Chelsea Music Festival announces a performance from Verona Quartet at Poet’s House, set for Tuesday, June 23, 2026 from 7-9pm at 10 River Terrace, NYC. Tickets are pay-what-you-wish and can be purchased at https://www.chelseamusicfestival.org/2026-events/june23.

The Verona Quartet takes the stage at the intimate Poet’s House for an evening that spans centuries and cultures, from Philip Glass’s introspective String Quartet No. 2 Company — inspired by a Samuel Beckett novel — to George Walker’s deeply personal Lyric for String Quartet, a lament for his enslaved grandmother. Another important piece featured is MoonStrike, a dramatic 25-minute work by Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate, weaving together American Indian legends and the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing. The program closes with a swinging Twenties Tunes Jazz Suite, arranged by Peter Myers, bringing the roaring sounds of the Cotton Club.

Verona Quartet

Jonathan Ong, violin

Dorothy Ro, violin

Abigail Rojansky, viola

Jonathan Dormand, cello

Bryon Singleton, narrator

Wayne Koestenbaum, poet

PROGRAM

Philip GLASS String Quartet No. 2 “Company”

George WALKER Lyric for String Quartet

Jerod Impichchaachaaha TATE MoonStrike

Arr. Peter MYERS Twenties Tunes Jazz Suite (NY Premiere)

Wine reception to follow.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Acclaimed as an “outstanding ensemble…cohesive yet full of temperament” (The New York Times), the Verona Quartet has firmly established itself amongst the most distinguished ensembles on the chamber music scene today. The group’s singular sense of purpose earned them Chamber Music America’s coveted 2020 Cleveland Quartet Award, and a reputation for its “bold interpretive strength, robust characterization and commanding resonance” (Calgary Herald). The Quartet serves on the faculty of the Oberlin College and Conservatory as the Quartet-in-Residence and as Artistic Directors at Nova Scotia’s Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance. In the 2024-25 season, the Verona Quartet will debut at numerous prestigious series institutions including the Grand Teton Music Festival, Eastman School of Music, Peabody Institute of Music, Music Mondays in NYC, Lebanon Valley College, San Antonio Chamber Music Society, Camerata Musica in Washington state, and for the University of Buffalo’s celebrated Slee Beethoven String Quartet Cycle. The Verona Quartet’s second album, SHATTER, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Traditional Classical Chart in the summer of 2023. The ensemble’s “vibrant, intelligent” (The New York Times) performances emanate from the spirit of storytelling; the Quartet believes that this transcends genre and therefore the name “Verona” pays tribute to William Shakespeare, one of the greatest storytellers of all time. veronaquartet.com

Byron Singleton has performed in opera and concert throughout the United States. Opera roles include, Riccardo “Un Ballo in Maschera” , Rodolfo “La Boheme” , Rinuccio “Gianni Schicchi”, Nemorino “L’Elisir D’amore, B.F. Pinkerton “Madama Butterfly”, Benedict “Beatrice and Benedict”, Alfredo “La Traviata”, Tamino “Die Zauberflote”, and Count Belfiore “La Finta Giardiniera” among others. Performance venues include Carnegie Hall, The Rose Theater, David Geffen Hall, The Metropolitan Opera, Caramoor Opera, DiCapo Opera, Martha Cardona Theater, Little Opera Company of New York, Hudson Opera, Opera Company of Astoria, Cantiamo Opera, Opera New Jersey, Diamond Opera Theater. An avid recitalist and oratorio singer, Byron has performed as the tenor soloist for “The Mozart Requiem”, “Beethoven Choral Fantasy” and “Elijah” with the Astoria Symphony, as well as being the soloist for “Beethoven Symphony #9” with the Hudson Symphony.

He has been a guest artist in concert with the German Forum at the Hungarian Consulate General. Other notable productions include the title role in “Alexander the Great” with the East Coast Symphony, Paul in “Mask in the Mirror” a new opera about the life of Paul Dunbar the first published African American poet, Rodolfo in “La Boheme” with the Croton Symphony and Benedict in Harbor Opera’s production of “Beatrice and Benedict”. He has sung in 11 productions with the Metropolitan Opera.

In 2012 he was awarded a Grammy certificate for his work in the chorus of the Metropolitan Opera’s Grammy award winning recording of Wagner’s “Der Ring Des Nibelung”. Some role highlights include Manrico in Vera Musica Opera’s production of “Il Trovatore”, Tenor Soloist in Verdi’s Requiem, Forresto in “Attila” with Empire Opera, Riccardo in “Un Ballo in Maschera” at Symphony Space, Boleslav and Canio(cover) in Atlantic Coast Festival Opera’s double bill of “Polinische Hochzeit” and “I Pagliacci”, Der Steuermann in “Der Fliegende Hollander” with the United Nations Orchestra and the tenor soloist in Mozart’s C Minor Mass with the Astoria Symphony. Most recently, he was a featured soloist in Tituss Burgess’s “Take me to the World” -A Tribute to Sondheim concert at Carnegie Hall.

