The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director & Violin
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director & Conductor
Aaron Diehl, Piano

The intrepid orchestral ensemble The Knights continues their multi-year Rhapsody commissioning project, inspired by the Rhapsody in Blue centennial. They invite several of today’s most visionary composers to create an original rhapsody, which artistic directors Colin and Eric Jacobsen describe as “one of the most ecstatically joyful expressions of art ... [a] combination of virtuosity, improvisation, and unfettered imagination.” In this program, pianist and master improviser Aaron Diehl joins The Knights, conducted by Eric Jacobsen, in a world premiere by Michael Schachter, a new suite of music by Keith Jarrett as arranged by Michael P. Atkinson, and the rhapsodic Gershwin masterpiece. The orchestra also treats audiences to Beethoven’s exhilarating Fourth Symphony.

Program:

Keith Jarrett arr. Michael P. Atkinson Suite from Book of Ways, featuring Aaron Diehl, harpsichord WORLD PREMIERE

Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 4 in B-flat major, Op. 60  

Michael Schachter New Work / Rhapsody, featuring Aaron Diehl, piano WORLD PREMIERE

George Gershwin arr. Michael P. Atkinson Rhapsody in Blue, featuring Aaron Diehl, piano

Music lovers of all ages will delight in a family-friendly concert that celebrates world-class music and complements the Guillaume Lethiere exhibition in an engaging, interactive setting. The Knights perform excerpts from works by Joseph Bologne, the Chevalier de Saint-Georges (Lethiere's friend and contemporary), alongside audience participation activities that highlight musical details and showcase the way instruments can tell a story. In this accessible afternoon performance, children and their parents/grandparents/caregivers discover the limitless imaginative possibilities that exist in classical music. This performance is designed specifically for younger audiences and is intended to provide a fun and engaging introduction to classical music. The family-friendly program follows a large-scale outdoor concert by the Knights on the Clark’s Fernández Terrace on August 31.

The Knights return to the Clark! To celebrate the Guillaume Lethière exhibition, the orchestra plays a double violin concerto by the artist’s contemporary, the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, plus a new composition by Kyle Sanna featuring renowned Syrian clarinetist Kinan Azmeh as guest soloist. The performance speaks to the layered influence of art and artists.

Sanna’s new work was commissioned by The Knights as part of the Rhapsody project, a multi-year initiative that comprises commissions, performances, recordings, and educational initiatives.

Program:

Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges: Symphonie Concertante in G Major for two violins and orchestra, op. 13, no. 2, featuring Alex Gonzalez and Colin Jacobsen, violins

Gabriela Ortiz La Calaca for string orchestra

Kyle Sanna Undone Landscape, featuring Kinan Azmeh, clarinet - WORLD PREMIERE 

Kinan Azmeh "Wedding" from Suite for Improviser and Orchestra, featuring Kinan Azmeh, clarinet

The Knights at Fishers Island with special guest Kinan Azmeh

Join The Knights for a free, interactive family show, featuring excerpts and selections from the following works: 

Kinan Azmeh Dear Ocean for clarinet, harp, and bass

Kinan Azmeh Concertino Grosso

Kyle Sanna Undone Landscape

Kinan Azmeh Suite for Improviser and Orchestra, “Wedding”

Camille Saint-Saens Fantasie for violin and harp

The Knights at Fishers Island with special guest Kinan Azmeh

The Knights return to Fishers Island with a program featuring Kinan Azmeh, the Syrian-born clarinetist and composer. Described as the "intensely soulful virtuoso" by the NY Times, Azmeh's music lives at the intersection of jazz, contemporary classical, and Middle Eastern-infected rhythms and modes. Musicians from The Knights will be performing Azmeh's Concertino Grosso, which derives inspiration from the Baroque Concerto Grosso form, for violin, clarinet, guitar, percussion and strings, alongside his hit tune Wedding. The group will also perform Azmeh's Dear Ocean, a work written for himself and The Knights harp / bass dynamic duo of Megan and Shawn Conley. Dear Ocean was commissioned by Ocean Music Action, an organization founded by Megan Conley, which draws attention to issues of ocean sustainability through music and art. The musicians will also be workshopping and sharing an insider's view into Undone Landscape, a new piece of electro-acoustic music by guitarist/composer Kyle Sanna. Anchoring the program in the classical tradition will be Saint-Saens' poetic Fantasie for violin and harp. 

