Music at Grace Farms

Music at Grace Farms is a distinctive concert series inviting audiences into the Sanctuary, a glass-enclosed amphitheater, to experience a one-of-a-kind acoustic music performance timed with the sunset.

Designed by internationally acclaimed and award-winning architectural firm, SANAA, the Sanctuary’s glass walls offer 360-degree views of 80 acres of natural landscapes, while the room’s exceptional acoustics enhance the musical performances happening within. This unique setting provides an immersion into a singular moment where music intertwines with nature and elevates a collective sense of hope and possibility.

Past performers include Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Joshua Bell, Mon Rovîa, jazz vocalist Dianne Reeves, and a solo performance from Grace Farms Artist-in-Residence, cellist Arlen Hlusko, who returns this year with concert pianist Elizabeth Joy Roe.

Headlining Concert

Leslie Odom, Jr.

Saturday, September 26, 2026 | 5 pm

Tony® and GRAMMY® Award-winning artist Leslie Odom, Jr. brings his extraordinary voice, magnetic stage presence, and genre-spanning artistry to the stage for an evening of music that is soulful, sophisticated, and deeply moving.

This captivating concert features selections from the American Songbook, reimagined pop favorites, and beloved musical theater classics — including special performances of songs from Hamilton, the Broadway phenomenon that earned Odom a Tony Award for his iconic portrayal of Aaron Burr.

With his signature charm, stunning vocals, and heartfelt storytelling, Leslie Odom, Jr. creates a live experience that is intimate, inspiring, and unforgettable.

Join us for a night of timeless music, powerful emotion, and the unmatched artistry of one of today’s most celebrated performers.

An exceptional music experience

The Sanctuary was designed as a place of reciprocity and connection, where the audience is a participant, not an observer or critic, and builds connection with the performance, convening, or lecture, and the landscape beyond it. The half-moon shape of the audience seating creates sightlines to other members of the audience, while also enveloped in music, light, and inspiration. The result is a shared moment of awe, joy, and hope that was built together during the program, and remains a memory for years to come.

Nemanja Radulović

Sunday, November 15, 2025 | 3 pm

Renowned violinist Nemanja Radulović brings his electrifying virtuosity and chamber ensemble Double Sens to Grace Farms as part of its debut U.S. tour.

Radulović, a star Serbian violinist whose recording career spans 20 years, champions the power of music to bring people together. His standout performances are lauded for their unique energy and candor, depth of expression, and adventurous programming. In recognition of his contributions to the arts, he was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Republic.

Through its innovative programming and passionate performances, Double Sens redefines the classical concert experience, inviting listeners into a vibrant and shared musical journey.

(60 minute performance, no intermission)

About Nemanja Radulović

Serbian-French violinist Nemanja Radulović champions the power of music to bring people together with his unique energy and candor, electrifying virtuosity, depth of expression, and adventurous programming. Winner of the 2024 OPUS KLASSIK Award for Concerto Recording of the Year (Beethoven: Violin Concerto & Kreutzer Sonata), Radulović describes the concert stage as a “second home.” His daring approach—marked by risk-taking and spontaneity—transforms each performance into a compelling blend of tradition and bold experimentation.

During the 2025/2026, season Radulović brings his “thrilling, magical interpretation” (Bachtrack) of Aram Khachaturian’s Violin Concerto to the Opening Concert of the Enescu Festival with Cristian Măcelaru, Baltimore Symphony with Marin Alsop and Melbourne Symphony with Jamie Martín. With the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto he reunites with Krzysztof Urbański for his return to Warsaw Philharmonic and debut with Bamberger Symphoniker, and begins new collaborations with Royal Scottish National Orchestra (Giedrė Šlekytė) and Belgian National Orchestra (Antony Hermus) at BOZAR Brussels as well as the Philharmonie de Paris. His season concludes with returns to Australia and Japan, collaborating with the Melbourne, Tasmania and Yomiuri Nippon symphony orchestras, a recital tour across Japan, and a return to the New York Philharmonic at Bravo! Vail.

