Upcoming events.
Schedule Overview for August 2026!
Tuesday, August 4th - arrival
Wednesday, August 5th - arrival, brown bag lunch concert, afternoon virtual group coaching, evening movie/documentary or other special activity
Thursday, August 6th - morning and afternoon group coaching for piano students, optional private coaching, evening concert Luke Rackers and Friends (purchase ticket)
Friday, August 7th - morning creative activity/workshop, afternoon group coaching for piano students, adult learner session, evening concert with Pianist in Residence, Alexa Stier (purchase ticket)
Saturday, August 8th - morning workshops, afternoon community piano recital (purchase ticket), Alexa Steir concert at The Phoenix in Waterbury (purchase ticket)
Sunday, August 9th - departure
See below for details about individual events scheduled throughout the festival!
Please note that all festival events will be held at the Montpelier Performing Arts Hub, except for the Brown Bag Lunch concert on Wednesday and the special concert on Saturday in Waterbury.
Brown Bag Lunch Concert with Alexa Stier
Grab your lunch and join us for our festival opening event, a Brown Bag Lunch concert with our Pianist in Residence, Alexa Stier, in partnership with the Monteverdi Music School! Alexa will be performing some of her favorite repertoire in a relaxing outdoor environment on the corner of State Street and Elm Street in Montpelier.
No tickets needed for this free community event, but you can still grab your festival access pass or donate to show your support.
Virtual or In-Person Group Coaching (All Ages, Late Beginners through Early Advanced)
Group Coaching is available for enrolled festival participants. Pianists of any age (recommended age 10+, minimum skill level late beginner or approx. 2-3 years of experience) prepare 10-15 minutes of repertoire to perform for a slate of world-class teaching artists. Teaching artists then provide 20-30 minutes of individualized feedback, working with the performer primarily on creative components, but also touching on technique, performance practice,
Other festival participants, community members, piano teachers and piano enthusiasts are welcome to observe the group coaching sessions, as valuable learning happens through the feedback provided all performers. Group Coaching will be scheduled in approximately 75-90 segments with breaks in between. Participants are encouraged to attend all segments, but must be present for the entire segment during which they are performing.
Group Coaching (All Ages, Late Beginner through Early Advanced)
Group Coaching is available for enrolled festival participants. Pianists of any age (recommended age 10+, minimum skill level late beginner or approx. 2-3 years of experience) prepare 10-15 minutes of repertoire to perform for a slate of world-class teaching artists. Teaching artists then provide 20-30 minutes of individualized feedback, working with the performer primarily on creative components, but also touching on technique, performance practice,
Other festival participants, community members, piano teachers and piano enthusiasts are welcome to observe the group coaching sessions, as valuable learning happens through the feedback provided all performers. Group Coaching will be scheduled in approximately 75-90 segments with breaks in between. Participants are encouraged to attend all segments, but must be present for the entire segment during which they are performing.
Open for Private Coaching
We are setting aside some time on Thursday, August 6th for festival participants to sign up for private coaching with one of our amazing teaching artists (Wynn-Anne Rossi, Martha Hill Duncan, Ayumi Okada). You must be enrolled in the festival as a participant to engage in private coaching. Additional fee required.
Luke Rackers and Friends Concert
Join Luke Rackers with festival directors and performers from the community for a fun Thursday evening performance of 21st Century music!
Performance will feature local cellist, composer, and educator Michael Close performing 21st Century works, along with festival teaching artists, special guest performer Siena Rose! Full program details will be available closer to performance date.
Interested in enrolling in the festival as a participant?? Click here for more information and to enroll today! This Thursday evening concert is included in the festival pass for participants, and all community members are welcome to attend by purchasing a ticket.
Developing Creative Habits of Mind
Join us for an engage session on Developing Creative Habits of Mind, and learn how to infuse creativity into your practice, process, and everyday life.
This session is open to the community regardless of participation level in the festival. To attend, please enroll in the festival as a participant and grab your festival pass, or join us at the Montpelier Performing Arts Hub to make a donation in person (pay what you can) to engage in this session.
Group Coaching (All Ages, Late Beginners through Early Advanced)
Group Coaching is available for enrolled festival participants. Pianists of any age (recommended age 10+, minimum skill level late beginner or approx. 2-3 years of experience) prepare 10-15 minutes of repertoire to perform for a slate of world-class teaching artists. Teaching artists then provide 20-30 minutes of individualized feedback, working with the performer primarily on creative components, but also touching on technique, performance practice,
Other festival participants, community members, piano teachers and piano enthusiasts are welcome to observe the group coaching sessions, as valuable learning happens through the feedback provided all performers. Group Coaching will be scheduled in approximately 75-90 segments with breaks in between. Participants are encouraged to attend all segments, but must be present for the entire segment during which they are performing.
Adult Learner Session
Enroll to participate in the festival as an Adult Learner to share your creative work or performance in this special Adult Learner Session. Feedback from teaching artists and your fellow adult learners will be provided based on the Critical Response Process of Liz Lerman (crash course provided at beginning of the session). The session will be more informal than our other Group Coaching opportunities during the festival, and provide learners age 18+ with a more relaxed and communal environment for sharing their creativity.
Festival Headline Concert with Pianist in Residence, Alexa Stier
Alongside Debussy and Scriabin, the recital features selected Abundant Silence Composition Contest Winners. Though distinct in compositional language, each of these works share a strong affinity for idiomatic piano writing and a keen sensitivity to color, resonance, and gesture. The recital places sound at the center, inviting a hedonistic listening experience. To quote Debussy: "in music, pleasure is the law."