Program:

Kinan Azmeh Dear Ocean for clarinet, harp, and bass

Kinan Azmeh Concertino Grosso

Kyle Sanna Undone Landscape

Kinan Azmeh Suite for Improviser and Orchestra, “Wedding”

Camille Saint-Saens Fantasie for violin and harp

The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director & violin
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director & conductor
Emanuel Ax, piano

Program:

Gabriela Ortiz La Calaca for string orchestra

W.A. Mozart Piano Concerto No. 17 in G major, K.453

-intermission-

W.A. Mozart Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K. 503

For information on our August 14th concert at Tanglewood with Emanuel Ax, please click here.

The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director & violin
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director & conductor
Emanuel Ax, piano

Program:

Joseph Bologne Chevalier de Saint-Georges: Overture to L'amant anonyme

W.A. Mozart: Piano Concerto No.14 in E-flat major, K. 449

- intermission -

W.A. Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K.466

For information on our August 15th concert at Tanglewood with Emanuel Ax, please click here.

The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director and Conductor
Aaron Diehl, piano

The Knights joins forces with pianist-composer Aaron Diehl to present a program featuring the GRAMMY-nominated album Zodiac Suite in its entirety, and Beethoven's Sixth Symphony.

Program:

Mary Lou Williams Zodiac Suite featuring Aaron Diehl, piano
Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, “Pastoral”

The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director & violin
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director & conductor
Aaron Diehl, piano

The Knights joins forces with pianist-composer Aaron Diehl to present a program featuring an excerpt from Louise Farrenc's Symphony No. 3, excerpts from the GRAMMY-nominated album Zodiac Suite, and Beethoven's Symphony No. 6, "Pastoral." Join us for an afternoon of diverse and compelling musical expressions at Ravinia Festival.

Program:

Louise Farrenc excerpt from Symphony No. 3 in G minor, Op. 36 (Finale–Allegro)
Mary Lou Williams excerpts from Zodiac Suite featuring Aaron Diehl, piano
Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, "Pastoral"

The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director & violin
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director & conductor

The Knights are excited to return to the iconic Naumburg Bandshell on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. No tickets are required to attend this celebratory outdoor performance with Naumburg Orchestral Concerts, and seating will be offered on a first come first serve basis. The concert will also be broadcast live on WQXR.

Program:

W.A. Mozart Overture to Le Nozze de Figaro
Louise Farrenc Symphony No. 3 in G minor, Op. 36
Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, "Pastoral"

Musicians from The Knights are delighted to be performing once again at WQXR’s Classical Kids Fair at Brooklyn Children’s Museum. The Fair, running from 11am to 4pm, will be a fun-filled day of live performances, an instrument “petting zoo,” dance and composition workshops, arts & crafts, and more!

The Fair is open to the public, and entry is included with regular museum admission to Brooklyn Children’s Museum.

The Knights at Carnegie Hall with Jeffrey Kahane, Colin Jacobsen, Karen Ouzounian, and special guest Gabriel Kahane

This program came about through deep familial relationships and friendships that have yielded profoundly personal and compelling music. Gabriel Kahane's Heirloom, a new piano concerto written for his father, the renowned pianist Jeffrey Kahane, channels numerous themes of cross-generational and cross-cultural musical inspiration; from a paternal grandmother escaping the Holocaust in 1938 ("My Grandmother Knew Alban Berg”), to the tension between classical and popular music forms ("Guitars in the Attic"), to the wonder of seeing the world through the eyes of his young daughter ("Vera's Chicken-Powered Transit Machine").

Kahane’s Heirloom and selected songs are paired with Mozart's “Paris” Symphony, written during a time of great familial upheaval and difficulty, and two gorgeous contemporary works for solo strings and orchestra by Anna Clyne and Jessie Montgomery.

Program:

Jessie Montgomery, orch. Michi Wiancko Rhapsody No. 2 featuring Colin Jacobsen, violin (World Premiere)

Gabriel Kahane Heirloom featuring Jeffrey Kahane, piano (NY Premiere)

Gabriel Kahane Where are the Arms featuring Gabriel Kahane, vocals & Jeffrey Kahane, piano

Anna Clyne Shorthand featuring Karen Ouzounian, cello (NY Premiere)

W.A. Mozart Symphony No. 31 in D major, "Paris"

The Knights thank Gary L. Wasserman and Charles A. Kashner for their generous sponsorship support of the 2023/24 Knights Concert Series at Carnegie Hall.

The Knights
Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director and Conductor
Wu Man, Pipa
Christina Courtin, Vocals
Magos Herrera, Vocals

Continuing a long-standing relationship with pipa legend Wu Man, this program will feature the world premiere performance of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Du Yun’s new work for pipa and orchestra and explore themes of cultural memory, transformation of old into new, and a sense of theatricality within both instrumental and vocal music.

