Nov 1 & 15: Newport Classical presents Chamber Series Concerts by Baritone Markel Reed and Cellist Seth Parker Woods in Downtown Newport
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Newport Classical Presents Two Chamber Series Concerts in November
November 1: Baritone Markel Reed
November 15: Cellist Seth Parker Woods
Fridays at 7:30pm
Newport Classical Recital Hall | 42 Dearborn St. | Newport, RI
Newport, RI – Newport Classical continues its fourth full-season Chamber Series, featuring twelve concerts held on select Fridays at 7:30pm at the organization’s home venue Newport Classical Recital Hall (42 Dearborn St.), with two performances in November. On Friday, November 1, 2024 at 7:30pm, baritone Markel Reed, known for his appearances at The Metropolitan Opera, performs the music of Brahms, Margaret Bonds, Terence Blanchard, and more. On Friday, November 15, 2024 at 7:30pm, cellist Seth Parker Woods, celebrated by The Guardian as “a cellist of power and grace,” explores three centuries of music with Bach’s contemplative Sarabandes as a point of departure and return in his solo cello concert.
A passionate conveyor of the operatic repertoire, Markel Reed boasts an impressive resume including roles with The Metropolitan Opera, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Boston Lyric Opera, and more. This season, he performs the role of Masetto in Opera Omaha’s production of Don Giovanni, James Baldwin in The Tongue & The Lash at Town Hall NYC, Jigger Craigin in Boston Lyric Opera’s Carousel, and Yusef Salaam in Anthony Davis’ The Central Park Five with Detroit Opera. He recently performed in Wagner’s Götterdämmerung with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood. Reed’s recital in Newport celebrates standard and contemporary works, beginning with biblical texts and poetry from Brahms and Poulenc, and including Margaret Bonds’ Three Dream Portraits and selections from Benjamin Moore’s Ode to a Nightingale. Reed concludes the evening with an aria from Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones, having originated the role of Chester in the world premiere of this seminal work.
Two-time GRAMMY®-nominated cellist Seth Parker Woods presents Thus Spoke Their Verse in Newport. Celebrated by The Guardian as possessing “mature artistry and willingness to go to the brink,” Woods has established his reputation as a versatile artist and innovator across multiple genres. As The New York Times wrote, “Woods is an artist rooted in classical music, but whose cello is a vehicle that takes him, and his concertgoers, on wide-ranging journeys.” In Thus Spoke Their Verse, he explores three centuries of music centering around identity and narrative storytelling. The evening is anchored by three Sarabandes from the first, second, and fifth Bach suites, which provide points throughout the concert to transition from a familiar experience toward the possibility of something radically new. The program includes selections from Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson’s Lamentations, “Black Folk/Song Suite;” Frederick Gifford’s Difficult Grace; Nathalie Joachim’s Dam Mwen Yo; Alvin Singleton’s Argoru II; Monty Adkins’ Winter Tendrils; Conrad Beck’s Drei Epigramme für solo cello; Carlos Simon’s Between Worlds; and Chinary Ung’s Khse Buon.
Newport Classical's Chamber Series takes place at Newport Classical Recital Hall in downtown Newport, known for its striking architecture and excellent acoustics. The Chamber Series, newly expanded to twelve concerts held between September and June, reaffirms Newport Classical’s commitment to year-round classical music programming. Audiences are invited to enjoy performances by world-class classical musicians in a relaxed setting, with a complimentary glass of wine from Greenvale Vineyards and homemade treats by Newport Classical volunteers.
As part of Newport Classical’s desire to create connections between classical music, the artists who perform it, and the Newport community, all musicians performing on the Chamber Series also go into the Newport-area public schools to perform for and speak with students, through Newport Classical’s Music Education and Engagement Initiative.
