Juilliard is celebrating its centennial year by doing what it does best: producing more than 700 performances of music, dance, and drama, featuring numerous commissions as well as important works of the canon. Among them are a work by choreographer Eliot Feld that will feature some 60 Juilliard dancers on a giant ramp, a play by playwright Craig Lucas (with music by composer Michael Torke) premiered by fourth-year drama students, and an opera by alumnus Lowell Liebermann based on the 1933 novel Miss Lonelyhearts by Nathanael West.

Composer Lowell Liebermann's opera Miss Lonelyhearts will be given its world premiere by the Juilliard Opera Center in April.

The season opens with the annual concert of the Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition winners on September 14 in Paul Hall. Edward Robie and Xiang Zou are this year's victors, and the performance will be broadcast on WQXR radio with host (and faculty member) Robert Sherman (see article). Also this month, the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra gives three concerts (September 22-24) of Kansas City–style jazz at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Allen Room (see article). The New Juilliard Ensemble makes its first appearance on September 24 in the Juilliard Theater, conducted by Joel Sachs (see article). The dance activities get off to an exciting start this month with Sir Isaac's Apples, a commissioned work by Eliot Feld (see article).


Special Centennial Events

To mark Juilliard's centennial year, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts hosts a special multimedia exhibit called "The Juilliard School, 1905-2005: Celebrating 100 Years," which opens on September 16 (see article). These materials from Juilliard's Archives and the collections of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts will be on view until January 14, 2006. The School will host a symposium, "American Society and the Arts," on September 22 in the Juilliard Theater. Participants will include historian David McCullough, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, and alumna and soprano Renée Fleming (see article). PBS's Live From Lincoln Center will broadcast a gala concert on April 3 that features performances by Emanuel Ax, Ms. Fleming, Itzhak Perlman, the Juilliard String Quartet, and others.

Choreographers Jessica Lang (second from left), Adam Hougland, and Alan Hineline have been commissioned to create new works for the Dance Division. (Photo by Brett Thomas)

For the first time, ensembles from all three of the School's divisions will be touring across the country. The Juilliard Orchestra will perform in Washington, D.C. (December 13); Chicago (March 5); Dallas (March 7); Irvine, Calif. (March 9); Los Angeles (March 11); and San Diego (March 12). The Jazz Orchestra will tour to Appleton, Wisc. (March 2), Escondido, Calif. (March 5), and Aiken, S.C. (March 10-11). Fourth-year actors will perform in Los Angeles (March 2-4, 7-8) and Chicago (March 15-17, 20-22). The Juilliard Dance Ensemble will tour to Chicago (March 17-19) and Los Angeles (March 23-26).


Orchestra and Symphony

On October 11, the 100th anniversary of classes held at the School, the Juilliard Orchestra will give a concert at Carnegie Hall featuring a commissioned work, titled Manhattan Trilogy, by alumnus Einojuhani Rautavaara, conducted by alumnus Dennis Russell Davies.

Alumnus James Conlon leads the Juilliard Orchestra, Juilliard Choral Union, and Brooklyn Youth Chorus in a performance of Mahler's Third Symphony at Carnegie Hall on December 11. The orchestra will play additional concerts with Maestro Conlon (November 14, Alice Tully Hall), alumnus Leonard Slatkin (January 23, Avery Fisher Hall), faculty member James DePreist (March 1, Avery Fisher Hall), and alumnus Gerard Schwarz (April 10, Alice Tully Hall). The orchestra's commencement concert, on May 25 in Alice Tully Hall, will be conducted by Maestro DePreist and will include works by Mozart, Lutoslawski, and alumnus and staff member Steven Bryant.

The Juilliard Symphony begins its season with a concert led by Mr. DePreist (October 6, Juilliard Theater). The symphony will also perform with alumnus Guillermo Figueroa (November 7, Alice Tully Hall), Otto-Werner Mueller (December 5, Alice Tully Hall), Mr. Conlon (February 15, Avery Fisher Hall), Riccardo Frizza (February 27, Alice Tully Hall), and Hugh Wolff (April 5, Avery Fisher Hall).


Drama

David Auburn (pictured here with faculty member Christopher Durang) is one of 10 alumni playwrights to be featured in an evening of short plays in October. (Photo by Jessica Katz)

The fourth-year actors will give the premiere of a new play, tentatively titled The Listener, in the Drama Theater (January 12-16). The work is written by Craig Lucas, with music by Michael Torke, and will be directed by Bartlett Sher. Another highlight is Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by Joe Dowling, which is presented at the same time as the Juilliard Opera Center's production of Benjamin Britten's opera of the same name. The performances of the play are November 17-21 in the Drama Theater. The fourth-year students will open the drama season with Thomas Gibbons's Black Russian (September 29-October 3; see article) and will present Christopher Marlowe's Edward II (February 18-23) as their final production.

The third-year actors will perform "10 x 10," an evening of 10 short plays by 10 alumni writers of the Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program, on October 19-23 in Studio 301. The playwrights are David Auburn, Tanya Barfield, Shephen Belber, Brooke Berman, Julia Cho, Noah Haidle, Steve Harper, Deborah Laufer, David Lindsay-Abaire, and Ellen Melaver.