Ravel’s Le tombeau de Couperin was written in loving memory of friends he lost in World War I and channels the forms and clean lines of the French Baroque style. Du Yun’s piece is inspired by regional Chinese opera styles, which are increasingly in danger of being lost in modern China. The young Kurt Weill’s Weimar-era Symphony No. 1 (‘Berliner”) contains some of the hallmarks of what were to become his operatic, cabaret style in songs like Alabama Song and Pirate Jenny, which in turn went on to influence artists as diverse as American folk icon Bob Dylan, rock-band The Doors, and the beloved Brazilian songwriter Chico Buarque.

Program:

Maurice Ravel Le tombeau de Couperin 

Du Yun Ears of the Book - Concerto for Pipa and Orchestra, featuring Wu Man (World Premiere, co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall) 

Kurt Weill Symphony No. 1, “Berliner Symphonie” 

Bob Dylan, arr. Christina Courtin “When the Ship Comes In”

Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, arr. Christina Courtin "Alabama Song"

Chico Buarque, arr. Colin Jacobsen “Geni e o Zepelim” featuring Magos Herrera, vocals

Additional tickets not available online are available over the phone (212-247-7800) and at the Carnegie Hall Box Office.

The Knights thank Gary L. Wasserman and Charles A. Kashner for their generous sponsorship support of the 2023/24 Knights Concert Series at Carnegie Hall.

The Knights join Grammy Award-winning countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo and director Zack Winokur for a holiday concert at Perelman Performing Arts Center in Manhattan.

Anthony has performed around the world at venues including Carnegie Hall, Versailles, Madison Square Garden, The Berlin Philharmonic, The London Symphony Orchestra, Teatro Real Madrid, the English National Opera and many others. He was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his performance in the Merchant-Ivory film A Soldier’s Daughter Never Cries and starred in a critically acclaimed live show based on his album, Only an Octave Apart with cabaret legend Justin Vivian Bond in New York and London.

Composer Paula Matthusen and musicians from The Knights unite for this world premiere event that celebrates birds as a timeless source of inspiration for humanity. Bringing together birdsong and music, making the whole world a sky rhapsodically joins these two worlds. Matthusen’s spellbinding new composition draws on recent and historical research from Cornell Ornithology, bringing recordings of birds’ songs and the technologies used to interact with them – including The Knights’ musical instruments – into a shared realm. What starts as a song may emerge as a space to be interrupted, negotiated, and savored.

The program will also feature works from “On Wings of Song,” including works and arrangements by Vivaldi, Dvorak, Jessie Montgomery, and Colin Jacobsen.

In their Ithaca program, the Knights join forces with GRAMMY-winning mandolinist, singer, and songwriter Chris Thile.

J.S. Bach I. Vivace from Concerto in D Minor for Two Violins, BWV 1043, featuring Chris Thile, mandolin and Colin Jacobsen, violin (trans. Thile)

Caroline Shaw Is A Rose: No. 2, And So 

with Chris Thile, mandolin and vocals

Antonin Dvorak, arr. Curtis Stewart: "Toward America" (arr. String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96)

Colin Jacobsen Sheriff's Freud

-intermission-

Chris Thile ATTENTION!
(A narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra)

1. Attention
2. Lord Starbucks
3. The Rooftop
4. Carrie Freaking Fisher

Claire Coffee, director

The Knights
Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Chris Thile, mandolin & vocals

J.S. Bach I. Vivace from Concerto in D Minor for Two Violins, BWV 1043, featuring Chris Thile, mandolin and Colin Jacobsen, violin (trans. Thile)

Caroline Shaw Is A Rose: No. 2, And So 

with Chris Thile, mandolin and vocals

Antonin Dvorak, arr. Curtis Stewart: "Toward America" (arr. String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96)

Colin Jacobsen Sheriff's Freud

-intermission-

Chris Thile ATTENTION!
(A narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra)

1. Attention
2. Lord Starbucks
3. The Rooftop
4. Carrie Freaking Fisher

Claire Coffee, director

The Knights at Carnegie Hall with Chris Thile

The Knights join forces with mandolinist, composer, and singer Chris Thile in an exploration of American music, old and new (and a little Bach). Thile’s new work, a Carnegie Hall co-commission, will feature his brilliant songwriting and storytelling, instrumental virtuosity, and ever-present sense of humor. Thile also joins The Knights to sing a version of Caroline Shaw's exquisite and poetic meditation on the nature of a rose. Dvorak's famed “American” Quartet is re-imagined through the lens of violinist and composer Curtis Stewart as a chamber orchestra, folk-inspired jam session, and Colin Jacobsen's Sheriff's Freud brings together the world of Dvorak - in some ways a founding figure in the development of American music - with bluegrass idioms. And finally, some Bach. Why? Because Bach is always a good idea...

Program:

J.S. Bach I. Vivace from Concerto in D Minor for Two Violins, BWV 1043, featuring Chris Thile, mandolin and Colin Jacobsen, violin (trans. Thile)

Caroline Shaw Is A Rose: No. 2, And So 

with Chris Thile, mandolin and vocals

Antonin Dvorak (arr. by Curtis Stewart) String Quartet in F Major, Op. 96 “American”

Colin Jacobsen Sheriff's Freud

-intermission-

Chris Thile ATTENTION!
(A narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra; NYC Premiere, co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall)

1. Attention
2. Lord Starbucks
3. The Rooftop
4. Carrie Freaking Fisher

Claire Coffee, director

The Knights thank Gary L. Wasserman and Charles A. Kashner for their generous sponsorship support of the 2023/24 Knights Concert Series at Carnegie Hall, and James Attwood and Leslie Williams for their generous sponsorship of soloist Chris Thile at Carnegie Hall on October 26th.

Musicians from The Knights are delighted to be performing at WQXR’s Classical Kids Fair at the Queens Theatre @ Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. Two short performances will take place at 1pm and 3pm. The Fair, running from 1pm to 4pm, will be a fun-filled day of live performances, an instrument “petting zoo,” dance and songwriting workshops, arts & crafts, and more! Admission is free and open to the public.

THIS EVENT IS CANCELLED DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER!

At the Downtown Brooklyn Arts Festival, musicians from The Knights will fearlessly explore a vast universe of orchestral music, opening up new and exciting possibilities along the way. The program will include an exciting collaboration with Mark Morris Dance Group featuring Handel’s Water Music. Check back soon for more information.

The Downtown Brooklyn Arts Festival (DBAF) is an annual celebration of Downtown Brooklyn’s cultural community and the artists who inspire the borough’s creative spirit.

Music lovers of all ages will delight in a family-friendly concert that celebrates world-class music and complements the Edvard Munch: Trembling Earthexhibition in an engaging, interactive setting. The Knights perform excerpts from works by Edvard Grieg, Antonín Dvořák, Frederick Delius (a friend of Edvard Munch's), alongside audience participation activities that will highlight musical details and showcase the way instruments can tell a story. In this accessible afternoon performance, children and their parents/grandparents/caregivers discover the limitless imaginative possibilities that exist in classical music. This performance is designed specifically for younger audiences and is intended to provide a fun and engaging introduction to classical music. The family-friendly program follows a large-scale outdoor concert by the Knights on the Clark’s Férnandez Terrace on September 2.

Based in New York City, The Knights are a collective of musicians dedicated to transforming the orchestral experience and eliminating barriers between audience and music. Led by an open-minded spirit of camaraderie and collaboration, they seek to engage with contemporary culture through vibrant performances that honor the classical tradition and their passion for musical discovery. The collective was founded and is directed by violinist Colin Jacobsen and conductor and cellist Eric Jacobsen, who, together, also founded the Brooklyn Rider string quartet. The Knights’ roster boasts musicians of remarkably diverse talents, including composers, arrangers, singer-songwriters, and improvisers, who bring a range of cultural influences to the group, from jazz and klezmer to pop and indie rock music. Since their founding in 2007, The Knights have toured and recorded with prominent soloists including Yo-Yo Ma, Dawn Upshaw, Béla Fleck, Itzhak Perlman, and Gil Shaham, and have performed at Carnegie Hall, Tanglewood, and the Vienna Musikverein.

Admission is free, but reservations are required. Each ticketed group must include at least one child, age 18 or younger, and one adult. This performance is intended as an introduction to orchestra music to engage younger audiences. To reserve an accessible seat, please call 413 458 0524.

This performance is presented through the generous support of Mela and Paul Haklisch.

The Knights return to the Clark to celebrate the Edvard Munch: Trembling Earth exhibition with a selection of music from Edvard Grieg, Antonín Dvořák, Frederick Delius (a friend of Edvard Munch's), and more. The performance speaks to the layered influence of art and artists.

Program:
Colin Jacobsen: Sheriff's Freud

Edvard Grieg: Excerpt from Two Elegiac Melodies, Op.34

The Last Spring

Traditional (arr. Danish String Quartet) Nordic Folk Songs

Minuet

Dromer

Frederick Delius: Air and Dance

Antonin Dvorak, arr. Curtis Stewart: "Toward America" (arr. String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96)

i. enroute

ii. inlets

iii. the games we play

iv. prayer by train

Program:

Traditional (arr. Danish String Quartet) - Nordic Folk Songs

Minuet (3')

Dromer (4')

Antonin Dvorak, arr. Curtis Stewart: "Toward America" (arr. String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96)

i. enroute

ii. inlets

iii. the games we play

iv. prayer by train

J.S. Bach: Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043 (16')

Anna Clyne - Shorthand featuring Karen Ouzounian, cello (11')

George Enescu (arr. Ljova) - Romanian Rhapsody No. 1 (11')

Join The Knights at the Ordnance on Fishers Island for a free family concert for audiences of all ages.