Other recent highlights include Cavaradossi with MORE Opera in a new production of “Tosca” conceived and conducted by Maestro Anton Coppola, the title role in “Judas Maccabaeus”, and the Tenor Soloist in Haydn’s “Lord Nelson Mass with Great Neck Choral Society. He recently co-produced and sang in a new reimagining of Schumann’s “Dichterliebe” with piano and dancer ensemble at the Mile Square Theater in Hoboken. In addition he made his Off-Broadway theatrical debut as the First Guard in Fusion Theater’s production of Anouilh’s “Antigone” on Theater Row and was guest performer with the NY City Slickers’ Bluegrass to Broadway concert at Feinstein’s/54 Below.

Byron is currently President of the Executive Board of Directors for Creative Stage Collective, an organization that pairs professional adult artists with children to write and produce shows which are performed at high level NYC venues. Byron holds a B.M. in Voice from Northwestern University, and an M.M. in Opera Performance from Mannes college of Music. byronsingleton.com

Wayne Koestenbaum—poet, critic, novelist, artist, performer—has published nineteen books, including Camp Marmalade, Notes on Glaze, The Pink Trance Notebooks, My 1980s & Other Essays, Hotel Theory, Best-Selling Jewish Porn Films, Andy Warhol, Humiliation, and Jackie Under My Skin. The Queen’s Throat, praised by Susan Sontag as “a brilliant book,” was a National Book Critics Circle Award finalist, and appeared this year in French translation. His novel, Circus, was reissued in July 2019 with an introduction by Rachel Kushner. New projects, forthcoming in 2020, include a book of short fiction, The Cheerful Scapegoat, and an essay collection, Figure It Out. His essays and poems have been widely published in periodicals and anthologies, including The Best American Poetry, The Best American Essays, The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Paris Review, London Review of Books, The Believer, The Iowa Review, Cabinet, and Artforum. He wrote the libretto for Michael Daugherty’s Jackie O, which premiered at the Houston Grand Opera, and for Mohammed Fairouz’s Pierrot, commissioned by Da Capo Chamber Players. Koestenbaum has exhibited his own paintings in solo shows at White Columns, 356 Mission, and the University of Kentucky Art Museum, as well as in many group shows, most recently in New York at Essex Flowers, Gordon Robichaux, Klaus von Nichtssagend, and the Fashion Institute of Technology. His first piano/vocal record, Lounge Act, was released by Ugly Duckling Presse Records in 2017; he has given musical performances of his improvisatory Sprechstimme soliloquies at The Kitchen, REDCAT, Centre Pompidou, Walker Art Center, The Artist’s Institute, and the Renaissance Society. He played the title role in Robert Ashley’s opera The Trial of Anne Opie Wehrer at the 2014 Whitney Biennial and in 2016 at L.A.’s 356 Mission. Koestenbaum’s brief essay-films, originally seen on Instagram (@Wayne.Koestenbaum), are the most recent development of his interdisciplinary, multi-media practice. His literary archive is in the Yale Collection of American Literature at Yale’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. He received a B.A. from Harvard, an M.A. from Johns Hopkins, and a Ph.D. from Princeton; he won a Whiting Writers Award, and was a co-winner of the Discovery/The Nation Poetry Prize. Formerly an Associate Professor of English at Yale and a Visiting Professor in the Yale School of Art’s painting department, he is a Distinguished Professor of English, French, and Comparative Literature at the CUNY Graduate Center in New York City. waynekoestenbaum.com

ABOUT THE CHELSEA MUSIC FESTIVAL

Chelsea Music Festival celebrates great music by convening world-leading musicians & artists in the performing, culinary, and visual arts for an international audience. The Festival invites artists, composers, and performers to collaborate in pursuit of new perspectives in artistic expression. Inspired by its Chelsea roots, the Festival reflects the creativity of one of New York City’s most dynamic neighborhoods. Programs span musical genres ranging from classical to contemporary to jazz with a special emphasis on Festival commissions by composers whose works are not in the traditional western canon. In addition, the Festival hosts an online library of recordings so music enthusiasts, artists, and students alike can explore unique interpretations of classical, jazz, and contemporary works via high-quality videos of world-class performances.

Since 2010, the Festival has established itself as a critically-acclaimed, accessible and interactive gateway to chamber music in non-traditional concert spaces such as art galleries, public squares, schools, and churches. Programming includes concerts, lectures, exhibitions, family events, and free outreach performances. In 2020, the Festival inaugurated its Online Encores and Online Originals YouTube series; Online Encores presents highlights from Festival archives while Online Originals presents new performances and recordings. We are proud to give emerging voices, particularly those of women and people of color, a stage and work to build an audience and intimate community to support a new generation of musicians, composers, and artists.

Festival Sponsors & Partners:

Carl Brandt, Inc., Brotherhood Winery, Columbia Alumni Association Arts Access, Consulate General of Germany in New York, Fordham University, German International School New York, Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation, Masterwork Arts Foundation, Materials for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, Polycast Productions, Radeberger Gruppe USA, Sennheiser, Skylight Arts Productions, Steinway & Sons, Tarisio Fine Instruments & Bows, WBGO, Weinhaus Traubengold, and WQXR.

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