Festival Saturday Morning Workshops
Join us for an engaging array of workshops for piano students, teachers, and enthusiasts of all ages and levels!
Our workshop topics and presenters will include:
Increase Your Creativity in the Studio: Pedagogical Composition for Beginner through Intermediate Pianists with Martha Hill Duncan, Wynn-Anne Rossi (including one-minute improv!), and Ayumi Okada
Alexa Stier: The Lion Method: Visualizing Music Through Hindemith’s Ludus Tonalis
Siena Rose: Songwriting Workshop
These workshops are open to the community regardless of participation level in the festival. To attend, please enroll in the festival as a participant and grab your festival pass, or join us at the Montpelier Performing Arts Hub to make a donation in person (pay what you can) to engage in these workshops.
Community Piano Recital
Join us for a joyous celebration of music-making at the piano! This Community Piano Recital is open to all ages and levels of performers, whether you are participating in other components of the festival or not. You can perform solo piano of any style or genre, including your own composition, or you can also bring an ensemble as long as the piano is featured (please email info@festivalforcreativepianists.org to approve your ensemble). This is an opportunity to perform for fun with like-minded creative pianists and lovers of piano music.
To perform, please enroll in the festival by clicking this link (you can choose Community Piano Recital only option if you wish), and show your support by grabbing a ticket to attend the recital and donating.
Presenting Pianist in Residence, Alexa Stier
Alongside Debussy and Scriabin, the recital features selected Abundant Silence Composition Contest Winners. Though distinct in compositional language, each of these works share a strong affinity for idiomatic piano writing and a keen sensitivity to color, resonance, and gesture. The recital places sound at the center, inviting a hedonistic listening experience. To quote Debussy: "in music, pleasure is the law."
From the Camera to the Keys Project and Course Kickoff Event!
Join teaching artist Juan Sebastián Avendaño as he shares creative ways to connect photography and with music composition.
Pianist in Residence Concert: Daniel Inamorato
Brazilian-American professor Daniel Inamorato is a pioneer Queer artist and avant-garde researcher, working most often in the intersections of keyboard performance, Japanese Butoh Dance and political Art.
Tom Cleary Jazz Piano
Join Tom Clearly and friends for this special performance demonstrating the versatility of jazz piano. The performance will feature jazz trio, solo piano, piano/bass duo pieces, and jazz trio pieces with bass, voice, and piano. Tom will be joined by bassist Jeremy Hill and vocalist Amber deLaurentis.
The Pianist’s Guide to the Universe, Concert and Presentation
THE PIANIST’S GUIDE TO THE UNIVERSE, In this whimsical marriage of astronomy and music, composer Martha Hill Duncan and astrophysicist Dr. Martin Duncan combine their talents to celebrate the beauty of the night sky and the magic of music. This presentation will feature awe-inspiring slides, cosmic commentary and several solo piano works from the Duncan’s graded 4 volume astronomical piano series, The Pianist’s Guide to the Universe: 1. Stories of Stars, 2. Sailing on the Solar Wind, Vol. 3 Dark and Volume 4 Spirals in the Sky.
Jazz Jam with Ira Friedman Trio
Pianist/composer, Ira Friedman is known for his merging of jazz and rhythms from around the world. The Ira Friedman Trio will be hosting the jam session. Robinson Morse will be on bass and Keith Gibson on drums. Click here to read more about Ira.
Any instrumentation is welcome to participate in this jazz jam! Free for performers and by donation for community members/listeners.
Festival for Creative Pianists in Vermont!
Join us for a five-day celebration of creativity at the piano in Montpelier, VT!
Participants will have the opportunity to perform their repertoire and compositions for a panel of teaching artists for feedback, and engage in workshops and intensives, concerts and recitals, and special activities (all open to the public). World-renowned teaching artists will include Wynn-Anne Rossi, Martha Hill Duncan, Brendan Jacklin, Ayumi Okada, and more. The Saturday night headline concert will feature the festival’s new Pianist in Residence, Daniel Inamorato! Click here to learn more and enroll today!
Inspired by Nature
Join five composers from the Abundant Silence roster as they share performance recordings and insights into their creative work and process. The theme for this event is Inspired by Nature, named after Nathan Halls’s learning activity in our online community. Following the presentation of each piece, the five composers will engage in a discussion about the vast ways nature can used as inspiration in music composition, and answer your questions about the creative process!
Composers and pieces will include:
Nathan Hall, “The Garden, The Sea”
Martha Hill Duncan, “Spirals”
Mari Kotskyy, “Snowfall”
Julian Fueyo, “Zafiro”
Alexander Liebermann, “Placozoa”
Telling a A Story Through Music
This is a Pay What You Can event, with the option to receive a free ticket. You will receive a receipt in your email after securing your ticket via the button above. The Zoom link will be sent 30-60 minutes prior to the scheduled event.
Join five composers from the Abundant Silence roster as they share performance recordings and insights into their creative work and process. The theme for this event is Telling a Story Through Music, named after Ayumi Okada’s learning activity in our online community. Following the presentation of each piece, the five composers will engage in a discussion about the use of narrative in music composition, both with words and without, and answer your questions about the creative process!
Composers and pieces will include:
Ayumi Okada, “Light Princess Suite”
Aaryn S. Ricucci-Hill, “Forest Rituals”
Wynn-Anne Rossi, “Grief”
Brady Wolff, “The Moments Just Before”
Che Bufford, “The Lunatic”