Recent highlights include engagements with the New York Philharmonic, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Munich Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Gothenburg Symphony, Vienna Radio Symphony and Sydney Symphony, along with sold-out performances with his ensemble Double Sens at La Folle Journée de Nantes and Chorégies d’Orange, and Philharmonie de Paris, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, and Berlin Philharmonie.

During the 2024/2025 season, Radulović was Featured Artist of Philharmonia Orchestra (U.K.), performing the Khachaturian and Shostakovich violin concerti with Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali, as well as play/directing a chamber music program with Philharmonia musicians: “A born communicator, Radulović played with an enticing finesse and directed the players with charismatic energy” (The Strad). He made an acclaimed return to the BBC Proms (Martín, BBC National Orchestra of Wales), and in North America, Radulović debuted with Pittsburgh Symphony and Orchestre symphonique de Quebec, and continued his cherished relationship with Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

Radulović’s recordings, including his critically acclaimed Beethoven album (2023) and second Bach album (2024) with Double Sens, reflect his restless curiosity and desire to explore. Signed exclusively to Warner Classics in 2021, Radulović’s debut album on the label, ROOTS, represents a beguiling sonic journey inspired by his many influences. His previous album, Baïka, one of nine successful recordings with Deutsche Grammophon and Universal Music Group, was declared “a fiery whirlwind of an album” by BBC Music Magazine, which awarded it five stars and the coveted Critics’ Choice Award. Gramophone Magazine praised Baïka’s “imaginative pairings,” noting that “Radulović dispatches [the Khachaturian Violin Concerto] with energy and firepower,” and that “with Radulović as narrator, this is an album with entrancing tales to tell.” His latest recording on the label explores the music of Prokofiev with the Philharmonia Orchestra and conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali.

Radulović maintains an equal passion for the intimacy of chamber music and is an increasingly active recitalist on the international stage. He has performed at distinguished venues such as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Berlin Philharmonie, Salle Pleyel, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Athens Megaron, Suntory Hall, Teatro Colón, and Melbourne Recital Centre.

Born in Serbia in 1985, Nemanja Radulović studied at the Faculty of Arts and Music in Belgrade, Hochschule für Musik Saar, Stauffer Academy with Salvatore Accardo, and the Conservatoire de Paris with Patrice Fontanarosa. He has received Opus Klassik and Echo Klassik awards, was named International Revelation of the Year and Artist of the Year by Victoires de la Musique Classique, holds an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Arts in Niš, Serbia, and was honored with ELLE’s Style Award for Musician of the Year. A laureate of several prestigious international violin competitions, he has won prizes at the Joseph Joachim (Hanover), George Enescu (Bucharest), and Stradivarius (Cremona) competitions. In recognition of his contributions to the arts, he was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Republic.

Broadway Inspirational Voices

Sunday, December 13, 2026 | 3 pm

GRAMMY®-nominated choir Broadway Inspirational Voices returns to Grace Farms to deliver another unforgettable concert of beloved Broadway, gospel, and Christmas melodies performed by 30 vocalists, with the dynamic pink hues of December sun setting through the fully glass-enclosed performance hall. This 60-minute program is created to maximize the natural acoustics of the Sanctuary, with iconic Broadway Inspirational Voices arrangements, new arrangements, and the weaving of Broadway songs.

Through these scintillating and moving arrangements, Broadway Inspirational Voices creates a safe, welcoming and radiant space for joy, community, and being with one another through the seasons of life.

About Broadway Inspirational Voices

Broadway Inspirational Voices is a diverse choir and service organization powered by Broadway artists using music to inspire hope and change lives.

BIV is committed to supporting and strengthening communities in need. We accomplish our mission through uplifting choir performances and our signature arts, education, and outreach programs.

Through creative engagement we build a sense of community in safe and empowering spaces for individuals to be vulnerable, to heal, and rebuild. Our nationwide innovative and collaborative music and performing arts programs serve marginalized and overlooked communities in need. BIV works with established institutional partners that connect with populations who can benefit from our customized programs and teaching artists. By partnering with Ronald McDonald House – New York, Covenant House International, the New York City Department of Corrections, LaGuardia High School, and more, we effectively reach these communities. BIV values these long-term partnerships and our shared commitment to serving these communities and individuals.

