Message from Seth Brenzel,
Executive Director
Dear Walden friends,
Happy holidays!
I hope your season is filled with warmth, music, community, and joy—all of which will be in abundant supply at our upcoming Walden holiday parties! Walden alumni, families, faculty, staff, board members, and friends will be gathering in five cities across the country for informal potluck celebrations this month and in January. Read on for more information about this cherished annual tradition, to RSVP for a Walden holiday party, or to volunteer to host one in your city.
Applications for Walden’s 2026 programs are open! Our early-round application deadline is Monday, December 15. Both our Young Musicians Program (YMP) and our Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) will be held on the beautiful Dublin School campus in Dublin, New Hampshire. If you know a creative musician, ages 9 to 99, or if you yourself might want to apply to be part of Walden Summer 2026, I hope you will pass along information about Walden and request an application. For those who want to learn more about YMP, we have several information sessions coming up, with dates listed below.
We are so grateful to the many donors who have already given generously to support our 2026 summer programs through contributions to Walden’s 2026 Annual Fund. During our 2026 fiscal year (October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026), we seek to raise $440,000 in support of critical scholarships, inspiring artist residencies, and all our program expenses. Thanks in particular to the many donors who contributed to our recent Giving Tuesday fundraiser, which raised $3,475 for Walden’s 2026 programs.
If you’ve already made a gift toward Walden’s upcoming 2026 season, thank you! If not, I hope you’ll consider supporting Walden today with a tax-deductible year-end contribution.
Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you at an upcoming Walden event—or next summer in Dublin, New Hampshire!
Sincerely,
Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
(603) 563-8212
Walden Holiday Parties
Walden School and Junior Conservatory Camp (JCC) community members will be gathering for informal potlucks in cities throughout the country this holiday season. You are warmly invited to join us in the following cities:
San Francisco
Sunday, December 21, from 4 to 6 pm
Washington, DC Area (Silver Spring, MD)
Saturday, January 10, from 2 to 4 pm
Boston Area (Cambridge)
Sunday, January 11, from 3 to 5 pm
Seattle Area
Sunday, January 25 (time and location TBA)
New York City
Saturday, January 31, from 3 to 5 pm
Your city here!
Volunteer to host a Walden holiday party.
These Walden Holiday Parties are open to Walden and JCC alumni, faculty, staff, Board members, guest artists, and donors, along with their families and friends.
These are family-friendly, potluck-style events held at private homes. When you RSVP, please let us know what you would like to bring, and we will send you the address.
RSVP to events@waldenschool.org or by calling (415) 587-8157.
It’s not too late to volunteer to host a party in your area! Please email us if you are interested. We are so grateful to this season’s hosts and the many volunteers who have hosted Walden holiday parties over the years.
RSVP for a Walden Holiday Party!
Apply for Walden 2026
The early application deadline is Monday, December 15.
Applications for The Walden School’s 2026 summer programs are open! The early-round deadline to apply to the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) is this Monday, December 15.
We encourage you to share the news with your friends, family, colleagues, students, and teachers.
Creative Musicians Retreat
June 13–21, 2026
Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire
for musicians ages 18–98
Young Musicians Program
June 27–August 2, 2026
Dublin School, Dublin, New Hampshire
for pre-college musicians, ages 9–18
Application materials for both programs are available on our website. Write to us at applicants@waldenschool.org with any questions.
Year End Giving
We’re counting on your support!
Thank you to the many generous donors who have made year-end gifts to Walden, including the 25 donors who contributed $3,475 to Walden as part of our Giving Tuesday fundraiser!
Your contributions will help us offer life-changing musical experiences next summer to 100 students across our two programs, including critical student scholarships and inspiring artist residencies.
It’s not too late to make a contribution in 2025! Make a donation online, or see below for more ways to give. Gifts postmarked on or before December 31, or online gifts made before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on December 31, can be counted toward the 2025 tax year.
Give the Gift of Walden
Walden merch is on sale this holiday season.
Bring some summer magic to the holiday season and support The Walden School with your order of stylish and cozy Walden merchandise! 
For the Holiday Season, enjoy 30% off of all merchandise orders through January 10.
We have t-shirts, hoodies, blankets, beach towels, canvas totes, water bottles, stickers, and more!
See what’s available and fill out an order form here.
Orders can be paid for by check, money order, credit card, PayPal, or Zelle. Please contact Mindy Williams, Walden’s Administrative Director, or call the Walden office at (415) 587-8157 if you have any questions.
Young Musicians Program (YMP) Information Sessions
Join us to learn more about the music camp that changes lives.
Do you know a student who writes songs or arranges music? Or a young improviser who wants to strengthen their
musicianship and meet like-minded peers? Or a music teacher who might like to learn about Walden’s unique curriculum?
Join us at one of our online interactive information sessions, featuring presentations and Q&A with Walden’s Executive Director, Seth Brenzel, alongside YMP leadership, faculty, staff, and students.
All YMP Info Sessions are held on Zoom. Learn more and register for one of the info sessions below:
These events are open to prospective students, music teachers, and anyone else who would like to learn about Walden’s flagship program for musicians ages 9 to 18.
2026 Memphis Composers Forum
Announcing three selected composers
On February 4, 2026, the Memphis Symphony Orchestra will premiere works by three extraordinary composers selected for the second annual Memphis Composers Institute. The Walden School is pleased to announce the winners of this year’s call for scores, along with the titles of their compositions:
Dede Ondishko, Singing Strength
Fulya Kapucugil, Leaving the Nest
Ethan Soledad, Cages of Jade
Their music will premiere alongside a new work by Walden alum and faculty member Caroline Mallonee in an inspiring concert celebrating the next generation of orchestral music.
Concert Information
Memphis Composers Institute Concert
Wednesday, February 4, 2026 | 7:30 PM
University of Memphis, Harris Hall
BUY TICKETS
$20 General Admission / $5 Youth / Pay What You Can ($5+)
The Memphis Composers Institute is a collaborative initiative between the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, The Walden School, and the University of Memphis.
Welcoming Chris Martin
Walden is excited to welcome Christopher Martin as our new Development Assistant. Chris will be working as a part-time member of Walden’s administrative team in our San Francisco office. Welcome, Chris!
Christopher Martin is a conductor, baritone, and composer based in San Francisco. In addition to his role at The Walden School, Chris teaches at the San Francisco Girls Chorus and at Ruth Asawa School of the Arts in the Vocal and Musical Theatre Departments. Chris can be heard singing with a variety of choral ensembles throughout the Bay Area, including Volti, the schola cantorum of the Cathedral of Christ the Light, and Nebula Consort. As a composer, Chris has had recent commissions from Sing Me a Story and Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, and looks forward to an upcoming premiere by Vallejo Choral Society in May 2026. Outside of music, he is proud to volunteer with the Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) program, in support of youth in the foster care system.
Community News
NPR features Sarah Kirkland Snider
Sarah Kirkland Snider, a past Composer-in-Residence at Walden’s Young Musicians Program (YMP) and the parent of a YMP alum, was recently profiled by NPR. The interview covered topics ranging from Snider’s thoughts on the “indie classical” genre to her reaction to critical acclaim for her song cycle Penelope, and maintained particular focus on her new opera, Hildegard, which received its premiere by the LA Opera on November 5. Read the article here. Snider’s fifth full-length album, titled Forward into Light, will be released through Nonesuch and New Amsterdam Records in February 2026.
18c Orchestra and Lucie Horsch premiere new work by Freya Waley-Cohen 
The Orchestra of the 18th Century typically gives performances of music of the 18th and early 19th centuries on historical instruments. This month, they presented the world premiere of a newly commissioned work by YMP alum Freya Waley-Cohen. In a week-long, five-concert tour of the Netherlands featuring recorder player Lucie Horsch, Freya’s concertino, The Ladybird, was performed alongside the music of Scarlatti, Corelli, and Handel. Congratulations, Freya!
Esther Landau honored for contributions to philanthropy
Walden extends heartfelt congratulations to Esther Landau—our former Director of Development and Alumni Relations and the parent of a Walden alum—on receiving the Hank Rosso Outstanding Fundraising Professional Award from the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Golden Gate chapter. The award was presented at the AFP’s National Philanthropy Day celebration on November 14 in San Francisco. Esther currently serves as Senior Director of Advancement at The Arc San Francisco, where she works on behalf of people with disabilities and dreams of “a world where all of us are celebrated for who we are, where we all have access to what we need, and where equality is so widespread that fundraising and philanthropy will become unnecessary.” Congratulations, Esther, on this well-deserved honor!
Cyrus Chestnut plays A Charlie Brown Christmas in San Francisco 
On December 20, jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut will perform music from A Charlie Brown Christmas in the Miner Auditorium at SFJazz. Called “the best pianist of his generation” (Time), Chestnut is a YMP alum and has been a visiting artist at Walden. He has also headlined two recent Walden fundraising events in Baltimore and New York City.
