Bienen School announces 2025-2026 subscription series

• Skyline Piano Artist Series includes Leif Ove Andsnes, Stephen Hough, Garrick Ohlsson 

• Segovia Classical Guitar Series features 60th anniversary Assad Brothers concert 

• Dover Quartet, Isidore String Quartet return to Winter Chamber Music Festival 

• Keyboard Conversations explores Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, more 

 EVANSTON, Ill. --- Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music announces the 2025-26 concert season, which includes five Northwestern University debuts by a diverse lineup of international talent. 

Kicking off in November, the Skyline Piano Artist Series returns for its 10th season and features five performances, with highlights including Jean Gimbel Lane Prize winner Leif Ove Andsnes and the winner of the upcoming 2025 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.  

The 29th Winter Chamber Music Festival returns in January and February 2026 and features the Dudok Quartet Amsterdam, Vertavo String Quartet, Dover Quartet and Isidore String Quartet, as well as the debut of Trio Seoul. 

The Segovia Classical Guitar Series kicks off its season Oct. 25 with a performance of early music by Grammy-winning lutenist Paul O’Dette and Grammy-winning tenor Aaron Sheehan. The series continues to May 2026 and features a 60th anniversary farewell tour performance by brothers Sérgio and Odair Assad, as well a series debut by Xuefei Yang. 

Through concerts with commentary, Jeffrey Siegel uncovers the inspiration behind piano masterpieces in the 57th season of his four-part Keyboard Conversations series. 

Bienen alumnus and bassist Rufus Reid and trumpeter Marquis Hill bring their ensembles to the stage in the 2025-26 jazz guest artist concerts beginning on Oct 4.  

Subscriptions and packages for each of the series are now on sale and may be purchased online at concertsatbienen.org, by phone at 847-467-4000 or in person at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive in Evanston, during ticket office hours. Single tickets will be available Monday, July 7. 

Ticket office hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and noon to 3 p.m. Saturday. Summer hours, Monday through Friday only, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., begin Saturday, June 14. 

Series concerts are as follows: 

Keyboard Conversations with Jeffrey Siegel 
September 26, 2025 to May 8, 2026 
Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive 

The four-program series features spirited performances and insightful commentary by Siegel. 

Beethoven: The Young Genius 
7:30 p.m. Friday, September 26, 2025 

The “Sonata Pathétique,” “Rage Over a Lost Penny” and selections from Sonata No. 7 in D Major and Sonata No. 18 in E-flat Major. 

The Romantic Music of Chopin 
7:30 p.m. Friday, December 12, 2025 

Polonaises, Nocturnes, Waltzes, Mazurkas and the Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major. 

Poetic Tone Pictures 
7:30 p.m. Friday, February 20, 2026 

Music inspired by words and visions, including selections by Liszt, Debussy, Rachmaninoff, Grieg and Ravel. 

Music of Joy and Peace 
7:30 p.m. Friday, May 8, 2026 

Uplifting works by Bach, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Rossini and Gershwin. 

Jazz Guest Artists 
October 4, 2025 and April 25, 2026 
Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive 
Jazz guest artists showcase their talent on the Pick-Staiger stage. 

Rufus Reid 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, October 4, 2025 

An active presence in the jazz world since the 1970s, bass player and Northwestern alumnus Rufus Reid has recorded over 500 albums, including projects with Dexter Gordon, the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Quartet, Stan Getz and J. J. Johnson. Also a versatile composer, Reid has written music for strings, chamber ensembles, solo bass, jazz ensembles and symphony orchestras. Among his honors and awards are a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship, a MacDowell Colony Grant and two Grammy nominations. 

Marquis Hill 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 25, 2026 

Trumpeter and composer Marquis Hill is a Chicago native and 2014 winner of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Competition. He has performed as a member of the Chicago Jazz Orchestra, an in-demand sideman and a bandleader, and his collaborations have included Marcus Miller, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Kurt Elling, Joe Lovano and Makaya McCraven. His unique musical style breaks down the barriers between contemporary and classic jazz, hip-hop, R&B, Chicago house and neo-soul. 

Segovia Classical Guitar Series 
October 25, 2025 to May 9, 2026 
Galvin Recital Hall, 70 Arts Circle Drive 

The five-concert series, named for legendary guitar virtuoso Andrés Segovia, brings top guitarists, spellbinding technique and a vibrant array of global sounds to the Galvin Recital Hall stage. 

Paul O’Dette, lute with Aaron Sheehan, tenor 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, October 25, 2025 

A two-time Grammy and Echo Klassik award winner, and a twelve-time recipient of the Diapason D’Or, Paul O’Dette has helped to define the technical and stylistic standards to which 21st-century early musicians aspire. An active conductor of Baroque operas and researcher of early music, he has made more than 155 recordings. Joining him for this performance is Grammy Award-winning tenor Aaron Sheehan, whose opera and concert appearances have included the Tanglewood Festival, Lincoln Center, the Royal Opera at Versailles and the Handel Halle Festival. The duo performs music by English Renaissance composer John Dowland. 

Lorenzo Micheli 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, January 10, 2026 

Since winning the Guitar Foundation of America’s annual competition in 1999, Lorenzo Micheli has become a prolific player in the international classical guitar scene, giving over 1,000 concerts throughout the world. His collaborations have included an array of artists ranging from the Assad Brothers to David Knopfler of Dire Straits, and he has made more than 20 recordings.  

Sérgio and Odair Assad 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, February 21, 2026 

Brothers Sérgio and Odair Assad celebrate 60 years of performing together with a farewell tour showcasing a new album of compositions by Sérgio Assad. Since winning a major prize at the 1979 Young Artists Competition in Bratislava, the brothers have brought their signature style to global audiences, programming folk, jazz and Latin music together with repertoire by Bach, Scarlatti and Debussy. The duo has won numerous Latin Grammy Awards and appeared on two Grammy-winning albums with Yo-Yo Ma. The brothers have also received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Guitar Foundation of America.  