Derek Gripper and Alam Khan

Sunday, February 28, 2027 | 4 pm

In a rare and remarkable collaboration, GRAMMY®-nominated sarodist Alam Khan — son of the legendary Ali Akbar Khan — joins forces with one of South Africa’s most innovative guitarists, Derek Gripper. Together, Alam and Derek explore the heights of spontaneous creation, re-imagining great African songs and Indian melodies in a virtuosic meeting of plucked strings within Grace Farms’ light-filled and fully glass-enclosed performance hall within the River building.

Alam and Derek focus on their respective immersions in deep classical traditions: Alam brings a long apprenticeship under his father, mastering the infinite art of raga improvisation within the Indian classical tradition, Derek, originally trained in European classical and early string music, has spent years translating the complex language of the West African kora to the guitar.

About Derek Gripper

Derek Gripper is one of South Africa’s leading guitarists whose love of the kora set him transcribing and recording some of its greatest works, changing the face of classical guitar.

When Gripper released “One Night on Earth,” his first album of kora translations, classical guitar legend John Williams said he thought it was “absolutely impossible until I heard Derek Gripper do it,” while kora maestro Toumani Diabaté asked for confirmation that it was indeed just one person playing. Both invited Derek to collaborate with them: Derek performed with Williams in London’s Shakespeare’s Globe and King’s Place, and with Diabaté and his Symmetric Orchestra at the Acoustik Festival Bamako, Mali. His 2016 Carnegie Hall debut paired him with Mali’s Trio da Kali, and the UK’s Songlines honoured him with best album in Africa and the Middle East for his 2016 album “Libraries on Fire.”

Since these two recordings put kora/guitar translations on the map, his recent recordings “A Year of Swimming” (2020), “Billy Goes to Durban,” (2021) and “Sleep Songs for My Daughter” (2022), have incorporated elements of his kora explorations in original compositions and improvisations, captured on tape in the field and in studio, while his Bach recordings have shown that African music has a lot to teach us about recapturing the natural simplicity of early European music.

Touring globally from his home in Cape Town, Gripper is collaborating with Malian kora master Ballaké Sissoko on a new duo project, and recording for the record label Platoon.

About Alam Khan

Two-time Grammy-nominated artist Alam Khan, Khalifa of the Seni Maihar Gharana and son of the late legendary maestro of the Sarod, Swara Samrat Ali Akbar Khan, has been captivating audiences worldwide for over 20 years.

Since beginning his training at the age of seven, Alam was fortunate to learn in the traditional style of Guru and Shishya (teacher and student) under the careful guidance of his father. The influence of Ali Akbar Khan’s teachings is evident in every note Alam plays, as well as in his imaginative interpretations of ancient ragas passed down from the courts of Emperor Akbar through Mian Tansen in the 16th century.

Alam’s performance career took off when he began accompanying his father on international stages from 1996 to 2006. During this period, he performed at prestigious venues such as the Royal Jodhpur Palace, the Dover Lane Music Festival in Calcutta, New York’s Lincoln Center Jazz Festival, and in highly acclaimed concerts across the United States, Canada, Europe, and India.

While accompanying his father, Alam’s solo career began to take shape in 1998, and since then he has established himself as the true heir to Ali Akbar Khan’s legacy. As one of the leading Sarod players of the Maihar Gharana, Alam has received praise from musical icons such as Ravi Shankar, Ustad Vilayat Khan, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, and Pandit Buddhadev Dasgupta, among many of India’s finest musicians.

Alam has had the privilege of performing alongside some of India’s greatest Tabla masters, including Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri, Ustad Zakir Hussain, and Pandit Anindo Chatterjee, at renowned venues around the world.

In addition to his classical work, Alam has collaborated with a diverse array of artists across various genres, including the Grammy-winning Tedeschi Trucks Band, Vijay Iyer, Blake Mills, Anoushka Shankar, Karsh Kale, Beats Antique, Bob Weir, The San Francisco Symphony, Del Sol Quartet, and Jack Perla, among others. He is also a founding member of the genre-bending group Grand Tapestry and the primary composer of The Resonance Between.

Alam served as his father’s personal assistant in his final years, helping with teaching at the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, California—a hub for students and lovers of Indian classical music.

