Message from Seth Brenzel,
Executive Director
Summer is coming! Walden’s 2026 season begins in less than three weeks, and I could not be more excited to welcome nearly 100 participants to Dublin, New Hampshire, for another invigorating season of creative music-making. Read on to learn about our extraordinary lineup of free concerts and our superb faculty, staff, and artists who will bring the Walden experience to life once again for our students and audiences.
Even sooner than that, I hope you will join us for the premiere of a new commissioned work by Walden student Henry Vidaver, the latest recipient of The Walden School/PRISM Quartet Student Commissioning Award. Vidaver’s piece for saxophone quartet will be premiered by PRISM in Philadelphia on Saturday, June 6, at 7 pm and in New York City on Sunday, June 7, at 4 pm, on a program that also includes a premiere by Walden alum Teddy Poll. After each concert, there will be casual receptions for Walden alums and community members to gather. Please mark your calendars and plan to join us!
There are just a few spots remaining in our student body for Summer 2026. Applications for Walden’s 2026 summer programs are being accepted and will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Both the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) will be held on the beautiful Dublin School campus in Dublin, New Hampshire. Read on for more details, and please help us spread the word!
This edition of InterNetzo also rounds up our recent and upcoming fundraising events, including an August 1 celebration in New Hampshire featuring pianist Eric Huebner, as well as lots of exciting community news.
I hope you will join us in Dublin–or online!–to experience the extraordinary breadth of creativity that will unfold at Walden this summer.
Seth Brenzel
Executive Director
(415) 587-8157
Upcoming Community Events
PRISM Quartet to premiere works by Walden alums
Young Musicians Program (YMP) alum Henry Vidaver (pictured, left) was selected last year as the winner of The Walden School/PRISM Quartet Student Commissioning Award, a longstanding partnership in which Walden and the PRISM Quartet collaborate to select a student composer, mentor that composer in completing their final score, and PRISM provides a world premiere performance experience.
On June 6 and 7, PRISM will give the first performances of Vidaver’s commissioned piece for saxophone quartet, Via Appia, on a program titled Premieres. The concerts will also feature a new commissioned work by YMP alum Teddy Poll.
Premieres by PRISM Quartet
Saturday, June 6, in Philadelphia, at 7 pm
Settlement Music School, Germantown Branch
6128 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia, PA, 19144
$10, $22.50, or $35 General Admission (pay-what-you-wish)
Free Parking
Sunday, June 7, in New York City, at 4 pm
Christ & St. Stephens Church
120 W 69th St, New York, NY, 10023
$10, $22.50, or $35 General Admission (pay-what-you-wish)
There will be casual receptions after the concerts in both Philadelphia and New York for Walden alums and community members to gather. Please write to us at events@waldenschool.org if you are interested in attending or volunteering to help with the receptions!
Read more about Henry Vidaver and the PRISM commission
Henry Vidaver is the 24th winner of the PRISM Quartet/Walden School Student Commissioning Award, initiated in 2000 and presented annually to a current or recent YMP student. Described as “a bold ensemble that set the standard for contemporary-classical saxophone quartets” (The New York Times), PRISM has commissioned more than 300 works from eminent composers. Walden is proud to collaborate with PRISM Quartet on this opportunity to support young composers in their creative development.
Walden’s Extraordinary 2026 Season
2026 Concert Series
Each summer, Walden’s award-winning Concert Series presents leading professional musicians and ensembles on concerts that are offered free of charge to the public and webcast through high-quality livestreams.
This summer, Walden will present exciting concerts and presentations by The Walden School Players, Ensemble Dal Niente, Duo della Luna, the International Contemporary Ensemble, W4rp Trio, New Orleans-based jazz performer Aurora Nealand, and Composers-in-Residence Nicole Mitchell and Nathan Davis.
All concerts will be free and open to the public, as well as livestreamed on Walden’s YouTube channel for a global audience. We hope you will join us—whether in person or virtually—for a season of dynamic performances, creative collaborations, and diverse new musical voices.
View the complete 2026 Concert Series lineup
2026 Faculty and Staff
Each summer, Walden assembles an accomplished and well-rounded team of faculty and staff to mentor and inspire our students. Our philosophy is that by participating together in all levels of community life, faculty, staff, visiting artists, and students can create an environment where creativity flourishes and mentorship abounds.
Walden’s 2026 faculty and staff team is a wonderful mix of returning team members, team members returning in new roles, and several new staff and faculty members. Walden’s faculty are a diverse group of improvisers, composers, conductors, performers, and music scholars, all of whom are committed to the creation and dissemination of new music and to developing the next generation’s composers, performers, arts leaders, and more.
Visit our website to learn about our incredible faculty and staff:
Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) faculty and staff
Young Musicians Program (YMP) faculty and staff
Upcoming Fundraising Events
Join Walden’s Summer of Creativity!
This summer, Walden is launching an online campaign—the Summer of Creativity—in which members of our community will undertake creative projects and solicit donations to Walden from their friends, colleagues, and family members in order to support scholarships and artist residencies at our summer programs. This create-a-thon is planned to run throughout Walden’s summer season, from June 13 through August 2.
We are seeking volunteers to join the Summer of Creativity. Please write to us at donors@waldenschool.org if you are interested in participating, or if you have any questions about the campaign.
Projects of all types are welcome, whether musical or nonmusical. Creative projects during previous create-a-thons have included: planting a garden pathway, learning to play a piano piece, writing a novella, composing a song cycle, writing haikus, recording an album, coding a computer application, and creating a piece of jewelry, to name just a few.
Monday, July 27: Giving Day
Save the date for Walden’s annual online day of giving, which will take place on the first day of Festival Week at the Young Musicians Program (YMP). We’ll share live video updates throughout the day, including snippets of Walden classes, rehearsals, and other daily activities, as well as interviews with students, faculty, staff, and artists about what makes the Walden experience special. Mark your calendars and tune in to support our students!
Saturday, August 1: A Walden Celebration and Fundraiser in New Hampshire
Featuring pianist Eric Huebner
We are delighted to announce pianist Eric Huebner as the featured artist for a Walden celebration and fundraiser in Dublin, New Hampshire, on Saturday, August 1, starting at 2 pm. Please mark your calendars and join us to celebrate the culmination of Walden’s 2026 season.
Pianist Eric Huebner has drawn worldwide acclaim for his performances of new and traditional music since making his debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at age 17. In January 2012, he was appointed pianist of the New York Philharmonic and currently holds the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Piano Chair. A devoted teacher as well as performer, Huebner is Professor and Chair of the Department of Music at the University at Buffalo (SUNY). He has been in residence at The Walden School during multiple seasons.
Event Recaps
A Walden Celebration and Fundraiser in Washington, DC
This celebration was held at the historic DACOR Bacon House in downtown Washington, DC, where guests enjoyed a duo performance by pianist Pallavi Mahidhara and violist/violinist Aurélien Fort Pederzoli, a past visiting artist at Walden. The Mahidhara-Fort duo performed music by Mozart, French baroque composer Marin Marais, and contemporary Icelandic composer Veronique Vaka.
Above: Aurélien Fort Pederzoli and Pallavi Mahidhara performing
We are very grateful to all of our event donors, who contributed $6,850 to Walden’s Annual Fund as part of this celebration. Thank you!
Thank you to our host committee: JoAnn Balingit, Seth Brenzel, Peter Colohan and Fenton Blake, Francine Hochberg-Giuffrida and Jeffrey Giuffrida, Steve Messner and Liz Prelinger, Noah Mlotek, and Will Yale
❤️ Support Walden Today ❤️
Above: Walden alums Noah Mlotek, Seth Brenzel, Russell Nadel, Tyson Laa Deng, Francesca Hellerman, and Nora Giuffrida
A Walden Celebration and Fundraiser in New York City
This event drew more than 65 guests to the historic, art-filled Salmagundi Club in Greenwich Village, for a solo recital by pianist Blair McMillen, who has appeared as a visiting artist at Walden during multiple seasons. McMillen performed works by Claude Debussy, Margaret Bonds, William Bolcom, and Gabriella Smith, as well as a composition written at Walden last summer by Young Musicians Program (YMP) alum Sébastien Nothias.
Thanks to our event donors, we raised $6,360 for Walden’s Annual Fund as part of this celebration. Thank you! Thanks also to Kate Valenta, Alex Johnston, and Scott Menchin for donating several wonderful raffle prizes.
Thank you to our host committee: Whit Bernard and Freya Zaheer, David Bivins and Kristen Davis, Seth Brenzel, Sarah Cornog and Chris Chesney, Gaela Dennison-Leonard, Andrew Jacobs and Kathy Park, Hilary Kole and Chad Hoeppner, Sookyoung Lee and Matthew Egan, Tessie McGough, Scott Menchin and Yvetta Fedorova, Noah Mlotek, Sammi Jo Stone, Solon Snider Sway and Emma Sway, Kate Valenta and Alex Johnston, Jennifer Weidman and Barry Adler
❤️ Support Walden Today ❤️
Above left: Theo Trevisan, Rodier, Solon Snider Sway, and Anne Trevisan; above right: Jonathan McCullagh, Kathy Park, and Andrew Jacobs
A Few Spots Remain for Walden 2026
Applications are being accepted for Summer 2026!
There’s still time to apply to The Walden School’s 2026 summer programs! Applications to both the Young Musicians Program (YMP) and Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) are currently being accepted and will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Don’t delay!
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.
Apply to Walden 2026!
Walden Merchandise
Wonderful Walden merch is for sale on our website! We have Walden beach towels, blankets, vintage summer program shirts (YMP and CMR alumni: ask about your year!), canvas totes, stickers, pens, pencils, and more.
See what’s available and fill out an order form here.
Payment can be made by check, money order, Zelle, credit card, or PayPal. Zelle and PayPal payments should be directed to billing@waldenschool.org.
Please contact Mindy Williams, Walden’s Administrative Director, or call the Walden office at (415) 587-8157 if you have any questions.
🎁Order Walden Merch🎁
Community News
Kyra Sims voyages to Antarctica
Hornist Kyra Sims, a member of The Walden School Players, travelled to Antarctica through a fellowship from Polar STEAM, which pairs artists and educators with Antarctic scientists on polar expeditions. Apart from Metallica, Sims is the only musician in the world known to have performed on all seven continents!
During the expedition, Sims wrote a piece called First Year Sea Ice in honor of her ship, the research vessel Sikuliaq. Sikuliaq” is an Iñupiaq term meaning “young sea ice.” She also created a piece called Otto in Antarctica (Otto is the name of her horn), incorporating field recordings from the voyage, and she worked closely with the scientists on board studying the effects of climate change on the region’s complex ecosystems. Sims was interviewed about the experience by PRI’s The World.
Two Walden composers honored by American Academy
In February, the American Academy of Arts and Letters announced its 2026 Music Award winners, two of whom are connected with Walden. Katherine Balch is a former Walden faculty member and Natacha Diels is an alum of Walden’s Teacher Training Institute (TTI). Both Balch and Diehls received Arts and Letters awards, which recognize composers who have “arrived at their own voice.” Each award comes with $10,000 plus a $10,000 grant toward a recording of one of the composer’s works. A concert of works by each recipient will be presented in the Arts and Letters Library in New York City. Congratulations, Katie and Natacha!
Walden student featured at WoCo Fest
Nora Giuffrida, a Young Musicians Program (YMP) alum, had one of her compositions performed on the opening concert of WoCo Fest 2026 at Strathmore in Bethesda, Maryland. WoCo Fest is a celebration of music by women and gender-marginalized composers, presented annually by the Boulanger Initiative. Nora’s 2025 Walden Festival Piece, The Dove, was performed by violinist Audrey Wright, a member of the New York Philharmonic who performs with live electronics and sound-responsive light art as Luminous Being. Noah Mlotek, Walden’s Director of Development and Alumni Relations, was in attendance, along with Boulanger Initiative co-founders Laura C!olgate and Joy-Leilani Garbutt. The next day, Nora joined Noah in staffing an informational table for Walden. Congratulations, Nora, and thanks for volunteering
Victoria Cheah awarded Rome Prize
YMP alum Victoria Cheah, a composer and electronic musician, was awarded a 2026–2027 Rome Prize in musical composition. This prestigious honor supports innovative and cross-disciplinary work in the arts and humanities, providing recipients with time and space to work at the American Academy in Rome. Cheah is a graduate of Hunter College, received her PhD in composition from Brandeis University, and is a faculty member at Berklee College of Music/Boston Conservatory. Congratulations, Tori!
Walden Artist receives Guggenheim Fellowship
Violinist Josh Modney, who performs as Modney, has been named as a 2026 Guggenheim Fellow. Modney is a frequent visiting artist at Walden’s summer programs, often in association with the International Contemporary Ensemble. Modney also performed at a Walden celebration and fundraiser in Washington, DC, in May 2024. Congratulations, Josh!
International Contemporary Ensemble performs music by Marcos Balter and Andromeda Wen
The International Contemporary Ensemble, a frequent Walden visiting ensemble, performed two pieces by past Walden composer-in-residence Marcos Balter on May 21. The program, which also featured works by Du Yun, Anthony Braxton, and Yaz Lancaster, was followed by a discussion between Balter and the performers about the creative process of composition in today’s world. The event was co-presented by MacDowell, the renowned artist residency in Peterborough, New Hampshire,
right near Walden’s summer home in New Hampshire’s Monadnock region.
