The 12th Season of the Rite of Summer Music Festival Comes to Governors Island

Artistic Directors Pam Goldberg and Blair McMillen present the 12th Season of the Rite of Summer Music Festival, taking place Summer 2023 on Governors Island, New York City. Rite of Summer will present six FREE outdoor concerts from June through August. In a locale The New York Times has called a "Playground for the Arts," the aim of the Festival is simple: to present the highest quality live performances, and to bring free contemporary classical music to as many people as possible in a relaxed, fun, outdoor setting.

This season's spectacular line-up kicks off on Friday, June 16th with The Jazz WaHi Composers Sextet performing works and world premieres of composer/performer members: Julie Maniscalco, Trumpet; Berta Moreno, Tenor sax; Michael Rörby, Trombone; Mark Kross, Piano; Eddy Khaimovich, Bass and Joseph Chidiebere Emmanuel, Drums.

Next up on Saturday, July 22nd, Irish ensemble Dublin Guitar Quartet will perform a program featuring works by Bryce Dessner, Marc Mellits, Wojciech Kilar, Gyorgy Ligeti and Philip Glass. This marks the first time an esteemed touring global ensemble will be presented by Rite of Summer.

Season 12 closes with PUBLIQuartet on Friday, August 25th performing selections from their GRAMMY-nominated album, What is American, featuring an amalgamation of styles that trace their roots to American Indigenous and Black music. The title is intended as both a question and a statement: the question interrogates our nation's complex musical traditions, while the statement projects traditions forward. Works will be announced from the stage.

Rite of Summer shows will be presented twice the same day at 5pm and 7pm at Castle Williams for the June 16th and August 25th concerts as well as at 1pm and 3pm in Nolan Park for the July 22nd concert. Audiences should feel free to walk by, stop and listen, lay down a picnic blanket and relax, eat, mingle, and take in these engaging live performances.

Past seasons have presented such artists as: The Knights; Alarm Will Sound; Pamela Z; JACK Quartet; Dawn of Midi; Imani Winds; Bang on a Can All-Stars; ETHEL; Ensemble Connect; Pam Goldberg; Miranda Cuckson; Blair McMillen; Nurit Pacht; Esther Noh; Caitlin Sullivan; Allison Charney; John Brancy; Peter Dugan; Kara Sainz; Theo Bleckmann; The Parker Quartet; New York Philharmonic's Very Young Composers with ETHEL and Iktus Percussion; Jeffrey Zeigler; Ian David Rosenbaum; Todd Reynolds; Jonny Rogers; Jordan Tice; Mathias Kunzli; Curtis Stewart; TIGUE; Grand Band; Talujon Percussion; Phyllis Chen; Anthony De Mare; Fireworks Ensemble; Classical Jam; House of Waters; Sirius Quartet; Sandbox Percussion; Contemporaneous; Don Byron New Gospel Quintet; Iktus Percussion; Brooklyn Raga Massive; DITHER; Collaborative Arts Ensemble; Ljova and the Kontraband; The Westerlies; Sybarite5; a Jed Distler-led extravaganza of Terry Riley's In C featuring over 40 of New York's top freelance musicians including members of American Modern Ensemble, Newspeak, Momenta Quartet, and more; John Luther Adams's Inuksuit with over 60 percussionists from Mantra Percussion, Ensemble et al, Loop 2.4.3, Palladium Percussion, Iktus Percussion, Sandbox Percussion, Contemporaneous, and students from Stony Brook, Queens College, NYU, and Mantra Youth Percussion.

Governors Island is open daily year-round from 7am to 6pm. Ferries operated by the Trust for Governors Island run daily from the Battery Maritime Building, located at 10 South Street in Lower Manhattan. Trust-operated ferries are always free for kids 12 and under, seniors 65 and up, IDNYC holders, residents of NYCHA housing, current and former military servicemembers, Governors Island members, and for everyone on weekends before noon. Round-trip ferry tickets for adults are $3 at all other times. Visit govisland.org/ferry for schedules and ticket information. NYC Ferry provides additional daily service to Governors Island-for NYC Ferry schedules, pricing and more information, visit https://ferry.nyc.

For more information, visit www.riteofsummer.com. Digital Photos are available upon request.