Music Director

Singer

Join us for a special concert performance of the Pulitzer Prize-winning opera composed by Rhiannon Giddens ’00 and Michael Abels, based on the true story of a 19th-century Islamic scholar from West Africa who was enslaved in South Carolina. Conducted by John Kennedy ’82, the performance spotlights Giddens and a cast of acclaimed Oberlin alumni, joined by the Oberlin Orchestra and choral ensembles.

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Oberlin in Cleveland | Concert Performance: Omar

Maltz Performing Arts Center

Concert Performance: Omar

Oberlin College

One of the most influential and prolific musicians in the world, Rhiannon Giddens is joined by the multi-cultural Silkroad, the ensemble she has helmed since 2020, filling the shoes of Yo-Yo Ma. Prior to her Soraya debut, Southern California has welcomed her both as an opera composer (LA Opera’s Omar) and in the prestigious post of Music Director of the Ojai Music Festival. First an exceptional singer and purveyor of Americana, she is now equally at home with a banjo as she is with a full orchestra or musical instruments from all corners of the globe. In their new, multi-year project, Giddens and Silkroad illuminate the creation of the transcontinental railroad, one of the greatest feats of technology in the 19th century, and equally a complicated chapter in American history for those who labored to build it, including the Chinese and Irish immigrants, as well as the African American and Indigenous people.

American Railroad Silkroad Ensemble with Rhiannon Giddens

Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts

### Event Description: Silkroad Ensemble with Rhiannon Giddens: American Railroad

**Date and Time:**  
Friday, November 8, 2024, at 7:30 PM

**Venue:**  
Hill Auditorium  
825 North University Avenue  
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

**Event Overview:**  
Join the Silkroad Ensemble, featuring the acclaimed Rhiannon Giddens, for a captivating performance titled "American Railroad." This event delves into the profound impact of the Transcontinental Railroad and westward expansion on various communities, particularly those whose contributions have been historically overlooked. The program aims to shed light on the experiences of Indigenous and African Americans, as well as Irish, Chinese, Japanese, and other immigrant laborers who played crucial roles in building the railroad.

**Program Highlights:**  
- New commissions by jazz artist Cécile McLorin Salvant.
- Performances by renowned pipa player Wu Man.
- New arrangements by Rhiannon Giddens and other Silkroad musicians.

**Artistic Vision:**  
Rhiannon Giddens hopes that audiences will leave with a deeper understanding of America's historical journey, the costs involved, and a collective reflection on the future. The performance seeks to correct historical narratives by highlighting the diverse contributions to the American Empire's foundation.

**About Silkroad Ensemble:**  
Conceived by Yo-Yo Ma in 1998, Silkroad Ensemble brings together world-class musicians from around the globe to create a new artistic idiom. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, the ensemble continues to foster cultural collaboration and high-quality arts education, promoting a more inclusive world.

**Ticket Information:**  
- Season Ticket packages are now available.
- Individual event tickets go on sale on August 1.
- Student, Senior, and Group Discounts may be available.

**Sponsors:**  
- Presenting Sponsor: Elaine and Peter Schweitzer
- Patron Sponsor: Ken and Penny Fischer

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the UMS website or call the ticket office at 734-764-2538.

Silkroad Ensemble with Rhiannon Giddens American Railroad

University of Michigan

Grammy Award-winning musical ensemble and social organization Silkroad works to inspire collaboration in innovative ways that add more equity and justice into the world through the power of the arts. Today, under the leadership of Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, Silkroad reaches new heights through a commitment to new music, a reignited mission towards cultural collaboration, and a reinvigorated focus to high-quality arts education that both reflects its mission and the times in which we live.

American Railroad

Harris Theater

Formosa Quartet

Tulsa Performing Arts Center

Violist Jennifer Stumm and violinist Yura Lee assemble an electrifying cohort of up-and-coming musicians.

Rising Stars with Ilumina & Yura Lee

The Hub

Join us for an unforgettable evening with the incredibly talented Rhiannon Giddens at Caramoor on Saturday, August 3, 2024. This special performance, presented in collaboration with City Winery, will take place at the American Roots Venetian Theater at 7:30pm. Rhiannon Giddens, a Pulitzer Prize winner and MacArthur Genius Grant recipient, embarks on a lifelong mission to highlight the overlooked contributions to American musical history. Known for her exceptional banjo and fiddle playing, passionate vocals, and insightful songwriting, Giddens brings to life untold stories and reclaims American musical traditions with a boundless curiosity. Her performance at Caramoor will focus on the powerful songs from her latest album, "You’re the One," promising an evening of electrifying artistry that revives the memories of forgotten predecessors, both white and black.

For those seeking a more relaxed concert experience, Garden Listening tickets are available for $20, free for Members and children under 18. This option allows you to enjoy the concert broadcast audio-only onto Friends Field, encouraging guests to bring their own seating and enjoy a picnic under the stars without a view of the stage or access to the theater.

Before the concert, take advantage of the opportunity to explore select rooms of the Rosen House from 6:00pm to 7:00pm during our Open House hours, free of charge and without the need for an RSVP.

Please note, all events at Caramoor take place rain or shine, with this performance being held under our fully covered Venetian Theater tent. Additionally, a free shuttle service from Metro North’s Katonah train station to and from Caramoor is available, ensuring a hassle-free visit to this enchanting evening.

Don't miss this opportunity to witness Rhiannon Giddens's captivating performance at Caramoor, a venue celebrated for its commitment to the arts, supported by ArtsWestchester and the New York State Council on the Arts. Secure your tickets now and add this event to your calendar for an experience that promises to be as enriching as it is entertaining.

Rhiannon Giddens

Venetian Theater at Caramoor

Join us for an enchanting evening of chamber music under the stars at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts in Katonah, NY, on Thursday, June 27, 2024, at 7:00 PM. The Abeo Quartet, celebrated for their dynamic performances and international acclaim, will grace the Spanish Courtyard, presenting a diverse program that promises to captivate and inspire.

This special concert marks the culmination of the Abeo Quartet's year-long residency as the 2023/24 Ernst Stiefel String Quartet-in-Residence at Caramoor. The evening will feature the world premiere of a new string quartet by Jessica Mays, commissioned by Caramoor, alongside works by Joaquin Turina, Erwin Schulhoff, Rhiannon Giddens, and Sergei Prokofiev.

The Abeo Quartet, formed at Juilliard in 2018, consists of Njioma Grevious and Rebecca Benjamin on violins, James Kang on viola, and Mac Taback on cello. Their name, Abeo, an expression of joy in a Nigerian dialect, perfectly encapsulates their passion for chamber music and their dedication to sharing it with audiences around the world.

Don't miss this opportunity to experience the Abeo Quartet's joyous celebration of music in the beautiful setting of Caramoor. Whether you're a long-time classical music enthusiast or new to the genre, this concert is sure to leave you moved and inspired.

Tickets are available now. Plan your visit to Caramoor and enjoy a summer evening filled with beautiful music, stunning surroundings, and unforgettable memories.

Abeo Quartet

The Rosen House at Caramoor

Composers (from top, left to right): Florence Price, Rhiannon Giddens, Paquito D’RIvera, Frederick Tillis, Gabriela Lena Frank, Jessie Montgomery.

American Dreams At Cast

Center for Advocacy, Support & Transformation

Rhiannon Giddens has made a singular, iconic career out of stretching her brand of folk music, with its miles-deep historical roots and contemporary sensibilities, into just about every field imaginable. A two-time GRAMMY Award-winning singer and instrumentalist, MacArthur “Genius” grant recipient, and composer of opera, ballet, and film, Giddens has centered her work around the mission of lifting up people whose contributions to American musical history have previously been overlooked or erased, and advocating for a more accurate understanding of the country’s musical origins through art. As Pitchfork once said, “few artists are so fearless and so ravenous in their exploration”—a journey that has led to NPR naming her one of its 25 Most Influential Women Musicians of the 21st Century and to American Songwriter calling her “one of the most important musical minds currently walking the planet.”

The Paramount Theatre

100 Years of Women Composers

Bunker Hill Presbyterian Church

Singer and instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens’ iconic brand of folk music spotlights people whose contributions to American musical history have been overlooked or erased, and advocates for a more accurate understanding of the country’s musical origins through art. A two-time Grammy Award winner, MacArthur fellow and composer, she was awarded the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Music for her debut opera Omar. Her highly-anticipated new solo album, You’re the One, releases in August.

Granada Theatre

In a season entitled “American Legacies,” the Company explores Martha Graham’s relation to Americana and Modernism. Graham works to be performed include her visceral masterwork The Rite of Spring and her extraordinary collaboration with Aaron Copland and Isamu Noguchi, Appalachian Spring.

American Legacies

New York City Center

Martha Graham Dance Company

Following their appearance with Terence Blanchard & E-Collective, the Turtle Island Quartet returns with Island Prayers. This performance features four new works co-commissioned by Savannah Music Festival, composed by founding violinist David Balakrishnan, Rhiannon Giddens, Terence Blanchard and Jerod Impichchaachaacha’ Tate.

Island Prayers: Turtle Island Quartet

Trustees Theater

University Musical Society

A first look at Jamar Roberts’ brand-new work for the Company just days before its world premiere. This new dance features a commissioned score by Grammy-winning composer Rhiannon Giddens. The evening will include a conversation with Roberts and the dancers.

NEW@Graham with Jamar Roberts

Westbeth Artists Housing and Center for the Arts

Under the leadership of 2023 Pulitzer Prize winner, the dynamic multi-instrumentalist Rhiannon Giddens, the Grammy-winning, genre-defying Silkroad Ensemble embarks on a new initiative that illuminates the impact of under-recognized voices in America’s expansion west. The project explores the creation of the Transcontinental Railroad through the contributions of African American, Chinese, Irish, Indigenous, and other communities, their cultures, and their music. Chinese traditional instruments like the guzheng, pipa, erhu, and qinqin are contrasted with the fiddle, bones, tambo, and banjo of Black musical traditions, and their Indigenous and Celtic counterparts. New compositions and commissions weave these disparate traditions together to tell a new version of the American story. As Giddens told the New York Times, “Silkroad has people from all over, and that’s what makes it such a great group to represent the American story, because that’s what the American story is. We are world music”.

University of California, Berkeley

American Railroad highlights the cultural diffusion and collaboration that resulted as African American, Chinese, Irish, and Native American communities made vital contributions to the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, the Grammy Award-winning Silkroad Ensemble recontextualizes the railroad through the sounds of the worlds that collided through its creation.

Stanford University

Silkroad’s newest initiative, American Railroad, illuminates the impact of African American, Chinese, Irish, and Native American communities on the creation of the Transcontinental Railroad and America’s Westward Expansion. Exploring the dissemination of cultures across the United States, the railroad was to North America what the Silk Road was to China, the Far East and Europe.

American Railroad Silkroad Ensemble with Rhiannon Giddens1

Soka Performing Arts Center

American Railroad: Silkroad Ensemble With Rhiannon Giddens

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, Silkroad’s newest initiative, American Railroad, illuminates the impact of African American, Chinese, Irish, and Native American communities on the creation of the Transcontinental Railroad and America’s westward expansion.

Philharmonic Society of Orange County and Soka Performing Arts Center

Under the masterful baton of Arian Khaefi, Mandeville Auditorium will resonate with the vibrant compositions of Kristen Kuster, Samuel Barber, and Gabriela Lena Frank. Immerse yourself in the timeless elegance of Florence Price’s Piano Concerto in One Movement, followed by the electrifying rhythms of Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. Also, don’t miss the second-ever performance of Gala Flagello’s Bravado.

La Jolla Music Society

As a social-impact organization and home to a Grammy Award-winning musical ensemble, Silkroad works to inspire collaboration in innovative ways that add more equity and justice into the world through the power of the arts. Today, under the leadership of Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, Silkroad reaches new heights through a commitment to new music, a re-sparked mission towards cultural collaboration, and a reinvigorated focus to high-quality arts education that both reflects its mission and the times in which we live.

Silkroad Ensemble with Rhiannon Giddens

Balboa Theatre

Under the leadership of Pulitzer Prize-winner Rhiannon Giddens, the Silkroad Ensemble embarks on a new initiative, American Railroad, that reflects the profound impact of the railroad and the immigrant communities that built it on the cultural fabric of North America.

A musical summit and jam session featuring solos and collaborations among the bowed and plucked string instruments from cultures in the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Finale: Strings Attached

Libbey Bowl

An Ojai-commissioned chamber work for voices and small ensemble drawn from the opera Omar, by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels, paired with the musical traditions of Senegal and the Carolinas.

Omar's Journey

An intimate acoustic concert with Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi with music ranging from Baroque, Appalachian ballads to traditional Black American songs.

An Evening with Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi

Two-part session with Music Director Rhiannon Giddens and featured collaborators, hosted by Ara Guzelimian and John Schaefer of WQXR New Sounds.

Ojai Talks

Ojai Presbyterian Church

The Festival opens with Gabriela Ortiz’s Liquid Borders performed by red fish blue fish conducted by Steven Schick. The second half welcomes back the Attacca Quartet performing a curated playlist made especially for Ojai audiences.

