Berklee Announces 2024 Fall Signature Series Lineup This season's performances celebrate musical traditions from country music to the music of Brazil and the Republic of Georgia, as well as icons Duke Ellington and Mariah Carey.By
Daniel Pesquera
August 21, 2024
Gaia Wilmer (left) and Jaques Morelenbaum
Image by Dani Gurgel
Becca Stevens
Image courtesy of the artist
String band New Dangerfield
Image by Willa Stein
Giorgi Mikadze
Image courtesy of the artist
Warren Wolf
Image courtesy of the artist
Berklee has announced its fall 2024 Signature Series lineup, with performances from a global collective of students, faculty, and alumni, as well as special guest artists, including Gaia Wilmer, Jaques Morelenbaum, Becca Stevens, Tamada, and Warren Wolf. Beginning September 18 and running through December 6, the slate of concerts spans a diverse range of musical traditions from around the world, including from Brazil and the Republic of Georgia, as well as the Black roots of country music, and will also honor the legacies of jazz titan Duke Ellington and pop icon Mariah Carey.
The Music of Caetano Veloso and Ant nio Carlos Jobim featuring Gaia Wilmer and Jaques MorelenbaumBerklee Performance Center
Wednesday, September 18, 8:00 p.m.
Legendary cellist and producer Jaques Morelenbaum will join saxophonist Gaia Wilmer for a performance that explores the works of two of the most important Brazilian composers-Ant nio Carlos Tom Jobim and Caetano Veloso. The guest artists will be accompanied by Berklee World Strings directed by professor Eugene Friesen, as well as several faculty and student soloists. Morelenbaum will perform his original arrangements of Jobim's music with a string orchestra, followed by a 10-piece ensemble led by Morelenbaum and Wilmer playing the music of Veloso and featuring flutists Maiara Moraes and Yulia Musayelyan, and drummer Rafael Barata. Morelenbaum has worked with many of the great names of Brazilian music, including Veloso and Jobim themselves, Berklee Valencia honorary doctorate recipient Gilberto Gil, and Egberto Gismonti. Wilmer is active both in Brazil and the United States and has worked with Gismonti, Ra-Kalam Bob Moses, Frank Carlberg, and others.
Becca Stevens EnsembleRed Room at Cafe 939
Wednesday, October 9, 8:00 p.m.
Berklee welcomes two-time Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Becca Stevens, who will lead the Becca Stevens Berklee Sextet. A skilled musician on multiple string instruments, Stevenss music stretches the boundaries of convention with songs that weave together her classical and Appalachian folk music upbringing with her love of the rich rhythms and harmonies of jazz and world music. Besides releasing and touring her own music since 2006, Stevens has collaborated with David Crosby, Jacob Collier, Brad Mehldau, and Brian Blade, among many others. Students were selected through audition by Matthew Stevens, associate professor of ensembles, who is rehearsing them in a repertoire chosen by Becca Stevens.
Country Music: Black Roots and BranchesBerklee Performance Center
Tuesday, October 29, 8:00 p.m.
Berklee's American Roots Music Program presents New Dangerfield, Dom Flemons, Donna McElroy, and more. This concert will illuminate some of the many ways in which country music is Black music and the more widely known interweaving of Black and white threads to create the rich tapestry of music commonly called country. Farayi Malek and Matt Glaser coproduced this show.
16th Annual Berklee Middle Eastern Festival: The Music of GeorgiaBerklee Performance Center
Tuesday, November 5, 8:00 p.m.
The 16th annual Berklee Middle Eastern Festival will celebrate the vibrant polyphonic music of the Republic of Georgia. Arranged and directed by Giorgi Mikadze, associate professor of piano, the concert will immerse audience members in the soul-stirring melodies and rhythms of the Georgian tradition through a captivating fusion of solo performances, choir harmonies, and instrumental pieces. The event will feature Georgian artist Tamada, the Pletenitsa Balkan Choir and the Middle Eastern Fusion Ensemble directed by Professor of Voice Christiane Karam, and choreography by Lasha Mdzinarashvili.
Holiday Extravaganza: Duke Ellingtons Nutcracker Suite and Holiday Vibes Featuring Warren WolfBerklee Performance Center
Tuesday, November 26, 8:00 p.m.
Berklee ushers in the holiday season with a two-part holiday extravaganza featuring Berklee's Diamond Cut Big Band performing Duke Ellington's The Nutcracker Suite. Under the production and direction of Grammy-nominated professor Tia Fuller, this concert celebrates the music of Duke Ellington's 1960's recording that features jazz interpretations of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, arranged by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. The second portion of the concert will feature master vibraphonist and Berklee alum Warren Wolf PD '01, who will be premiering selections from his 2023 release Holiday Vibes accompanied by Berklee's Rainbow All-Stars. Additionally, the event will showcase select students from Boston Conservatory at Berklee's Dance Division, under the direction of world-renowned choreographer, dancer, and Boston Conservatory professor Anthony Burrell.
Singers Showcase: One Sweet Day-The Music of Mariah CareyBerklee Performance Center
Thursday, December 5, 8:00 p.m.
Friday, December 6, 8:00 p.m.
A global cast of more than 80 Berklee students will honor the incredible legacy of singer-songwriter, record producer, actress, and humanitarian Mariah Carey in a performance that covers her legendary four-decade career as one of the best-selling and most influential artists of all time. The showcase features a student-led cast of vocalists, instrumentalists, arrangers, conductors, dancers, choreographers, VJs and visual designers, and track producers, as well as
