In the interest of the health and welfare of its patrons, staff, and performers, the Moss Arts Center is canceling all performances and events through April 30, 2020, including this performance by Brooklyn Rider and Maeve Gilchirst. For more information, please click here.

In an adventurous new collaboration, vanguard string quartet Brooklyn Rider and Celtic harp virtuoso Maeve Gilchrist celebrate Celtic music as both an ancient tradition and a living art form in a breathtaking performance at the Moss Arts Center on Sunday, March 15, at 4 p.m.

The performance will be held in the center’s Anne and Ellen Fife Theatre, located within the Street and Davis Performance Hall at 190 Alumni Mall.

Drawing from newly imagined settings of traditional repertoire, this evening will bring together the string quartet with the emblem of ancient Ireland. The performance will feature excerpts from Gilchrist’s “Pastures Red” for Celtic harp and string quartet, which is inspired by Samuel Beckett’s novel “Watts,” as well as material from her new album “The Harpweaver.”

Brooklyn Rider will perform selections from its signature repertoire, including two works from its recent commissioning project “Healing Modes” — Indian-American composer Reena Esmail’s “Zeher” and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Caroline Shaw’s “Schisma” — as well as Colin Jacobsen’s rollicking take on the fiddling tradition native to this side of the Atlantic, the bluegrass-infused composition “Sheriff’s Lied, Sheriff’s Freude.”

Hailed as “the future of chamber music” by “Strings” magazine, Brooklyn Rider offers eclectic repertoire in gripping performances that continue to attract legions of fans and draw rave reviews from classical, world, and rock critics alike. Brooklyn Rider celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2015 by recording and touring 15 commissioned works — each inspired by a different artistic muse — for the groundbreaking multi-disciplinary project “Brooklyn Rider Almanac.” NPR credits Brooklyn Rider with “recreating the 300-year-old form of string quartet as a vital and creative 21st-century ensemble.”

Gilchrist has taken the Celtic (lever) harp to new levels of performance and visibility. Her innovative approach to the instrument stretches its harmonic limits and improvisational possibilities. She is as at home as a soloist with an internationally renowned orchestra as she is playing with a traditional Irish folk group or in a more contemporary, improvisatory setting.

Gilchrist tours internationally as a band leader, works with the progressive folk quartet DuoDuo, collaborates on an electronics-based project with Viktor Krauss, and serves as a member of both the Irish Music Network-commissioned Edges of Light quartet and, along with several members of Brooklyn Rider, the Silkroad Ensemble.

This performance is supported in part by gifts from Erv and Betsy Blythe and David and Judie Reemsnyder.

Tickets

Tickets for the performance are $20-45 for general public and $10 for students and youth 18 and under. Tickets can be purchased online; at the Moss Arts Center's box office, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday; or by calling 540-231-5300 during box office hours.

While Virginia Tech students can always attend any Moss Arts Center performance for only $10, the center also offers free last-minute rush tickets for students who sign up for text notifications. To receive these notifications, text “arts” to 31996. Availability of rush tickets varies by performance and tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis while supplies last in the box office. Virginia Tech ID will be required for admission.

Parking

Parking is available in the North End Parking Garage on Turner Street. Virginia Tech faculty and staff possessing a valid Virginia Tech parking permit can enter and exit the garage free of charge. Limited street parking is also available. Parking on Alumni Mall is free on weekdays after 5 p.m. and on weekends.

If you are an individual with a disability and desire an accommodation, please contact Kacy McAllister at 540-231-5300 or email kmcallis@vt.edu during regular business hours at least 10 business days prior to an event.

Share this story