Miller Theatre Reveals 15th Anniversary Fall Pop-Up Concerts Lineup
Free onstage performances will feature Tony Arnold, Conrad Tao, Hub New Music and Steven Beck at Columbia University.
Miller Theatre at Columbia University School of the Arts has announced the fall 2026 lineup for its Pop-Up Concerts series, which celebrates its 15th anniversary this season.
The free series will feature four early-evening concerts from September through December, including performances by Conrad Tao, Hub New Music and Steven Beck, along with a program celebrating Hungarian composer György Kurtág's 100th birthday.
Pop-Up Concerts offer hour-long performances in an informal setting, with audience members seated onstage alongside the artists. All concerts begin at 6 p.m., with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. Admission is free, and seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Kurtág at 100
The fall series will begin Tuesday, September 22 with Kurtág at 100, featuring soprano Tony Arnold, violinist Christopher Otto and pianist Amy Williams.
The program celebrates the 100th birthday of Hungarian composer György Kurtág, whose music is known for distilling emotional ideas into strikingly brief works and movements. Arnold, Otto and Williams will perform selections from Requiem for the Beloved, Kafka-Fragments, Játékok and József Attila Fragments, Op. 20.
Conrad Tao
Pianist Conrad Tao will return to Miller Theatre on Tuesday, October 13 for the world premiere of David Fulmer's I have loved a stream and a shadow.
Written for and dedicated to Tao, the solo piano work was composed between 2023 and 2026 and takes inspiration from the poetry of Ezra Pound, weaving together images of season, memory and place.
Hub New Music
Hub New Music will make its Miller Theatre debut on Tuesday, November 10.
The contemporary music ensemble comprises Michael Avitabile on flute, Gleb Kanasevich on clarinet, Magnolia Rohrer on violin and viola, and Jesse Christeson on cello.
The program will feature Christopher Cerrone's Barnes Dances and New Addresses, Elijah Daniel Smith's Stagnation Blues and Dai Wei's How the Stars Vanish….
Founded in 2013, Hub New Music has commissioned more than 40 works for its distinctive combination of flute, clarinet, violin and cello.
Steven Beck
The fall Pop-Up Concerts season will conclude Tuesday, December 1 with pianist Steven Beck.
Beck will perform a program reflecting his longstanding collaborations with contemporary composers, featuring works by Fred Lerdahl, Juri Seo, Charles Wuorinen and John Zorn.
The concert will include the world premiere of Lerdahl's Concentric Circles, a new work written specifically for Beck. The program also includes a movement from Seo's Piano Sonata No. 1, “La Hammerklavier,” Wuorinen's Doubletake and a selection from Zorn's Preludes: Book One.
All four Pop-Up Concerts will take place at Miller Theatre at Columbia University, located at 2960 Broadway at 116th Street in New York City. Admission is free, with seating available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Photo Credit: (L to R): Christopher Otto by Beowulf Sheehan,
