transcendental Experience at the Terrace Theater on Sunday, March 13 at 2:00 PM.  An ambitious program of his most popular piano pieces, the concert will feature Yu’s remixes of pieces by Beethoven and his biggest hits “Fires of a Revolution” and “Rolling Thunder”. Yu, whose YouTube performance videos regularly go viral, takes the Terrace Theater stage after a memorable few months.  In October, Yu performed to a sold-out crowd at the Europäische Musikstage Festival in Heidelberg, Germany. In January 2022, he released the second volume of his 2021 album, MusicalStories Volume II, which has been streamed over 900,000 times on Spotify. Yu subsequently reached 1 million YouTube subscribers.

Yu will be joined onstage by Korean-born violinist Soo Yeon Kima multi-faceted artist who regular appears in recitals in major concert halls and giving masterclasses throughout the U.S., Europe, and Asia, and cellist Jeremy Russo, a winner of the University of Nevada at Las Vegas Concerto Competition who has performed in major festivals such as Schlern International Music Festival in Italy, Jeju Music Festival in Korea and Summit Music Festival in New York.

“The Kennedy Center show will be my biggest concert to date.  I’ll be featuring all new arrangements of my own original piano pieces accompanied by violin and cello,” said Yu. “I’m also excited to perform a few interpretations of Beethoven’s work, including EDM dubstep remixes of his 5th Symphony, Fur Elise and Moonlight Sonata.”

Tickets to MUSICALBASICS, A Transcendental Experience are $38 – $55and available now at https://www.kennedy-center.org/whats-on/explore-by-genre/classical-music/2021-2022/musicalbasics/.

Mar
19
Sat
Ireland at the Wharf Festival @ District Pier at The Wharf
Mar 19 @ 12:00 PM – 6:00 PM

The Wharf and Kirwan’s Irish Pub are excited to celebrate all things Irish at Ireland at The Wharf. During the festival, guests can thrill to the sound of bagpipers, listen to live music from 19th Street Band, Danny Burns and the Ben-David band on the main stage, watch authentic Irish dance performances from the Boyle School of Irish Dance and lift a pint in the Guinness beer garden on District Pier. The event is free to the public and all ages are welcome; guests must be 21+ to consume alcohol.

WHEN: Saturday, March 19, 2022 from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM

WHERE: District Pier at The Wharf, 101 District Square SW, Washington, DC 20024

Mar
24
Thu
The Epic of Gilgamesh @ George Washington University’s Theatre XX
Mar 24 @ 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

The Academy for Classical Acting’s 2022 cohort will be presenting their Spring Devised work, The Epic of Gilgameshon March 24 and 25 at 7:30 pm at George Washington University’s Theatre XX and on March 26 and 27 at 2 pm at the National Arboretum. Devised under the direction of ACA faculty member Dody DiSantoThe Epic of Gilgamesh is based on a poem of the same name from ancient Mesopotamia. Originally inscribed on 12 clay tablets in cuneiform script, the poem recorded the life and adventures of the historical King of Uruk, Gilgamesh himself. Perhaps the oldest written story on Earth, this text is the epitome of classical and has been lovingly and painstakingly translated into a beautiful performance piece highlighting the work of ACA’s 2022 graduating class. 

Tickets for this event are free, but donations are suggested. All donations go toward The Academy’s scholarship fund.

You can reserve your tickets here. Please make sure to note which performance venue your ticket is for: George Washington University’s Theatre XX (March 26 and 27) or the National Arboretum (March 26 and 27).

Mar
25
Fri
The Epic of Gilgamesh @ George Washington University’s Theatre XX
Mar 25 @ 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

The Academy for Classical Acting’s 2022 cohort will be presenting their Spring Devised work, The Epic of Gilgameshon March 24 and 25 at 7:30 pm at George Washington University’s Theatre XX and on March 26 and 27 at 2 pm at the National Arboretum. Devised under the direction of ACA faculty member Dody DiSantoThe Epic of Gilgamesh is based on a poem of the same name from ancient Mesopotamia. Originally inscribed on 12 clay tablets in cuneiform script, the poem recorded the life and adventures of the historical King of Uruk, Gilgamesh himself. Perhaps the oldest written story on Earth, this text is the epitome of classical and has been lovingly and painstakingly translated into a beautiful performance piece highlighting the work of ACA’s 2022 graduating class. 

Tickets for this event are free, but donations are suggested. All donations go toward The Academy’s scholarship fund.

You can reserve your tickets here. Please make sure to note which performance venue your ticket is for: George Washington University’s Theatre XX (March 26 and 27) or the National Arboretum (March 26 and 27).

Mar
26
Sat
Eli Waltz’s Americana Hour @ Right Proper Brewing Company - Shaw
Mar 26 @ 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Eli Waltz partners with An Indivisible Art Collective and Right Proper Brewing to present Eli
Waltz’s Americana Hour—a weekly concert showcasing artists carrying forward the legacy of blues and folk legends like John Fahey, Skip James, and Connie B. Gay.

“The aim of the series is to revitalize local interest in Americana, Blues and Folk music—a tradition in the D.C. area,” says Waltz. “Fewer venues cater to this style of music today. The goal is to reintroduce this style as a quintessential District sound, and bring the city’s history of Americana music to more people–to inspire a new generation of fans.”

The Americana Hour takes place every Saturday in March from 12 to 3p.m. at the Right Proper
Brewing Company’s Shaw location.

The Epic of Gilgamesh @ National Arboretum
Mar 26 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

The Academy for Classical Acting’s 2022 cohort will be presenting their Spring Devised work, The Epic of Gilgameshon March 24 and 25 at 7:30 pm at George Washington University’s Theatre XX and on March 26 and 27 at 2 pm at the National Arboretum. Devised under the direction of ACA faculty member Dody DiSantoThe Epic of Gilgamesh is based on the poem of the same name from ancient Mesopotamia. Originally inscribed on 12 clay tablets in cuneiform script, the poem recorded the life and adventures of the historical King of Uruk, Gilgamesh himself. Perhaps the oldest written story on Earth, this text is the epitome of classical and has been lovingly and painstakingly translated into a beautiful performance piece highlighting the work of ACA’s 2022 graduating class. 

Tickets for this event are free, but donations are suggested. All donations go toward The Academy’s scholarship fund.

You can reserve your tickets here. Please make sure to note which performance venue your ticket is for: George Washington University’s Theatre XX (March 26 and 27) or the National Arboretum (March 26 and 27).

Mar
27
Sun
The Epic of Gilgamesh @ National Arboretum
Mar 27 @ 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM

The Academy for Classical Acting’s 2022 cohort will be presenting their Spring Devised work, The Epic of Gilgameshon March 24 and 25 at 7:30 pm at George Washington University’s Theatre XX and on March 26 and 27 at 2 pm at the National Arboretum. Devised under the direction of ACA faculty member Dody DiSantoThe Epic of Gilgamesh is based on the poem of the same name from ancient Mesopotamia. Originally inscribed on 12 clay tablets in cuneiform script, the poem recorded the life and adventures of the historical King of Uruk, Gilgamesh himself. Perhaps the oldest written story on Earth, this text is the epitome of classical and has been lovingly and painstakingly translated into a beautiful performance piece highlighting the work of ACA’s 2022 graduating class. 

Tickets for this event are free, but donations are suggested. All donations go toward The Academy’s scholarship fund.

You can reserve your tickets here. Please make sure to note which performance venue your ticket is for: George Washington University’s Theatre XX (March 26 and 27) or the National Arboretum (March 26 and 27).