Performances + Events
The New England Conservatory Campaign for the Future of Music Education was launched on Friday with festivities that highlighted the immeasurable impact music has on our shared humanity. Attendees made their way through spaces in Jordan Hall where performances, demonstrations, and an interactive exhibit showcased the artistic excellence and innovation that have long been nurtured at NEC.
The capital campaign, which to date has raised $118 million toward the $150 million goal, will support the Conservatory in its mission to redefine music education. “This campaign is about the future — the future of our students, the future of music, and the future of its impact on the world,” NEC President Andrea Kalyn has said. “We are reimagining what it means to be a musician in the 21st century, breaking down boundaries between disciplines, and ensuring that every talented student has the opportunity to pursue their dreams.”
Evren Ozel and Wha Kyung Byun perform on the Jordan Hall stage.
The campaign launch culminated in an unforgettably spellbinding concert on the Jordan Hall stage featuring three generations of extraordinary pianists. Yunchan Lim ’26 AD, the youngest-ever winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, and his mentor, Minsoo Sohn ’99, ’01 GD, ’04 AD, gave astonishing performances of Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances, Op. 45, and R. Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier Suite, arranged by Hanurij Lee ’25. Wha Kyung Byun ’74 MM and her protégé, Evren Ozel ’17 Prep, ’21, ’23 MM, ’25 AD, who earned the Bronze Medal at this year’s Cliburn Competition, performed a breathtaking account of Schubert’s Fantasie in F minor, D. 940, for piano four-hands.
Prior to the concert, Kalyn and Ken Burnes, chair of NEC’s Campaign Committee, spoke about the Conservatory’s investment in the future.
“I’m constantly inspired by what goes on here,” Burnes said.
“This is a campaign about the future,” Kalyn said, “the future of our students, of this art form, and of the profound impact music can have on society. You are seeing all of this in action tonight.”
Andrea Kalyn and Ken Burnes deliver remarks in Jordan Hall.
The campaign launch also included performances by ensembles from NEC’s Jazz Studies and Contemporary Musical Arts departments, both of which were established by Gunther Schuller, whose visionary tenure as the Conservatory’s president will be celebrated during the NEC Festival in November, performances by chamber ensembles from NEC’s Preparatory School, which is celebrating 75 years and will host a Concert for the City in November, and a performance by soprano and NEC Concert Artist Dani Jingdan Zhang ’26 AD and pianist Hyojeong Ham ’26 GD.
Soprano Dani Jingdan Zhang performs with pianist Hyojeong Ham.
As part of the capital campaign launch and the launch of NEC’s Institute for Teaching Artistry, the Conservatory gave attendees a glimpse into the transformative work NEC teaching artists do in local communities and beyond, including a presentation by NEC’s inaugural Teaching Artistry Scholar-in-Residence Dr. Molly Gebrian ’06 MM, ’08 GD. And in demonstrating his course, Creativity and Manuscripts, which explores Beethoven’s creative process though the examination of his scores, faculty violinist Nicholas Kitchen showcased NEC’s pathbreaking Integrative Curriculum and enhanced Beethoven: A Multisensory Experience, an interactive and thoughtfully immersive exhibit created by NEC faculty music theorist Andrew Schartmann. The innovative exhibit used cutting-edge technology to reimagine the music education experience for new audiences.
Students from NEC’s Contemporary Musical Arts Department perform in Brown Hall.
Attendees walked from one space to the next, making their way at concert time to seats in Jordan Hall, all smiles and knowing glances that signaled the presence of something deeply special. Before Lim, Sohn, Byun, and Ozel bared their souls at the pianos on the Jordan Hall stage, Kalyn told concertgoers what they were about to see and hear “embodies the heart of our work.”
“This,” she said, “is what NEC does best: cultivating artistry that reaches across time, shaping both the present and the future of music.”
An attendee takes in “Beethoven: A Multisensory Experience.”
Learn more about The New England Conservatory Campaign for the Future of Music Education.