Raphaella Smits 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 11, 2026 

The first woman to win first prize in the Francisco Tárrega International Guitar Competition, Raphaella Smits is recognized worldwide for her performances on eight-string guitars and historical instruments. In addition to receiving widespread acclaim for her 25 recordings, Smits is recognized as a gifted teacher of guitar and chamber music, serving on the juries of countless international music competitions.

Xuefei Yang 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 9, 2026 

The first classical guitarist in China to enter a music conservatory and receive international recognition for their performances on the instrument, Xuefei Yang makes her Segovia Classical Guitar Series debut. One of the leading innovators of her generation in building the guitar canon, she frequently commissions new works, makes her own arrangements and adds Chinese music and chamber music to her repertoire. In 2012, she was awarded a Fellowship from London’s Royal Academy of Music. 

Skyline Piano Artist Series 
November 7, 2025 to April 26, 2026 
Galvin Recital Hall, 70 Arts Circle Drive 

Now entering its 10th season, the series features winners of the Bienen School’s Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance and two series debuts.  

Jeremy Denk 
7:30 p.m. Friday, November 7, 2025 

Recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship and an Avery Fisher Prize, Jeremy Denk is a frequent performer at Carnegie Hall and has appeared multiple times at the BBC Proms. His recent collaborations have included the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and London Philharmonic. Denk is known for his interpretations of the works of Charles Ives, which are the focus of his 2024 album “Ives Denk.” Denk opens the 2025-26 Skyline Piano Artist Series with his series and Northwestern performance debut.  

Stephen Hough 
7:30 p.m. Monday, February 2, 2026 

The first classical performer to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship, Stephen Hough is also the recipient of the Bienen School’s 2008 Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance, the Royal Philharmonic Instrumentalist Award and first prize at the Naumburg International Piano Competition. His catalog of over 60 albums has garnered prizes including the Diapason d’Or de l’Année, the Deutsche Schallplattenpreis, several Grammy nominations and eight Gramophone awards. As a composer, Hough has written commissions for the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Wigmore Hall. 

Leif Ove Andsnes 
7:30 p.m. Monday, March 9, 2026 

With more than 50 recordings in his discography, Leif Ove Andsnes has received 11 Grammy nominations and seven Gramophone awards, and in 2013, he was inducted into the Gramophone Hall of Fame. He was named a Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav and is the recipient of Norway’s Peer Gynt Prize, the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Instrumental Award and the Gilmore Artist Award. 

Garrick Ohlsson 
7:30 p.m. Friday, April 10, 2026 

The first and only American winner of the 1970 Chopin International Piano Competition, Garrick Ohlsson is the recipient of a 2008 Grammy Award, the Avery Fisher Prize and the Bienen School’s 2014 Jean Gimbel Lane Prize in Piano Performance. An avid chamber musician, he has collaborated with the Cleveland, Emerson, Tokyo and Takacs string quartets as well as vocalists Magda Olivero and Jessye Norman. 

Cliburn Gold Medalist 
3 p.m. Sunday, April 26, 2026 

The winner of the 2025 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, taking place in Fort Worth through June 7, will make their Skyline Piano Artist Series debut. 

Winter Chamber Music Festival 
January 9 to February 14, 2026 
Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive 

The annual festival explores centuries of chamber music over the course of six performances in January and February, with a festival debut by Trio Seoul. 

Dudok Quartet Amsterdam
7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9, 2026 

The Dudok Quartet Amsterdam is the winner of a Borletti-Buitoni Trust award and The Netherlands’ Kersjes Prize. Recent project highlights have included the world premiere of Kaija Saariaho’s opera “Only the Sound Remains,” a collaboration with director Rosabel Huguet reimagining Beethoven’s Op. 132 String Quartet for children and the recording and release of the first installment of the complete Tchaikovsky string quartets.  

Bienen Faculty and Guests 
3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026 

An evening of chamber music with Bienen faculty and members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. 

Vertavo String Quartet 
7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16, 2026 

The Vertavo String Quartet’s honors and awards include Norway’s Grieg Prize; First Prize, the Audience Prize and the Critics’ Prize at the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition; and a Diapason d’Or for their recording of Debussy and Grieg quartets. The group has toured extensively throughout Europe, the US and Japan, and collaborated with pianists Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Leif Ove Andsnes, clarinetist Sabine Meyer and violinist/violist Isabelle van Keulen.  

Trio Seoul 
3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026 

Trio Seoul was founded in 2021 by Bienen associate professor of violin Jinjoo Cho, pianist Kyu Yeon Kim and cellist and Bienen alumnus Brannon Cho. All three are top prize winners and laureates of competitions including the Concours musical international de Montréal, the Gina Bachauer International Young Artists Piano Competition and the Queen Elisabeth Competition. 

Isidore String Quartet 
7:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23, 2026 

Winner of a 2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant ad the 2022 Banff International String Quartet Competition, the Isidore String Quartet was formed in 2019 at the Juilliard School. Since that time, the quartet has appeared in major series throughout North America, collaborating with artists including violinist James Ehnes, pianists Jeremy Denk and Shai Wosner and composer Billy Childs. 

Dover Quartet 
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026 

The Dover Quartet is a two-time Grammy nominee and recipient of all of the top prizes at the 2013 Banff International String Quartet Competition, grand and first prizes at the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition and prizes at the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition. The group’s 2024-25 season included collaborations with pianists Michelle Cann, Marc-André Hamelin and Haochen Zhang as well as premiere performances of works by Bienen alumnus Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate.