The 92nd Street Y, New York (92NY), one of New York’s leading cultural venues, presents Benjamin Verdery & Friends: Some Towns and Cities with special guests Rie Schmidt, flute; JIJI, guitar; Wayne Escoffery, saxophone; Mark Martin, beatbox; Fire & Grace; and Yale Guitar Ensemble on Wednesday, May 14, 2025 at 7:30 pm ET at the Geffen Stage at Kaufmann Concert Hall. Tickets start at $40 for in person and are available at https://www.92ny.org/event/ben-verdery-and-friends.

In a very special Art of the Guitar event, guitarist and longtime series artistic director Benjamin Verdery joins us for his NYC farewell concert. 92NY’s Art of the Guitar is now in its 27th year, with Verdery serving as artistic director for 13 seasons, beginning in 2007. As curator of the series, he championed young artists, expanded the guitar repertoire with new commissions, presented premieres by masters including Egberto Gismonti, Sérgio Assad, Tan Dun, and others, ran Guitar Marathons, hosted a series of Guitar Talks, and more. A collaborator above all, Verdery is joined by special guests including the brilliant guitarist (and former student of Verdery) JIJI, flutist Rie Schmidt, saxophonist Wayne Escoffery, the Yale Guitar Ensemble, and others – for an evening of music composed by him as part of his longtime Some Towns and Cities project, and a celebration of his extraordinary contributions to all things classical guitar.

BENJAMIN VERDERY, guitar
RIE SCHMIDT, flute
JIJI, guitar
WAYNE ESCOFFERY, saxophone
MARK MARTIN, beatbox
FIRE & ICE
EDWIN HUIZINGA, violin
WILLIAM COULTER, guitar
YALE GUITAR ENSEMBLE

BENJAMIN VERDERY & FRIENDS: SOME TOWNS AND CITIES

BENJAMIN VERDERY Capitola CA
Keanae HI

Chicago IL
Dennis MA
Seattle WA
Winston Salem NC
Prelude (world premiere)
Fugue (NY premiere)
New York NY (world premiere of this arrangement)
Milwaukee WI (world premiere of this arrangement)

VERDERY/ From Aristotle
MARK MARTIN The Poet Being an Imitator
A Noun
A Verb
The Wineless Cup

VERDERY Tread Lightly, For You Tread on My Dreams

VERDERY Scenes From Ellis Island