Liquid Borders

Singing Freedom utilizes Freedom on the Move—Cornell University’s database devoted to the experiences of enslaved people seeking freedom in North America—to “capture a multiplicity of voices and perspectives, each meditating on what it means to risk all to be free.” A trio of exceptional vocalists—Karen Slack, Reginald Mobley, and Will Liverman—brings this project to life alongside celebrated pianist Howard Watkins and Grammy winner Rhiannon Giddens. This first of two programs features PCMS collaborating with New York-based Sparks & Wiry Cries (innovator of songSLAM Festival and Art Song Magazine) on a new work (co-commissioned by PCMS) by American composer Shawn Okpebholo, whose music has been described as “devastatingly beautiful… fresh and new and fearless” (Washington Post).

Singing Freedom – Part I

Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts

Both with The Carolina Chocolate Drops and in her own solo work, Rhiannon Giddens has used her art to excavate the past and reveal bold truths about our present. Smithsonian Magazine calls her “an electrifying artist who brings alive the memories of forgotten predecessors [of American musical history], white and black.” An exceptional singer, fiddler, and banjo player, she joins forces with the LA Phil to bring centuries’ worth of American music to the Walt Disney Concert Hall stage, performing jazz, blues, country, gospel, and more.

Walt Disney Concert Hall

Violinist Johnny Gandelsman’s solo performance pairs the unaccompanied Cello Suite No. 3 by J.S. Bach with newly commissioned works as part of his This Is America project. Celebrating the country’s rich cultural tapestry and myriad perspectives, the program also features composers Clarice Assad, Rhiannon Giddens, Tyshawn Sorey and Conrad Tao. The Boston Globe describes Gandelsman as “a delightfully unconventional fiddler…with a balletic lightness of touch and a sense of whimsy and imagination that are rare.”

Johnny Gandelsman - Violin

St. Mark’s Lutheran Church

Johnny Gandelsman, a founding member of Brooklyn Rider and a member of the Silkroad Ensemble, presents a new commissioning project developed during the pandemic, called This is America. Johnny Gandelsman has commissioned 20 new solo violin works from a diverse group of American and U.S.- based composers, including Rhiannon Giddens, Maya Miro Johnson, Angelica Negron, Tyshawn Sorey, Conrad Tao, Tomeka Reid, Olivia Davis, and many others.  "This is America celebrates America’s rich cultural tapestry and its myriad perspectives, thoughts, and ideas,” explains Gandelsman. “Each composition reflects on the current state of American society in a personal and intimate way, looking through an unflinching lens at universal topics like separation, loneliness, hope and love."

Johnny Gandelsman: This is America

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra joins forces with acclaimed musician and MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient Rhiannon Giddens, conductor John Adams, and pianist Vikingur Ólaffson for music by Adams, Simon, Mozart, and the world premiere of Gabriela Ortiz’s “La Calaca.”

Ojai Music Festival

The MARTHA GRAHAM DANCE COMPANY has been a leader in the evolving art form of modern dance since its founding in 1926. It is both the oldest dance company in the United States and the oldest integrated dance company. During its 90-year history, the Company has received acclaim from audiences and critics in more than 50 countries. Today, it is embracing a new programming vision that showcases masterpieces by Graham alongside newly commissioned works by contemporary artists.

Tennessee Performing Arts Center

The Turtle Island Quartet, renowned for its innovative approach to chamber music, will be performing as part of the University of Chicago's 2024/25 Classic Concert Series. Since its inception in 1985, the quartet has been at the forefront of blending classical quartet aesthetics with contemporary genres such as folk, bluegrass, swing, funk, R&B, and hip-hop. This unique fusion has earned them two GRAMMY Awards for Best Classical Crossover Album and a reputation for reviving centuries-old improvisational and compositional traditions.

Their program, Island Prayers, features imaginative new commissions by acclaimed composers Rhiannon Giddens, Terence Blanchard, and Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate. The performance will include pieces such as David Balakrishnan's The Second Wave and Little Mouse Jumps, as well as Giddens' Pompey Ran Away, Tate's Little Loksi, and Blanchard's Turtle Trajectory. These works showcase the quartet's ability to seamlessly integrate diverse musical styles, creating a rich tapestry of sound that is both innovative and deeply rooted in tradition.

With over a dozen recordings and collaborations with artists like Terence Blanchard and Paquito D’Rivera, the Turtle Island Quartet continues to push the boundaries of what a string quartet can be, making them a standout ensemble in the world of contemporary chamber music.

Rhiannon Giddens

Music Director, Singer

Events

Upcoming events

Jan 31 - Feb 1, 2025

Martha Graham Dance Company · Tennessee Performing Arts Center

May 9, 2025

Turtle Island Quartet · UChicago Presents

Past events

Dec 8, 2024

Oberlin in Cleveland | Concert Performance: Omar · Oberlin Conservatory of Music

Dec 6, 2024

Concert Performance: Omar · Oberlin Conservatory of Music

About

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