On Thursday, June 4, the International Contemporary Ensemble will join the celebration of Luna Composition Lab’s 10th anniversary by presenting a concert titled Luna Lab@10, New Moons, featuring six world premieres by 2025-26 fellows, including Echoes by Andromeda Wen, a YMP alum. Alongside these premieres, the Ensemble will perform works by Luna Lab mentor composers Vivian Fung, Brittany J. Green, and Angélica Negrón.
Carlos Pereira releases new album
A new album of original compositions by YMP faculty member Carlos Henrique Pereira is available now from Salvaterra Music. Northern Readings features Pereira performing on piano and guitar alongside a small ensemble. His compositions span influences including Brazilian music, jazz improvisation, and chamber music. A review in Jazz Views describes the album as “a delightful exploration of sonic landscapes and instrumental combinations,” and quotes Carlos as citing his Walden teaching experience as a major influence on his compositional approach.
Wet Ink Ensemble performs music by Aurora Nealand
Aurora Nealand is familiar to the Walden community through her much-loved annual concert of New Orleans-style jazz during Walden’s Young Musicians Program, which will take place again this year on Friday, July 3. Nealand is also a composer and former Walden faculty member. New York-based contemporary music ensemble Wet Ink will premiere a new octet by Nealand on Wednesday, June 10, at Roulette in Brooklyn. The performance is the culmination of her time as Artist-in-Residence for Wet Ink’s 2025–2026 season. The concert will also include works by Jo Kondo, Jürg Frey, and Wet Ink member Alex Mincek. Wet Ink Ensemble has appeared on Walden’s Concert Series during multiple seasons, and the ensemble includes several Walden-affiliated artists, including Sam Pluta, Modney, and Mariel Roberts Musa.
Work of Walden alum recorded in Helsinki
This past February, Creative Musicians Retreat (CMR) alum Drew Kravin produced a video recording of A Northern Summer Evening, featuring mezzo-soprano, violin, vibraphone, and piano, at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Finland. Drew originally composed this piece for CMR in 2023. YMP and CMR alum Niki Main, who is pursuing a master’s degree at the Sibelius Academy, recruited the musicians and videographer, and coordinated and directed the video. The video description includes background about the piece as well as the text, along with the translation of the Finnish parts
Sol Quartet performs work by Derek David
In April, past Walden visiting ensemble Del Sol Quartet performed a clarinet quintet by Derek David, a former YMP faculty member, on concerts in Colorado and New Mexico. The quintet, titled Oh World, Goodnight, was co-commissioned in 2022 by Del Sol and The Rossini Club and was premiered with clarinetist Nick Davies. The piece showcases Derek’s love of Yiddish culture, klezmer music, and Baroque tradition.
Arlo Bivins works on Brian Lehrer Show at WNYC
Arlo Bivins, a YMP alum, is an intern with the Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC this spring. Through the internship, he has pitched and written several segments for the show on local and national topics and plans to write more segments in the coming months. Arlo says “the experience has been incredible and has pushed me to delve further into the social sciences.” Congratulations, Arlo!
Peter Pap profiled in Monadnock Ledger-Transcript
Peter Pap, a longtime Walden supporter, was recently profiled in the Monadnock Ledger-Transcript. The article focuses on his antique rug business, which has locations in both Dublin, New Hampshire, and San Francisco—neighboring Walden on both coasts! Currently, Pap is exhibiting Frank Stella’s Navajo textile collection in New York City.
Work by CMR alum premiered in Switzerland
On April 16, a new work by CMR alum Vicente Hansen Atria was premiered by Ensemble Proton in Bern, Switzerland. Commissioned through the American Composers Forum, The Pilgrimage of Paracelsus draws on the 16th-century thinker’s rigor, imagination, and idiosyncrasies. Congratulations, Vicente!
New work by Ruth Hertzman-Miller premiered
On May 2, the Providence Medical Orchestra performed a new work by Ruth Herzman-Miller, a CMR alum. Titled The Things Between Us, the piece sets three texts by people with dementia from Living Words, a United Kingdom-based organization in which writers and artists work one-to-one in creative partnership with people in nursing homes. Congratulations, Ruth!
Walden alums premiere new work together
Two Walden community members recently performed together on the premiere of First Disobedience by Clark Nichols at Indiana University Bloomington Jacobs School of Music. The work is written for bass voice (sung by YMP alum Evan Tiapula), mandolin, and chamber orchestra. Will Hawkins, an alum and staff member at both YMP and CMR, played viola in the chamber ensemble. Congratulations to all involved!
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.