Walden artists to perform in Wet Ink Mini-Festival 2025
The Wet Ink Ensemble, a past visiting at ensemble at Walden that has been described as “dense, wild, yet artfully controlled” (The New York Times), will present its annual Mini-Festival at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music in New York City on December 13. The program will feature works by ensemble members Eric Wubbels and Mariel Roberts Musa, both of whom have been in residence at Walden. Also on the program, Walden alum, former YMP faculty member, and frequent Walden guest artist Aurora Nealand will present a solo performance.
Walden alum plays alongside Zoltán Mága at Carnegie Hall 
CMR alum Brent Morden played piano with world-renowned Hungarian violinist Zoltán Mága and his orchestra at Carnegie Hall on November 2. About this experience, Brent says: “It was a privilege to perform on this legendary stage. I am grateful to Mr. Mága and the Liszt Institute for their invitation, and to my friends, family, and colleagues for their support.” Congratulations, Brent!
Pianist Mackenzie Melemed releases debut album
On November 21, YMP alum Mackenzie Melemed released his debut album, Tulevaisuus. The album, whose title means “future” in Finnish, combines beloved music by Bach, Liszt, and Brahms with new works by Stephen Hough, Laura Kaminsky, and Avner Dorman. Rooted in the past yet alive in the present, Tulevaisuus explores how memory and tradition can shape the music of the future. Congratulations, Mackenzie!
Windborne performs at Mariposa Museum and World Culture Center 
On December 4, vocal ensemble Windborne, a former Walden ensemble-in-residence, presented a concert entitled “Music of Midwinter,” through the Mariposa Museum and World Culture Center. Located in Peterborough, New Hampshire, the Mariposa Museum is near Walden’s beloved summer home of Dublin, New Hampshire. Windborne is performing this program 13 times between December 1 and 22, in cities around the American Northeast and the United Kingdom.
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and Tessa Lark premiere work of Lisa Bielawa
On November 30, violinist Tessa Lark and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra presented a new work by Lisa Bielawa, who was Composer-in-Residence for Walden’s Online Creative Musicians Experience (OCME) in 2020. First premiered in October 2025 by the co-commissioning Louisville Orchestra, Violin Concerto No. 2, PULSE engages with American traditional musics—Tin Pan Alley, Shape Note Singing, and Old Time fiddle music. The concert on November 30 placed the concerto alongside beloved works by Carlos Simon, Aaron Copland, and Antonín Dvořák.
Walden alumni and faculty members improvise together in Baltimore
On November 26, composer and cellist Robert Karpay, a YMP and CMR alum, presented an evening of improvised music at new music venue The Hargrove in Baltimore. The performance, titled “Robert Karpay Infiltrates Peabody,” featured Karpay performing alongside Sam Pluta, a longtime Walden faculty member, and Sky Macklay, a former Walden faculty member and an alum of CMR and Walden’s Teacher Training Institute (TTI), as well as Kayleigh Sprouse, a singer in the Anchorites Ensemble. Pluta and Macklay are both professors at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, with Sam chairing the Computer Music department and Sky chairing the Composition department.
Quince Ensemble performs music of Walden faculty
Quince Ensemble, a past Walden ensemble-in-residence, shared the stage with mezzo-soprano Clara Osowski at Columbia University’s Miller Theatre on November 18. The program included music by former YMP faculty member Evan Williams and YMP alum and former faculty member Eliza Brown, alongside pieces by by Woody Guthrie (arr. Liz Pearse), Carrie Henneman Shaw, and Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon. The works by Evan Williams and Eliza Brown can be heard on Quince’s Dust Bowl album.
Annie Gosfield receives award for artistic innovation
Annie Gosfield, a past Composer-in-Residence at both of Walden’s programs, has been honored by the MATA Festival, receiving its first annual Resonance Award for artistic innovation. Her work was honored at a soiree on December 8 in New York City. Congratulations, Annie! On December 4, pianist Margaret Leng Tan performed Gosfield’s work Shattered Apparitions of the Western Wind at Mills College in Oakland, California, as part of a program to call attention to climate change.
We Want To Hear From You!
If you have a recent or upcoming premiere or concert, publication, award, new job, or a celebratory life event, please share your news, which needn’t be music-related (although we love your music-related news to be sure!). Email your news to alumni@waldenschool.org.
Stay in Touch
You can like The Walden School page on Facebook and join The Walden School private group to hear about events and opportunities throughout the year. You can also find us on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, bandcamp, and at waldenschool.org.
