Presented by the University of Pennsylvania's Music Department, the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, and the Otto E. Albrecht Music Library, the music series Music in the Pavilion takes place in the beautiful sixth-floor Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion in Van Pelt-Deitrich Library Center.
The University of Pennsylvania Music Department, the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, and the Otto E. Albrecht Music Library are pleased to announce spring concerts in the popular Music in the Pavilion series. Taking place in the beautiful sixth-floor Class of 1978 Pavilion in Van Pelt Library, the series showcases an array of professional and international musicians, not only performing gems from standard concert repertoires but also premiering works found only in the wealth of materials—print and manuscript—held in the Kislak Center collections, which will be concurrently displayed in the adjacent Henry Charles Lea Library. Enriching the experience of each concert, attendees will have the opportunity to hear brief lectures by eminent scholars, performers, and graduate students that contextualize the music historically, socially, and culturally.
All concerts are open to the public and free of charge. Concerts will be held on Fridays, except for the special concert. Pre-concert talk is at 6:15 pm, followed by the concert at 7:00 pm.
Piffaro, the Renaissance Band, honors the 650th anniversary of Italian poet Petrarch’s passing with a concert of Renaissance vocal and instrumental music.
Saxophonist and composer Odean Pope and his Choir will honor the enduring influence that Philadelphia has had on Pope's artistic vision with a performance and pre-concert talk.
Penn doctoral students Sarah Le Van (violin) and Echezonachukwu Nduka (piano) will perform works from across time and space.
Hear songs and instrumental selections from the music room of Eleanor “Nelly” Parke Custis Lewis, George Washington’s step-granddaughter.
The Night Music Ensemble, performing with mezzosoprano Meg Bragle, recreates Pauline Viardot’s salon through music works known to have been performed there.
Scott Metcalfe directs the vocal ensemble Blue Heron in a concert of Italian madrigals.
The Daedalus Quartet performs and Lynn Hooker explores Bartók’s Second Quartet in the context of Orientalism, Arabic influences and musical nationalism.
Violinist Min-Young Kim dreams up a program of fantasies for solo violin, two violins and violin and piano with friends Mandy Wolman (violin) and Matt Bengtson (piano).
In this program, the Raritan Players, led by Rebecca Cypess, explore music in private circles in 18th-century Philadelphia.
February 3, 2023
Drawing inspiration from archival exhibition catalogs of the Shiraz Festival, which had broad and lasting impacts on contemporary and experimental music in Iran, this concert features music by contemporary Iranian composers.
March 17, 2023
Trefoil, a trio of singer-instrumentalists long active in early music, perform songs from the Pennsylvania Chansonniere, a collection of medieval poems written in France.
April 10, 2020
Ensemble Persepolis: Contemporary Music from Iran
Canceled in accordance with University COVID-19 guidelines
January 17, 2020
Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Erich Korngold and Karl Weigl
November 8, 2019
Jim Primosch, George Crumb, and others, setting Walt Whitman's poems for voice and piano
September 27, 2019
A subtle aroma of Romanticism: Music by Felix Mendelssohn and Louise Farrenc
Featured image: Detail from Ludwig Abielle, Ill sonates pour le clavicin ou pianoforte opera III (France, 17th century), UPenn Ms. Codex 13, Kislak Center
Music Department
Mauro Calcagno, Assoc. Professor of Music
Mary Channen Caldwell, Asst. Professor of Music
Kislak Center and the Penn Libraries
Lynne Farrington, Director of Programs/Senior Curator, Special Collections, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts
Liza Vick, Head, Otto E. Albrecht Music Library and Eugene Ormandy Music and Media Center