Dance

Juilliard's senior, junior, and sophomore dancers (about 60 students) will be involved in the premiere performances of Eliot Feld's Sir Isaac's Apples at the Juilliard Theater this month, accompanied by a live performance of alumnus Steve Reich's Drumming by the Juilliard Percussion Ensemble. The annual Composers and Choreographers concert has moved to the Juilliard Theater for three performances, two of which have been expanded. The first showing on December 14 is part of the hourlong Wednesdays at One series, while the remaining two (December 16 and 17) also include the fall semester's best work from student choreographers. In February, the Juilliard Dance Ensemble will perform New Dances/New Music, a program of three world-premiere commissions by choreographers Adam Hougland (in a collaboration with Peter Martins) and Jessica Lang, both alums, as well as Alan Hineline, with new music, respectively, by faculty member Christopher Rouse, Pete M. Wyer, and Jerome Begin (February 22-26, Juilliard Theater). The Senior Dance Production will be presented in the Clark Theater on April 27-30; Choreographic Honors is May 19-20 in the Juilliard Theater; and the Senior Dance Showcase is May 22 in the Juilliard Theater.


Opera, Vocal Arts, and the Choral Union

The Juilliard Opera Center will present Benjamin Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream on November 16, 18, and 20 in the Juilliard Theater, concurrently with the Drama Division's production of Shakespeare's play. Faculty member Eve Shapiro will direct and David Atherton will conduct. The J.O.C.'s second production of the year will be the premiere of Miss Lonelyhearts, with music by Lowell Liebermann and libretto by J.D. McClatchy. The performances, on April 26, 28, and 30 in the Juilliard Theater, are directed by Ken Cazan and conducted by alumnus Andreas Delfs.

On November 29, soprano and alumna Sarah Wolfson and pianist (and doctoral candidate) Lydia Brown will give the Alice Tully Vocal Arts Debut Recital, featuring works by Turina, Wolf, Berio, and Bolcom. Faculty member Stephen Blier, who is also artistic director of the New York Festival of Song, collaborates with student singers in a special evening of songs by Juilliard alumni on January 17 in the Juilliard Theater.

James Conlon will lead the Juilliard Orchestra at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center in December. (Photo by Nan Melville)

The Juilliard Choral Union, directed by alumna and faculty member Judith Clurman, will present "Cinema Serenades" on April 6 in Alice Tully Hall. This concert features new works by composers known for their film scores: alumnus Marvin Hamlisch, alumna Laura Karpman, Marc Shaiman, Howard Shore, and alumnus John Williams, along with Orff's Carmina Burana.


Jazz

The Juilliard Jazz Orchestra gives the premiere of Juilliard 100, a commission written by Benny Golson, on February 9 in Alice Tully Hall. The Jazz Orchestra presents the music of Duke Ellington on October 10 in the Juilliard Theater and original music by students on March 25 in the Juilliard Theater. The Juilliard Jazz Ensembles will perform on October 5, November 7, December 12, February 13, and April 11 in Paul Hall.


Chamber Music

Bärli Nugent, assistant dean and director of chamber music, is artistic director for a tribute to former Juilliard president and composer Peter Mennin on October 24 in Alice Tully Hall. The concert will feature the Juilliard Choral Union, alumna and faculty member Carol Wincenc, alumnus Robert McDuffie, and alumnus and faculty member Jerome Lowenthal. On December 9 and 10, Juilliard students and faculty members collaborate in two chamber music concerts at Carnegie's Zankel Hall. ChamberFest 2006 performances will be in Paul Hall on January 17-18 and 20-21. Juilliard's new graduate string quartet-in-residence, the Calder Quartet, will give the annual Lisa Arnhold Memorial Recital on February 21 in Alice Tully Hall.


Focus! Festival and New Juilliard Ensemble

The Focus! Festival 2006: New and Now will run from January 27 to February 3. Among the works scheduled are premieres by Roberto Sierra, faculty member Milton Babbitt, Mario Davidovsky, Franghiz Ali-Zadeh, alumnus Mason Bates, and a choral work by Paul Schoenfield that will feature the Juilliard Choral Union. All performances will be in the Juilliard Theater.

The New Juilliard Ensemble, led by faculty member Joel Sachs, gives the premiere of a work by alumnus Adam Schoenberg on November 22 in Alice Tully Hall. The N.J.E. returns on April 24, in Alice Tully Hall, to offer premieres of works by alumnus Ryan Francis, Andrew Ford, and Jia Daqun.


Faculty Recitals

The 2005-06 Daniel Saidenberg Faculty Recitals begin with the Juilliard String Quartet performing the premiere of alumnus Ezequiel Viñao's specially commissioned String Quartet No. 2, on October 20 in Alice Tully Hall. The series continues with jazz faculty members Victor L. Goines, Wycliffe Gordon, Ben Wolfe, and Carl Allen (November 11, Paul Hall); a "Brass Bash" of faculty and students (November 30, Juilliard Theater); the cello faculty (March 21, Paul Hall); and the return of the J.S.Q. (April 18, Alice Tully Hall). The American Brass Quintet bring the series to a close with a celebration of its 45th anniversary on May 4 in the Juilliard Theater, featuring the premiere of a new brass quintet by Joan Tower.


Other Events

Among the many other events to be held during this centennial year are a Juilliard Percussion Ensemble performance (February 13, Alice Tully Hall); a concert celebrating composer and faculty member Milton Babbitt's 90th birthday (March 27, Paul Hall); the Jerome Greene concert of Baroque music, conducted by Trevor Pinnock (March 31, Alice Tully Hall); Beyond the Machine 4.0 (April 17-21, various locations); and the William Petschek Piano Debut Recital (April 20, Alice Tully Hall). For complete coverage and up-to-date information, see our online calendar of events.