performance programs
Explore a sampling of Kallor’s solo piano, song, and chamber music concert programs, which flow seamlessly from classic repertoire to invigorating contemporary compositions.
a single noon
Solo piano
A SINGLE NOON is a musical tableau of life in New York City that fuses the classical and jazz traditions Kallor loves into a new, deeply personal language. Weaving improvisation into the fabric of the composed music, the nine movements are evocative snapshots — moments of caffeinated bliss; embarrassing subway mishaps; the buzzing energy of a city driven by dynamic, thoughtful, talented, and slightly crazy people — that coalesce into a more complete story like an album of postcards, or memories. The 45-minute suite can be performed as a stand-alone piece, or set among a seamless blend of music that eliminates the idea of genre.
“A SINGLE NOON is the work of an extraordinary pianist, a composer of great distinction and a true conceptualist... this ambitious and unique suite takes us somewhere that is very deeply heartfelt and dazzlingly executed. This is 21st-century music that has clearly absorbed the past and looks to a bright and borderless musical future.”
—Fred Hersch
musical ghost story
The Tell-Tale Heart
Ever since Kallor unveiled his setting of Edgar Allan Poe's terrifying short story, The Tell-Tale Heart, in a 100-year-old vaulted crypt in New York City in 2016, sold-out audiences have reveled in this acclaimed musical ghost story. Fully immersing listeners in Poe’s gripping confession of a murderous narrator, this one-act chamber opera for voice, cello, and piano transcends the horrific to elicit chilling empathy. Kallor’s staged presentations and concert performances of this spellbinding monodrama with mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano and cellist Joshua Roman, and his recording with soprano Melody Moore and Roman, have electrified audiences in crypts, catacombs, and concert halls.
“I can’t think of a better opera to become a new Halloween tradition.”
—The New York Observer
“a tour-de-force performance, a true marriage of song, declamation, poetry and psychological thriller.”
—Opera News
“absolutely riveting.”
—OperaWire
cellist Joshua Roman, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano, and composer-pianist Gregg Kallor
Some Not too distant tomorrow
A tribute to the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.
This concert program celebrates Martin Luther King, Jr.’s humanitarian legacy with the wide-ranging music that he loved and inspired. Dr. King’s message of compassion, inclusiveness, and equality inspired Kallor’s composition for piano and string quartet, Some Not Too Distant Tomorrow, which Kallor premiered with the GRAMMY®-winning Attacca Quartet. The title of the suite comes from a passage in Dr. King's Letter from Birmingham Jail — an exquisite statement about the dire urgency of achieving social and economic justice, and a moving plea for understanding and mutual respect:
“Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.”
“Amid Kallor's jazz-inflected sound world, a lyrical grace threaded through the five cohesive movements. The music seemed to distill complex ruminations into a clear vision... Floating, sunkissed passages swam with underlying tension… a satisfying nexus between social conflict and art.”
—Strings Magazine
“The fifth movement, which gives the work its title, comes from King's 1963 'Letter from a Birmingham Jail', and in its granitic, complex chords, left a mood of optimism in its wake.”
—The Strad
“a flawless fusion of sounds, reflecting the tension, unease and tragedy of Dr. King's too-brief life... The work uses piano and string quartet in effective tandem, generating fresh voicings as the instruments are sounded, combined and recombined... There is a stunning fast movement where fast pizzicato work dives and leaps over a keening violin and Mr. Kallor's steady pianism... The slow final movement was the best of all. Here, slow, hypnotic chords and gentle string melodies forged a gentle, hopeful cloak of sound, a light and transparent comfort in these dark times.”
—Superconductor
The Attacca Quartet with Gregg Kallor
exhilaration
This celebration of music and literature features Kallor's acclaimed settings of poems by Emily Dickinson, Clementine Von Radics, Christina Rossetti, Sara Teasdale, Elinor Wylie, Stephen Crane, Mark Twain, and William Butler Yeats paired with classic art songs and fresh takes on folk songs. Kallor has performed and recorded these songs with mezzo-sopranos Jennifer Johnson Cano and Adriana Zabala, and sopranos Melody Moore and Ariadne Greif.
“Kallor is a true craftsman of American art song... these songs show that he excels as a miniaturist, creating vivid worlds and characters in mere minutes.”
—Opera News
“Gregg Kallor is a splendid writer of songs. You find in his Yeats and Dickinson settings the virtues you look for in songs new or old but rarely find in such abundance: a fine-tuned ear, able writing for the voice, great imagination in piano color and texture, and steady sensitivity to the poetry. Most impressive of all, to my ears anyway, Kallor writes songs in which the voice part is the prime focus, partly because he is a true melodist (a rare quality always, more so in the last fifty years), equally because the vocal lines are distinctive and expressive and closely knit to the harmony. Sensitivity, subtlety, and consistency--these are his kind of qualities, and they’re ones we need. So is beauty, and when you’ve heard Kallor’s songs that’s generally the first word that comes to mind.”
—Jan Swafford, author of “Johannes Brahms: A Biography” and “Charles Ives: A Life With Music”
mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala and composer-pianist Gregg Kallor
“otherness”
The Creature’s Tale
The world premiere of Kallor’s adaptation of Mary Shelley’s iconic novel, Frankenstein, will be produced in the 2023-24 season by Arizona Opera. At the core of Shelley’s heartbreaking story about about a living, feeling creature, brought into the world only to be forsaken by its creator, Victor Frankenstein, lies an exquisitely wrought plea to look deeper within ourselves to find our commonality, and to uphold our responsibility to one another. Giving voice to this tragic being — and to all members of society who are marginalized and shunned for being “other” — is The Creature’s Tale, a dramatic monologue for voice and piano that can be presented as a stand-alone program. Collaborating with Kallor, baritones Ed Parks and Joshua Jeremiah have brought audiences to tears with their heartbreaking portrayals of the Creature, whose agonized existence is a stark reminder of the urgent need for empathy.
“Here, as in "The Tell-Tale Heart," Kallor achieved a perfect balance of text and music... galvanized into a singular compositional voice.”
—Opera News
“The observations in the words, and the depth of feeling in the music were extremely powerful... the monster’s anguished monologue that encompasses so much of the story’s larger themes could easily be a ‘scena’ to perform in recitals... the penetrating dramatic truths of Frankenstein might co-exist with 19th-century lieder more easily than one might think.”
—David Patrick Stearns
“Kallor focuses his account on the psychology of the beast, the loneliness experienced by a creation who yearns for (but can never quite realize) companionship... the portrait was complex, by turns frightening and sympathetic.”
—Parterre Box
baritone Joshua Jeremiah as The Creature
creative partners
Chamber music
Kallor’s collaborations with thoughtful and charismatic creative partners — including cellist Joshua Roman; violinists Miranda Cuckson, Stefan Jackiw, and Rachel Lee Priday; the GRAMMY®-winning Attacca Quartet, the Dover Quartet, and the Escher Quartet; accordion/bandoneón player Julien Labro; percussionist Richie Barshay; tap dancer Andrew Nemr; and others — feature his original compositions and innovative arrangements alongside classic repertoire. Recent works include Undercurrent (cello and piano), Short Stories (violin and piano), A Fevered Dream (violin, cello, piano), and Some Not Too Distant Tomorrow (string quartet and piano).
“At home in both jazz and classical forms, [Kallor] writes music of unaffected emotional directness. Leavened with flashes of oddball humor, his works succeed in drawing in the listener — not as consumer or worshipful celebrant, but in a spirit of easygoing camaraderie.”
—The New York Times
cellist Joshua Roman and composer-pianist Gregg Kallor
creative residencies
These interactive group experiences are designed to stimulate thoughtful engagement with music and with each other in a supportive environment. Residencies are flexible in duration and adaptable in format, and can be tailored to participants with special needs; please get in touch to explore creative possibilities for your community. Past residencies include: SubCulture NY, Tuesday Musical, Wesleyan University, Queens University of Charlotte, Cornish College of the Arts, West Hartford Public Schools, and BRVS Summer Intensive Program.
craft and process
Student workshops
These hands-on student workshops encourage a mindful approach to the development of their craft, so that the process is enjoyable and fulfilling.
COMPOSING
Students are invited to share their works in this combination of focused group listening and collaborative discussion. Please inquire about extended residencies over the course of a semester or entire year, exploring the process of creating a composition from idea to sketch to performance.
PERFORMING
Open to instrumentalists, singers, and small ensembles of every musical flavor, this supportive workshop provides an opportunity to explore specific aspects of performing in all kinds of situations, with practical considerations for the rehearsal room, dressing room, stage or performance area, and post-concert hang.
PIANO
Dive into the nitty-gritty of piano performance: producing the sound you want, adapting to a new instrument each time you perform, playing with physical freedom and maximum efficiency, maintaining a mindful awareness of your body to prevent injury, and exploring the multi-faceted role of the piano and of pianists.
SONG
This specialized workshop for creators and performers of vocal music explores ways to deepen our understanding of the text, translate words into music, and consider how songs are both presented and experienced in order to forge an intimate connection with listeners in all kinds of performance environments.
IMPROVISING
A workshop for those who can’t help but deviate from the written note AND for those who are itching to try, but aren’t sure how to begin. We’ll explore how to approach improvisation if you’ve been reared on the music of Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart — and how improvisation will help you to get deeper into the world of their music. And we’ll consider how to broaden the context of spontaneous creation if you’re already steeped in the world of Coltrane, Monk, and Shorter.
A LIFE WITH MUSIC
This open dialogue encourages students to clearly define what “success” means to them so that their professional pursuits are aligned with their goals, and to explore ways of being as creatively engaged in crafting a life with music as they are in composing and performing. A combination of big picture exploration and detailed focus on practical considerations.
From Sketch to Premiere
Be part of the process of creating a new work
Commission a new work from Kallor and share the various stages of its development with your community through a series of talks and workshops that culminate in the world premiere performance. Like sitting in the kitchen while the chef prepares your meal — chatting about ingredients, aromas, flavors, and textures — this opportunity for involvement and collaboration during the growth of a new composition in a warmly inviting environment deepens your audience’s connection to the music and to the people who create, perform, and present it. What do you hear(/taste)?
poetry and Music
Translating words into music
This interdisciplinary workshop explores the relationship of poetry and music in the context of Kallor’s musical settings of poems by Emily Dickinson, Clementine Von Radics, Christina Rossetti, Sara Teasdale, Elinor Wylie, Stephen Crane, Robert Richardson, and William Butler Yeats. (CLICK HERE for a complete list of poets and song-settings.) A combination of discussion, performance, and improvisation, the program focuses on how the poems resonate with the students, and how music impacts the experience of lifting those words off the page. Composers and performers, poets and creative writers, and all students of music and literature are welcome.
“[Kallor’s] approach to making sense of poetry through music, and exploring individual perceptions and interpretations of otherwise difficult verse, is an important method of drawing out students’ creativity and empowering them to understand for themselves… Emily Dickinson knew the transforming power of poetry and music. [Kallor’s] workshop will bring that gift to numerous students and artists.”
—Jane Wald, Executive Director of the Emily Dickinson Museum
“This is exactly the kind of compelling educational experience we’re looking for. The students – and teachers – are still talking about it.”
—Haig Shahverdian, Supervisor of the Department of Fine and Performing Arts, West Hartford Public Schools
Citizen-Musicians
Music for people who need it most
Kallor offers performances and educational activities for community members in the places where they most need it, including hospitals and other healthcare facilities, low-income and immigrant community centers, halfway houses, and others. Additionally, Kallor moderates an open dialogue — adaptable to various groups and audiences — about broadening the context of our musical pursuits, exploring thoughtful and creative ways of positively impacting people’s lives with music both in and out of the concert hall; uplifting and empowering members of our communities by listening to them with the same generous focus with which we ask them to listen to our music; and reframing discussions about “growing our audiences” into discussions about serving our communities. We’ll consider logistics, partnerships, and issues of access and accessibility as we discuss rewarding initiatives that combine our passion for music with our desire to be actively engaged citizens.