Following his father’s passing in 2009, Alam became the Head of Indian Classical Instrumental Studies at the Ali Akbar College of Music (AACM). He is dedicated to preserving, performing, and sharing the rich tradition of Indian classical music with the world, while helping it flourish in the modern age.

Aoife O’Donovan

with Eric & Colin Jacobsen

Sunday, April 11, 2027 | 4 pm

GRAMMY®-winning singer and songwriter Aoife O’Donovan brings her singular voice to an intimate afternoon that moves freely between solitude and conversation — between the quiet power of a single voice and the warmth of strings intertwined.

Born from an Irish-American musical sensibility that stretches from the hills of Appalachia to the Celtic songs of her summers in Ireland, O’Donovan has earned her place as one of the most captivating storytellers in American folk music. Drawing from her celebrated catalog — including her acclaimed albums Age of Apathy, In the Magic Hour, and All My Friends — she performs a set of songs that are tender, searching, and quietly enchanting.

Joining her are two of contemporary classical music’s most imaginative voices: cellist Eric Jacobsen and violinist Colin Jacobsen, brothers whose careers have been defined by a restless curiosity that carries them far beyond genre. The Jacobsens bring with them a rare combination of classical rigor and an adventurer’s ear — qualities that make them natural companions for O’Donovan’s own genre-defying art.

About Aoife O’Donovan

Aoife O’Donovan is a Grammy-award winning singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose music radiates with a timeless charm and contemporary allure beyond genre. Deemed “a vocalist of unerring instinct” by The New York Times, O’Donovan has released four critically-acclaimed solo albums including 2022’s Age of Apathy and 2024’s All My Friends, which earned a collective 5 Grammy nominations. O’Donovan is a founding member and lead vocalist of the progressive folk band Crooked Still, and one-third of the folk trio I’m With Her, alongside bandmates Sara Watkins and Sarah Jarosz. She is the featured vocalist on The Goat Rodeo Sessions (whose members include Yo-Yo Ma), performed with over a dozen symphonies including the National Symphony Orchestra, and spent a decade as a regular contributor to the radio variety shows “Live From Here” and “A Prairie Home Companion”

Elizabeth Joy Roe, piano and Arlen Hlusko, cello

Saturday, May 8, 2027 | 6 pm

Concert pianist Elizabeth Joy Roe (half of the the groundbreaking Anderson & Roe Piano Duo, whose music videos have been viewed by millions on YouTube) and GRAMMY®-winning Canadian cellist and Grace Farms Artist-in-Residence Arlen Hlusko present a spring recital in the Grace Farms Sanctuary immersed in the budding landscape and transpiring as the sun sets.

Arlen and Elizabeth explore the landscape of music across genres and borders in the 1940s, and specifically how many of those sounds influenced Francis Poulenc’s spritely, eclectic, gorgeous Sonate pour violoncelle et piano, which serves as the centerpiece of this program.

Just as Grace Farms considers each music performance as adding to the life of our space, this program leaves a lasting reminder that all of us have the opportunity to leave an enduring legacy that can inspire our communities and the next generation for the common good.

The program illuminates Grace Farms’ programming approach in the 2026-2027 season, revealing the way imagination and creative process builds upon the past.

This marks Arlen’s final recital as Artist-in-Residence. We toast to two remarkable seasons of curation, collaboration, performance and on-stage excellence.

About Elizabeth Joy Roe

Pianist Elizabeth Joy Roe is widely recognized for her boundary-defying artistry, poetic depth, and charismatic virtuosity. Lauded as “brilliant” and “riveting” (The New York Times), “an artist to be taken seriously” (Chicago Tribune), “incisive, lyrical” (BBC Music Magazine), and “electrifying” (The Dallas Morning News), she has appeared at major venues on five continents: from Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the Kennedy Center to the Seoul Arts Center, the Esplanade in Singapore, the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing, and the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest. She has appeared at renowned festivals such as the Gilmore, Ravinia, Santa Fe Chamber Music, Bravo! Vail, Banff, Chautauqua, and Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

Roe’s multifaceted endeavors are distinguished by artistic versatility. Her discography—featured on Decca Classics, Deutsche Grammophon, and the Steinway label—includes the complete Nocturnes by John Field, the Britten and Barber Piano Concertos with the London Symphony Orchestra, a solo album Images Poetiques, and five Billboard-charting albums as one half of the groundbreaking Anderson & Roe Piano Duo. Since 2017, she has served as the on-air host of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition’s live broadcasts, one of the most watched classical music events worldwide.

Career highlights include a PBS special, Jazz & The Philharmonic, alongside Bobby McFerrin and Chick Corea; the Carnegie Hall premiere of Olivier Messiaen’s Visions de l’Amen during the composer’s centennial hosted by Pierre Boulez; keynote performances for the United Nations and global leadership forums such as the EG Conference, Chicago Ideas Week, and La Ciudad de las Ideas; and an artistic residency under the sponsorship of the U.S. Embassy in Argentina. She has mentored for the national YoungArts organization and presented masterclasses and talks at leading institutions including Juilliard, NYU, Eastman, and Northwestern.

As a concerto soloist, Roe has appeared with dozens of orchestras, including the San Francisco Symphony, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. A devoted collaborator, she has worked with an array of musicians ranging from conductor Leonard Slatkin to jazz pianist Shelly Berg. She is a founding member of Decoda, the Affiliate Ensemble of Carnegie Hall, and a driving force behind the Anderson & Roe Piano Duo, whose visionary music videos (garnering millions of views) and galvanizing performances have attracted international acclaim and media coverage from MTV, NPR, the BBC, Gramophone, and The Huffington Post.

A native of Chicago, Roe launched her professional career at age 13 after winning the IBLA Grand Prize International Piano Competition in Italy. She made her concerto debut two years later with the Chicago Philharmonic and went on to earn both undergraduate and graduate degrees from The Juilliard School, where she was a full scholarship recipient and the winner of the prestigious William Petschek Award.

Committed to arts advocacy and education, Roe was an inaugural member of Ensemble Connect, a fellowship of Carnegie Hall, Juilliard, and the Weill Music Institute in partnership with the NYC Department of Education. She has held faculty positions at Smith College and Sonoma State University and was awarded the McGraw-Hill Companies’ Robert Sherman Award for Music Education and Community Outreach.

Roe is a Steinway Artist and Soros Fellow whose mission is to connect through the inspiration, joy, and essential humanity of music.

About Arlen Hlusko

Hailed for her “sublime cello prowess” (Take Effect), “absorbing originality” (Gramophone), and “mesmerizing beauty” (NY Music Daily), internationally acclaimed Canadian cellist Arlen Hlusko is a dynamic artist who has performed as soloist and chamber musician across North & South Americas, Asia, and Europe. She is “capable of playing with great delicacy but also fearlessness; regardless of the character of the material, she executes it with authority and conviction […] and open-hearted expression is present throughout” (Textura). Cellist of the Bang on a Can All-Stars sextet (extolled by the New York Times for “combining the power and punch of a rock band with the precision and clarity of a chamber ensemble”), Arlen regularly performs with other ensembles, including Manhattan Chamber Players, The Knights, and Dolce Suono Ensemble, and is a member of the Harry Chapin Band and recent alumna of the Curtis Institute of Music and Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect.

In 2025-2026, she became the inaugural musician “Artist-in-Residence” at Grace Farms in New Canaan, CT, and continues for the 2026-2027 season. Interested in a wide array of music, she has collaborated closely with artists from Jordi Savall to Midori to Meredith Monk to David Byrne, and is a GRAMMY® winner for her collaboration with The Crossing, as well as a laureate of several competitions. Arlen has been featured on CBC’s “30 Under 30,” and is a Larsen Artist. She has debuted with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, BBC Concert Orchestra, and the Calgary Philharmonic, among others, and has been invited to several pre-eminent chamber music festivals, including Spoleto USA, Tippet Rise, Bay Chamber Concerts, and Music from Angel Fire. Committed to using her music to connect with and serve her community, Arlen founded her own interactive chamber music concert series, Philadelphia Performances for Autism, and is involved with numerous communities, including Carnegie Hall’s “Musical Connections” at Sing Sing Correctional Facility.

thank you to our 2026/2027 season sponsor