Houston is set to be a hub of exquisite classical music performances featuring works by the great Joseph Haydn. Kicking off on September 26, 2024, with the Takács Quartet and Jeremy Denk at Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, audiences will be treated to Haydn's String Quartets, Op.54. In October, the Mercury Chamber Orchestra will present 'Classical Piano Trios' across various venues in Houston, including the Museum of Fine Arts. Come February 7, 2025, the New York Philharmonic String Quartet will grace the stage at the Hobby Center, performing Haydn's String Quartets, Op.77. Finally, on May 23, 2025, 'Classical Collaborations' will bring together a delightful mix of sonata, symphony, and concerto pieces at the Hobby Center, showcasing Haydn's Symphony No. 48.

Experience Haydn in Houston: Stellar Classical Performances Await

Houston is set to dazzle music lovers with a series of spectacular concerts celebrating the genius of Johannes Brahms. From the intricate Violin Concerto No. 1 by Bach, performed by the Houston Symphony, to the debut performance of the award-winning pianist Alexandre Kantorow, the city's musical calendar is packed with must-see events. Additionally, the beloved production 'Loving Clara Schumann' makes a triumphant return, while the critically acclaimed Merz Trio explores night melodies. Don't miss these unforgettable performances in Houston's finest venues.

Experience the Brilliance of Brahms in Houston: Unmissable Concerts and Performances

Houston, get ready to be mesmerized by an extraordinary series of events celebrating the genius of Robert Schumann! These captivating performances include 'Loving Clara Schumann' by the Mercury Chamber Orchestra, Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen's groundbreaking countertenor recital, and the innovative 'Merz Trio: Night Songs.' Each event promises an unforgettable experience, delving deep into themes of mental health, human connection, and the transformative power of music.

Houston's Musical Tribute: Schumann and Beyond

DACAMERA, a beacon of artistic innovation, unveils a remarkable lineup of concerts from December 2024 to March 2025. Highlights include Terri Lyne Carrington’s quest for jazz inclusivity, the Telegraph Quartet's sublime performances, the transformative Imani Winds, and Lakecia Benjamin's jazz fusion. This season promises unforgettable experiences from the classical to contemporary, featuring luminaries such as Alexandre Kantorow, New York Philharmonic's string virtuosos, and the visionary composer Thomas Adès. Each performance offers a unique narrative, inviting audiences to explore new musical worlds.

Celebrating Musical Excellence: A Journey Through DACAMERA's Spectacular Season

In a series of captivating performances, Dacamera invites audiences into a world where musical boundaries dissolve, presenting a lineup that transports listeners through time, culture, and genre. From the evocative counter-tenor voice of Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen to the jazz innovations of the Vijay Iyer Trio, the elegant explorations of the Merz Trio, the poignant string compositions of Meta4 Quartet, and the soulful vocals of Lizz Wright, each event offers a unique auditory experience. Dive into these extraordinary musical evenings, each promising to leave an indelible mark on the soul.

Dacamera's Diverse Musical Offerings: An Explorative Journey through Sound

As the calendar turns to spring, DACAMERA invites you to immerse yourself in a series of captivating performances featuring the Vijay Iyer Trio, Merz Trio, Meta4 Quartet, and Lizz Wright. These events showcase a remarkable fusion of tradition and innovation, offering a rich tapestry of jazz, classical, and vocal artistry. Join us in Houston as these acclaimed artists present their unique expressions through music, creating an unforgettable cultural experience.

Exploring Musical Narratives: DACAMERA's Vibrant Spring Series

Embark on a journey through the musical landscapes presented by Dacamera's spring lineup, featuring the inventive Merz Trio's 'Night Songs', the deeply moving Meta4 Quartet, and the soulful essence of Lizz Wright. Each event promises a unique exploration of sound and emotion, from medieval chants to modern American jazz, offering attendees an unforgettable auditory experience at Houston's iconic venues.

Dacamera's Spring Serenade: A Trio of Musical Masterpieces

Houston's vibrant music scene invites you to experience a series of captivating performances at The Menil Collection and Wortham Theater Center. From the Merz Trio’s exploration of night music to Meta4 Quartet’s powerful musical memories, and Lizz Wright’s soulful expression of American culture, these events promise an unforgettable journey through sound and emotion.

Exploring Night Melodies and Musical Memories: A Journey with Merz Trio, Meta4 Quartet, and Lizz Wright

The DACAMERA audience favorites perform a characteristically intriguing and varied program. Haydn’s inventive classical works are daringly contrasted with 20th and 21st century quartets, including a recent work by award-winning composer/pianist Timo Andres.

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Brentano String Quartet

The Menil Collection

Grammy Award-winning trumpeter Nicholas Payton has released over 20 recordings as a leader, pushing musical boundaries and showcasing a variety of contemporary and traditional styles. Calling his work “postmodern New Orleans music” or Black American Music, Nicholas Payton blends genres that reflect the rich lineages of the African American heritage.

Nicholas Payton Quartet

Wortham Theater Center

Hailed as the new face of classical guitar worldwide, French musician Raphaël Feuillâtre fascinates audiences and critics alike with the depth of his interpretations, his dazzling virtuosity and the richness of his repertoire. Winner of the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America competition, Feuillâtre records for Deutsche Grammophon, one of the very few guitarists to have been signed by the legendary label.

Raphaël Feuillâtre, guitar: Latin Passions

Matthias Goerne is one of the world’s most versatile and sought-after vocalists, known for his powerful performances and recordings of Schubert. He has appeared on the world’s principal opera stages, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York; the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; and the Vienna State Opera. Grammy Award-winning pianist Daniil Trifonov has made a spectacular ascent of the classical music world, as a solo artist, champion of the concerto repertoire, and chamber and vocal collaborator. A rare chance to hear Trifonov perform solo and in collaboration with Goerne for the beauty and pathos, drama and despair of the Schwanengesang, or Swan Songs, composed in Schubert’s last year.

Matthias Goerne, baritone; Daniil Trifonov, piano

For his recent wryly titled Blue Note release, three of us are from Houston and Reuben is not, the irrepressible saxophonist Walter Smith III pays homage to his hometown. In the jazz series kickoff, this supergroup of brothers in arms celebrates the Bayou City with evocative songs like 610 Loop, Lone Star, Cezanne and Montrose Nocture.

Walter Smith III Quartet

DACAMERA’s Other Worlds season opens with an all-star cast of artists in a varied program of solo and chamber works that sets the stage for what is to come: virtuosic Romanticism, Bluegrass and folk influences and the sublime beauty of Schubert.

Other Worlds: Season Overture

A Little Day Music is a series of free concerts presented at noon on the first Wednesday of the month in the Grand Foyer of the Wortham Center. Each concert is designed to deliver DACAMERA’s signature programming to an audience including senior citizens, downtown professionals and students. The series features a variety of chamber music and jazz, presented in an accessible, one-hour concert format. Audiences are invited to enjoy their lunch while listening to the music.

A Little Day Music: Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month

Known for “state-of-the-art jazz” (Jazziz), pianist Isaiah J. Thompson is “a young musician and composer with a mature touch and rare combination of talent, creativity, humility and honesty,” says NPR. Isaiah J. Thompson’s recording debut was on Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Handful of Keys album with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, and he has since released multiple recordings as a leader, including his most recent, A Guaraldi Holiday.

Isaiah J. Thompson Quartet

Miller Outdoor Theatre

Through an inimitable voice that The New York Times touts as “a smooth, dark alto possessed of qualities you might associate with barrel-aged bourbon or butter-soft leather,” acclaimed vocalist and songwriter Lizz Wright’s singing is a soaring reflection of the cultural fabric of America. Wright is one of the great modern American singers, with an illustrious 20-year career transcending social divides with her offer of love and a deep sense of humanity.

Lizz Wright

Meta4 returns to DACAMERA with a dynamic program of vivid musical contrasts. DACAMERA’s dear friend, the great Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho (1952-2023), is remembered with a performance of her second quartet, Terra Memoria; composed “for those departed,” the work is deeply moving in its hypnotic exploration of memory, loss and transformation. Shostakovich’s Quartet No. 4 is a riveting response to the tragedies of the Second World War. The work was withheld from public performance until after Stalin’s death — the composer’s searing personal message is encoded in this powerful musical work.  The program concludes with Ravel’s colorful quartet– eagerly embraced by listeners since its first performance in 1904, promising a dazzling and brilliant finale to the evening.

