Hoff-Barthelson Music School

Music of Our Time Festival Large Ensembles Performance
2025-05-18 15:00 - 16:30 (America/New_York)
The Music of Our Time Contemporary Music Festival – Student Recital featuring music composed between 1975 and the present.
Featuring the world premiere of All the Sounds Around Her by Kian Ravaei
Commissioned by HBMS for a student ensemble and made possible under the auspices of Hoff-Barthelson’s Wilma Machover Residency and Commission Program, this piece is inspired by the life and legacy of the beloved children’s musician Ella Jenkins. The work incorporates call-and-response singing, Afro-Cuban rhythms, and Jenkins’ signature multilingual counting games. The piece will be performed by the HBMS Vocal ensembles together with the Westchester Children’s Choir, and the HBMS Festival Orchestra, conducted by Leandro Gazineo.
Scheduled to perform:
Flute Ensemble — Donna Elaine, Director
Chamber Orchestra — Robert Schwartz, Director
Festival Orchestra Strings — Leandro Gazineo, Director
Winner of the Annual Wilma Machover Creative Development Fund
Selected individual student performers
Performers and program subject to change.

Student Composer's Recital
2026-04-16 18:00 - 19:00 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
Student Recital featuring music composed by participants of the Compose Yourself! Project and HBMS Composition classes under the direction of Derek Cooper.
Part of The Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

Composer Collaborations Student Recital
2026-04-17 18:00 - 19:00 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
Students perform works by living composers whom they have worked directly with during the preparation of their pieces. Through coaching sessions with the composers themselves, the performers gain unique insight into the music and bring these contemporary works vividly to life.
Part of the Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

The Soviets: 1922-1988 Student Recital
2026-04-18 14:30 - 15:30 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
This recital explores music written in the Soviet Union between 1922 and 1988, a period marked by extraordinary artistic achievement amid profound political constraint. Featuring works by leading Soviet composers, the program highlights the depth, drama, and expressive power that emerged from this complex chapter of musical history.
Part of the Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

1976-Present Student Recital
2026-04-18 16:00 - 17:00 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
This recital celebrates music written from 1976 to the present, highlighting the diverse voices and styles that have shaped contemporary classical and crossover repertoire. Featuring works by composers such as John Williams, Philip Glass, Astor Piazzolla, Vincent Persichetti, Ian Clarke, and Yiruma, the program reflects the rich variety of musical expression from the late twentieth century to today.
Part of the Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

Women at the Millennium: 1976 - Present Student Recital
2026-04-18 19:00 - 20:00 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
This recital celebrates the creativity and expressive range of women composers whose works have shaped the musical landscape from the late twentieth century to today. Featuring music by composers including Lori Laitman, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, Hilary Tann, Christine Donkin, Andrea Casarrubios, and others, the program highlights distinctive voices writing at the turn of the millennium and beyond.
Part of the Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

Micro Commissions Project Student Recital
2026-04-19 13:00 - 14:00 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
Now in its second year, the Micro-Commissions Project is an innovative collaboration between Hoff-Barthelson Music School and the Manhattan School of Music. Co-directed by Peter Seidenberg and Reiko Füting, Chair of Composition at MSM, the initiative pairs ten HBMS students with undergraduate composers from MSM to create brand-new works tailored to each student’s instrument and level.
Part of the Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

Flute and Viola Clubs Music of Our TIme Concert
2026-04-19 15:00 - 16:00 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
The Junior Flutes, Flute Club, and Adult Flute Choir, along with the Viola Club, perform works composed between 1976 and the present.
Part of the Music of Our Time Festival.
View Festival flyer here.

World Premiere: We long to wait
2026-04-19 17:00 - 18:30 | Hoff-Barthelson Music School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale, 10583, United States
The Music of Our Time Festival concludes with the premiere of a newly commissioned work by composer Flannery Cunningham, recipient of support through the Wilma Machover Fund. Her piece, We long to wake, for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble, draws on poetry by Carl Sandburg and the traditions of Sacred Harp singing to explore themes of mortality, human experience, and the urgency of living with awareness and intention.
“In We long to wake, I was drawn to the idea of contrasting human worlds and the ways music can bring them into conversation,” said Flannery Cunningham. “The piece ultimately asks us to reflect on how we live—to remain awake to what matters most and to the shared human experiences that connect us.”
In addition to the commissioned work, the concert will include contemporary works performed by HBMS faculty and students. The winner of the 2026 Wilma Machover Prize will also be announced.
The concert is free of charge and open to the public.
View Festival flyer here.
