Project Creator Alisa Weilerstein
Director Elkhanah Pulitzer
Set/Lighting Designer Seth Reiser
Costume Designer Molly Irelan
Artistic Producer/Advisor Hanako Yamaguchi
In Alisa Weilerstein’s ground-breaking performance series FRAGMENTS, new music by some of the most compelling composers of our time meets the timeless beauty of Bach’s Six Suites for Solo Cello.
New commissions by 27 different composers are interwoven with the individual movements of the Bach Suites. The result is a collection of six different FRAGMENTS performances in total, curated by Alisa and underscored with bespoke lighting, scenic architecture, and costume design from a world class team of creatives. Each of the six FRAGMENTS performances embodies its own striking identity that transforms the Bach Cello suites in turn.
Each FRAGMENTS performance is around 60 minutes of music and a program with nothing more than the composers’ names, in which Alisa invites the audience to simply immerse themselves in the dramatic power of live performance.
Featured Composers
Alan Fletcher, Allison Loggins-Hull, Ana Sokolović, Andy Akiho, Carlos Simon, Caroline Shaw, Courtney Bryan, Daniel Kidane, Gabriel Kahane, Gabriela Lena Frank, Gabriella Smith, Gerard McBurney, Gili Schwarzman, Gity Razaz, Jeffrey Mumford, Jessie Montgomery, Joan Tower, Johann Sebastian Bach, Joseph Hallman, Mathilde Wantenaar, Matthias Pintscher, Missy Mazzoli, Osvaldo Golijov, Paul Wiancko, Reinaldo Moya, Tania Leon, Thomas Larcher, Chen Yi
UPCOMING PERFORMANCES
Spoleto Festival, Charleston, SC – May 26-31, 2025
FRAGMENTS 1: Wonder
FRAGMENTS 2: Tumult
FRAGMENTS 3: Emergence
FRAGMENTS 4: Labyrinth
FRAGMENTS 5: LamentWorld Premiere
FRAGMENTS 6: RadianceWorld Premiere
PAST PERFORMANCES
“My greatest hope is to deepen connection between audience and artist through a series of unique performances that embrace the world we live in without sacrificing the intellectual and aesthetic qualities that make this artform such a singular mode of human expression.” – Alisa Weilerstein
For more information about booking, please contact:
Opus 3 (North America)
Scott Mello: [email protected]
Askonas Holt (Europe, Asia, and Australia)
Emma Beecham: [email protected]
Additional booking and contact information available at www.alisaweilerstein.com.
Leadership support for FRAGMENTS is generously provided by Joan and Irwin Jacobs. Patron support for FRAGMENTS is provided by Judy and Tony Evnin, Clara Wu Tsai and Paul Sekhri. FRAGMENTS has been made possible with commissioning support from The San Diego Symphony, Spoleto Festival, UC Santa Barbara Arts & Lectures, Carnegie Hall, Celebrity Series of Boston, The Royal Conservatory of Music for the 21C Festival, and Washington Performing Arts. Additional support is provided by the Alphadyne Foundation, the Musicians Advocacy Fund, the Steinsieck Foundation, and the Cheswatyr Foundation. FRAGMENTS was supported by New Music USA’s Organization Fund in 2024-25. Special thanks to Martha Gilmer for her leadership and counsel, and to Celebrity Series of Boston, San Francisco Conservatory of Music and Aspen Music Festival and School for their continued support and in-kind contributions.