Neighborhood

Two hundred and fifty years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the words of the Founding Fathers feel newly urgent. Gathering to hear American music, in a city that has always stood for pluralism and possibility and in a neighborhood that was described by poet Mascha Kaléko as “the melting pot in the melting pot” is itself an act of faith — in what the Republic has been, and in what it still can be.

In “We the People,” Poetica Musica draws on music from America’s first 25 decades – including works by, Aaron Copland, William Bolcom, Hall Johnson, and others — to trace a thread of distinctly American expression across generations and styles.

Those who came to Bernstein Remix at TVT2025 will already be acquainted with the awesome Ahn Trio, “classical revolutionaries” (Newsday) who combine razor-sharp technique with the fierce energy of rock stars, seamlessly fusing classical music with rock, jazz, and multimedia. Their exciting and innovative collaborations have wowed audiences around the world. President Obama invited them to perform at the White House State Dinner in honor of South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and First Lady Kim Yoon-ok. The Village Trip is delighted to welcome them back with The Art of Collaboration: Sting, Jobim and Baechle, an unmissable evening of duos, trios and quartets.

Paul Robeson — singer, athlete, actor, activist — embodied all the promise of America at its best. He used his art as a weapon of justice and, as a global citizen, he spoke truth to power, heedless of the personal cost. “Artists are the gatekeepers of truth,” he once said. “We are civilization’s radical voice.” Fifty years after his passing, his magnificent voice still rings out, entreating us all to fight the good fight. Baritone James C Martin, with Lynn Raley at the piano, celebrates a true American patriot with a program of Robeson’s best-loved songs and his bravest words, spoken in a tumultuous time when many turned against him. The program also features a world première by David Amram and other composers, including Augusta Read Thomas, Chen Shih-hui, Erik Santos, Robert Wellington Pound, and Maria Thompson Corley setting words by Robeson’s friend and fellow activist Langston Hughes.

As the much-missed Gloria Steinem noted, creativity is an essential means for women to reclaim their voices and challenge societal restraints. The Village Trip is proud to present this timely celebration of Women's Work, an evening of music and poetry that explores the tension between the external demands placed on women and the rich creative interior lives they have always sustained. Central to the program is a world première from Greenwich Village composer Kitty Brazelton. Women’s Work also features music by Adam Tendler, Sharon Harms, Joan Forsyth, Liz Queler, Jocelyn Morlock, Missy Mazzoli, Shoko Suzuki, Ann Southam, Harold Meltzer, Whitney George, and more. Texts by Eleanor Roosevelt, Marcella Remund, Edna St Vincent Millay, and Anne Lovering Rounds. Proudly introducing composers Devon Lee and KiMani Bridges from the Luna Composition Lab, and soprano Curtlyn Ifill.

Four composers from diverse backgrounds – Samuel Adler, Victoria Bond, Dina Koston, and Nehemiah Luckett – offer very personal interpretations of the dreams that have lured immigrants from all around the world to America’s shores. Performed by Ensemble Cygnus and singers.

Each year, The Village Trip brings together composers with deep ties to Greenwich Village and the East Village for an evening celebrating Village Voices. This year's program draws on an extraordinary range of voices — and histories – featuring premieres by Scott Wheeler, and Ella Milch-Sheriff, as well as new settings of Herman Melville by Akemi Naito and Kile Smith.

An intimate evening in the company of Allen Shawn, author, pianist, and composer whose six-year sojourn in the West Village marked a creative turning point when – influenced by encounters with clarinetist Benny Goodman – he began blending classical music with elements of jazz. His lively music is characterized by emotional directness and an openness to a variety of idioms. “Notes from a Life” is a sonic diary featuring chamber pieces from across four decades by this multifaceted musician celebrated for his “distinctly urban energy.”