The New England Conservatory Lands a New Collaboration

The collaboration will see the Phoenix ensemble's first performance at New England Conservatory's (NEC) Jordan Hall and the debut of Phoenix music director and NEC alumnus, Joshua Weilerstein.

This partnership will also be the beginning of administrative and composition fellowships provided at NEC. NEC performance students will get paid opportunities to gain professional concert experiences while composers will get a commission each year and the chance to have works performed and recorded by Phoenix.

Phoenix was founded in 2014 by a group of NEC alumni aiming to expand the reach of classical music through social and accessible spaces. Promoting diverse composers, the orchestra gained acclaim in 2017, winning the Improper Bostonian Boston’s Best Classical Ensemble.

The ensemble has also worked on new pieces from composers such as Jonathan Bailey Holland, Jeffrey Mumford, Maria Finkelmeier, Alice Jones, Cody Forrest, and Mary Bichner.

“To me, and to so many other members of Phoenix, NEC feels like home, so it is a thrill to announce this new artistic partnership with NEC, a partnership that will immeasurably broaden our shared missions of bringing music, education, and joy, to the city of Boston,” said Joshua Weilerstein. “To have the first concert of this new partnership be my very first concert with Phoenix as Music Director is just icing on the cake.”

“When Phoenix returns to perform here at NEC – the place where it all began for them – it feels like a real homecoming,” stated Benjamin Sosland, Provost and Dean of the NEC faculty. “And the fact that they have decided to pay it forward by offering important fellowship opportunities to our emerging composers and aspiring arts administrators amplifies our goal of educating the whole musician by providing real-world experiences.” 

Phoenix’s March 27 performance at Jordan Hall will include folk-inspired music by Béla Bartók, Gabriela Lena Frank, Osvaldo Golijov, and Florence Price, finishing with two of Beethoven’s works, including his Symphony No. 7.

To attend the concert, click here.