Up next on the Newport Classical Chamber Series, Anton Mejias gives the US premiere of Twelve Preludes: The Art of Memory by composer Philip Lasser, alongside Book II of Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier, on October 18. Newport Classical celebrates the holiday season with two weekends of festive programs in December – Cantus at the Mansion: Songs of the Season featuring Cantus with The Choir School of Newport County on December 8 at Rosecliff, and Classical Christmas featuring Frisson on December 14 at Emmanuel Church.
The Newport Classical Chamber Series kicks off 2025 with a performance by the Telegraph Quartet, described as “powerfully adept, with a combination of brilliance and subtlety” by the San Francisco Chronicle, in music rarely experienced by its creators, the composers Rebecca Clarke, Beethoven, and Smetana, on January 24. Boyd Meets Girl comes to Newport for a performance on Valentine’s Day, February 14 – the impressive husband-and-wife guitar and cello duo has toured the world sharing their eclectic mix of music from Debussy and Bach to Radiohead and Beyoncé. On February 28, the acclaimed Trio Karénine, which has established itself in recent years as a key group on the French and international stage, pairs Schubert’s second piano trio with Dvořák’s rarely programmed second piano trio, filled with color, warmth, lively dance, and Slavic folk elements. Oboist James Austin Smith, hailed by The New York Times as “virtuosic,” and for his “dazzling” and “brilliant” performances, joins forces with acclaimed pianist Gloria Chien in music by William Grant Still, Clara Schumann, Camille Saint-Saëns, and more, on March 21. On April 25, Bulgarian-American violinist Bella Hristova, who has won international acclaim for her “expressive nuance and rich tone” (The New York Times) presents the music of Bach and Messiaen, alongside works by Grieg and Indian-American composer Reena Esmail, with pianist Anna Polonsky. Pianist Orion Weiss, known for his “powerful technique and exceptional insight” (The Washington Post) returns to Newport for a solo recital of Bach’s beloved Goldberg Variations on May 16. On June 13, the GRAMMY-nominated Norwegian Trio Mediaeval, who captivate audiences with their crystalline voices, closes the 2024-2025 Newport Classical Chamber Series with an enchanting evening of Norwegian and Swedish traditional songs, hymns, fiddle tunes, and ballads.
The 2025 Newport Classical Music Festival will take place from July 4-22, 2025.
Single tickets for Chamber Series concerts start at $45 and packages are available starting at $200 for five concerts. AARP members and their guests receive discounts on fall Chamber Series tickets and packages, graciously provided by AARP of Rhode Island through their supporting sponsorship of the fall concerts, and thanks to a generous grant from the Gruben Charitable Foundation, a limited number of free student tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
About Newport Classical
Newport Classical is a premier performing arts organization that welcomes people of every age, culture, and background to intimate, immersive musical experiences. The organization presents world-renowned and up-and-coming artistic talents at stunning, storied venues across Newport – an internationally sought-after cultural and recreational destination.
Originally founded in 1969 as Rhode Island Arts Foundation at Newport, Inc., Newport Classical has a rich legacy of musical curiosity having presented the American debuts of hundreds of international artists and is most well-known for hosting three weeks of concerts in the summer in the historic mansions throughout Newport and Aquidneck Island. In the 55 years since, Newport Classical has become the most active year-round presenter of music on Aquidneck Island, and an essential pillar of Rhode Island’s cultural landscape, welcoming thousands of patrons all year long.
Newport Classical invests in the future of classical music as a diverse, relevant, and ever-evolving art form through its four core programs – the one-of-a-kind Music Festival; the Chamber Series in the Newport Classical Recital Hall; the free, family-friendly Community Concerts Series; and the Music Education and Engagement Initiative that inspires students in local schools to become the arts advocates and music lovers of tomorrow. These programs illustrate the organization’s ongoing commitment to presenting “timeless music for today.”
In 2021, the organization launched a new commissioning initiative – each year, Newport Classical will commission a new work by a Black, Indigenous, person of color, or woman composer as a commitment to the future of classical music. To date, Newport Classical has commissioned and presented the world premiere of works by Stacy Garrop, Shawn Okpebholo, Curtis Stewart, and Clarice Assad.