Meta4 Quartet

Hailed as “entrancing” (BBC Music Magazine) and “artists in the deepest sense of the word” (CutCommon), Merz Trio – winners of the Naumburg, Concert Artists Guild, Fischoff and Chesapeake Competitions – are known for their inventive programming. Join Merz Trio as they search for song in night’s darkness. Beginning with the 12th century chants spun by Hildegard von Bingen in her solitary monastic cell, explore melody sung into and for the night, weaving together a musical conversation that joins the voices of Purcell, Schumann, Alma Mahler, Brahms and Zemlinsky, and into the twentieth century with Thelonious Monk’s poignantly lonely ode to a dark hour.

Merz Trio: Night Songs

By overwhelming consensus, the Vijay Iyer Trio has become one of the pivotal jazz bands of the twenty-first century. Described as “the best piano trio in jazz today” (Der Spiegel), “truly astonishing” (NPR) and “the best band in jazz” (PopMatters), the trio’s music is emotionally resonant and deeply interactive, radiating groove and brimming with polyrhythmic detail, rooted in tradition yet truly innovative in style and form.

Vijay Iyer Trio

With this moving program, countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen opens up new paths for his voice type. From Korngold and Schumann to works from Nussbaum Cohen’s Jewish heritage, songs by Black American composers, and a new work composed for this program by leading American composer, Jake Heggie, this program is a departure from the standard countertenor repertory and promises to create a memorable evening.

Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, counter-tenor

Emi Ferguson (baroque and modern flutes); Immanuel Wilkins Quartet (Immanuel Wilkins, saxophone; Micah Thomas, piano; Thomas Morgan, bass; Kweku Sumbry, percussion); Ruckus (Doug Balliett, baroque bass and viola da gamba; Elliot Figg, harpsichord and keyboard; Paul Holmes Morton, theorbo and baroque guitar; Clay Zeller-Townson, baroque bassoon)

Emi Ferguson, flute; Immanuel Wilkins Quartet; and Ruckus

Hobby Center for the Performing Arts

DACAMERA and The Menil Collection welcome distinguished composer Thomas Adès, CBE, in his first Houston appearance. Recognized the world over as one of today’s greatest living composers, Adès is also active as pianist and conductor, having led award-winning performances of his operas The Exterminating Angel and The Tempest at Metropolitan Opera and beyond.  His most recent Grammy Award was for The Dante Project, a collaborative ballet with visuals by artist Tacita Dean.

Thomas Adès: Musical Alchemy

Longtime DACAMERA favorites, the members of the New York Philharmonic String Quartet are principal musicians from the esteemed orchestra. Multiple prize winners all, they have appeared as concerto soloists with the Philharmonic and orchestras around the world, and their quartet performances are rare and cherished events.

New York Philharmonic String Quartet

The winner of the coveted 2024 Gilmore Artist Award, the youngest pianist ever to receive this prestigious accolade, makes his first Houston appearance. At the age of 22, Alexandre Kantorow was the first French pianist to win the Gold Medal at the Tchaikovsky Competition, also receiving the Grand Prix, previously awarded only three times in the competition’s history.

Alexandre Kantorow, piano

This dynamic alto saxophonist fuses traditional conceptions of jazz, hip hop and soul. With three Grammy Award nominations for her most recent recording Phoenix — for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Best Instrumental Composition and Best Jazz Performance — Lakecia Benjamin is taking the jazz world by storm. “The wide sense of adventure on Phoenix,” says All Music, “reveals Benjamin as ambitious as she is focused, energetic and perceptive.”

Lakecia Benjamin and Phoenix

The 2024 Grammy Award-winning Imani Winds are celebrating over a quarter century of music making, having led both a revolution and evolution of the wind quintet through their dynamic playing, adventurous programming, imaginative collaborations and outreach endeavors that have inspired audiences of all ages and backgrounds. The recipient of the 2022 Sphinx Medal of Excellence, Michelle Cann has become one of the most sought-after pianists of her generation, lauded as “exquisite” by The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Imani Winds; Michelle Cann, piano

Described by the San Francisco Chronicle as “powerfully adept… with a combination of brilliance and subtlety,” the Telegraph Quartet was awarded the prestigious 2016 Walter W. Naumburg Chamber Music Award and the Grand Prize at the 2014 Fischoff Chamber Music Competition.

Telegraph Quartet: New Worlds

The immensely gifted drummer Terri Lyne Carrington – NEA Jazz Master and 4-time Grammy Award winner – has worked tirelessly over the last decade to advocate for inclusivity in jazz. Carrington and her bandmates delve into the Grammy-winning ‘Best Jazz Instrumental Album’ New Standards Vol. 01, shining a powerful light on music from great women composers including Carla Bley, Cassandra Wilson, Gretchen Parlato, Abbey Lincoln, Eliane Elias and Marilyn Crispell.

Terri Lyne Carrington’s New Standards

Renowned for their fresh approach to period instrument performance of classical repertoire, the members of this Russian-Swedish-French ensemble together produce a unique sound – described by The Observer (London) as “a shock to the ears of the best kind.” Rediscover great works of Beethoven and Schubert in the ensemble’s Houston debut.  Chiaroscuro Quartet translates into sound the Renaissance painting technique they are named after – crafting unforgettable music through shifting shades of light and darkness.

Chiaroscuro Quartet

Spanish Harlem Orchestra, the three-time Grammy Award-winning salsa and Latin jazz band, sets the gold standard for excellence in authentic, New York-style salsa. Their energy on stage and their rich sound and musical precision leave audiences mesmerized. With an unwavering respect for the music’s storied history, the ensemble’s thirteen world-class instrumentalists and vocalists come together to create an unparalleled musical experience.

Spanish Harlem Orchestra

The stellar combination of pianist Jeremy Denk — winner of a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship and the Avery Fisher Prize — and the internationally-renowned, Grammy Award-winning Takács Quartet promises music making of unparalleled virtuosity and deep intelligence. In their first DACAMERA appearance, Takács Quartet brings us a Haydn quartet filled with dramatic twists and surprises and Janáček’s first quartet, inspired by Tolstoy’s tale of passion, jealousy and murder. Dvořák’s exquisite, thrilling piano quintet transforms folk themes and dances into one of the most beloved works of the chamber music repertoire.

Takács Quartet and Jeremy Denk, piano

One of the most lyrical and intimate voices of contemporary jazz piano, Brad Mehldau has forged a unique path, which embodies the essence of jazz exploration, classical romanticism and pop allure. His forays into melding musical idioms, in both trio and solo settings, has seen brilliant re-workings of songs by The Beatles, Cole Porter, Radiohead, Paul Simon, George Gershwin and Nick Drake; alongside the ever evolving breadth of his own significant catalogue of original compositions. Mehldau’s new trio includes seven-time Grammy Award-winning bassist Christian McBride and Grammy Award-winning drummer Marcus Gilmore, best known for his work with Chick Corea, Vijay Iyer and Pat Metheny.

Brad Mehldau, Christian McBride, Marcus Gilmore

Duke Ellington looms large as one of the most important composers, bandleaders and pianists of the 20th century. Experience the timeless genius of Ellington’s music, brilliantly reimagined by pianist Jason Moran, in this extraordinary celebration of the composer’s enduring legacy, 125 years after his birth. Guided by the composer’s great canon, Moran takes a solo piano climb up “Mount Ellington” and then he’s joined by the big band from his storied alma mater, Kinder High School for the Visual and Performing Arts.

Jason Moran Presents “Duke Ellington: My Heart Sings”

Vocalist Ekep Nkwelle is a force in today’s jazz scene, charting a remarkable journey from the vibrant culture of Washington, DC to the iconic stages of New York and beyond. Quickly attracting the admiration of today’s jazz legends for her exceptional artistry, she was recently singled out by Wynton Marsalis to perform at the Jazz at Lincoln Center gala and has appeared alongside Dianne Reeves in concert. Ekep Nkwelle is poised to become one of the defining artists of her generation.

Ekep Nkwelle

Following acclaimed sold-out performances in Paris’s Cité de la musique, Brussels and Lisbon, French-American cellist Sonia Wieder-Atherton and pianist Sarah Rothenberg bring Wieder-Atherton and filmmaker Chantal Akerman’s D’Est en musique to the US, in conjunction with a retrospective of Akerman’s films at the Museum of Modern Art and a screening at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

D’Est en musique (From the East)

A rare Houston performance from Grammy Award-winning classical vocalist Julia Bullock, admired both for her critically-acclaimed performances at the Metropolitan Opera as well as original, boundary-breaking recitals of astounding intensity. Appearing here with frequent collaborator and virtuosic soloist Conor Hanick, these two luminous musicians shine their collective light one of the vocal masterpieces of the 20th century.

Julia Bullock, soprano; Conor Hanick, piano | Harawi

Composer Gabriela Lena Frank explores the tumultuous relationship between Mexican painters Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera in a new string quartet based on her acclaimed 2021 opera El último sueño de Frida y Diego (The Last Dream of Frida and Diego), a “confident, richly imagined score” (The New Yorker) that “bursts with color and fresh individuality” (Los Angeles Times). This new multi-media DACAMERA production features projections based on the paintings of Frida Kahlo.

Brooklyn Rider: Frida’s Dreams

Join this living legend for a rare Sunday afternoon performance as Branford Marsalis brings his trademark energy and virtuosity to a re-imagining of one of the greatest quartet recordings in jazz history, Keith Jarrett’s classic 1974 album Belonging. A three-time Grammy winner and NEA Jazz Master, Marsalis has led his renowned quartet with unmatched clarity and power for over three decades.

Branford Marsalis Quartet Belonging Tour

Legendary guitarist Pat Metheny returns to DACAMERA with a new version of his Side-Eye project, giving a platform to new and upcoming musicians who have particularly caught his interest. As a teenager, Metheny regularly jammed with Kansas City’s best jazz musicians, an inspiring experience of sitting in with more mature players. Side-Eye honors that tradition.

Pat Metheny Side-Eye

Discover anew Schubert’s glorious Cello Quintet, considered by many the most beautiful work in all of chamber music. The Grammy Award-winning Parker Quartet, one of the preeminent ensembles of its generation, opens their program with the ferocious intensity of Beethoven and the minimalism of Philip Glass, setting the stage for a fascinating dialogue with Schubert’s time-suspending masterpiece.

Parker Quartet; Raman Ramakrishnan, cello

The Isidore Quartet skyrocketed to the heights of the music world since winning the Avery Fisher Career Grant and the Banff International String Quartet Competition and their debut at DACAMERA in 2023. They return with a strikingly diverse program, juxtaposing Schubert’s quartet with twentieth and twenty-first century works. We begin with the Hungarian composer Gyorgy Ligeti’s second quartet, where numerous musical lines weave together to create a dramatic soundscape. Pulitzer Prize-winner Tyshawn Sorey’s Everything Changes, Nothing Changes is a tour-de-force of subtle voicings, beautifully shifting harmonies and pulsating string sounds. We close with Schubert’s deeply expressive “Rosamunde” Quartet, admired for its emotional directness and eloquent beauty.

Isidore String Quartet

2026 marks the centennial of iconic saxophonist John Coltrane’s birth. An all-star lineup — saxophonists Joe Lovano and Melissa Aldana; pianist Ndudzo Makhathini, bassist Matthew Garrison, and drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts — pays tribute to the jazz giant, whose creativity and spirituality has influenced generations of musicians.

Coltrane at 100: Both Directions at Once

Russian pianist Yulianna Avdeeva was the First Prize winner of the 2010 International Chopin Piano Competition, which launched her to international fame as audiences discovered her passionate and virtuoso interpretations of Chopin’s music. Following celebrated recitals at the Salzburg Festival, Carnegie Hall and London’s Wigmore Hall, she comes to Houston with a fascinating program of Chopin’s revolutionary and poetic 24 Preludes juxtaposed with Shostakovich’s monumental Preludes and Fugues, the composer’s homage to J.S. Bach.

Yulianna Avdeeva, piano

DACAMERA celebrates the 100th anniversary of the birth of influential American composer Morton Feldman, whose music uniquely suspends time. Feldman broke new ground in musical expression in the 1970’s with his experimental works that strove for the stillness of paintings.

Morton Feldman at 100: “Schubert Leaving Me”

Over more than 20 years as a recording artist, the jazz piano phenomenon Hiromi has shifted seamlessly from one spellbinding project to the next. In the process, she’s earned a reputation as one of the most explosive live performers in jazz history. Her many triumphs include an NPR Tiny Desk Concert that has racked up 2 million views; representing her native Japan at the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo; and a Grammy Award for a collaboration with fusion hero Stanley Clarke.

Dacamera

Dec 6, 2025

Ekep Nkwelle

16 - 17 Jan, 2026

D’Est en musique (From the East)

Jan 30, 2026

Julia Bullock, soprano; Conor Hanick, piano | Harawi

Feb 20, 2026

Brooklyn Rider: Frida’s Dreams

Feb 22, 2026

Branford Marsalis Quartet Belonging Tour

Dec 2, 2025

Brentano String Quartet

Nov 14, 2025

Nicholas Payton Quartet

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