Join The Knights at the Ordnance on Fishers Island for a free performance of Wings of Song.

About:
In recent years, the twin pandemics of coronavirus and systemic racism have forced us to confront some of nature and humanity's destructive power, but it has also been an opportunity to slow down and notice natural beauty in many different forms, particularly in the guise of birds and other winged creatures. Birds are the original virtuoso musicians, sending out coded signals through their songs intended to affect a change in behavior of the listener (and perhaps, at times, just for "pleasure"). Recent studies have suggested that hearing "enjoyable music" lights up the same mesolimbic reward pathway for both human beings and birds. Music across cultures has often been inspired by either literal birdsong or the spiritual experience of uplift through sound and birds often symbolically represent guides to freedom. The program features songs and dances from a diverse group of composers and musical genres, much of which either directly or indirectly takes its cue from birds, butterflies and other natural emblems of flight and the yearning for freedom.

Program:

Antonio Vivaldi: Flute Concerto in G minor, “La Notte”
Lili Boulanger: Nocturne
Heitor Villa Lobos: Song of Black Swan
Jessie Montgomery: Rhapsody No. 2 - solo violin
Maurice Ravel: Introduction and Allegro
Paco De Lucia arr. Jacobsen: Zyryab
Paula Matthusen: New work
Colin Jacobsen: Mirror for a Prince
Antonin Dvorak: Songs My Mother Taught Me
Tommy Potts, arr. Colin Jacobsen: The Butterfly
Colin Jacobsen / Siamak Aghaei: Ascending Bird

Schedule:

7:00 PM - 7:30 PM Pre-concert Talk

8:00 PM Performance 

Program:

Felix Mendelssohn String Symphony No. 10 in B minor

Nico Muhly Shrink, featuring Pekka Kuusisto, violin

Aaron Copland Appalachian Spring (suite for 13 players)

Colin Jacobsen A Shadow Under Every Light

based on traditional folk songs from Slovakia and Moravia collected by Leoš Janáček

This program celebrates musicians of The Knights - with Colin Jacobsen, Alex Gonzalez, and Alex Sopp as featured soloists - and marks the orchestra’s first performance at Newport’s exquisite Breakers Mansion.

Program:

Antonio Vivaldi: Flute Concerto in G minor, Op. 10, No. 2, RV 439 “La Notte,” featuring Alex Sopp, flute

Anna Clyne: Prince of Clouds, featuring Alex Gonzalez and Colin Jacobsen, violins 

Béla Bartók: Romanian Folk Dances

Aaron Copland: Appalachian Spring (suite for 13 players)

Colin Jacobsen: A Shadow Under Every Light (based on traditional folk songs from Slovakia and Moravia collected by Leos Janacek)

The Knights are thrilled to join Magos Herrera at Bryant Park for Carnegie Hall Citywide on Friday, July 21 at 7:00 pm for a special performance in celebration of the release of her newest album Aire. Written largely during pandemic isolation and now performed live for audiences in Bryant Park, Aire has become “a way to reach out … to heal each other by coming together and celebrating our humanity with compassion and gratitude.” The Knights are honored to have recorded this album with Magos in May of 2022.

Colin Jacobsen, Artistic Director and Violin
Eric Jacobsen, Artistic Director and Conductor

Magos Herrera, Vocals
Ingrid Jensen, Trumpet
Vinicius Gomes, Guitar
Matt Penman, Bass
Alex Kautz, Drums
Gonzalo Grau, Percussion 

This performance will be live streamed by Bryant Park at the following link: https://fb.me/e/1gpplErcO

The Knights return to Wethersfield Estate and Garden for a second year for a concert for children and families. This concert will call on children to notice the natural beauty of nature – such as birds, the original virtuoso musicians, sending out coded signals through their songs Recent studies have suggested that hearing “enjoyable music” lights up the same mesolimbic reward pathway for both human beings and birds. The program features songs and dances from a diverse group of composers, musical genres, and cultures, much of which either directly or indirectly take their cue from birds, butterflies, and other natural emblems of flight and the yearning for freedom. Children are encouraged to get up and move to the music, to ask questions, and to meet the musicians.